In it for the long run
Much can be learned from the leaders in the learning marathon.
The San Francisco marathon used to start on the iconic Golden Gate Bridge but the narrowness of the bridge and the volume of runners meant it had to start in stages. As a result the leading runners had often completed their race before others had even started, giving them plenty of opportunities to share stories and experiences.
Andrew Joly, design director at LINE Communications, opened his Learning Architectures workshop with this anecdote at the TrainingZone Live event in London recently to draw parallels with our own journey with learning design. He pointed out that while technology is opening up a tremendous opportunity for creating new learning experiences, for those just starting, the thought of the challenge ahead can be daunting. Learning from those who have already completed their ‘race’ is vital.
Most marathon runners I know use a universal measure to compare themselves with others and to motivate themselves as they prepare for the big race. They all talk about the time it takes to complete 26 miles. That single measure determines where they start in the race and helps provide a personal goal. However experienced or inexperienced a runner is, all want to know ‘how can I shave a few minutes off my time and achieve my personal best?’
Most of the racers are keen to pick up a few tips from the fastest runners: they may not achieve their time in their first competition but following the training techniques of the elite will help them achieve their next personal best.
Identifying the top performers
So in the world of learning technologies, how do we identify the top athletes in order to learn from them?
This is something we’ve been grappling with for a few years now and following our research last year we came up with a single measure to help organisations compare their implementation practices with others and provide a reference point to support improvement. We used organisations’ feedback on where they stand against previously identified good practice to compile a new Towards Maturity Index (TMI) – a composite measure on a scale of 1-100 that provides a single benchmark of implementation maturity. The idea is that rather than rely on subjective assessments, the TMI provides an objective, authoritative measure of maturity in an organisation’s use of innovative learning methods.
How being best pays off
The TMI allows us to compare the results and behaviour of those in the top quartile of good practice (the 25% of organisations with the highest TMI score) with averages across the sample to understand how implementation behaviour influences results. Compared with those in the bottom 25% of the index, those in the top quartile are achieving:
- Twice the audience take-up
- 33% additional cost savings
- 50% more savings in study time
- a six times decrease in time to proven competence
- six times improvement in productivity
- seven times improvement in overall staff satisfaction.
Like the top athletes, those in the top TMI quartile are achieving results that many others aspire to. What are they doing differently?
The TMI has been calculated to provide a single benchmark of implementation maturity across six workstreams of good practice that have been built up through research with over 1,200 organisations over the years. However we found 27 implementation approaches that are at least twice as likely to be implemented in top quartile organisations than in any other quartile. If you are looking to improve performance, these are useful to build into any training regime. Here are just a few of the differentiating behaviours of the top performers:
- Focus on the big picture – compared with the average, top quartile organisations are twice as likely to have an organisation-wide e-learning strategy and to set measurable business targets within it (and nine times as likely as those in the bottom quartile).
- Build on personal motivation – compared with the average, top quartile organisations are more than twice as likely to support individual career aspirations or personal job goals with their learning technologies (only 1% of bottom quartile organisations do this).
- Take a rounded approach to training – top marathon runners don’t train just by running – they weight train to build muscle, focus on nutrition and get the right kit to improve performance. In the same way, top quartile performers don’t just focus on one aspect of learning technologies – for example they are three times as likely to blend a range of learning technologies in their learning design as average and are twice as likely to encourage collaboration and co-creation of content among staff.
Achieving your personal best
When a runner starts out, they’d be foolish to expect to be among the top performers in their first race. They would be equally foolish to ignore the lessons of more experienced runners as they prepare for the run. The race time provides a single benchmark to help runners to improve their performance and achieve their personal best at each step of the race. The TM Index provides a single benchmark for those working with learning technologies to do the same.
Laura Overton is managing director of Towards Maturity.