Agility is defined as an ability to move quickly and easily. When it comes to learning and development, it refers to adapting to the unexpected, uncertain, and uncanny as the future arrives. This means being able to deliver education in inventive ways, as well as shifting content as necessary.
Discover the steps to creating an agile L&D program:
Have a Learning and Development Team
To whatever extent an organization can, it should have dedicated employees in charge of learning. Often, this falls under the umbrella of Human Resources, and it can be challenging because of all the responsibilities on the department's shoulders. However, a learning and development team can put its total energy and focus on the latest and greatest in education, data gathering to determine skills gaps that need to be closed, and effective content development.
Go with the Flow
Nearly three years since the pandemic began, people are experiencing change fatigue. They have been asked to transform their lives and shift their mindset too many times. Still, learning requires the ability to quickly adapt. Leaders in the space must guide employees and support them. Change management is paramount to creating an agile learning and development program.
Employers must get rid of the idea that they must do things a certain way just because that is the way they have always done it. Embracing change means experimenting, being open to new ideas, accepting that there are always new things to learn. An agile learning and development program requires planting the seed in employees' brains that change is the norm. Fast Company suggests this is one of the lessons big, established companies can learn from startups.
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Recruit for Agile Learners
HR leaders can talk about shifting mindsets and transforming culture all they want. If they do not hire people who can easily adapt, embrace change, and open their minds to continuous learning, they will never devise an effective, agile L&D program. People must buy into the change and set the tone for each other.
"While it is a best practice to hire based on the requirements of the role, most companies tend to overlook that companies continuously change over time. As a deep expert in employee selection, I advise my clients to not just hire what they need now, but also to focus on hiring for curiosity and learning agility," says Edie Goldberg of E.L. Goldberg & Associates in Forbes. "These individuals will grow with the company and be valuable in the long run."
The bottom line is that learning and development - like just about everything else in this VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) world - requires agility. Fast-paced advances in technology and the headlines mean learners must quickly shift the way they get educated and the content they are studying. The learning process never ends and business is always evolving, so people must be quick on their feet and willing to adapt.
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