Predict for Efficient Learning

Last year, most Americans were strongly disappointed by how the nation’s businesses conducted themselves, according to a study conducted by consultancy StrategyOne. In December 2010, a representative sampling of more than 1,000 Americans was asked to grade how well corporate America did in 2010. Eighty-two percent assigned a grade of C or lower. Consumers and employees alike are looking for a change in business. They want to feel valued and simultaneously see a rise in companies’ earnings to continue repairing the long-impaired economy.

“These are wants that help not only drive how a company is perceived and what their reputation is; whether other people are going to buy their product or service or not; whether they’re going to recommend their services; whether they’re going to buy their stock or want to work for the company,” said Bradley Honan, senior vice president of StrategyOne. “There’s such an opportunity for individual businesses to rise above the occasion and really differentiate themselves.”

Honan said the strategy for corporate America in 2011 needs to be “back to the basics.” Companies need to help get the economy back on track and conduct business ethically, all while keeping employees engaged. Collaboration between all employees and successful learning delivery have the potential to respond to those needs.

“There needs to be a much closer alliance,” Honan said. “Employees are eager for that. They’re hungry to be part of a dialogue. They want to participate. They want to be taught and learn. They want to give it their all. There needs to be a dialogue rather than a dictation from the C-suite.”

The key to all of this is predictive learning delivery — designing learning for specific workforce needs. Organizations should identify specific goals and beliefs to instill in participants and determine exactly what these will look like when put into action by developing quantifiable measures of how employees adopting the target beliefs and goals will impact the business.

According to Dave Basarab, author of Predictive Evaluation, this approach can help companies avoid missteps. “There are times when you’ve already decided when and how you’re going to provide a course and you predict and find you really shouldn’t be doing this,” said Basarab. “You find it’s not giving you the payback that the company demands, expects and is attracted to. At that time, you should either stop the course or not even start it because it’s just not the right thing to do; you’re not going to get the return that you want.”