Measuring Training in the Flow of Work: A Comprehensive Guide

In today’s fast-paced and ever-changing business environment, employee learning and development (L&D) programs are more critical than ever before. The continuous acquisition of new skills and knowledge is essential for businesses to remain competitive and for employees to stay engaged and motivated. The terms “upskilling” and “reskilling” have gone from mere jargon to critical topics on the HR and CEO agenda.

However, the traditional approach to L&D was shattered recently due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gone are the lengthy, multiple-day classroom instructions. Truly blended and informal learning (now hailed as Multi-Modal learning) is here to stay, with virtual delivery every day as checking email. What hasn’t changed is the need to measure. Companies are still spending money on training, especially on topics such as all things Digital, DE&I initiatives, and the ever-popular Leadership Development. When a company spends money on something, it’s usually a good idea to find out if there are positive outcomes linked to business results. This is where the concept of measuring training in the flow of work comes in.

What is Measuring Training in the Flow of Work?

Training in the flow of work refers to the process of integrating learning and development opportunities into the daily work routines of employees. It involves creating a continuous learning culture in which employees can access the information and training they need to improve their performance and stay up to date with industry trends when and where the need arises.

By incorporating learning into the flow of work, organizations can provide employees with the tools they need to succeed without disrupting their day-to-day activities. This approach not only improves employee engagement and retention but also helps organizations achieve their business objectives. Basically, upskilling and reskilling on demand!

Why is Training in the Flow of Work Important?

The traditional approach to L&D has its limitations. For example, classroom-style training can be time-consuming, expensive, and difficult to measure. As previously stated, it’s also falling out of favor for cost and efficiency reasons. During the pandemic, L&D did almost too good of a job showing how well training could be delivered virtually, making decisions difficult about returning everyone to the classroom.

Delivering or making available training in the flow of work addresses these issues by making learning more accessible and relevant. Employees can learn and apply new skills as they work rather than trying to apply what they learned in a classroom setting. This approach not only makes training more effective but also improves employee productivity and job satisfaction. One classic example is an intact work team that has people from different departments working on a corporate initiative/project. Part of the project involves needing to learn a new tool, and the team learns this new tool together in real-time while working on the project. Or an employee on a manufacturing line sees something breaking and needs to learn how to fix it on the spot.

Measuring training in the flow of work follows similar principles to measuring training in any capacity. It involves collecting data on the performance of employees, ideally before, during, and after they complete training. This data can help organizations understand the impact of their training programs and make data-driven decisions to improve them. Collecting the before data can be most challenging and is not always required unless conducting an in-depth impact study.

To facilitate measuring training in the flow of work, organizations should leverage technology and digital tools. L&D effectiveness solutions like Explorance Metrics That Matter, performance management software, and other technological solutions can be used to deliver training content to employees, track their progress, and evaluate their performance.

Using technology also makes it easier to personalize the training experience for individual employees. With access to real-time data, organizations can tailor training to each employee’s needs and provide them with the specific knowledge and skills they need to excel in their role.

Steps that organizations can take to measure training in the flow of work:

1. Set clear objectives and outcomes: Before developing any training program, it is essential to establish clear objectives. What business problem is being solved? What will you achieve with the training? What specific skills or knowledge do you want employees to use back on the job? What levels of individual or business performance improvement are you expecting? Setting clear objectives helps you to focus your efforts and measure progress more effectively.
2. Collect feedback data from learners and programs: Gathering feedback from employees is an essential step in measuring training effectiveness, efficiency, and outcomes. This feedback is often collected through surveys, interviews, and focus groups when needing to drill into a specific program or issue. By understanding how employees perceive the training, you can make improvements to future programs, including the content, delivery method, and any training that does not get applied back on the job (often called Scrap).
3. When available, use performance data that can link back to business outcomes: To measure the impact of training, it is important to track employee performance data before and after training. This data can include metrics such as productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction. By analyzing this data, you can determine whether training has had a positive impact on business goals and key metrics.
4. Turn feedback into analytics and insights: Learning analytics involves collecting and analyzing data on how employees engage with learning content. Organizing key performance indicators into different types, such as Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Outcomes, can help streamline the reporting and analytics process. By analyzing this data, you can identify areas where employees may be struggling and where to make improvements to the training program.

Benefits of Measuring Training in the Flow of Work

Measuring training in the flow of work has several benefits for both employees and organizations, including:

1. Improved Employee Performance: When training is integrated into the workflow, employees can apply what they learn in real time, leading to improved performance. This also makes it easier to track progress and identify areas that require further training.
2. Timesaving: Measuring training in the flow of work saves time for both the organization and the employees. Employees can access the training material when they need it without having to take time out of their day for traditional training sessions.
3. Better Engagement: Employees are more likely to be engaged when they can access training in the flow of work. This is because the training is more relevant and applicable to their daily tasks, which makes it more interesting and engaging.
4. Continuous Learning: Measuring training in the flow of work creates a culture of continuous learning, where employees are encouraged to improve their skills and knowledge constantly. This results in a more skilled and productive workforce.
5. Increased ROI: Integrating training into the workflow can lead to increased ROI for the organization. When employees can apply what they learn in real time, they become more productive and efficient, which can lead to increased revenue and cost savings.

About Steve Lange – Principal Consultant at Explorance

With 25+ years in Learning and Development, Steve provides expertise and insight for organizations to measure, evaluate, and manage their people and talent programs strategically and consistently. Within Explorance, Steve works with clients to craft talent-focused measurement solutions.

As the L&D Practice Area lead, he assists clients in developing and streamlining strategies, tools, and analytics with the goals of improving efficiency and effectiveness and ultimately increasing business returns on human capital investments.

Prior to working at Explorance, Steve worked for 11 years with McDonald’s Worldwide and US TL&D groups managing projects from designing training for McDonald’s mobile app to performing impact studies and people analytics reporting.