Nigel Paine looked at how innovation is not a luxury in learning now as corporations demand more for less and require you to adapt to their business needs at an increased pace. He debunked the process of buying talent into an organisation by stating that the answer will always be to build the talent, innovate with it as this can re-energise a whole organisation.He had a pop at that part of the family we like to call Powerpoint and how as visual aids they are fine but in most cases that's not what they are (how right he is). The lasting thought I had from his talk was on my role as that learning dude, the job is not just about developing great people but you have to work in tandem to build great environments for them to operate in. To build this brave new world we need to take advantage of communities of practice and create external learning networks.
Clive Shepherd focussed on the role of the Learning Architect, dissecting the position we once held and how we the role is very different from a learning builder. He has taken 70:20:10 and scythed it, changed it, tweaked it and created a model which is more flexible and directly related to the einvronment we now operate leaving me with a message of how learning is situational like leadership.There was also presentations by the likes of SKY, BUPA and BP in relation to work they have been doing with Brightwave which directly relates to providing a more targeted support for their business from the learning teams.
So what did I leave with?
Well the good thing was it is always nice to hear people talk about something you are currently doing, nice to know you are on the right track etc and especially that you are not alone in the desire to change a culture that people have been comfortable with for so long. Most importantly for That Learning Dude is that it gave me time to think and reflect on what we are really doing. I call this less "Beyond the Course" and more about "Deconstructing the Course"
The traditional design process we go through is building content brick by brick. What are the objectives?......Build....What does the roadmap look like?......Build....Have you written the workbooks?......Build....What icebreakers will you use? etc, etc, etc Before you know it you have built a wall of content that will ensure every lucky delegate in that room will have everything they need to be trained on the day. Job Done :-) I am currently working on something which is all about deconstruction. Traditionally a Leadership course would be a number of days, packing in theory upon theory upon model upon model with the expectation that when the delegates leave the room they will remember everything which of course they don't. So you need to deconstruct
The learning architect needs to start by stripping back the content brick by brick, this leaves you with several pieces.
There will be a face to face element which should please the "learning has to be away from my desk" fraternity. This does not have to be a course, it could be a seminar, coaching, mentoring or indeed that desired workshop but the content will be shorter and sharper. The architect will have taken out the knowledge and tell elements and creates a session dedicated to experiential learning.
Around the outside of the face to face piece you construct a curriculum, I see this as a free flowing and ever expanding universe, an orbital curriculum. This is supporting content to reflect pre course knowledge and post course to embed the learning. The content here is critical to ensuring the learning leave, stays and evolves with the learner once they leave the room.
Learning is not in isolation, just as the content provides the learner with knowledge and tools to develop a skill there is also a need for external support from peers and leaders. For this reason we need to foster community Learning. Social media plays a huge part in this, through the likes of Linked I and Twitter etc we can create Communities of practice or direct them to external learning networks which enable the learner feel part of something bigger. You can do this internally and create a specific area for best practice and support. It provides the learner with a sense of belonging and also as most of those using the online space with them will be peers it creates and motivates a better culture of inclusion.
A space for learning is essential, an LMS can be so much more than a host for content, it should be the place people want to go to for course information, storage space, feedback, downloads, guides, hints tips etc etc etc. The creation of a Google or Wiki will provide not only a cool toy that shows you care :-) but allows you control over what content you provide with the flexibility to link directly with a changing business environment.
The final piece for me is sometimes the hardest. The buy in to this change is the hardest as what we are looking to do is increase self development but the key to this is it is not about do it yourself, it is do it for yourself. The traditional factory based learning model of one size fits all is long gone. Deconstruction is all about transformational learning, providing content and courses that truly meet an individuals needs. We focus on learner centric materials and not subject centred. If you do that buy in follows quickly. I was asked recently about creating a development programme for a large group of leaders. My aim is not to provide one programme but rather content that creates over 200 programmes which the individual has tailored to meet their own needs directly.
Right who wants to grab the sledgehammer first? :-)
That Learning Dude
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