It’s time to redesign organized learning

The COVID-19 pandemic has “micro-waved” the transition to an impermanent workforce, an economy where the remote workforce is now a more significant percentage than ever envisioned. That switch happened as quickly as it took for the COVID-19 pandemic to become a global threat to human health. The switch to remote/hybrid working, remote learning, remote socializing, remote shopping and more all happened in a heartbeat.

To seize the new opportunities that our changing environment presents for individuals and organizations, both will need to reconsider their approach to learning. Building new skills and being able to apply these quickly and effectively is essential to survival. What is clear is that we don’t have the luxury of thousands of evolutionary years to adjust to our changed circumstances. The changes to our current environment have been abrupt, decisive and severe – demanding permanent adaptation.

Education and training providers and HR leaders have had to analyze the pandemic’s challenges on organizational learning, and reorganize how learning and development interventions are delivered. These are some of the critical factors that need reflection in our new normal:

Superficial vs. Extensive. Some subjects may require a high level of understanding, while others may require deep immersion for learning and application to take place. Learning strategies and interventions will require critical thinking around this aspect. For example, how do technology-enabled learning and “nano sessions” fit in, and when would it be appropriate? What are the learning goals? Some topics may require a build-up or progression, going from a basic, introductory level to an expert level with time or role transition. How will your organizational learning strategy cater to this aspect? If one considers a “Know, Do, Be” framework, and if a new skill requires both knowledge and doing, how will the learning content and delivery mechanism be structured in the future? Some generic, open enrollment courses may no longer be appropriate in this changing environment. 

Developing knowledge vs. Developing skills. Technology and non- or semi-customized content have their place in developing an understanding and basic (foundational) knowledge of certain topics. Research has shown that social media learning and access to web-based information can sometimes be a distraction and take away from “deep work.” Individuals and Corporates need to understand that:

• Awareness, understanding, knowledge and ultimately insights and skilled application of this is a process. Knowing how to build a process that enables this is critical, or else the effort on knowledge creation through learning is wasted.

• Learning design and delivery principles differ for skills building and knowledge acquisition. Learning design and facilitation processes – whether tech-based or person-based – need a different approach when skill-building is required.

Access to learning through technology platforms. Technology can facilitate broader access to learning; however, on their own, learning technology platforms do not accelerate learning. To enable effective learning, technology must be part of a more systemic learning eco-system that includes things such as rewards (the “what’s in it for me”), building blocks from one intervention to the next and post-learning support.  

What vs. How of learning. Since the pandemic, the focus has been on a push to restart learning and prevent learning stalls. However, the focus has been on the how – technology access and solutions, communication platforms, etc. While the intent may be good, the focus must be on the what of learning and the how. 

What do you as an individual need to learn? Learning activities must be linked to business and personal objectives and outcomes. What are the most critical skills one needs to learn? Simply having platforms and vast amounts of available content is misleading and deceptive. It is like having many adverts on web pages that take us to different paths through constant clicking behavior. We lose sight of the original objective of what we were looking for and get side-tracked. 

Organizations will need to think about three layers of learning content and access methods: 

• Thoughtfully curated by the organization for business fit.
• Semi-curated with the learner having some control of what they learn.
• Open for all, where the learner makes all the choices of what and how they learn.

Employee-centric learning approach. There must be a match of learning to organizational objectives as well. Non-curated, open content on platforms is great for focused and deeply aware employees but may not work for everyone, especially in cultures where self-direction is not very strong. Moreover, too much open, non-curated content, driven by non-contextual algorithms, is as detrimental to choice-making for the learner as is too little quality content

Generalized offerings vs. Customized ones. Making generic platforms and content available helps get to a base level of knowledge and awareness for employees and managers, but it does not necessarily provide enough depth for creating differentiated impact in a role. It also does not help in career-building or moving ahead with building deep and relevant skills for the future.

Informal and social learning. Learning can happen anytime, anywhere with those around us as sources of inspiration, knowledge and experience. Social learning takes place through observation or instruction in a social environment. Informal learning is a more impromptu form of learning. It usually happens “on the fly” and is often the unforeseen side effect of everyday activities. Organizations must leverage the opportunities to learn from different types of communities – peers, external networks, professional and academic bodies, etc. Does the design and delivery of the learning intervention leverage communities that can accelerate learning? There are huge possibilities to learn from different types of communities for all. By overinvesting in other aspects, we miss out on the intangible benefits of communities in our learning focus.

The current or traditional ways of organizing work and learning have been dramatically redefined post-pandemic. So too, have the requirements of skills and mindsets. It is time to reimagine and reboot our approaches to organizational learning from basic models to delivery and technology, to provide learning solutions that impact people and business outcomes.  

In the words of Winston Churchill, “never let a crisis go to waste.” For those able to find opportunities in our post-pandemic world, an innovative new world of work and learning awaits those who embrace it, adapt and thrive.