Sharpening your learning team’s saw

How is your learning team learning?

The learning and development profession’s responsibility is to develop others in the organization. Often the L&D department neglects its own development. We have all heard the phrase “the cobbler’s kids have no shoes.” This phrase often describes those of us in the L&D field. Based on initiatives, business goals or time, we tend to focus on other department’s development before our own.

However, in order to provide their organization’s employees the best learning solutions out there, it is critical for the learning professional to constantly be learning as well. If focus or time is not given to those in learning to enhance their own capabilities, they could experience burnout, produce outdated or poor-quality learning solutions. Learning leaders have a responsibility to create a culture of learning not only with the business at large, but for their own team members in L&D. 

Organizations rely on our recruiting and talent acquisition teams to attract talent. Yet, it is the L&D team that contributes to keeping talented individuals engaged, sharp and current. Being tasked with such an important role can only be achieved by being as sharp as the L&D department possibly can — principal for organizational learners. But how do we accomplish this?

First and foremost, as an L&D leader, you must commit to providing development opportunities and creating the time for team members to make their personal development and sharpening their skills a priority. By doing this, the leader demonstrates the importance of the team’s ongoing development and a feeling of investment.

Assess your team’s knowledge

Using one-on-one conversations, surveys and observations, the leader determines the team’s knowledge of learning design’s best practices and adult learning principles. The leader should also assess team members’ business and content areas they will encounter when creating learning solutions. Even if the team uses subject matter experts to assist with the design and facilitation of a program, it is important that each member has a baseline understanding of the content. Once leaders understand the development needs and knowledge gaps of the team, the leader should consider the following suggestions to sharpen all their tools. 

Bring people together

L&D leaders are perfectly positioned to create a community where learning and knowledge-sharing is encouraged, in the form of either formal or informal in-person conversations. When budget permits, consider bringing your entire department (or subset teams) together, regardless of role and level, to create a culture of team learning. Consider hosting an all-team summit to address areas of development determined by the team’s needs assessment — in-person is preferred. There are various types of meetings or summits to consider, such as a management team internal summit, a digital team internal summit or a director team internal summit. These summits could offer internal knowledge-sharing sessions, state of the unions, external consultant presentations or general networking sessions. Ultimately, the opportunity to bring people together creates both formal and informal ways to sharpen your team’s skill sets. 

Be a role model for learning

A role model learning leader encourages the design and development of programs that address those predetermined knowledge gaps. They also set an example for encouraging reading and the sharing of new ideas. For example, if the team needs a greater understanding of learning design, create an adult learning series that reviews the basics. Design and lead 30-minute sessions on Malcom Knowles, the Addie model, Bloom’s Taxonomy or Kirkpatrick’s four levels of evaluation. Another idea is to distribute a monthly article on a topic and dedicate time at the next department team meeting to have an open discussion about it. 

Create an intradepartmental “learning for learning” sub-team

Establish a group of individuals across your L&D department who will generate an ongoing learning curriculum, focusing on the core areas the team has identified. The benefits of having an internal group far outweigh the hiring externally. This group will lend itself to a more in-depth understanding of a team’s needs as well as providing easy access to other members to communicate and collaborate. This easy access allows for efficient testing of the team’s own learning curriculum.

An example of a collaborative team approach is having a department training series speed team. A speed team is driven primarily by internal members. Ideally, they continue to search and evaluate topics or areas that need addressing at various points throughout the year. Also, the team can offer quarterly sessions involving pre- and post-work practice to test understanding. Topics may range from hybrid learning models, PowerPoint best practices, design-thinking, consultative skills and industry-specific roundtables.  

Also, as Stephen Covey details in regard to sharpening the saw, it is important to not only develop teams professionally, but personally as well. Create opportunities for your team members to focus on their whole selves through wellness programs, meditations and work-life balance. 

It’s also important for leaders to note: Another way to create shared learning experiences on other topics is to create additional sub-teams or “speed teams” about other topics that are relevant to the ongoing enhancement of the learning department’s intellectual capital. Some additional speed teams could be focused on learning metrics and digital learning strategy. 

Each speed team should have a sponsor at the director level and be led and driven by a team member. This model allows team members in different branches of the department to collaborate, communicate and learn from each other. The teams meet regularly and are a critical part of the strategy and goals set by the department, and approved by firm leadership each year each year. 

Focus on your managers

Depending on the size of your L&D department, managers may comprise a part of the team. This group has specific needs in developing management capabilities to be successful in leading other team members. To develop these capabilities, workshops, conversations, knowledge-sharing and training sessions on well-known management models — such as Situational Leadership II or the Ladder of Inference — are utilized.

Our own department’s management team meets regularly and hosts a book club on management or L&D topics. Some books read and discussed include, “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team,” “The Go-Giver” and “Radical Candor.” The discussions around these books help generate insight into leading and motivating team members. If your managers are high-functioning, they will be effective coaches on those core learning design concepts and in keeping your talent engaged. 

Meet virtually

Management teams should meet monthly, but the regular meetings shouldn’t stop there. The entire department should also meet monthly, as should the different teams in the department. To ensure their meeting time is well-spent, our team ensures there is an agenda and takeaways for each session. The leader opens each meeting by revisiting the department’s mission statement and reviews one of our operating principles. This process reminds members of the purpose of their role and the benefit of our efforts.

Our team has what we call “Operating Principles of Excellence” or OPE. These are common agreements among team members for mutual understanding of expectations and greater team alignment. These principles include the team’s values and their norms of communication. An example of a team value OPE is “We embrace being uncomfortable for professional growth.” Having that principle at the front of mind allows each team member to stay focused on development, even when it’s uncomfortable. Reminding the team of these OPE’s helps them to keep to objectives and commit to the team’s overall growth.

Finally, it should be a priority for the learning leader to be accessible to each member of the team. Although the leader’s job is to teach, guide and support, the team must also be allowed to run with ideas and initiatives to implement its vision, giving them full ownership of their success. As an L&D leader, if you keep an open mind, you will realize the most innovative ideas come from your team. 

To recap: Learning leaders must have the following mindsets to employ this call to action. 

First, a leader should ask questions and observe. L&D leaders know there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to learning. Teams are no different. Some team members have learning gaps that need filled or skills that need honing. This is where the leader enters! The first step is to create a culture of learning within the team that keeps them sharp. Asking thoughtful questions in a welcoming space and implementing tools, resources and time, all help to fill gaps as well as sharpen insights. 

Next, the learning leader can create knowledge-sharing opportunities. It is imperative that the culture of the L&D team has room for opportunities to share time and resources among team members. This culture encourages the team to cross-train and share experiences and knowledge. This is a component in the collaborative development of the learning team.

Finally, encourage your team to take learning into their own hands. At the end of the day, creating a culture of learning and making development the expectation and the norm, will allow for the team to be most equipped to retain top talent. We, as learning leaders, must do unto ourselves what we do in the business for others — to continuously develop and grow.

Retention of talent starts with the L&D leaders. Creating a culture of continuous learning and providing opportunities for the L&D team to sharpen skills is imperative for leaders who want to better serve their organizations and support the retention of top talent. By committing to the ongoing growth of our L&D professionals, we can ensure they are engaged and equipped to meet the evolving needs of organizations, and continue to contribute to the overall success of businesses.