Learning and Development Mistakes
Corporate Learning and Development has come a long way but still has far to go. We’ve learned that there is such a thing as the “forgetting curve” that tells us that if new information isn’t applied, 75% of it will be forgotten in only six days. And despite spending almost $360 billion (yes, with a “b”) globally on corporate training, most learning and development functions struggle to change on-the-job behavior and performance.
According to Gartner, 24×7 Learning, and McKinsey:
Where’s the Training Disconnect?
For organizations and employees to realize the full value of corporate training, they must connect two common “disconnects” related to the transfer of skills and knowledge that occur between learning and results.
The first disconnect is related to a lack of business relevance and occurs when the training has little applicability to key business priorities that your target audience, their bosses, and the company’s leaders care about. The second disconnect occurs when participants are unable to consistently apply the new skills and knowledge on-the-job while receiving performance coaching.
Top Learning and Development Mistakes to Avoid
To make your investment in training and development worthwhile and aligned with your business and talent strategies, avoid designing misaligned training strategies or delivering training that is:
This is a mistake; most skills will be lost if employees cannot apply them immediately.
This is a mistake. Invest the time required to do a proper training needs assessment to identify what matters most for your unique situation.
Personalized, customized training reaches each employee where it counts.
If you want to create skill adoption and impact, treat training as a change initiative, not a one-time training event.
The Bottom Line
If you want to get the most out of your Learning and Development investments, ensure that training has direct relevancy to employees’ jobs and to the priorities of the business. Then make sure that you do not fall into any of the above traps that hinder effective behavior change and limit performance improvement.
To learn more about how to avoid L&D mistakes, download Top 10 Training Function Warning Signs You May Be in Trouble
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