Compliance from one learners lens

This morning I had a conversation with someone in my network about a training course they were undertaking.??It is always interesting listening to family, friends and those in my network beyond L&D talking about their experiences of workplace learning.?It is always insightful! Sometimes it is uplifting, sometimes my heart sinks!?And this mornings conversation, whilst insightful, my heart sank.

It went a bit like this!

Them (tongue in cheek – I think!): "I need to get you to do my EDI course – I have had it open 3 weeks now and I am rubbish at it!"

Me (head blown not knowing which bit to tackle first – goes for time to think): "what?"

Them: "Well first time I did it I got 36%, second 79% and third time 39% or something like that – but I do know I was one % off – you have to get 80%"

Me (still needing time to think): "what?"

Them (with a sigh): "Ah well – will see if we get a lull in customers and I’ll have a go later!"

I am almost tempted to say – yes next time you have the course open on your personal phone show me.?(I won’t – I got 90+% on my own GDPR course – so – hey – I KNOW!!)

There are so many strands to this small insight that need a change of focus in workplace learning. This is a very experienced person, who works in a front-line role in a high-pressure customer facing environment. The things that come immediately to mind from our conversation are

·?????The time taken to do the test is disproportionate to the skills the individual has and the ability to perform the day job (including doing it in line with the EDI messages in the training)!

·?????The drive that 80% in a course test is proof that it has been done comes from – where??Where is the empirical evidence that this is a thing? (This is an honest question – asking for myself and my work!)

·?????Do we in L&D consider the ripple effect of the decisions we make of our learning processes.?Do we do an impact assessment of the ‘if’ statements??If this is just one person, what is it costing the organisation to have that person retake the test to get to that magic 80% proof mark??What if there were ten employees in the same boat??What if there were 100?

·?????At no point in our conversation did the person mention the content of what they were learning (I didn’t ask to be fair, but I did ask a few ‘what’ and ‘why’s’ where it could have been included)

Last week the CIPD Learning at Work 2023 report came out.?It is a read and a half.?49 pages packed with insights from over 1100 respondents on current insights for workplace learning and the direction of travel.?The report produced a set of recommendations that make great reading (there is depth behind each of these areas in the actual report (p39-41)

1.????Don’t let go of lessons learned

2.????Work smarter not harder

3.????Shift the focus from inputs to outcomes

4.????Embrace digital curiosity

5.????Operate beyond the course

6.????Work with others to co-create value

7.????Create space to explore and experiment

8.????Realise your own potential

9.????L&D leaders rise up

I have been thinking about each of these on both a personal and professional level.?The conversation this morning has made me think even harder about those recommendations.?

So, what is the call to action here?

If you have any responsibility for workplace learning, who is your critical friend who can walk you through the realities of what you are asking the workforce to do??How aligned is what you are asking the workforce to do to their day job, to the current demands on the organisation and the strategic direction it is taking??Is the time required proportionate to any of these or is it just nice to have??Is 80% what you really, Really, REALLY want employees to be talking about post intervention? Is 80% really, Really, REALLY what the regulators want?