Aligning to business objectives
A new year brings with it a fresh start, but at the moment it is likely to also mean tighter L&D budgets alongside an increasing remit. A difficult combination.
L&D teams are being asked to more closely align to business objectives to support the organisation in meeting its commercial goals.
This means:
- Increased remit - which is great because it shows the value of L&D teams
- Increased pressure - not so great as resources are tight
- The need to demonstrate business impact – with a data driven approach to continue to get buy in from the business
One of the latest trends in Learning and development is the need to continue to evolve and develop priorities and objectives in order to tackle these challenges and to show the full value of L&D.
Retaining the right people
The CIPD reported that 38% of organisations are boosting their efforts to meet talent requirements by developing it in-house.
As talent is becoming harder to retain, many organisations are taking steps to improve the situation. Two-fifths anticipate an increase to their recruitment and talent management budgets over the next year.
One way to manage this effectively is by giving your employees ample opportunity to develop by supporting and investing in their training goals.
Retention within the learning space centers around:
- Demonstrating value - making employees feel valued by empowering them to develop.
- Developing skillsets - to then lead to internal career mobility.
- Demonstrating you care – showing you care about your people, by offering support for wellbeing.
Hybrid learning models
Another point to consider is the technology trends in learning and development. There is no doubt that having the opportunity to work remotely, and increasingly to learn and develop digitally has brought about many advantages.
However, the increased time that the workforce spends sitting at a screen, has also contributed to a subsequent rise in digital fatigue and burn out.
Suitable learning software and content must facilitate learning in a hybrid environment, such as through:
- mobile apps
- blended learning
- virtual classrooms
Importantly hybrid learning models must also ensure that digital fatigue doesn't set in by having engaging, active content and mobile options so people can get away from their desks.
To keep up with the latest technology trends in learning and development going into 2023, ensure your learning solutions are:
- Easy to use - intuitive functionality must be available to meet the high expectations all users have when looking at their software options.
- Adaptable - learning technology designed with mobile in mind allows for bite-size learning anywhere, anytime.
- Engaging - making sure your content is effective and interesting, with interactive elements and check-in topics where suitable, will ensure your learning targets are met.
Supporting those who are less visible in the office will be another growing challenge for managers going forward as hybrid and remote working roles continue to rise. There will be less face to face meetings and social interaction, which may result in feelings of isolation and demotivation. To assist with this, we expect there to be:
- an increase in eLearning specifically for managers to prepare them for managing their teams remotely
- an increase in learning and training to develop employees who do not have the same level of in person interactions to guide them, such as in soft skills for remote junior level roles
Personalised digital learning
The next trend in learning and development we want to explore is personalised digital learning. As we discussed previously, each person’s learning journey is different and this means that objectives and expected outcomes need to be tailored to the individual.
Utilising personalised learning pathways is a great way to ensure that progress is accurately tracked and targeted training is delivered on an individual level, whilst also hitting wider organisational learning targets.
With employees’ time being stretched thin, it’s now more necessary than ever to offer tailored training that will nurture their desired career paths.
Christian Foerg, Access Learning General Manager:
"Employees should always be consuming information that is directly relevant to their job – gone are the days of company-wide e-learning rollouts that simply disengage those who cannot apply the learning to their work. Presenting curated information to specific subsets of employees ensures that they remain focused, and their time is used effectively."
Effectively utilising Learning Management Systems will grow in importance going into 2023, for example:
- taking the pressure off L&D managers with streamlined and automated admin
- using automated email services to push out training reminders and links
- developing more targeted, effective training
Digging into analytics
The process of collecting and reviewing data in order to improve outcomes is hardly breaking new ground for the majority of sectors, however it is undoubtedly one of the latest trends in learning and development.
Analysing how learning is delivered and responded to will ensure that the most relevant training is provided internally. Understanding learning metrics will give your organisation the tools needed to effectively improve learning pathways and ensure all training is targeted, useful and effectively absorbed by employees.
With the broadening of L&D objectives, L&D KPI's, and increasing pressure to add business impact we discussed earlier, understanding where to focus efforts is essential.
Perhaps most importantly, providing this information will enable L&D managers to demonstrate progress to senior leaders within the organisation.
Being in a position to successfully align training goals with your core business strategy will make sure that the L&D offering you provide is getting the right results and will help shape your future strategy.
Cultivating a culture of learning
One final trend in learning and development that should be considered going forward is the importance of learning cultures. If you are unfamiliar with this term, a learning culture is an ethos that encourages and cultivates employee learning and development within an organisation.
As we enter 2023, empowerment and democratisation will be prominent themes. Organisations will be looking at how they can support their employees on their learning journeys both in terms of career progression and personal growth.
Investing in the progression of your employees will naturally benefit them, but you will also see tangible results within your organisation. It will also encourage your workforce to want to learn more, developing beyond mandatory training they may see as a box-ticking exercise.
It’s important to note here that essential training such as compliance and health and safety will remain a fundamental pillar of any good L&D strategy, but looking to encourage personalised learning and professional development training is a great way to see your employees flourish.
By giving learners ownership of their training and learning, you are going to see increased adaptability on the four key business levers:
- Growth
- Transformation
- Productivity
- Profitability
The latest trends in learning and development - In Summary
Sarah Mian, Head of Learning Content, Access Learning:
“Learning has a seat at the table and we must demonstrate our impact by truly aligning to wider business objectives and taking a data driven approach.
Having a scalable digital learning solution centred within a wider people solution is integral to taking a human-centred approach and allows us to make our employees feel valued and cared for. In this way we not only provide our people with the learning they need to carry out their jobs, we support them to recognise and realise new skillsets which enable them to keep moving up and round the company (rather than out of it).
If we ignite this love for learning in a frictionless environment from the first day they enter our organisation then we are sure to engage, attract and retain our talent and ultimately grow our business.”
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