Learning Methodologies for Multi-Disciplinary Teams in high-paced environments

Has your learning & development budget been cut, while workforce performance needs investing in more than ever? Stuck on how to deliver learning in a different way?

Across many Councils, fast-paced change and cross-organisational commissioning are requiring the need for high performing board and multi-disciplinary teams with diverse perspectives and organisational cultures to work effectively together. The fast-paced world means there is a need for fast-paced learning methodologies.

Formal learning activities still play an important part in the workplace, however it is often costly and takes people away from their work. Formal learning practices also pre-supposes that that what we have always considered as relevant continues to be relevant in today's world. For example, if I continue to offer only traditional 'training' to our workforce, I will soon find demand for it diminishing as more manager and employees have less time. So it is important to acknowledge first that a change or even a transformation is needed. 

In making learning and development  relevant for today, there is a need to look beyond formal learning if we are to address the increasing demand for higher-paced learning by multi-disciplinary teams grows. A good place to start is to look at the 70:20:10 model of learning. This model suggests that we should split our learning methodologies into 3, namely:

10% Formal Learning (includes course and e-learning, often built around technical knowledge)

20% Feedback & Coaching (includes individual and group feedback and coaching by managers, peers and customers)                            

70% Experience (e.g. on-the-job, on-demand Google search, sharing, working out loud, mentoring others etc)                     

Note how formal learning only constitutes a small percentage of the overall learning experience. The 90% new world learning methodologies are crucial, better timed, more relevant and often a lot more cost-effective in a fast-paced world. They are also more empowering for the learner who becomes more self-directed in their CPD (and career choices).

Put simply, what we've done in the past won't get us where we need to be in the future.