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Training vs Learning You’ve heard of training and you’ve heard of Learning. But do you know what they mean and what’s the difference? Let’s find out together! While many professionals may use the terms interchangeably, they are in fact different. Training is knowledge transfer in a classroom setting (though it can be both online and offline). Training usually involves 2 parties - a trainer, lecturer or any subject matter expert and a trainee (or a group of trainees). Learning, on the other hand, is knowledge transfer in any setting. It is a process of acquiring new knowledge and behaviours as a result of practice, study or experience. Learning can happen in a range of ways and doesn’t have to involve other people. We learn when we read books and articles, listen to podcasts, watch someone else do a task, get coached or mentored, prepare and work on a personal development plan or even when just talking to colleagues or friends. Practically, this means that training is a form of learning, but it is not the only one. So why limit your needs assessment to only training? Training Needs Analysis We really like CIPD’s definition: “a one-off isolated event looking at the needs for a specific training activity“. Training needs analysis is usually an ad hoc event related to a specific training. It doesn’t necessarily tie into the larger organisational strategy and it is something that happens only once. A training needs analysis can help you establish who needs training and what kind of training they need? For example, a group of people want to improve their Microsoft Excel skills and they attend a training for it. In other words, it doesn’t have to be tied to the big picture or the strategic plans of the business. Learning Needs Analysis Let’s stick with CIPD’s definition of a learning needs analysis: “A current or future health check on the skills, talent and capabilities of the organisation (or part of the organisation), systematic gathering of data about employees’ capabilities and organisational demands for skills“. When it comes to LNA, as you can see, the orientation is towards the future and finding out what are the specific skills, talents and capabilities available today and what will be needed tomorrow. The gathering of data is a systemic process, meaning one that happens regularly, and it happens on two levels – from people’s perspective and from organisational perspective. This means people are regularly asked to assess their current capabilities, particular skills and knowledge that help them do their job; but at the same time the business communicates regularly what capabilities it would need in the future to reach its goals. Doing a learning needs analysis helps you understand what are the goals of the organisation and what performance improvement is needed to reach those objectives, what particular knowledge, skills and behaviours the organisation requires and how people learn best. It gives us a higher-picture overview of the learning. And yes, some of these needs could be met with a training. But majority – won’t! Example of LNA In practical terms this could look like this. At the beginning of the year, the managers would agree with their teams on the most crucial skills and knowledge required to complete their work. At the same time, the business, in the face of the CEO, HR Director or other C-level executives, would publish a list of all the skills and knowledge that are deemed important to help the organisation reach its yearly targets. During the regular 1-on-1 meetings, the manager would ask their team members to rate their current skills on a scale of, say, 1 to 5. Throughout the year then, the managers would make sure that their teams have all of these skills and knowledge at a workable level (this level would be agreed across the business). This allows the organisation to keep track of all current capabilities and compare them to whatever the needs of the business are. Which means we can easily and quickly respond, should there be a need for it. TNA or LNA? If you focus on the learning needs, you may discover that the issue isn’t lack of knowledge how to give feedback, but lack of appropriate culture within the organisation. Perhaps, managers don’t encourage their people to give regular feedback, or feedback isn’t seen as a learning opportunity by employees. You see, these discoveries would require very different approaches. For example, instead of trainings, you would consider culture building initiatives. Learning encompasses so much more – it touches upon the personal, team and organisational development processes. Training needs analysis is important, but you would get a much better understanding of the organisation and its functions, if instead you focused on a learning needs analysis. To learn more about learning needs assessment or how to perform it in your organisation, head over to The L&D Academy. We offer a lot of free resources to help L&D practitioners with their day-to-day responsibilities.

Many beginner L&D practitioners (and some experienced pros) are tasked with developing the leadership population in their organization yet still struggle to find the best way. If you're one of these people, first of all, you are not alone! Many organizations struggle with how best to support their teams' growth, particularly in times of organizational change or rapid expansion. And secondly, developing leaders is easier than you might think. In this blog post, we'll walk you through 3 steps for creating a leadership development program to help your team reach new heights of success. Table of contents: A quick note on leadership models Three steps to leadership development Step 1. Identifying the learning needs Step 2. Design and implement learning solutions Step 3. Evaluate the impact Notes on leadership development Conclusion A quick note on leadership models There are many leadership models out there. Some of the more popular ones are Situational Leadership, Transactional and Transformational Leadership, and Laissez-faire (or hands-off). Chances are that your company is championing its own approach altogether. What model does your organization use? Let us know in the comments below. 3 Steps to Leadership Development Whatever model you prefer, one thing is for sure – as L&D, you need to actively support the development of leaders in your organization. So here is a simple 3-step process to help you with that. Step 1. Identify the learning needs The first step is to identify the learning needs of the target population. You need to measure the current capabilities and skills, knowledge, and behaviors the organization will need in the future. To measure these, you could (in no particular order): collect 360-degree feedback, conduct interviews with managers and their direct reports, look through past performance reviews, administer a psychometric assessment (like DiSC or the MBTI) organize a development center event analyze in-depth the strategy, mission, and vision of the company. In this first step, you would also consider who needs to undergo a management development program. This can be based on their needs but also on any succession plans the company has for them. Another thing that's important to measure is how managers in your organization prefer to learn. Learn more about adult learners and some of the more popular styles in our video "What are Learning Styles?" Step 2. Design and implement learning solutions The learning experiences you design for a leadership program wouldn't differ from the standard L&D methods you would use. Certainly, in-house or external training can be part of that. But you can also consider: Formal courses or programs, like an MBA or another postgraduate qualification, Mentoring and coaching for the learning managers, Job shadowing or secondments Participating in various company-wide projects. You may want to use a combination of methods throughout the program—for example, a lecture followed by group exercises or simulations. Some of the best programs allow people from different parts of the business to work together on projects that affect the whole company. For example, operations, marketing, and IT managers are tasked to develop and implement a strategy for increasing inclusion and diversity awareness across the organization. The ultimate goal of any management or leadership development program is to help managers: become aware of their current leadership style, apply their strengths, adopt new behaviors and beliefs and achieve results through the newfound methods (Bass and Avolio, 2008). All learning interventions you choose need to help your learners through this journey. For example, To increase self-aware, show them feedback from their direct reports on their leadership behaviors and discuss it. To apply their strengths, you could ask them to mentor another manager who isn't as strong in a particular area. To help adopt new behaviors, create personal development plans, and offer coaching or participation in communities of practice. Finally, to ensure they are achieving results, give them regular feedback on their progress, monitor their performance, and collect comments from people they work with. To ensure success for your program, be sure to include multiple opportunities for feedback and evaluation throughout the process so participants can receive immediate reinforcement on their progress as they move through each stage (e.g., completing readings before class, self-assessment questionnaires, and so on). Step 3. Evaluate the impact The key in this step is to understand what impact the leadership development program has had on: The leader – in terms of knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes Their followers (direct reports) – in terms of their performance and wellbeing The organization – in terms of overall performance and bottom line The evaluation for a leadership program will not be any different from any other evaluation. As a matter of fact, it will have the same complications – it will be challenging to identify which performance and attitude changes were directly caused by the development program. But one thing that helps is to be very clear on what we will measure from the beginning. For example, I may want to test how much participants' conflict management approaches have improved as a result of the program. Staging a fight between team members wouldn't be ethical. And I cannot spend a week or a month shadowing the manager, hoping an opportunity for them to manage conflict will arise, and I will get to observe them. But collecting feedback on this matter from their direct reports is realistic. Or administering a psychometric assessment, like the Thomas-Killman Inventory. And again, for this feedback to illustrate the progress leaders have achieved, I need to have collected it at the beginning of the program and once more at the end. This is the only way I can measure the actual change that has taken place. In effect, you need to think of how you will evaluate the program before you even begin analyzing the needs and developing learning experiences. By considering what I can measure in advance, I am confident in setting goals at the beginning of the program. Notes on leadership development Leadership development is not training. We come across these types of misconceptions all the time. Let's explore! Training is a one-off event you can take in a single workshop or seminar or as part of an ongoing series of courses. It's short, focused, and specific to the task or skill being taught; it might teach you how to apply a particular leadership style, for example, or how to approach a conversation about wellbeing with staff members. Leadership development programs must be more than just training. Leadership development is about creating leaders with relevant skills and knowledge; who also possess attributes such as emotional intelligence (EQ), which help them succeed as leaders in their organizations and communities. The best leadership development programs combine skills and character development through activities designed to help participants become more self-aware about themselves—their strengths and weaknesses—and learn ways to grow into better leaders over time by regularly practicing new behaviors at work or at home. Conclusion Leadership development is a process and a journey. And with the right tools and resources, you can create an effective program that helps your organization grow leaders equipped to succeed in their roles today while setting them up for long-term success. These three steps (analysis, design, and evaluation) will help ensure your program hits its true potential.

"Hi team, I am looking for leadership training for my team. They are all new in their roles and have little experience managing other people. Can you help?" We receive these types of emails monthly. And we always get excited at the prospect of designing a new learning intervention, but it does prompt a few exploratory questions first. Management and leadership development are two concepts that are often confused. They might sound similar, but there's a lot of difference between the two in reality. So let's see what's true about management and Leadership development by looking at the actual meaning of these concepts individually before comparing them. Table of contents: 1. What is Management? 2. What is Leadership? 3. Is every leader a manager? 4. What skills do great managers and leaders need? 5. Management vs Leadership development? 6. Conclusion What is Management? Management is a set of processes that keep the organization functioning. These are things like planning, budgeting, staffing, and monitoring performance. A manager would be responsible for clarifying who's doing what, solving problems, providing feedback, and giving instructions. Consider a grocery store manager. They are responsible for the day-to-day operation. This could mean scheduling the shifts, organizing the stocking of shelves, ensuring each station is well staffed throughout the day, and ordering more inventory. They make sure that every department is running smoothly and efficiently. They are also responsible for the people and resources. This includes hiring new employees, managing current employees, developing their skills and expertise so they can do their jobs better, firing employees who aren't pulling their weight (or don't fit in with the culture), and making sure everyone understands what they need to get done daily. Management aims to answer, "How are we doing this?", "How many people are needed?", "How long will it take?", "How much will it cost?", etc. What is Leadership? Leadership is about people. It refers to rallying followers to a common vision, getting their buy-in, motivating and inspiring them to achieve extraordinary things. It's about leading by example and being a coach, a mentor, or a role model—someone who helps others find the best in themselves and bring it out into the world for everyone to see. The best leaders make people around them become better versions of themselves by encouraging them to share their ideas, take risks, speak up when they disagree with something (even if it means they'll have to admit they're wrong), stand up for what they believe in even if no one else agrees with them right away… in short: lead by example! Leadership aims to answer the questions, "Why are we doing this?", "Why are we selling this product or service?", "Why are we here today?", etc. Is every leader a manager? Some think that to be a leader, you also have to be a manager. But that is not quite the case. Leadership isn't just for CEOs or presidents anymore; it can be practiced at every level of an organization—and it definitely should be! History has seen many instances where a leader emerges without a rank or a title. Think of Spartacus of ancient Greece or, more recently, Mahatma Gandhi or Martin Luther King Jr. These people didn't hold official management titles. And yet people followed them because they trusted them and felt inspired by them. This doesn't mean that the management and leadership roles are mutually exclusive. But let's face it - when it comes to the corporate world, most managers are expected to be great leaders too. And that begs the question… What skills do great managers and leaders need? Let's try a quick experiment. Get a piece of paper and write down the answer to these four questions: Who has been the best manager you've worked with? What is it you admire about them? What did they do to set you up for success? and In what situations did their style work best? You can also download a simple template we've prepared to note down your answers. These questions probably gave you at least some ideas about what a good manager or leader does and says. By definition, a good manager has excellent planning and organizational skills. And a great leader motivates and inspires their followers. But you already knew that. Here is a list of some key competencies required in each role. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list. Management: Planning and organizing work and staff Monitoring performance Managing administrative work Managing budgets Communicating with stakeholders Problem-solving Managing time Leadership: Coaching and mentoring Developing others Developing strong networks and partnerships Fostering creativity and innovation Building consensus Introducing and managing change Creating an appealing vision for the future Inspiring others to achieve this future vision Recognizing signs of demotivation and improving it Again, where the roles overlap, you would find people whose job is to integrate all (and more) of these skills. Management vs. Leadership development? At this point, you may be wondering: "Is leadership development different than management development?". And the answer is "Yes". The difference comes from the definitions we examined earlier. Management development aims to upskill in traditionally managerial tasks, like planning, organizing, and monitoring. Leadership development focuses more on psychological elements of human behaviors. For example, a management development program would focus on things like: time management, communication skills, conflict resolution, project management, and policies and processes. A leadership program would prioritize topics like: human personalities, influence and persuasion, motivation, delegation and empowerment. Again, this distinction rarely lives separated like that in the real world. Most development programs integrate both. More junior learners are usually upskilled in management competencies, and as their careers progress, they focus more and more on leadership. Conclusion Management development and leadership development are two different things. However, both are necessary for business success. While the latter may be more challenging to implement, it offers greater rewards in the long run. Many people believe that there should be more emphasis on developing leaders rather than managers if we want to see improvements in organizational performance. But you should always focus on both and understand how one approach can complement the other to create a winning team. How do you go about developing your manager and leaders? Let us know in the comments below, or tag us on social media.

Learning & Development is a highly rewarding career path but one that can be pretty daunting to enter. It can seem like an impossible task if you're looking to go into L&D but don't have any prior experience in this field. Don't worry, though. In this article, we'll walk you through the steps necessary to start your career as an L&D professional. Table of Content: 1. Pros of Working in L&D 2. Cons of Working in L&D 3. What it takes to work in L&D 4. How to become L&D with no prior experience 5. Bonus tip 6. Conclusion Pros of Working in Learning & Development First, let's try to figure out what are some of the pros of working in L&D. Being responsible for other people's development can be a gratifying experience. You can help people: improve their skills, learn new skills and change their behavior, attitudes, and mindset. When you see the light go off, you know you've made a difference in someone's life. But there's more to it. Learning and development professionals are not just responsible for the learning experience but also for the whole employee experience. They have the opportunity: to influence organizational culture through the programs they develop and deliver shape the way organizations operate by helping employees learn new skills or adopt new behaviors that will make them more effective at work, which helps organizations achieve their goals support the organization's strategy by creating an environment where employees can thrive through continuous learning and development opportunities be the first point of contact for employees who have questions or issues related to their career development or performance management processes assist managers with coaching and mentor individual contributors on how best to develop their teams so that they can achieve organizational goals What's more, the work can be really interesting—you never know what kind of people you're going to meet or what kind of problems you'll face! One day you may be working with a very large company dealing with the challenges of scaling up training across many locations around the world; the next day, you might be working with an early-stage start-up that's just starting out its L&D journey. This diversity makes for an exciting career because every day is different! Cons of Working in Learning & Development Just like any other job, there are a few cons to working in Learning & Development. It can be difficult to find a job with no prior experience in the field. The pay can be low, especially if you're just starting out. You have to have a good understanding of the needs of your audience. You might have to sit through some really boring meetings. There's no guarantee that you'll have a great boss or that they'll be able to help and support you out as much as you'd like. Sometimes, it can feel like everyone else knows what they're doing and you don't. (Imposter syndrome, anyone?) You need to be a good listener. Learning and Development is not for everyone. If you aren't the kind of person who enjoys listening to others learn, you may want to consider a different career path. You need to be a good communicator. If people don't understand what you're saying, they won't buy into your ideas or feel motivated by them. You need to be a good problem solver. Every day brings new challenges that require creative solutions on the fly (and often under pressure). You'll need to be able to work with people from all different backgrounds and personalities, which can be challenging at times. You'll also have to deal with tough situations where employees or managers might not want to learn something new or change their behavior. It's also important to remember that L&D practitioners don't just sit around all day and make manuals and presentations. They have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders: they have to plan training sessions, create course materials, and manage stakeholders and budgets for their projects. This means that sometimes you'll need help from other departments, like HR or IT, as well as external vendors who specialize in specific training topics that you are not proficient in. However, if these things don't scare you off but excite you, the pros of working in this field far outweigh the cons! What it takes to work in Learning & Development If you're considering a career in L&D, it's a good idea to know what the job is all about. Here are some of the areas you need to keep an eye out for: L&D Basics Have a solid working understanding of what Learning & Development is and how it works. The basics are always helpful in establishing the minimum viable competencies you need. Read through the most important competencies in our free guide "Start a Career in L&D". Human behavior Why do people do the things that they do (i.e., basic motivation and psychology) Change management Why change happens and how to manage it effectively, so everyone stays on board with your plans Training design & delivery skills for both classroom-based and e-learning courses You should know about adult learning theories and principles. This way, when you create content for your audience(s), the course flows logically from one lesson or topic to another without jarring jumps. The learner should not be confused by jumping around topics without any logical reason behind why they went from A-Z then suddenly went back up B-C again! Organizational Development You need to know how people learn and how organizations can leverage it to improve performance. You must understand how organizations work, why they do what they do and what makes them tick. This includes knowing about motivation, leadership styles, and productivity. Technology Learning doesn't happen in isolation. It occurs within organizational systems like an intranet, SharePoint, Slack, or email, as well as face-to-face interactions with colleagues during team meetings or one-on-one discussions. The effective use of technology is, therefore, essential if we want to move towards learning environments that are more effective than traditional classroom settings. In the latter, students passively absorb information from their lecturers instead of actively engaging with the material that encourages active participation with games or simulations. Learn what's available out there, how it can be used to support learning and development initiatives, and how to make sure it doesn't get in the way of what you're trying to achieve (like when one device is incompatible with another). Passion You need to be passionate about Learning and Development. It is one thing to have a general understanding of how people learn and develop, but another entirely to understand the intricacies of human behavior. Be observant and curious - both can be fueled by your passion for the job. Coaching Being able to coach and lead others through change will also help you succeed. This includes understanding what it takes for people to perform well at work and recognizing when someone needs coaching or training to do their job better. Talent Management L&D doesn't exist in a vacuum. It collaborates closely with most (if not all) other Human Resource departments. You'll need an understanding of talent management processes, such as performance reviews and succession planning, not to mention how management and leadership development programs work. How to become an L&D practitioner with no prior experience? Suppose you're interested in becoming a learning and development practitioner but don't have any prior experience in the field. In that case, figuring out how to get started can be a little intimidating. A great first step is to start as a learner first. Discover how your brain works and what motivates you to learn. When are you at your optimal, and when do you struggle to retain knowledge? A couple of books on the topic we would recommend are: How We Learn, by Benedict Carey The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything...Fast, by Josh Kaufman Self-development activities While you are working through these, supplement your journey with some of these 'side quests': Learn about the field of learning and development You can start by reading books on the subject, taking classes at your local community college, or exploring online resources like YouTube videos and MOOCs (massive open online courses). We also offer a 6-hour online course, "Introduction to Learning and Development", that will take you through all the major responsibilities and give you step-by-step instructions on how to perform the most important tasks in the field. Find ways to practice what you learn Volunteer at your company or start your own blog where you write about topics like employee training or workplace learning. Apply for jobs that match your skillset and interests You can find these by talking with friends who work in the field, looking at LinkedIn profiles of other L&D pros, attending networking events held by local companies offering L&D services, or searching job boards online. Look for internships Internships are often a great way to get your foot in the door at companies that do L&D work. You'll get exposure to the tasks typically involved in these roles (such as designing training programs) without worrying about being responsible for executing them on your own. If you do well during your internship, there's a good chance your employer will offer you an entry-level role or when they need someone else on staff full-time. L&D Practitioners Qualities L&D practitioners have many different roles, but there are some important qualities that every L&D practitioner needs regardless of what type of work they do: A high degree of empathy To optimize employee engagement and satisfaction with their work, L&D professionals must be able to put themselves in their employees' shoes at all times. They need to understand what motivates them, what makes them feel valued, why they might be stressed out by certain tasks, or how they learn best. Curiosity It's also important for L&D Professionals to never stop learning about new technologies and trends in training, development, and the HR field in general. Staying on top of these helps us keep organizations competitive in today's ever-changing business landscape. And removes the excuse "I don't know enough about [insert technology name], so I'm not going there!". An open mind Being open to new ideas and concepts is necessary when designing learning experiences for others. L&D is constantly looking for opportunities to develop new areas of study or help employees in a more efficient way. Strong communication skills A good L&D professional knows how to communicate effectively with clients and colleagues while remaining professional. This means asking the right questions, actively listening, reading between the lines, writing clearly and concisely, and utilizing non-verbal cues. Bonus tip When looking for a job (any job, not just in L&D), it can be tempting to jump at the first opportunity that comes your way. This can be a great way to get your foot in the door. But it's also easy to end up with a job that doesn't fit you as well as you hoped. If you want a position that will allow you to thrive, take some time to think about what's most important to you in a job. Reflect on how much money and benefits matter, where the job is located in, whether there's room for advancement within the company, and whether or not there are opportunities for training or professional development within this particular organization. This might sound like a lot of work—and it is! But suppose you ask yourself these questions before taking on any new job opportunities. In that case, it will help ensure that when you find one that fits perfectly with your personal needs and goals, it'll be worth every minute spent searching! Conclusion Learning and Development is a rewarding career path. And there are many opportunities to get into the L&D world. If you have no prior experience, don't worry! There are a number of roles that require little or no experience. Some L&D professionals start off as interns or volunteers and then move their way up. You can also take courses in related fields such as psychology, education, or management before applying for an entry-level role. We have a dedicated community of L&D professionals over on LinkedIn. Come by and say hi! Good luck and happy learning!

Like it or not, online training and webinars are here to stay. But if your super-duper learning content isn't presented on decent hardware, it can ruin the effect on your learner. Whether you're recording a podcast, running a webinar, or teaching others the best way to use Pivot tables (those things are hard!), having the right equipment goes a long way toward looking and sounding like a pro. In this article, we've broken down what types of hardware you'll need to wow your learners. Table of Contents: 1. Camera 2. Microphone 3. Headphones 4. Background 5. Lights Additional Hardware Conclusion 1. Camera "A picture is worth a thousand words." Your camera is the hardware you need to paint that picture. We recommend that the camera supports high definition (HD), meaning that it can capture images at 720p or 1080p. The camera should be easy to set up: if it requires an extra cable to be plugged into your laptop, that's probably not a good fit for online training. The same goes for cameras that have to be mounted on the wall. These are best left for professional recording studios where people are paid handsomely for their work. The camera should offer some control over exposure settings. This will allow you to easily handle any lighting conditions with minimal fussing. Finally, use what's available. If you have an old smartphone lying around, use it. Download the EpocCam app, plug it into your computer, and you're ready to rock your session. Of course, you can always buy an expensive DSLR or a mirrorless camera. But if you're going to use it as a webcam, is the investment really worth it? 2. Microphone A microphone is a must for video conferencing. If your video or slides don't work, you can still make the session happen. But without audio - there is no session. And while you can rely on your built-in microphone, our recommendation is to get a simple plug-and-play mic instead. Most of these have a noise-canceling feature, and you can position them really close to your mouth. There are some really cheap ones that you can buy. But you can also turn your old smartphone into a mic. Just download an app of your liking and go to town! One final thing about mics - position it correctly. Aim it toward your mouth, so there's no echo when you speak. And make sure that there's nothing between you and the mic because that can cause a disturbance. 3. Headphones You'll also need a good pair of headphones for your online classes. If you already have a favorite pair, great! But if not, make sure they're comfortable to wear for long periods of time and that they don't leave any sort of permanent imprint on your earlobes. Wired is better than wireless because the signal is stronger, and there won't be any delays in the audio. It also reduces the risk of accidentally dropping them—the last thing you want is to ruin a lecture over an expensive pair of headphones! Using speakers instead of headphones isn't a good idea. Speakers can cause an echo effect. 4. Background Use a backdrop. Backgrounds in your videos can be a helpful tool for creating a more polished look and keeping the viewer's attention focused on you. A green screen is one option for creating the look of being somewhere else, but there are several other options. You can also consider using a virtual background instead of a physical one if you don't have access to anything suitable locally. But keep in mind that they only work if you have an excellent camera and computer. Otherwise, it can get choppy. You should also remove items that distract from your video's message, such as laundry or even people who walk by behind you while filming (if that happens often). 5. Lights Lights are the most important and crucial equipment you need to create a professional-looking video. The most basic light setup comprises a key light, a rim light, and practical lights. Key Light: A key light is used to illuminate your face so that it can be seen by the camera while adding depth and dimension to it as well. This can be done with a softbox or an umbrella if you want something more diffused. Soft shadows are achieved when you place the key light at 45 degrees to your right or left. Again, while there are some cheap options out there, you can use the lights you already have - like a window or a glass door. But avoid those sharp shadows by draping a translucent curtain over them and avoid standing directly in the sunlight. Rim Light: A rim light is something you place behind you (usually diagonally from your key light) to separate you from the background and give you more contrast. The effect is that the side of your face that isn't lit as much by the key light gets a nice subtle glow. Remember not to overpower them because they are meant only for separation from the background, so keep their power low. Practical Lights: These kinds of lights can be used for creating ambiance. Use candles, soft lights, fairy lights, or RGB lights. Their purpose is to light up any dark spots in your background and make it more interesting. A quick note about your lights - you can ignore the rim lights, and you definitely don't need to mess with practical lights. But if you want a professional look, do not skip the key light. It is what separates pros from amateurs. Additional hardware If you have a decent camera, a good microphone with headphones, and a good light, you don't need much more. But if you want to take it to the next level, here are a few of our recommendations: StreamDeck: this is an additional programmable keyboard that you can set up to do anything on your computer. We often use it to toggle our microphone, camera, participants, and chat windows on Zoom or Teams. And you can do all of these without switching back and forth between your apps or windows. But a really cool thing you can do is set up different messages you want to send via chat throughout the session. Then, when you need to sed them, you just click a button, and it sends the message automatically. How cool is that?! Tablet or iPad: many conferencing applications allow you to use your tablet as a whiteboard. So you can draw live in front of your learners. Our favorite free app is Whiteboard by Microsoft. Desk and chair: If someone had told us this would be on the list of the necessary hardware for online trainings a couple of years ago, we would have laughed. Since then (and a couple of visits to doctors later), we've realized how important it is to have a comfortable and ergonomic chair and a desk. While there is conflicting research on the topics, we still love our motorized standing desks. Anytime we feel discomfort, we can just stand up, get our blood circulating and think "on our feet" (we'll let ourselves out!). Conclusion Teaching or training online doesn't have to be rocket science. But you do need a couple of essentials. Now you're all set to create great content and deliver online training sessions or webinars on Zoom (or any platform of your choosing!)

What is blended learning There are just so many wonderful learning experiences to try out, sometimes it’s impossible to pick just one. The good news is that we don’t have to. Let us introduce you to Blended Learning. In very simple terms, blended learning is a way of mixing different learning methods together as part of the same programme. Blended Learning example Imagine you have to prepare a six-month-long program for leaders to help them become better people managers. A major obstacle for most participants is their lack of time. They are usually swamped with work and can hardly spare a whole day attending a classroom or virtual training. This is usually a good starting point to consider blended learning. While some of the material will always be better delivered in live training, some of it can be ‘outsourced’. What you can do in this case is create fewer and shorter training sessions, backed by 1-on-1 coaching, online courses, on-the-job projects, and peer mentoring. This way you decrease the amount of time away from work and incorporate learning into the day-to-day activities of the participants. Pros and Cons of blended learning Types of blended learning Blending can happen on a number of levels. Here are the most common ones: Activity blending Mixing together different tasks in the course of the same activity. Example: learners receive a handout with partial information about the topic. They then need to listen to the facilitator and fill in the blanks in their handouts. Course blending Mixing different types of activities in a course. Example: during a course, learners are asked to access a video online or do some research, talk to specialists, have a discussion and even do a role play. Program blending Mixing different types of learning events within a program. Example: a learning program that asks learners to attend a training, a panel discussion, work on a project, get 1-on-1 coaching, etc. Institution blending Several institutions or corporate organizations work together towards a common goal of upskilling learners. Example: a business partnering with a university to create a learning program exclusively for the employees. How to create a blended learning program Blended learning is about a very delicate balance. It’s like how you mix different ingredients to cook a dish – too much of something, and the whole meal could be ruined. Here are our 4 tricks for ensuring your blended learning program tastes just right! Tip 1: Learning objectives Firstly, you need to be very clear on the learning objectives and the preferences of your learners. If you are preparing a program for people who aren’t comfortable with technology, virtual reality simulations probably aren’t going to be super effective! You need to have a very detailed list of learning objectives and preferences because they will largely dictate what methods to use. Tip 2: Picking the right learning methods Each learning preference responds better to certain learning experiences. For example, Reflectors like personality profiles and 360-degree feedbacks. Pragmatists prefer teambuilding activities. The learning objectives should tell you what content to include in your program, while the learning preferences – what activities would be best. This way, if you are preparing a program for managers on interviewing skills, the learning objectives will tell you to include content on things like: unconscious bias, types of questions, listening skills, and interview structure. And the learning preferences of the participants should tell you whether you should use problem-solving exercises (Pragmatists), role-plays (Activists), reading articles (Theorists) or job shadowing (Reflector). Tip 3: Learning experiences flow The third trick is to work out the flow of the learning experiences. Is it better to first have a classroom session and then have people work on a project together? Or is it better to send them a link to an online course and then they come in for a discussion? There are no clear rules for this – it will depend on 3 things: your learning objectives, the preferences of your learners and the adult learning principles. But even if you get everything the way you think would be best for your group, there is one more trick we would suggest you pay attention to. Tip 4: Collect feedback And that is to collect feedback – often and religiously. This is the only way to ensure that you are doing the right thing for the right people at the right time. Got more tips from your experience creating blended learning programs? We’d love to hear from you, so drop your comments below.

Assessing, as well as tracking employee development is an important part of the employee life cycle. The information collected from learning and development interventions can be used to feed succession planning, talent management, career development, and performance management, so it is important to record and track it accordingly. In this article, we help you get clarity around how to do that, as well as what to do with the information, once you’ve collected it. What are skill gaps? Skills gaps tell us the difference between what skills the organization needs and what skills employees currently possess. Regularly conducting skills gap analysis will help you identify skills you need to meet organisational goals. And that, in turn, benefits the whole organization as it is easier to adapt to changing needs, respond to skill shortages and sustain its innovative edge. How to Perform a Skills Analysis Gap: 5-Step Process Step 1: Setting the scope Your first step in setting the scope is finding out if the analysis is even required. Some common reasons for doing a skills gap analysis are: Succession planning Changes in the role, team, or the entire organization Regulations or compliance Launching new products or services Mergers, acquisitions, downsizing, etc. Changes in customer needs Use of new technology Decrease in individual and/or team performance Joining of a new team member Continuous professional development Skill gap analysis can be performed on 3 levels: Individual Gap Analysis At this level, you compare the skills of a specific employee with the requirements of their job. For example, an Instructional Designer requires deep knowledge of adult learning principles. However, if that person has never had to develop such programs before, it’s safe to assume their existing skill level is low. Team/Functional Gap Analysis At this level, you compare the skills of a whole team or a function to the competencies required to accomplish their goals. For example, a Marketing team, that uses an external agency for all their digital marketing, wants to make savings and start doing it in-house. Again, the chances are their current skills are probably low, if they’ve never done this kind of work before. Organizational Gap Analysis At this level, you compare the skills needed to realize the company’s vision and mission with what is currently available. Often, a combination of individual and team/functional gap analysis will be sufficient to draw conclusions on the state of the existing and desired organizational skillsets. Step 2: Identifying important skills There are several places where you can find information about the important skills required at each level. At the different levels, these include: Individual: Job descriptions, interviews (with employees, their managers, and even clients), observations, performance records, customer satisfaction records, etc. Team/Functional: team goals, team performance records, interviews (with team members, their manager, and their dedicated HR business partner), feedback from customers, observations, development centers. Organizational: Business objective and goals, company values, company culture, engagement reports, competition analysis, industry reports, and benchmarks. Once you have identified the important skills, take some time to prioritize them by their importance. You can be as detailed as you deem fit – use a 5-point rating scale (low to high) or record detailed comments. Step 3: Measure current skills Regardless of the level at which you are conducting the analysis, you will have at your disposal several data collection methods: Self-assessment questionnaires: employees rate their own capability. Can be subjective. Capability tests: a multiple-choice or open-ended test that measures current capabilities. Best for measuring theoretical knowledge. Interviews with employees: live conversation (online or offline) with employees to gauge their skills levels. Relies on the self-awareness of employees. Interviews with line managers: live conversations (online or offline) with line managers of one or more employees. Dependent on managers’ abilities to observe and be objective. Interviews with senior leaders: live conversations (online or offline) with one or more senior leaders. Especially useful in understanding the bigger picture and the strategic direction of the business. Senior leaders could be powerful allies in pushing through the L&D agenda. Interviews with HR Business Partner(s): live conversations (online or offline) with the HR Business partner responsible for a given function. HRBPs are usually aware of more global issues and skills gaps on a team/functional level. Feedback from performance reviews: Review of performance records that may indicate strengths or development areas. Observations: personal observations of an individual or a team. Can be very time-consuming and requires great observational skills and a good understanding of the nature of work. Development centers: an organized event (usually day-long) where participants are tasked with various activities for the purpose of establishing their strengths and development areas. While they perform these tasks, there is a team of observers who take detailed notes. This type of event can be time-consuming to prepare but yields very close-to-real-life results. Review of industry benchmarks: research secondary data sources, like publications, research reports, and academic journals on what skills are needed to accomplish goals similar to the ones of the organization. Step 4: Make recommendations Your recommendations need to be based on 2 things: Does the person/team have the skills required to do the job? Is the person/team motivated to achieve their goals? Based on this, there are 4 options: This is called the Performance Analysis Quadrant. L&D solutions only truly have an impact when people do not have skills but are willing to learn. In all other cases, you need to enlist help to solve problems related to recruitment and selection and lack of appropriate resources. Skills can be trained by professionals, taught by manager and colleagues, learned through observation but most importantly, practiced back on the job. Motivation can usually be enhanced with coaching and mentoring. Step 5: Act on findings Create a clear plan of action based on your findings and recommendations. Get all buy-in from the relevant stakeholders, secure a budget and get to work. How do you assess, record, and track employee skill gaps in your organisation? Let us know in social media (remember to tag us @thelndacademy)!

You’ve probably heard the saying “build it and they would come”, but when we think of real life, it rather rarely happens to be true, doesn’t it? In our own careers as L&D practitioners we’ve created numerous programmes, that we thought were brilliant, useful and practicable and employees would engage in them the minute they were rolled out, only to find ourselves greeted with the sound of crickets. To put it simply, it’s not enough to introduce great tools and resources, you also need to assist employees in adopting a mindset and habits that would allow them to reap the benefits from all that the organisation has to offer in terms of learning. But before we dive into the actual tips on how to build employee learning habits, let’s go back a bit and look at how learning works. What is learning? Before we can get into learning habits we need to understand what learning is. A google search yields an expected result: “Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, attitudes, and preferences.” But there is more to it. To truly understand the learning process, we need to understand how the brain works. While it is only 3% of our body weight, the brain uses 25% of our oxygen and blood supply. And there is a reason for it. The brain needs a lot of energy to convert data into lessons. Think of it this way. Imagine you are in a dense jungle and you need to get out. This is the first time a human has to go through it and there is a lot of fauna that hinders your journey. As you walk, you use your machete to fight your way through. It is slow and painful. However, you left a path behind you. So now, if you have to go through the same jungle, it is going to be much easier. And every time you walk through, you make the path bigger and there is less and less resistance. This path will become a track, a small road, and ultimately: a highway! The same thing (more or less) happens in our brain when we are faced with new information. Very simply put, the brain is made up of neurons. When these neurons connect, forming the so-called neural pathways, we learn something new. The stronger the pathway, the easier we can recall the information. For example, the name of our new colleague or the address of the new office. If you repeat both of these enough times, the connection becomes stronger and, therefore, easier to remember. Going back to learning, we can say that Learning is the process of creating and sustaining new neural pathways for the purpose of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviours, skills, values, attitudes, and preferences. Not as sexy a definition, but way more accurate! What are learning habits Another Google search defines habits for us: A routine of behaviour that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously. Therefore, habits are all routine behaviours we subconsciously repeat for the purpose of building new and enforcing old neuropathways. So what could be considered a learning habit? Proactively finding the best learning opportunities Matching learning opportunities to our learning preferences and styles Being genuinely curious Asking for feedback on our work and learning from it Wanting to master a skill or excel at our job Knowing our optimal learning times Taking a break What are some habits we missed on our list? Let us know in the comments below. How to build learning habits Now that we have a hefty list of learning habits, what can you do as the L&D practitioner in charge? Keep in mind that learning has a lot to do with change – we learn something, we need to apply it and that means replacing the old way of doing things. Not everyone will be comfortable with this. And, as you will see in our tips below, building learning habits requires the involvement of many people, teams and departments. As the saying goes “it takes a village to raise a child”. Translated to our language “It takes an organisation to raise a learner!”. Here are some of our suggestions on how you can build learning habits: Allow employees to find out and explore their learning preferences. You can do this with self-assessment questionnaires on learning styles or coaching for self-awareness Create different learning opportunities. Have a range of opportunities that fit all tastes – from classroom and online training, to online courses, bite-sized and microlearning, coaching and mentoring, peer reviews, project work and even job shadowing and secondments. Empower people to make decisions themselves. If the learning isn’t applied back on the job, can we truly say that it is effective? And one of the best ways to ensure learners are putting their money where their mouths are is by allowing them to make all the decisions. When leaders become hands-off, employees become hands-on! Encourage challenging the status quo. “Why fix something when it ain’t broke?” A famous saying often used to encourage the status quo. But not changing means standing still. Learners should be encouraged by their managers, L&D, and HR to challenge things, especially when they believe something better can be done instead. Encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing. Humans are social beings and we learn from each other. When people collaborate and share their knowledge freely, they feel more empowered and engaged in the learning process. Not to mention they feel responsible and accountable for their learning. Enforce regular feedback giving. Another great way to learn is through trial and error. But no error will be worth it unless we can learn from it. This is where feedback comes in. And sometimes, without feedback, we may not even realize that we are making a mistake and therefore, are robbed of the opportunity to learn. Inspire active experimentation and learning from mistakes. Feedback is important, but unless we are encouraged to freely experiment and make as many mistakes as possible, then we are not learning. We are just going with the flow. This is where managers need to be heavily involved and act as role models to empower their teams to try new things and learn from their errors. Eliminate unproductive systems and practices. No behavioral habits can be created or sustained unless there are systems, policies and practices in place to support them. A great way to start is to have a closed corporate social media where the exchange of ideas and learning resources can happen freely among employees. Allow people to be in control of their learning. We feel most empowered, engaged, and motivated when we are in control of our destiny. The same is true for learning. If your learners have a wide variety of learning opportunities to choose from, they will make the best decisions for themselves (a little secret – even if they didn’t, they will defend their choice anyways!). How do you build learning habits in your organization? Share your practices in the comments below.