hiring decisions. “A survey by Robert Half
revealed that motivation to learn new skills was
the characteristic CFOs considered most nec-essary
for employees’ success,” said Prehogan.
“There’s clearly a very strong link between an
employee’s drive to learn and their ability to grow
within their role.”
FINAL THOUGHTS
Given the speed of business and the pace
of change, there’s a need to keep employees
developing and learning new skills. “A work-force
that is constantly learning can be one
of the greatest assets for any organization,”
said Prehogan.
That’s true of L&D itself, too, with HR having
to adapt, learn and compete as one of many pro-viders
of learning. “It’s forcing HR and learning
to rethink their value in the organization,” said
Pelster. “Some organizations are adapting really
well and moving forward toward curation and
data analysis skills to understand where there are
gaps in knowledge and skills.” He said, “Others
are really struggling with what this new world
means to them. But the train is moving ahead
whether you’re on board or not.” n
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Assess Needs and Measure Success
To ensure a successful learning and development program, organizations
need to take several steps. First, says Prehogan, ask what people need and
want. “Talk to employees about their career goals, potential career paths
at your company and what professional development they’re seeking,” said
Prehogan. “These insights can be gathered in one-on-one meetings and
employee surveys.”
Do some broader industry research, as well. “Keep up on industry standards
for top in-demand skills by learning about them through meetings and articles,
and by talking to specialized recruiters with inside knowledge and access to the
hidden talent pool,” said Prehogan.
Before wading into the development of any learning program, ask two key
questions, advises Pelster. “If you get these two questions right, everything else
falls into place,” said Pelster. “First, what is the problem you’re trying to solve?
And second, how do you know when you’re successful?”
“If you can clearly define the problem you’re trying to solve, whether it’s
improving sales or establishing better compliance, if you can clearly get
that down into a one- or two-sentence statement, and then agree on what
the measure of success is going to be, then you’re in a much better space,”
said Pelster.
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