A business’s prime focus is on generating revenue and utilizing its resources to the maximum to achieve organizational goals. On the other hand, we are very well aware that the employee needs to regularly upgrade and upskill themselves to cope with the industrial and technological changes and advances that are happening at an exponentially high rate.
Understanding the change and requirements, organizations have started focussing on developing their employees, and learning and development have become a crucial function in every growing organization. Yet, the business and the employee’s focus and priority will always be generating revenue by focussing on short-term tangible benefits. This has brought a shift in the approach that training is delivered. By implementing a robust learning management system like Absorb LMS, you can leverage the employees to learn at their own convenient time, place, and from the device of their own choice.
However, the drive to take up these courses and carving a learning path for themselves should primarily be the responsibility of the employees. The managers and learning and development team can only push it to some extent and can primarily facilitate the employees with the resources required for learning. To bring this cultural shift towards a culture of continuous learning, you can implement some of the ways mentioned below.
Encourage the employees to think critically
Training the employees on a process and following their managers is the common tendency that the employees work with. These processes become habits and with the limited use of brainpower, the task is done with an assumption that the tasks are done in this manner only. By encouraging employees to think and understand the why’s and how’s of the processes, the employee can think critically and innovatively. Being open with new ideas and innovations and linking their growth with the same will develop the habit of being inquisitive and innovative. The employee will generate interest in taking up new learning courses and imbibe the habit into the regular work to achieve the same.
Failures should be treated as learnings
It is a common human tendency, especially in the corporate world, that there is no place for mistakes and failures. Thus, the employees try to play safe by following the already existing methods and processes. These failures might even lead to stress levels as the brain then starts focussing on the situations that might fail. Organizations can help the employees by assuring some form that failing, at times, is part of learning.
The training designed with interactive exercises and scenario-based learning helps mitigate this situation and awakens the critical thinking capability of the employee. This provides confidence to the employee while providing a safe environment where they can take such risks of making mistakes and learning from mistakes. The method is beneficial for both, the employee and the organization.
Learning by sharing best practices and experiences
Our learnings and growth are very much dependent on our professional relationships and interactions with our peers, superiors, and subordinates. Why not exploit this bond and leverage it for promoting learning. As the interactions happen continuously, learning too can be continuous through this method.
While sharing their experiences, the employees can share their insights and ideas which they have learned and experienced new methodology. Such contributions by the employees provide a sense of inclusiveness and promote their ability to become valued contributors to organizational growth. This also adds up to the earlier point mentioned providing the confidence that no one is perfect and that failures are nothing but learning.
Conclusion: By promoting continuous learning, the employees can carve their success path and make them equal contributors to the growth and success of the organization that can only be achieved by collective efforts.
