I try to participate in two or three Twitterchats every week. They’re a quick, fun way to engage in topical conversationwith L&D pros from around the world. They were especially helpful early inmy career, as they helped me break out of my corporate silo and engage with thelarger professional community. My favorite chats are #lrnchat (Thursdays at 8:30 PM ET) and #GuildChat Fridays at 2:00 PM ET).
This column originated in the #GuildChat on Friday, July 7, 2017. The topic: Learning Independence. A dozen or so L&Dfolks were discussing the idea of autonomy in workplace learning when Anthony Altieri dropped this gem:
I ALWAYS decide what I LEARN.
— Anthony Altieri (@aa_altieri) July 7, 2017
YOU decide what to TRAIN.
BIG difference there.#GuildChat
Anthony perfectly explained L&D’s relationship with self-directedlearning in under 140 characters.
Corporate learning is always brimming withseemingly innovative and trendy ideas. Sure, many tech-driven concepts, likeadaptive learning and mixed realities, are just now coming into reach forcorporate learning. But, when you look at some of the other big trendsnowadays, you’ll notice that they aren’t really all that new. Rather, the worldaround L&D continues to shift, causing a variety of long-standing but alsolong-ignored principles to rise to the surface. This includes microlearning,brain science, and self-directed learning. As Anthony so unflinchingly pointedout, we’ve never had control over what people learn at work. While L&D hashistorically decided what formal learning opportunities have been madeavailable, how those opportunities are used (or not used) has always been up tothe individual.
Figure 1: Self-directed learnersset their own way (Pexels)
Why self-directed learning? Why now?
If people have always had a measure ofautonomy in their learning, why am I suddenly hearing about the desire to shifttoward self-directed learning so much? Well, there are several factors at play.First, employees have unprecedented access to “alternative” developmentresources thanks to the likes of Google and YouTube. L&D is finallyrecognizing the impact this is having on the highly valued course library.Corporate learning tech is also following suit to match therecommendation-driven, high-volume choice experience used by consumer contentplatforms, such as Netflix. Finally, there’s the issue of scale. Businesses arehunting for increasingly agile skill sets to stay competitive. To keep pace anddemonstrate value, L&D must find ways to provide flexible learningopportunities for a myriad of roles without substantial costs oradministration. This has led to the rise of concepts like learning paths andcontent aggregation.
It’s not that simple
Let the record show that I am all for the idea of self-directedlearning. I agree that L&D never owned learning, and employee enablementand accountability are fundamental principles in a strong learning ecosystem.However, the unfortunate truth is that these concepts often conflict with theway work is actually done. Learning paths and curated resources sound great,but, in real life, it’s going to take more than a shift in L&D strategy toenable autonomous development. Rather than simply buying a new platform orrestructuring the content library, L&D must take a step back and assess thefull working environment to determine the right fit for self-directed learning.
Here are six considerations L&D mustaddress before venturing down the path of strategic self-directed learning.
1. Time
I have yet to hear a stakeholder say, “Our peoplehave plenty of extra time for learning.” Rather, people are time-starved andoverwhelmed—regardless of status, role, or industry. Plus, people can only beexpected to dedicate so much time to their professional development. Sure, somemay make an extra effort and use personal time to improve their skills, butthat can’t be the norm.
Focused self-directed learning—besides thatwhich naturally takes place on the job—requires time. Time can only be madeavailable if managers prioritize long-term development over short-term tasks.This could be as simple as providing time for employees to reflect and discusssuccesses and challenges of the day, or it could involve more formal trainingactivities. While L&D cannot control how time is allocated within theworkplace, we can influence managers by making a business case for autonomousdevelopment.
2. Rules
There may also be rules to consider withregard to how employees use their time for development. For example, if youwork in the United States and support hourly employees, you are likely limitedto time spent on the clock. This makes the business case for autonomousdevelopment even more critical. Too often, deskless employees have limitedlearning options due to the constraints of their roles and company staffing practices.These folks are your future managers and deserve the same opportunities asknowledge workers who have greater control over their time and capacity.
In some cases, you may be able to offerself-directed learning opportunities to deskless employees away from theworkplace by setting firm guidelines. For example, using a disclaimer on yourlearning platform login screen may pass accountability for the time spent tothe employee (as long as your lawyers and labor union agree, of course).Regardless, people’s time and choice must be respected as part of thedevelopment process.
3. Expectations
An employee may aspire to become the nextdepartment manager or marketing assistant. However, they may not understandexactly what skills are required to be successful in a desired role. Therefore,the organization must provide clear expectations with regard to knowledge andcapability requirements. This clarity must go beyond the typical jobdescription or competency list and detail exactlywhat a person must be able to do in order to take on a specific position. And,because role requirements are moving targets due to the nature of modernbusiness, these expectations must be consistently maintained in order to guideongoing autonomous learning efforts.
4. Access
Gary Wise makes a great point in his post “Self-Directed Learning or Self-Directed Performance?”It’s a mistake to approach the concept of autonomous learning as just anotherway to serve up formal training. Rather, L&D must enable employees from the“ground” up, starting with their ability to solve problems in the moment ofneed. This is where curation can enable self-directed performance, as L&Dcan help reduce the amount of time and effort needed to find information thathas the potential to immediately improve business outcomes. From thisfoundation, L&D can enable the subsequent layers of learning to address a performancechallenge, including structured training when necessary.
5. Feedback
The Dunning-Kruger effect: People often think theyare better at something than they really are. Do you have a friend who claimsto be an amazing driver but is constantly swerving and braking hard every timeyou catch a ride? This effect is especially powerful in the workplace whenmanagement fails to provide a consistent, objective definition for “good”performance, leaving it open to individual interpretation. To benefit fromself-directed learning, employees must receive clear and consistent feedbackregarding their performance. While this feedback should come from a variety ofsources, especially managers and peers, L&D can promote the overall valueof feedback within the organization. L&D can also provide tactical support,including examples of good performance for individual comparison as well astraining for those who observe and coach on-the-job behaviors. This will helpemployees identify the gaps between their role expectations and their currentperformance and enable them to select the right-fit development opportunities.
6. Freedom
For self-directed learning to take hold,L&D must let go. We can’t funnel every development opportunity through“approved channels.” We can’t track every little thing people do to makethemselves better. They’re already going around us. We must meet them wherethey are and provide the support necessary for people to take action on their own.While this will certainly include resource creation and curation, L&Dstrategy must also include the freedom to choose. Rather than focus on thejourney people take to develop themselves (completions and test scores),L&D must focus on the end result—performance capability—and allow people toget there in the ways that best suit them.
As human beings, we are hardwired to learn. Employees will take itupon themselves to solve problems and develop their skills regardless ofsupport they receive from L&D. We must accept this as the not-so-new normalof workplace learning and adjust our strategies accordingly. We can’t make thesame mistake we’ve made with past learning trends (social, mobile,gamification, etc.) and simply give our old tactics a new, trendy look. We mustlet go of our implausible ownership of the learning process and instead focuson enabling autonomous learning through clear expectations, consistent feedback,and accessible resources. People have always self-directed their learning.L&D just hasn’t always been there to help out.
For even more great thoughts on self-directedlearning, check out this post from the eLearning Coach, Connie Malamed.
