HR learning: 24 Apr, 2017

1.

How design thinking assists L&D in the digital era.

At this moment of truth, the 'd' word highlights that we need a different kind of thinking. It's about a new learning for the leadership, middle managers, and for your employees on the frontline and behind the scenes from multiple departments to enable the :WoW customer experiences." 

“The rate at which an organization learns may become the only sustainable source of competitive advantage.” — Peter Drucker

‘Employees are learning at the speed of business need’ is a major factor that powers up workplaces around the world today.  But in reality, many  CEO’s reports that their employees are not developing fast enough. So let's do a quick check by asking this question to L&D professionals:

With online courses, webinars, podcasts and new tech and DIY tools giving employees more ownership and control over their professional growth; are you still asking employees to learn in the same way as you did a decade ago? 

If so, Moore’s Law equivalent in Learning & Development is telling us we are running out of steam and becoming obsolete.

It leads to the question, what will be the impact of these changes on corporate L&D, what is the new role of Learning and Development teams and how should be L&D be structured? 

The answer? Use design thinking, a new method to the transform from the traditional role of ‘Learning & Development’ to the challenging role of ‘Personal Performance and Learning Advisor’ in spite of many obstacles resisting such change!

2.

In a world with AI jobs, these are the skills HR should focus on

An increasing number of employers and educators feel that current and prospective employees should train for these skills from an early age

Stories about the takeover of jobs by machines are no longer science fiction, they’re daily news. From Wipro’s Holmes taking over the jobs of 3,000 people to Bank of America opening three new branches without employees, the new world of work is at a tipping point. Satya Nadella in a recent interview with ET said “There are many things AI will never be able to do... (like) show empathy”  And according to the “The Future of Jobs” report, at least 4 of the top 10 skills for future will rely on communication and interpersonal skills. These include: 1) People management;  2) Coordinating with others, 3) Service orientation and  4) Negotiation.

All of which could be bracketed within soft skills. 

A recent study by Timesjobs notes that 70 percent of the job seekers are not fully satisfied with the candidates’ soft skills.  This article will outline key trends in soft skills enablement and identify areas that HR leaders should pay attention to. 

According to Alessandro Giuliani, Managing Director, MISB Bocconi, a leading business school, most Indian MBA aspirants are not equipped to thinking critically and to articulate their thoughts, even though they may possess excellent technical skills.  In order to identify the right candidate, employers have been using extracurricular activities like volunteering, sports and sometimes even participation in study aboard programs as benchmarks to assess the qualities of a prospective candidate. At B-schools, like MISB Bocconi, the focus is on providing candidates with ample of opportunities to showcase their team working abilities and also work on live projects during their coursework.

 Within organizations, companies are turning to programs to equip their workforce.  Niharika Jalan, Head – Training at Kestone points out that “Many organizations are increasingly adopting innovative and fun ways to keep the participants engaged. This includes; specific role playing games, gamified tools, one to one coaching and digital learning platforms”.

3.

IndiGo Study Tour: Learning at 35000 feet

Read to know how your favourite airline imparts training as part of their Learning & Development strategy to all its employees.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever” – Mahatma Gandhi

Have you ever wondered what goes into engineering the learning and the spirit of the people who take responsibility for your safety at 35000 feet above sea-level? 

In the quest to find out , ‘People Matters’ in collaboration with ‘IndiGo’ organized a study tour at the IndiGo learning academy ‘ifly’ in Gurgaon as part of the pre-conference of the ‘People Matters L&D League Annual Conference’. IndiGo is the largest airline in India in terms of passengers carried with a 42.6% market share as of October 2016.

The learning academy is the centre where every employee at IndiGo is trained. Pilots, cabin crew, airport staff and corporate staff. The learning academy focusses all its trainings on striving for excellence and IndiGo’s 3 basic pillars – low fares, on-time, courteous & hassle free.

We were greeted by the IndiGo team at the reception who were waiting to take us for a walk through the academy. What struck us were the details taken into account to create an atmosphere inspiring and conducive to learning. The colour combination is their trademark blue and white. 

Shelves right behind the reception display IndiGo branded products which are sold on board the plane – Nut & cookie tins, IndiGo caps, and a model plane along with many others. While we wondered how the building was such an amazing reflection of the brand, one couldn’t help but notice the large model plane of an Airbus A320 suspended from the ceiling right above the reception. 

What a welcome!  Without even realizing it, our learning about this brand had already begun. 

Keeping in tune with their ‘On-Time’ strategy, we got started with the walk through the academy without wasting a minute. As we gained insight into the various learning procedures used at their learning centre, the one thing they reiterated was how learning happens not just through training sessions but by experiencing the brand as you walk through the building.