Learning trends

Digital Transformation: integrating training and HR management

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Digital Transformation: Integrating Training and HR Management

By Michel Diaz, Associate Director FEFAUR and Olivier Metzker, Operation’s Director France, CrossKnowledge.
This article was published on Elearning Letter (in french) on April 15, 2019.

Training fosters major HR processes such as onboarding, performance, mobility, succession, as well as recruitment and Compensation & Benefits (C&B). Collaborative approaches between Training Managers and DHR must evolve – most often using digital training – in order to effectively and quickly develop a company’s workforce and human capital.

Digital Training and HR: Changing Silo Mentality

Besides basic matters such as onboarding or developing a management training plan, it is rare to find training managers and HR working together. Each department has its own specific processes and objectives. HR manages a variety of different domains and uses various processes that are rarely fully implemented. Training Managers have their own constraints, such as managing a significant operating budget according to employee and job expectations, while being subjected to compliance burdens that bog down administrative management.

Fortunately, this insular approach is shifting, as HR and training become more connected. The trend is nothing new (this can be seen with long-established job titles such as Training and Recruitment Manager, for example), though today it is gaining ground.

This decompartmentalization has been promoted through a plethora of practical factors, with workplace training knowledge transfer a worthy example. The ROI for training depends on external factors, one in particular being how direct supervisors manage employees following training feedback. The training in this case implements actions of HR focused on manager-employee relationships.

An LMS platform often allows one to observe the information silos between training and HR after either repeatedly find it possible to enable the company’s already implemented cloud-based talent management platform…

Digital Training in the Spotlight

Training’s status is evolving right before our eyes as it begins to encompass other aspects of HR. Training is slowly freeing itself from administrative and regulatory constraints, helped by reforms targeted at refocusing on employees, tasks, and the company, as well as work itself. It goes hand in hand with the digital transformation of a company and its business over the long term.

As a matter of fact, hundreds of millions of employees all around the world must acquire digital, technical, and behavioral skills in order to increase employability in the new digital economy. Training needs have never been so varied, resulting in training finding itself in the spotlight, subject to our high expectations!

Implementation of training in other aspects of HR are additionally constrained by budget limitations. Everyone, everywhere must continuously receive new training in order to fight skill obsolescence brought on by ever-growing digital innovation, though often with stagnant or even reduced budgets. Although digital learning does help resolve this tricky situation, it is far from enough.

Training’s efficiency and cost optimization depends heavily on its ability to create stronger ties with other HR domains. One aspect, knowledge transformation, has advanced in leaps and bounds as a result of being implemented into work itself. Another thing to mention is how training contributes to employer branding and, consequently, recruitment; young hires today are strongly enticed by the promise of training “throughout the company’s lifetime .” For them, a chance to develop employability can often beat out salary.

Integrating Training and Talent Management

The current decompartmentalization is being propelled quickly as a result of talent management, HR’s most recent paradigm. Every employee has something to offer, not just those with high potential! This talent must be attracted, retained, and developed. Companies therefore have their work cut out for them, for they’ll have to play their cards right in order to make it out in this global war of talent. They must additionally promote the idea of “employee first” — for a happy employee makes a happy customer, and a happy employee is a productive employee. Furthermore, companies must become more actively involved in professional evolution, which they’ll also benefit from in the end.

This approach emerges in digital platforms that look to unify talent and training management alone or through collaboration (another aspect of unification). Place talent at the heart of the company and use training to recruit, retain (onboarding, mobility, C&B ), and develop it (training, performance)…

We can confirm that training is, from here on out, central to the way a company’s major HR processes and talent management are fostered.

Moreover, this movement alludes to future success arising from deepened collaboration between L&D and DHR. No one can do it alone, and everyone’s success largely depends on the other. Moving away from a silo mentality and towards one of HR and training decompartmentalization will be the first sure sign of such a partnership.