The many failures of corporate learning rest on the fact that most fail to manage learning as an engineering science.
It's field rooted in systems engineering principles where its component parts or "chunks" should be self-contained, modular and reusable. Unfortunately, few who are learning about today's practices are aware of this reality. This gap in practitioner awareness, coupled with advances in consumer expectations and connected technologies, has created a new mandate for digital learning.
Can corporate learning survive? If corporate learning wants to achieve relevancy in terms of delivering personalized experiences based on device, location and user preferences, it better start managing its content as a future-ready strategic asset. This means the learning must be structured, digitally rendered and assigned with metadata so it's able to be built upon and easily exchanged, published, and deployed across multiple channels and technologies. The mandate for digital learning requires granular component control of content that is achievable by leveraging content component management systems (CCMS). The idea of component-level learning is like when a manufacturer builds a new car. The car isn't created from scratch. Parts are selected from an assortment of existing parts and assembled into a vehicle. By assembling from components, the manufacturer increases its production speed and reuses the same components for different needs. Design thinking and reusability are the ideas behind learning components. Each chunk of learning content, whether it be a knowledge, skill or behavioral object, is developed so it can be easily combined and reused across a variety of learning scenarios.
Learning engineering requires components. Building on the automobile example, a car represents a hierarchy of component parts that serve as the basis for the car's engineering. In a similar vein, every organization has an inherent learning hierarchy derived from the capabilities it needs to compete. For example, typical organizations will have seven to nine core capabilities. Each capability is achieved by deploying eight to 12 workforce competencies, and each competency is supported by seven to nine tasks. Tasks are then deconstructed into required knowledge, skills and behaviors. This last level is the point where learning objectives are formed, and people start to learn.
Component-level management enables modern solutions. Every type of learning component, whether it be a type of knowledge, skill or behavioral chunk, has a defining set of characteristics. These characteristics determine how each component is designed, rendered and arranged. Component hierarchies are constructed according to what people need to know or be able to do to perform on the job. This strategy supports the deconstruction concept where people learn from the bottom up in a progressive order, starting with the smallest chunks of content or learning objects. Imagine having a digital warehouse of all your organization's knowledge, skills and behaviors rendered as digital learning objects. These objects can be dynamic illustrations, animations or simulations. Learners can then see selected concepts demonstrated or practice and assess their skills anytime, anywhere and from any device. Each object is individually tagged and indexed to multiple datasets such as individual, work location, process, etc. This architecture allows learners to select, arrange and combine learning objects in ways that serve their unique needs and preferences.
Moving forward. Digital transformation of learning isn't simply about delivering content virtually. That was a short-term solution in response to COVID-19. Corporate learning functions that want relevance in today's era of connected work must digitize their learning content. Digitizing learning content at the component level based on learning hierarchies is the only way to successfully deliver modern learning practices (mass personalization, flow of work learning, etc.) within connected environments. The bottom line is that hierarchy- based learning component strategies create learning ecosystems where components interact and produce results where the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts.
Brent A. Kedzierski is the former head of learning strategy and innovation for Shell International.
For more information, contact Brent Kedzierski at brent@humanwrks.com.
