OPENING A NEW CONVERSATION WITH BUSINESS LEADERS: IT’S TIME FOR ACTION

June 17 2015

Laura OvertonTowards Maturity

L&D HAVE THE VISION FOR A MODERNISED LEARNING STRATEGY

BUT THE VISION CAN’T BE DELIVERED WITHOUT WORKING HAND IN HAND WITH THE BUSINESS

BUSINESS LEADERS HAVE US BOXED-IN

SLASH

COSTS!

BARGAINCOURSES!

HOW DO WE OPEN A NEW CONVERSATION?

DO WE SHOW UP AND ‘THROW UP’?

IS IT DEATH BY QUESTIONING?

OR DO WE BRING INSIGHT AND FRESH IDEAS?

DATA-DRIVEN DECISION-MAKING

PERSONALISE

IMPROVE PERFORMANCE

PREDICT

PERSUADE

PLAN

THE BIG QUESTIONS

The current conversationWhat’s working and what

isn’t?

How do we grab the attention AND commitment of business

stakeholders?

How do we/ should we use hard evidence in our

conversations?

How do we change the perception of L&D from

delivering courses to delivering value?

THE WISDOM OF THE CROWD!

The current conversation between business and L&D

What is working and what isn’t?

1

The wisdom of the crowdCurrently the conversation is:

• Transactional• Reactive• Order takers

This doesn’t work when we want to influence change in L&D strategy and get leaders on board.

What works:• When we are an integral part of

HR or operations• When we are seen as experts• When we either are invited to

contribute at a business level (seat at the table) or have an influential stakeholder to back us

How do we grab the attention AND commitment of key business stakeholders?

2

The wisdom of the crowd

• Use business language; focus on business outcomes

• Identify what data is needed to prove the case for action

• Demonstrate a contextual understanding throughout

• Be predictive

• Be hardwired into business vision and strategy

• Show how you will both help them make and save money

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BUSINESS OUTCOMES JUSTIFY A SUBSTANTIAL INVESTMENT IN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FOR CEO’S?

→ Lower employee turnover→ Increased employee engagement→ Positive ROI→ Change in business direction→ Reduced cost→ Increased productivity→ Greater responsiveness to the new→ Increased profitability → Stronger Employee brand

55% Increased productivity40% Greater responsiveness to new39% +ve employee engagement37% Increased profitability 36% Lower employee turnover

22% Positive ROI18% Reduced cost14% Change in business direction11% Stronger Employee brand

LauraOvertonTowardsMaturity #LTSF15

© Towards Maturity 2015

How do we use evidence?What do we currently use? What is working and what isn’t? What should we use? 3

The wisdom of the crowd• Is the evidence we use listened to? Find out what

is relevant to our audience; we need to understand our business stakeholders

• We’re using the wrong evidence: reporting costs will cause them to see us as a cost centre

• Too much focus on learning language e.g. competency , curricula, courses, will not engage business leaders

We mainly use dashboards (often via LMS) that monitor learning inputs:

• Attendance • Retention• Test results• Survey findings• Completion rates

To capture business attention we need to look at:

• KPI’s – business related• Performance benchmarks• Academic evidence and papers• Controlled pilots (very successful in sales• Student outcomes• Case studies

Gaining Market Share17% rise in customer satisfaction

10% improvement in revenue Talent

9% reduction in attrition

17% improvement in engagement

14% improvement in productivity

12% reduction in time to competency

Deliver New Products & ServicesChange new products & services 23% faster

Roll out new IT applications 26% faster

USING EVIDENCE EXTERNALLY SOURCED FROM YOUR ORGANISATION:

IF YOUR BUSINESS COULD ACHIEVE A FRACTION OF THESE BENEFITS, WOULD YOUR C-SUITE BE

INTERESTED?

AND Deliver Efficiency - 17% Cost reduction+21% Volume- 22% Delivery time - 20% Study time

Source: Modernising Learning: Delivering Resultswww.towardsmaturity.org/2014benchmark

WWW.TOWARDSMATURITY.ORG/LEARNERVOICE2

IF THE LEARNERS ON THE FOLLOWING PAGE WERE YOUR STAFF, WOULD YOUR C-SUITE BE INTERESTED IN NEW IDEAS TO ENGAGE THEM?

Download the full report for insights into how line managers, sales and different generations learn at work.

EXAMPLE EVIDENCE FROM THE TOWARDS MATURITY LEARNING LANDSCAPE AUDIT

59% travelling to/from work

41% at point of need

37% evenings and weekends

Facebook

In-house network

Twitter

Google+

LinkedIn

You Tube

0%

2%

6%

8%

11%

17%

Which social networks do new starters use for learning?

THE NEW STARTER’S VOICE

Top 3 factors that contribute to great online learning

57%

Relevant& Timely

49%

Tutor support

30%

Certification/Collaboration/Quality design

→ 91% are willing to share what they know

→ 26% need help starting→ 67% are motivated by

technology for sharing

How do new starters learn what they need to do their job?

→ 96% team collaboration→ 92% manager→ 88% general conversations→ 81% web searches→ 72% formal education→ 66% mentoring/coaching → 58% internal documents

→ 50% use a work mobile → 44% use their own mobile→ 51% use home computer→ 83% like to learn at their own pace→ 68% know what learning they need

(53% know where to get it)

(48% find online performance support 42% MOOCs, 41% e-learning and 53% live online learning essential or very useful)

300+ learners who have been in role less than 6 months © Towards Maturity 2015, Learner Voice Part 2: www.towardsmaturity.org/learnervoice2

96%OF NEW STARTERS

FIND TEAM COLLABORATION

ESSENTIAL OR VERY USEFUL

“I know what qualifications I want and need to progress in my chosen area of interest, though some visibility of jobs other than on-job news would be nice. I lack a support community to help me

through awkward exams.”

How do we change the perception of L&D from delivering courses to delivering value?

4

TOP TIPSThe wisdom of the crowds• When you communicate, use their

language at the table.• Understand what constitutes value to

business leaders (and demonstrate it)• Be on the same page when it comes to

business impact• Stay focused on outcomes• Encourage learning councils to be

headed by senior business executives• Support line managers: it will help you

gather evidence• Take a consultative approach: don’t be

afraid to challenge and bring insight• Show that you are using data to drive

decisions in L&D rather than latest fads• Demonstrate that you understand the

world of business

BASED LEARNING STRATEGY!

↗ It rebuilds our CONFIDENCE↗ It boosts our CREDIBILITY↗ It equips us to CHALLENGE

preconceived ideas with insightful new solutions

MY TOP TIP:

DEVELOP AN

What will you do differently as a result today?

NEW RESOURCE: BRINGING LEARNING TO THE BOARDROOM

Request your copy of this resource

How to open new conversations with business leaders

Bringing learning to the boardroom

In conjunction with LEO

OPEN NEW CONVERSATIONS

Ask us for a curated evidence pack:

• Predict• Plan• Persuade• Personalise• Improve

Performance

Send us a request through Slideshare

Towards Maturity is a benchmarking practice that provides authoritative research and expert consultancy services to help assess and improve the effectiveness and

consistency of L&D performance within organisations. It leverages the data gathered from the largest learning and development benchmark in Europe.

Download our case studies to support your business case for change at:www.towardsmaturity.org

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