How do we learn best in the workplace?

Learning is a multi-dimensional process, which means it can take place in many different ways, in many different formats. This provides endless opportunities for people to learn at work, which is often referred as continuous employee learning.

Continuous employee learning is the constant skill and knowledge development in response to changes in the workplace. Top performing companies not only recognize the importance of their people, but also the need to provide the right skills to enable their people.

According to the Future of Jobs report from the World Economic Forum, more than one-third of the skills we believe are essential for today’s workforce will change in just five years from now. This means that employees are expected to continually adapt and upskill, in new and dynamic ways, at a pace we have never experienced before. So how can we best support them?

One simple technique to use with teams is to combine continuous employee learning with sustaining business growth and outcomes – and make the learning part of the work. In order to make the learning part of the work, the key is to integrate learning mechanisms and tools into the day-to-day work, by solving real business problems and real customer challenges, through learning. 

Two of the most effective integrated mechanism that I would support are retrospectives and coaching.

Retrospectives

As Albert Einstein kindly articulated for us »Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results«.

A retrospective is an opportunity for a team or individual to reflect, inspect, and adapt the way they work. It is dedicated time, to look back over a set of period (week, month) and observe what we learned and how to improve.

While there are countless formats and tools available for facilitating effective retrospectives, one of the most common and simple styles to try with your team includes 3 reflective questions:

What is going well?

What is not going well?

What could we do differently?

Coaching

Coaching is one of the most powerful leadership tools to enable a person to learn from their own experiences. The role of the coach, which can be performed by a manager, a colleague, or a friend, is the help the individual improves their performance. In other words, to help them learn.

The role of manager, in short, is becoming that of a coach.

An effective »manager as coach« asks questions instead of providing answers, supports employees instead of judging them, and facilitates their development instead of dictating what has to be done.

(Book: Agile People Principles)