7 Signs You are Stuck in Order Taking Mode

In L&D there's a common narrative detailing our frustrations working as "order takers." We feel stuck in a box (or a cage) labeled "take and deliver on this request exactly as I ask." We know that we can offer more than this with our critical and strategic thinking. But, when we continuously fulfill pre-defined request (i.e. I need a 30 minute e-learning in 3 weeks that covers the new sales admin process), we lose our chance to truly solve talent challenges using our expertise.

Those who are stuck in order taking mode are unable to work as strategic partners to the business. They are failing to reach their full potential, tap into their own talents, solve talent challenges, and add value and impact to the business. I've been there!

It's important to recognize some of the common signs that your team may be seen as order takers more than strategic business partners so that you can take steps to move the needle.

Here are seven signs that the organization sees you as order takers. In other words, you may be stuck in order taking mode if...

#1: Your Team is Seen as a Cost Center. Your L&D team is seen as primarily costing the organization money. Yes, you produce good learning products, but according to your reporting you aren't bringing in revenue or reducing expenses. Therefore, the company only sees you and your team as costing them money.

#2: Your Team is Overworked and Understaffed. There just aren't enough resources (time, money, people) to get through all the requests that are coming across your desk. As a result, everyone on your team is working frantically to get through them all. It feels like you can't come up for air, let alone think strategically or work proactively.

#3: You Have Great Level 1 Evaluations, but it Stops There. Level 1, according to Kirkpatrick's model , measures participant reactions to your programs and products. You've done a great job at asking questions to judge reactions in your evaluations. Overall, those participating enjoy what you have to offer. They may even report seeing the relevance to their jobs. It's like everyone leaves smiling and satisfied. But your metrics don't go beyond Level 1 to show behavior change or impact on business outcomes.

#4: Your Reporting Focuses on Activity. Any reporting you have past learner reactions (Level 1) is limited to activities. These are the measures that show how many, how much, an how long. You can report how many people participated (or clicked, or enrolled, etc.), how much time they spent in learning experiences, and how long it took to create the program or product. But your reporting ends there. You are limited or unable to report effectiveness (learning and behavior change) and the impact of your work on business outcomes.

#5: Your Team is a "Nice to Have". Your team does great work, that isn't the question. But the main reason you retain your place in the organization is based on employee feedback. They express a desire for professional development on surveys and job interviews. There may also be exit interview data showing that employees expressed a lack of development opportunities as their reason for leaving. Thus, what you do is seen as good practice for hiring and retention, even though there aren't really reporting or numbers to back it up.

#6: You Lack Visibility in the Greater Organization. The only time anyone taps into your team for a project is when they have already determined that training is a solution to their particular problem. You are seen as the “training people.” In addition, most of the programs and products your team produces are unknown to employees and managers. You may receive (or overhear) questions like, “We have an LMS? What is an LMS?” or “Oh, there’s leadership development here? I had no idea!” Employees are unaware of the offerings and don’t have time to do the research to find them. Participation in your programs seems to be limited to the same small group of people.

#7: It is Assumed You Provide Easy Button Solutions. Requests for learning interventions and/or training land on your desk along with an expectation that you will deliver. The stakeholder who placed the request has complete faith that this is the correct solution to their problem and won’t have to do much to help. They trust your ability to deliver on their request and don’t have the time, energy, or brainpower to dig deeper and determine whether it will really solve the problem. It's likely they don't think this is necessary. They are happy to hand this problem off to someone else to work on while they focus on the other challenges on their plate.

Do any of these scenarios describe your situation? If so, don't despair! It is possible to move from taking orders to working as a strategic business partner. Before my own team's transformation all seven of these were true for us! We needed to shift just about everything we did from how we interacted with stakeholders to how we measured and reported our work. We needed to shift mindsets and change the culture and we did!

Subscribe and stay tuned to this bi-weekly newsletter to learn more about how to transform your own L&D team from order takers to strategic business partners.

Learning Business Advisor Consulting (Jess Almlie) is dedicated to helping L&D leaders stop working as order takers and start working more strategically, intentionally, and with measurable impact. Jess can work with you on one program or project, lead your team through strategic planning, provide individual leader/team coaching, and/or guide you through a series of workshops to learn and implement needed skills. If this sounds like something you and/or your team need, message me (Jess) and we will set up a time to chat.