FUTURE TALENT November - January 2019/2020 | Page 36

O
ON TOPIC
“Gone are the days of sending
someone on a five-day leadership
programme. Clients are asking for
bite-sized, ‘just-in-time’ learning;
a way of doing things in a more
tech-enabled way. But still there is
a desire to keep people connected,”
she adds.
Like Gowdridge, she highlights
an increased desire for “social
learning” and an emphasis on
human skills. “The whole topic of
inclusion is key,” she says. “Building
leaders who are humble enough to
know that they don’t have all the
answers; who create environments
where people come together to
share ideas and experiment.”
Clients are
asking for
bite-sized,
‘just-in-time’
learning
T he g row t h of f l ex i b i l i t y
and customisation is notable
throughout professional learning;
there is no set format for executive
education any more than there is
for modern MBAs.
Imperial offers both open-
enrolment programmes (involving
people from multiple companies,
countries and industries) plus
custom programmes “of ten
working with dozens, hundreds,
even thousands of executives from
one company in a tailored
programme,” says Brown. A USP is
i t s a b i l i t y to d raw o n t h e
organisations’ wider science,
technology, engineering, maths
and medicine capabilities to
enhance learning.
“If we have an automotive client,
for example, we’ll bring together
experts in industrial design, the
future of cities, demographics and
material science to create this
36 // Future Talent
amazing learning opportunity for
executives,” he says.
Meanwhile, Duke CE’s model is
“to draw in subject matter experts
from practice, academia and other
sources”, providing “bespoke,
experiential learning”. This, Groves
says, is “designed in a way that is
completely relevant , using a
company’s real-life business
challenges”, with learning taking
place “off site, in parts of the world
that people aren’t used to being in”,
to push their boundaries. “That’s
what the world is like,” she explains.
“We’re constantly fighting with
change, having to learn, ask
questions and be curious.”
Sought-after topics range from
‘the ethical and moral side of
leadership’ to subject-matter
learning around AI, machine learning
and crypto technologies. “All the
disruptors,” says Groves. “But
viewing them as an opportunity
rather than a threat.”
Where learning is put into
immediate practice, ROI is more
clearly identifiable. However,
measures of success must also be
tailored, stresses Brown, and
consistent with a client’s culture
and goals. “Some organisations are
looking for things that are granular
and quantitative; others for a more
qualitative, even narrative-based,
measurements of impact. Probably
a combination is best. Eventually,
one can start looking at longitudinal
data to see what is happening.”
Both he and Groves agree that
customised programmes are most
successful when co-created and
designed by client and provider, as
part of an ongoing relationship.
“HR, L&D and C-suite all need
involvement in designing
programmes,” stresses Groves.
“It tends to be HR managing this,
but sponsorship must come from
the top.”
L
eaders also have a
responsiblity to create
cultures that embrace
learning of all kinds,
argues HR director and consultant
Shereen Daniels. “Some of it is just
about the way we perceive and
address contracted hours and what
people do outside of work,” she
says, explaining that pursuing
personal interests (whether
painting or DJing) helps people to
practise ‘learning and doing
simultaneously’, while enhancing
Bringing learning in-house at Onfido University
Since March, software company Onfido has been harnessing the knowledge of its workforce
by creating learning “for the people, by the people”.
“We’re full of super-smart humans, so we decided to create an infrastructure called
Onfido University,” says VP People, Ruth Penfold. “It’s very hard in a scaling business to
ensure you are developing the right learning opportunities for the people within it.”
She explains that the scheme represents “part of a commitment to developing people”
and fits with the company’s core value of “learn things, share them”. All courses are open
to everyone, and those who volunteer to teach receive training to ensure they provide
interesting and engaging sessions (developing new skills in the process).Currently two-
to-three courses run each week, covering topics such as machine learning, but “it’s more
than a lunch and learn”, according to Penfold. “It takes a phenomenal amount of work to
make it run,” she admits. “But it means we’re able to offer a platform for the sharing of
ideas and wisdom beyond the realms of people’s day-to-day roles.”
Launched in 2012 (and now totalling around 270 employees), Onfido was founded seven
years ago by three former Oxford University students who “wanted to create an organisation
that felt good for the people in it,” explains Penfold. “Employee number 12 was an HR
person, which is incredibly rare in a start-up. L&D is a key engagement driver. We want
people to have sight of where their career can go and to grow with us.”