How to make time for learning in your organization

Technical, functional and behavioral capability building helps keep an organization relevant in an increasingly disruptive marketplace. Apart from increasing productivity, training is also an indispensable talent magnet; it helps enhance the employee value proposition to attract, engage and retain top talent. This is because training increases employee loyalty, leading to better engagement and is a great career progression tool.

Building a culture of learning is critical to engage in continuous learning. Bhanu Patnaik, Vice President - Talent Management at Happiest Minds notes that one of the ways the company ensures a learning culture is by finding the right balance between online and classroom courses. Further the company also employs internal employees to impart knowledge to create a learning culture

Time for Training: A Barrier to Continuous Learning

Despite the realization that training is beneficial, often organizations do not invest enough in training talent. One primary cause is the lack of time for training. According to a survey by Pluralsight, 69% organizations noted that the lack of time to set aside hours for training was the biggest challenge that prevented their teams from staying relevant.

A study on the root cause shows that this dilemma is two-fold, i.e., at the employer’s end and the employees end. Employers often look at training as a regular “to-do” initiative and employees who are burned with work. And putting “real work” on hold just to learn can seem pointless. Often, the benefits of learning are not tangibly visible to both these parties, and the training and development agenda withers off over time. Therefore, there is a need for an attitudinal change which must start with the top management.

Tips to make time for learning

1)    Create a learning culture: Leaders should showcase an ongoing commitment to the learning agenda. They must become passionate life-long learners themselves, and showcase this learning attitude throughout the organization.  They must communicate learning commitments openly, articulating to managers and their teams about ‘what’s in it for them.' Showing employees how learning is beneficial to their career progression and prospects will help create a “pull” for learning. Only when employees truly believe that the management is serious about employees’ career goals and growth will this “pull” become real. Here are some simple tips on how to create a compelling learning culture:

2.    Reward and recognize learning: Learning is a desired organizational behavior and to encourage desired behaviors, they must be continuously reinforced. For this, leaders must recognize and reward training efforts as well as learning efforts. 

 
3.    Create learning schedules: While the above measures are aimed at creating a great environment for learning, it is critical to find the right balance between work and learning. It is the leader’s responsibility to ensure learning trickles down to become a ground-level reality. Here’s how to make time for training in the organizational schedule.

Business Leaders must take the lead to align employees’ learning needs with the organization’s learning objectives. For this, they must design a robust L&D process. Train managers to identify their teams’ training needs well, so that employees invest time and effort in learning what is really needed. Measure and track progress, link learning outcomes to business success and showcase this success to employees and their managers. Seeing and showing the real benefit of learning is a sure way to inspire action.