| One-fifth of this country’s
established companies will be losing 40 percent or more of their top-level talent in the
next five years according to a recent study by Development Dimensions International, Inc.,
a Pennsylvania-based organizational development firm. Additionally, we can expect a 15
percent decline in the number of people between the ages of 35-44.
Are you planning now for the next generation of leaders?
The future leaders, now the GenXers and the Millennials,
hold very different values and have been weaned on video games, the Internet and learning
pods at school. Are you incorporating learning modalities that are integrative and
observable AND geared to this new generation of learners, learners that will not sit in a
classroom lecture and who are looking for convenience and instant gratification and
affirmation of their learning?
What are the greatest challenges facing organizations
today?
They are talent recruitment, talent retention, and
succession planning and leadership development. In a recent survey by Bersin &
Associates, 37 percent of respondents listed leadership training as the first or second
training priority for their organizations. Without a pro-active stance now, organizations
will find themselves without the high performance executive talent and leadership
competencies required to stay competitive in the global marketplace.
A Blended Learning Model
Well-known Ken Blanchard Companies uses what they call a
Blended Learning Model for Leadership Training that meets the trend toward dispersed work
units. They blend different learning modalities with technology using e-learning and their
LearnCenter, a portal that hosts information that the client requires for traditional
coursework. This provides a flexible training delivery that allows employees to build
their skills anytime, anywhere. Alternatively, many companies use WebEx based conferencing
as a support to virtual learning.
In my practice, clients express similar concerns as it
relates to the generations at work. To address these concerns we take a multi-dimensional
approach to learning that engages the GenX and Millennial individual – the future of
business.
Using a combination of coaching, training and now,
simulations, this generation of learners can participate in alignment to their
(generational) learning style and apply the learning directly to work immediately.
Providing a comprehensive learning model that is real-time, integrative, measurable and
focused on your strategy, tailored to your organization’s desired outcomes provides a
solution to the challenges of learning for the next generation of managers and leaders.
This three-way approach includes learning simulations based
on developmental needs and is aligned with corporate strategy. The participant can take
their training and coursework and implement and practice their new skills real-time while
receiving immediate feedback from the on-screen virtual coach.
You may already be using training and executive coaching,
and perhaps e-learning and WebEx, in your organization, all valuable modalities. You may
not, however, be familiar with simulations. What is a simulation?
A simulation is not e-learning. Simulations are interactive
programs that aim to mimic real-life situations. Lori Kavle, CEO of Simulations
International, LLC of Annapolis explains: “The goal of a simulation is to immerse the
participant so completely into the reality of the simulation that the learning and
retention of the material sky-rockets. It is truly “learning by doing”
I asked Lori how her company has applied simulations in
learning for organizations? She referred to a number of applications.
1. Leadership Execution –
“Based on models developed for executive education in
the world’s leading business schools, leadership and business acumen simulations act
as tools to facilitate a way for corporate management teams to interact and learn from
each other. These simulations mimic the strategy behind operating a global company and how
you deal with various parts of the world that have their own economic issues.
In good simulation design, time is compressed, therefore
you can see 5 years of your decisions and business consequences in a 2-day program. The
objectives of these types of programs are to build business, financial and interpersonal
skills as well as to foster the enterprise-wide capability of future leaders.”
2. Leadership Competencies –
Emotional Intelligence, Effective Feedback, Interviewing
Skills, Coaching Skills for Managers and more may all be applied in the interactive
environment of a simulation without any risk to the learner or to the organization.
3. Sales –
“We combine the practice of effective sales techniques
and responses using realistic scenarios that incorporate your products, services and
clients and that provide a risk-free yet realistic environment and typical
challenges,” says Lori.
Lori suggests Sophia Associate’s METIS™ - an
integrated approach combining customized training, professional coaching and Simulations
International interactive simulations. Companies can apply this training immediately
therefore increasing retention of the skills and observable behaviors that training has
strived to achieve in the past with limited success. “You get a greater ROI on
training and development dollars and an innovative approach to training the next
generation.” claims Lori, whose company holds the largest simulation library database
for all skills and industries.
- Self Learning – Independent Study, One-to-one Coaching,
e-Learning
- Social Learning – Traditional Classroom, Peer to Peer,
Cohort and Team Coaching
- SIMbolic Learning™ – Interactive Computer
Simulations
- Optimal Learning occurs where all three converge.
- Solutions to Training and Development Challenges
What are some of the traditional challenges to training a
new generation whose model of learning is based on video games and immediate feedback?
1. Time –
Training takes time. With busy schedules and the cost of
having employees out of the office, training is often the last commitment made. Yet
on-going training and development is needed to maintain a skilled workforce and to remain
competitive.
2. Integration –
Research has shown that on average training works for only
20 percent of the participants, has no impact on another 20 percent and for the remaining
60 percent is only marginally successful. The question becomes “How do we get more
sustainable learning from training and development?”
3. ROI -
How do companies measure the learning impact on business?
Learning Officers are at odds to determine metrics that can
quantify the impact of learning as it relates to business results. When utilizing
simulations, the measurements surrounding it are a bit different than traditional scoring
because you are interpreting “pathways of decisions” versus “yes or
no” or “true or false”. Lori adds, “By defining clear learning
objectives prior to the simulation development, the measurement and metrics can be
defined, assessed, scored and uploaded into any learning management system. If one has
forethought, good simulation design and execution with a reputable simulation vendor, a
tremendous opportunity exists, not only for learning outcomes but bottom line revenue as
well.” As an example, Lori shared, “Sprint, a large telecommunication provider,
implemented a customer call center simulation to mimic real-life calls that came into the
centers daily. Sprint trained 15,000 customer service representatives on various skills
and has pointed to a $50 million return on investment in a three-year period of
time.”
4. Risk –
Learning requires a change in what you are doing or in how
you are doing it. This may mean taking risks with your decisions, with your approaches or
risking a new strategy. In general, organizations are wary of any risk yet without risk,
there is no learning, no innovation and ultimately no growth.
Promoting creativity, innovation and risk-taking is
something most companies promote yet find difficult to actually achieve. The perceived
danger in making an incorrect decision or damaging a strategic relationship keeps
individuals from practicing new behaviors, approaches or implementing new ideas. Through
the use of a simulation, the individual is free to practice new behaviors and responses to
typical situations from start to resolution without any fear of criticism or impact on his
reality at work while receiving immediate feedback on his performance from a “virtual
coach”. Having a “virtual” experience of applying new learning helps
integrate that learning and promotes the confident application of the learning at work.
Generational Learning That Gets Results
By creating a learning tool aligned with the learning
styles of GenXers and Millennials, training and development becomes fun and attractive
with the ultimate result of greater participation, more positive attitudes and the
immediate application of skills for quicker impact and results. Simulations provide
interaction, much like a video game, and a path to resolution that entices the player to
keep learning. Combined with traditional approaches, the addition of a virtual experience
increases retention of learning as well as promotes the application of that learning.
Benefits of Blended Learning Approaches
Companies challenged by the multiple learning styles of the
generations at their workplace are looking for innovative and sustainable training and
learning modalities. Documented benefits to combining traditional coursework, executive
coaching and technologies such as e-learning and interactive learning simulations are:
- Learn in a supportive and risk free environment.
- Allow interactive application of knowledge.
- Create excitement and retention of that knowledge.
- See blind spots in performance.
- Challenge assumptions and hone problem-solving skills.
- Focus on the strategic opportunities of the business.
- Support internal and external business processes.
- Increase individual and organizational ROI
It’s time to take a look at your future leaders and to
ask yourself how you will position your company and its people to not only stay
competitive in a global environment but to be at the forefront of learning so that your
company leads tomorrow through the talent you have developed today.
2006 Alicia M. Rodriguez |
