:: Reaching the Widely Distributed Workforce ::

Sponsored by HSBC Consumer Lending, Corporate University Xchange researched the characteristics of Learning and Development in companies with widely distributed workforces and training programs that must incorporate frequently changing, highly varied regulations. Such companies often have high employee turnover, considerable time-to-competency, and the potential of fines for non-compliance. CUX studied 15 such companies in depth using a web-based survey of 99 defined and open-ended questions, as well as lengthy interviews. Here are some key findings from that study.

Organizational Structure

• A majority of the learning organizations do not coordinate learning centrally through a corporate university, nor do they have senior leaders providing strategic oversight. Multiple learning units in areas like IT, compliance, leadership, and sales are found in many companies.
• Managers are not held accountable for learning by their direct reports nor are they rewarded for being directly involved in the learning process.

Developing the Learning Portfolio

• While many of the studied companies align learning to strategic business plans, too often identifying learning needs is reactive, coming from direct requests.
• A formal planning process or needs analysis would contribute to a long-range view of learning.
• Almost two-thirds of respondents assign client relationship managers to business units, but few involve performance consultants who can determine alternative interventions ranging from changing work process to techniques such as job aids, learning objects, and webinars.

Course Development

• Almost half of all courses are instructor-led, though not necessarily in classrooms; almost half of the companies are using synchronous virtual classrooms for much of their training.
• Half of the companies researched deliver half of their courses through the Web to ensure consistent messages company-wide
• Three-quarters of companies are creating Web-based courseware that includes static content with little or no simulations and practice, and almost never use video, EPSS, audio, satellite, and podcasts.
• Almost half of the respondents outsource course development all or most of the time.
• The course approval process ensures integrity but frequently is cumbersome and time-consuming and typically does not involve business leaders.
• Maintenance of courses consumes twice as much of learning organization’s time as does course development -- for those who track such a metric: over half of those surveyed don’t know their ratio of maintenance to development time.

Delivery

• Although just less than half of the respondents deliver much of ILT themselves, external trainers and business unit staff also deliver a significant percentage.
• Some of the surveyed companies regularly use direct observation to assess the quality of delivery. Questionnaires, corporate employee satisfaction studies, facilitator feedback, and Level 1 and 2 data collection are most commonly employed measurement tools.
• Facilitators who do not follow the recommended delivery approach always or often account for almost half of inconsistent results, CUX research showed. Participants who do not devote enough time to courseware are also at fault.

Measurement

• Business outcomes rather than outputs are driving best practice L&D teams, but there is still an emphasis on measuring “learning” in most companies.
• Employee productivity and business managers’ satisfaction with learning outcomes are the most often cited impact measures for the surveyed companies.
• Measuring the impact on the business takes many forms, with customer satisfaction mentioned most often. Return on investment is used rarely, and when it is, it is usually is done after the fact.