If an idea is truly innovative, there is no way to tell its outcome, never mind its return on investment. The challenge for HR is to create an environment which allows failure. Creating L&D opportunities gives employees the time and space to make mistakes and therefore develop innovative ideas. By nature not every new idea will succeed but you won’t know until you have tried.
Ashley Clarke, COO, FlexSystem shared his insight on tracking and targeting employees to engage in L&D programmes. Explaining that HR is still in the embryonic phase of embracing what technology is capable of, Clarke explained, “Taking bite-sized chunks of system integration will position HR to propel the business forward. Since the inception of reporting, the issue has not been getting information in but rather getting it out.”
Positioned to influence
Clarke highlighted that, from the Board’s point of view, the challenge with L&D is monitoring the ROI. By investing in training, tangible evidence needs to be seen to demonstrate the associated value. It is essential to be able to aggregate data and present it both looking backwards and forwards. He identified HR to be uniquely positioned to review results and ‘drill down’ further to look at particular employee types. In this manner HR can gain an insight into the effect upon revenue decreases or increases of course attendance, trainer or department.
Asking the right questions
He observed, “For L&D to become more successful, information needs to be granulized. Rather than asking, ‘who has been on training this year?’ HR needs to create the ability to ask questions at a micro level.” He suggested that moving from manual workflows to a system-based process will position HR to ask the right questions. ‘Three hundred employees have been on training this year. Of the three hundred, one hundred were managers. The ROI against that was an increase of sales by X, resulting in more profitability. How can we improve on this?’ This detailed information will build the ability to monitor investments more effectively.
Additionally, having the resources to call up documents prior to conducting an appraisal empowers management to more adequately respond to further L&D needs. Clarke explained, “Access to information really is an underlying key point. Whether it be granular or document management, it is one of the most critical parts of L&D.” From the manager’s perspective, it is a case of who, why and when are employees going on training. HR should provide management with this valuable data. Moreover, employees want to know they are being invested in, with clear objectives for the year.
L&D success depends on…
Clarke concluded, “Success for L&D professionals in the future largely depends on the ability for staff to engage in the L&D process and for HR to be able to proactively plan and manage both internal and/or external staff development. This can be done by having access to reports or alerts that show granular progress for an individual or progress in aggregate.
HR needs to proactively ensure strong L&D programmes are in place, measure their effectiveness and the related cost implications and ensure the right employees are selected. By taking these simple steps, HR can cultivate an innovative environment and give employees the space to grow.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
