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Learning and Development (L&D) Strategy Is Back to Investing

Learning and Development (L&D) Strategy Is Back to Investing

After a period of decline, employer investments in learning are on the rise. Pandemic-era economic pressures and uncertainties have subsided, and employers are restoring previously slashed learning and development (L&D) budgets. 

In fact, 96% of learning leaders responding to APQC’s Current State of Learning and Development Survey said that their organization has increased spending on L&D.

This is encouraging news—especially following the Great Resignation, an employment trend that could have compelled employers to further cut L&D budgets. Afterall, employers understand the risk inherent in L&D: Newly developed employees may leave before the organization has reaped the benefits of its investments in them.

Many of our survey findings paint a positive picture of L&D today, with employers:

  • investing in formal programs for leadership development, mentoring, and upskilling, 
  • supporting L&D with skills assessments and knowledge transfer programs, and 
  • leveraging learning technologies and learning analytics. 

There is one survey finding, however, that is not so positive: Employers are providing a learning experience that is far from ideal. For example, roughly one-third of learning leaders said that employees at their organization: 

  • are aware of all learning available to them,
  • receive learning personalized to their preferences,
  • receive learning recommendations based on their current role, and
  • can take time away from work to learn for their current role.

This is discouraging news—because a sub-par learning experience can greatly diminish return on learning investments. L&D professionals know that business leaders and investors demand to see the return on their investments (ROI). They also know that the L&D value chain contains many, sometimes intangible, variables which make measurement a challenge.

While it’s relatively easy to measure learning activities (e.g., number of courses completed), demonstrating the impact of learning on employee performance is more difficult (e.g., employee productivity). Even more challenging is connecting measures of improved employee performance to measures of improved business performance (e.g., revenue). 

I worry that an inability to convincingly show the ROI of L&D, combined with a sub-par learning experience that stunts the value generated by L&D investments, will push L&D investment levels back to pandemic levels. Yet, the consequences of L&D spending cuts this time around would be greater. Learning needs are growing. The business goals and talent trends that drove today’s increases in L&D spending are staying put and I would argue will have an increasingly strong impact on organizations. These include: 

  • ambitious productivity goals, 
  • rapid advances in technology, 
  • greater diversity of learning styles and preferences, 
  • growing employee skills gaps, and
  • a highly competitive labor market for the most in demand skills.

The future health of our businesses depends on making L&D decisions with a long view in mind and on learning professionals becoming more adept at demonstrating the L&D ROI. 

APQC has resources to help with each.

Our workforce planning toolkit offers guidance that can help your organization better understand and address future learning needs.

Our May 8th webinar will showcase survey results regarding current learning measurement practices.  

Want to learn even more about our L&D survey? Our April 3rd webinar will look at how employers are spending their L&D budgets.