Create a learning journey that works!

As we approach Autumn, many businesses continue to rebuild momentum and push forward into the coming months. It is now more important than ever to reflect on the end to end learning journey and consider whether this is still aligned to your business and employee’s needs.

It has been an unprecedented time for learning, with many changes within the industry, including restrictions on face to face learning, the rise of new learning technology and much of our social learning now taking place remotely.

It has also been a time where many of us have been on our own personal learning journey, a journey where we have learnt things about the challenges we face at home, how to work remotely, even down to what an ‘R’ rate is!

Rise Learning Group have a wealth of experience as Learning Professionals and we understand the importance of recognising and investing in the learning journey, from start to finish.

We know that learning does not stop after you have onboarded your new starters. This learning continues throughout their time with you, from day one through to their final day with the business, and might include:

  • Process & system training
  • Regulatory or compliance training
  • Core Business Skills
  • Customer Service
  • Talent Programmes
  • Leadership Development
  • Project Management

We know this learning framework is crucial to run your business effectively and Rise Learning Group can support you with all of these development needs.

So, what does the Learning Journey look like?

Step 1: Pre-Boarding

The learning experience starts even before a new starter has walked through the door. Before their first day, they will go through pre-boarding which might include:

  • Welcome videos
  • E-learning modules
  • An interactive tour
  • Those all-important pre-employment checks!

Whatever approach you take, it must be warm, friendly, and informative. At this early stage, the aim is to create a sense of belonging and commitment to the role and organisation.

Step 2 – Induction

The next step in the journey is Induction, where you will guide your new starter through their route to competence. You may have a one-day Corporate Induction or even a formal course lasting a few weeks. This will generally end with more ‘on the job’ learning. We know that it is crucial to have the right steps in place and to ensure that colleagues have a positive learning experience with your business from the beginning.

In fact, 69% of employees are more likely to stay with a company for three years if they have a great experience from the very start (Society for Human Resources Management).

Step 3 – In-role Development

The aim during the employee probation period is to achieve competence and confidence in the role. The steep incline of learning will continue during this time and may include further process, system or regulatory training. After this, employees will start to feel more familiar with what they are doing and may want to take the next step in their learning.

Tip: It is key to remember that we never stop learning, both in and outside of the workplace so take advantage of this in how you create and manage your learning strategy.

Step 4 – Leadership Development

Further into your employee’s time with the business, they may display an interest in Leadership. Effective Leadership Development is crucial in the success of any organisation.

Organisational culture is often led from the top and employee engagement is hugely affected by the relationship employees have with their immediate line manager. Good leadership development also increases business profit, employee retention and improves your business brand, the benefits are endless.

Some topics to consider when developing your leaders:

  • Leadership and Management Styles
  • Growth Mindset
  • Personal Brand
  • Building a High Performing Team
  • Motivation Theories
  • Difficult Conversations
  • Cross-functional Team Working
  • Managing Change
  • Commercial Awareness
  • Presenting with Impact

Step 5 – Core Business Skills

But what about those that don’t want to be managers but do place importance on personal development? Many employees want to develop other skills and it is important that learning opportunities around these key skills are available to them.

It could be that the individual wants to improve in another core business skill such as Report Writing, Negotiation Skills, Emotional Intelligence or Decision Making or it could be a role-specific development opportunity that is needed, such as Project Management.

Project Management skills include:

  • Project Lifecycles
  • Roles and Responsibilities
  • Project Management Tools
  • Stakeholder Mapping
  • Lean Principles
  • Communicating through Change
  • Process Mapping
  • Reporting
  • Route Cause Analysis
  • Testing tolerance for Disagreement

These development opportunities should continue throughout the whole employee lifecycle within your organisation. Invest in learning to grow your business and Rise to Business Excellence.

Step 6 – Outplacement Support

‘Train your people well enough so they can leave. Treat them well enough so they don’t want to’ Richard Branson.

And if they do want to leave, that’s fine too. Allow them to spread the word about how great an organisation you were to work for.

When individuals choose to leave a business or due to unforeseen circumstances, are asked to, the learning cycle continues. They may need outplacement support such as CV writing, building their brand or interview skills.

Having an awareness that all these learning touchpoints take place within a business is the first step to making the most of them. Deciding what you are going to do about them comes next and that is where Rise Learning Group can help.

So, what can Rise Learning Group do for you?

Here at Rise Learning Group, we can support you from the start of your employee learning journey, through to the end.

We have a wealth of experience in designing and delivering induction programmes, bespoke to your needs and have continued to do so throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, adapting to the needs of our clients.

As well as our ability to design and deliver bespoke training to fit your specific learning needs, we have been working hard throughout 2020 to create our online offering which includes Leadership Development, Project Management and Customer Excellence – more on these programmes in our next blog!

Rise Learning Group is here to help you Rise to Business Excellence.

To find out more about how we can support you or your colleagues, please get in touch today.