Learning & Development

Learning & Development The aim of this tutorial is to provide a quick and easy route to understanding the rationale and the process of agreeing the PM Learning and Development planner. It will be particularly useful for new managers, but is designed also to be used by all staff. See also tutorial shows for the individual work plan and performance reviews.

Introduction Effective managers develop their staff Not only because they care about them, but also because their performance will improve, which is good for them and good for Save the Children. Managers will also sometimes need to help staff recognise learning, training and development as an exciting opportunity, not as a waste of time or a form of judgement. The learning and development part of the Performance Management process: • identifies any learning, training or development requirements a member of staff has to support her or him in achieving work plan objectives; • assists managers and HRD staff in co-ordinating resources to fulfil those needs; • assists managers and HRD staff to monitor progress and evaluate the effectiveness of learning activities.

Introduction The process is important, managers should allow adequate time for: • Planning - for effectively learning and development meetings with their member of staff. • Activity - conducting the meeting; agreeing and completing outcomes on the learning and development plan. • Follow-up: • ensuring the arrangements for learning and development activities are in place; • monitoring progress against plans; • evaluating the effectiveness of activities; • giving feed-back to HRD staff where appropriate.

Key Principles for L&D Key principles for learning and development: Save the Children's managers and staff recognise that: • We all need to learn and develop. We need to overcome resistance to development - both organisationally and individually. • The purpose of learning and development is to improve our individual and collective performance. Learning and development is an investment ,not simply a cost – we all need to make sure we get a good return on that investment. • We all have a responsibility to develop ourselves. • We all have a responsibility to help others develop. On-the-job learning and coaching/feedback from others are some of the most effective and low cost ways to learn, and we can use them every day. • Development involves acquiring new knowledge, skills, approaches and/or attitudes. • We all learn in different ways – and that’s OK.

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs To plan for, carry out and follow-up any learning, training or development event or activity, the following process is followed. This applies equally to a long term training programme or an individual self-development plan. The Performance Management system learning and development plan follows this process. Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs Learning needs are the gaps an individual may have in knowledge, skills, approach or attitude that would hinder the effective achievement of work objectives - sometimes referred to as the competency gap. Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Some of the following examples are aimed at improving particular aspects of performance which are not up to standard for some reason. Others are about acquiring new skills or knowledge. Just as valid are those which are about creativity - for example, developing better ways of dealing with problems or discovering ways of dealing with existing tasks. Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Examples: Knowledge - a project officer might need quickly to understand the structure, organisation and value of a partner organisation he/ she may be working with. - a new manager may need to understand how teams develop and work. Skill - an experienced driver may be required to carry out a new maintenance procedure. - an administrator may need to use spreadsheets more effectively. Approach - a manager may acquire a larger task, and need to delegate more to team members. Attitude - an experienced and efficient administrator may need to learn to deal more diplomatically with local government staff. Identify learning needs Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Learning objectives state what the individual will know, be able to do, how the approach or attitude will change after an appropriate learning or development activity. As with work objectives, they should be SMART: Identify learning needs Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Specific Measurable Agreed Realistic Time-scaled Clear, concise and singular. For example, 'general development of communication skills' is too broad. What type of communication skill is involved? Verbal or written? If written – what particular aspect of performance needs to change e.g. reports, memos or letters? Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities The learning objective should be scrutinised to ensure that it will be clear when the objective is met. Often this will be the achievement of the related work plan objective, e.g. submission of an acceptably structured report. Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs Agreed Success will be assured by agreement by the manager to provide development resources and support, and the member of staff fully to commit to the learning activity. Agree learning objectives Review outcomes . Realistic Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Time-scaled The manager should ensure that the relevant resources will be available in an appropriate time scale and that the member of staff has relevant aptitudes and necessary background knowledge to commence a chosen development activity. Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs The process of identifying and agreeing appropriate and cost/time effective activities is an important one. There are many methods to choose from and as stated in the L&D principles, often on the job learning can make a more significant contribution to success than off the job training. Another important consideration at this stage of the process is how people learn best. Many people have preferred 'learning styles' which come from our personality and experience. It is worth being familiar with these styles and the learning and development methods that suit them. More details are in following pages Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs Manager and staff member will scrutinise the objectives and proposed development activities, together with the time scales to agree the complete plan. Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process It is essential for managers and staff to monitor and evaluate any learning and development activities on the plan, both to check that learning objectives are being met and that Save the Children's investment in terms of money and staff time is not wasted. Identify learning needs Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Monitoring As with work objectives and the individual work plan, managers should monitor progress on learning and development plans in supervision and not leave this stage to the six monthly performance reviews. Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Evaluation Learning and development activities can be evaluated in a number of ways. Assessment of the process of a learning event, for example, training course, is usually evaluated by training specialists at the immediate completion of the event. This enables adjustments and improvements to be made in the future. A check is also made at this time on whether the participants considered their objectives to be met. Identify learning needs Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Monitor and evaluate progress on learning & development activities However, for members of staff, their managers and the organisation, the vital evaluation is whether the learning has been transferred to the work and whether the task objectives have been met. These aspects cannot realistically be assessed until some time after the learning event. Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs The column - 'outcomes and review' on the learning & development plan is used to record the outcomes of the plan for the L&D activity. A date or dates should be agreed and recorded for reviews. Any necessary revisions should also be agreed, recorded and resubmitted to HRD. Agree learning objectives Review outcomes Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The L&D Process The Learning and Development Process Identify learning needs Agree learning objectives Review outcomes It is sensible, therefore, to plan for monitoring evaluating and reviewing learning and development at the time the objectives and plans are agreed. . Decide on learning and development strategies Evaluate and monitor progress on learning & development activities Agree learning and development plan

The Learning Cycle The Learning Cycle Learning from experience is a process and, like all processes, it is possible to break it down into its constituent parts. Imagine a circle with four stages at the four points of a compass. Concrete experience Testing implications of concepts in new situations Observations and reflections Formation of abstract concepts and generalisations

The Learning Cycle The Learning Cycle There are two ways to have an experience. One is to let the experience come to you (reactive); the other is to seek it deliberately (proactive). The opportunities to learn are increased if the normal everyday things that happen to us are supplemented by extra experiences we create. For example - you attend a weekly meeting that tends to be very dull. You could decide to view it as a learning opportunity and start to experiment with different ways of changing the meeting. Concrete experience Testing implications of concepts in new situations Observations and reflections Formation of abstract concepts and generalisations

The Learning Cycle The Learning Cycle To learn from an experience, it is vital to review what happened during it. In the very dull meeting, for example, you might try having a different person take the chair for different agenda items. Your review might focus on the differences you observed between the way each chairperson undertook the task. Concrete experience Testing implications of concepts in new situations Observations and reflections Formation of abstract concepts and generalisations

The Learning Cycle The Learning Cycle • Concluding involves viewing the raw material from the review for conclusions, ‘answers’ or lessons learned. It helps if the conclusions are specific rather than general. After the meeting, you might conclude that the best chairperson: • clarified the objectives of the discussions; • asked for people’s ideas; • summarised at frequent intervals; • kept to time. Concrete experience Testing implications of concepts in new situations Observations and reflections Formation of abstract concepts and generalisations

The Learning Cycle The Learning Cycle Planning involves translating some of the conclusions into actions, things to do better or differently. An example might be to write a few notes for the discussion at the next meeting on your conclusions about the best chairperson, and working out how to develop others in the practices described above. Concrete experience Testing implications of concepts in new situations Observations and reflections Formation of abstract concepts and generalisations

Learning Style Descriptions Further research on the Learning Cycle identified four main learning styles. Often, people have a preference for one or two learning styles. None is ‘better’ than another. However, it is useful to understand a person’s preferred style when considering options for learning activities. The four learning styles are: • Activist • Reflector • Theorist • Pragmatist

Learning Style Descriptions Activists Activists like to take direct action. They are enthusiastic and welcome new challenges and experiences. They are less interested in what has happened in the past or the broader context. They are primarily interested in the here and now. They like to have a go, try things out and participate. They like to be the centre of attention. Activists like: • to think on their feet • to have short sessions • plenty of variety • the opportunity to initiate • to participate fully

Learning Style Descriptions Reflectors Reflectors like to think about things in detail before taking any action. They take a thoughtful approach. They are good listeners and prefer to adopt a low profile. They are prepared to read and re-read and will welcome the opportunity to repeat a piece of learning. Reflectors like: • to think before acting • thorough preparation • to research and evaluate • to make decisions in their own time • to listen and observe

Learning Style Descriptions Theorists Theorists like to see how things fit into an overall pattern. They are logical, objective people who prefer a sequential approach to problems. They are analytical, pay attention to detail and tend to be perfectionists. Theorists like: • concepts and models • to see the overall picture • to feel intellectually stretched • structure and clear objectives • logical presentation of ideas

Learning Style Descriptions Pragmatists Pragmatists like to see how things work in practice. They enjoy trying out new ideas. They are practical, down to earth and like to solve problems. They like to have the opportunity to try out what they have learned/are learning. Pragmatists like: • to see the relevance of their work • to gain practical advantage from learning • credible role models • proven techniques • activities to be real

Learning & Development