Learning transfer: why training often changes little

Some challenges demand two things at once: the people involved must learn, and the organisation's processes, routines and structures must change. When both sides are worked on in an interlinked process, this is called a learning architecture. It links the work architecture of organisational development with the qualification architecture of people development. This makes simultaneous development at both levels possible.

Planning often reveals an imbalance. Either the organisation is at the centre and an organisational project is supposed to fix things, or qualification appears to be the answer. A learning architecture is advisable when far-reaching changes are due in important business processes that require competences to be built up. It also helps when training programmes threaten to fail after initial enthusiasm because organisational reality does not allow what has been learned to be applied. The third occasion is change projects whose key people have not been suitably qualified.

What should those involved be able to handle differently in future? A specific task makes the learning need understandable. Formats and opportunities for application that fit their work can be derived from this.

If tasks, decision-making rights or expectations remain unchanged, new behaviour can be made more difficult. The learning architecture therefore also considers the role of leadership and the framework within which people may try things out.

If the learning architecture starts from organisational development, the organisation's need for change is determined first. Then the question arises as to whether the existing qualification level of those involved is sufficient. Here the work sets the pace: each work phase is preceded by a qualification phase geared to the upcoming tasks.

If it starts from people development, the development needs of the target group are made concrete first. Then it must be clarified which conditions the organisation must create so that what has been learned can take effect. In both cases, two questions must be answered. What do those involved need to know, want and be able to do? And what arrangements are needed so that individual learning becomes effective in the organisation?

The sequence follows a fixed pattern. Qualification for the first work phase is followed by the work itself. The second qualification unit begins with reflection on the experiences gained. The exact content of a phase can only be determined once the previous one has been completed.

Practical application needs an opportunity for evaluation. What worked, where did difficulties arise and which conditions contributed to this? Professional input and practical experience are linked with each other.

A learning architecture consists of learning settings that exist only for the duration of the learning. Teaching of content, learning on the job, project work and individual learning alternate. In blended learning, online-supported phases are added in which people learn in a self-directed way and at their own pace. Learners need clear structures, orientation and feedback. Workshops and face-to-face sessions deliberately set fixed points at which what has been learned and changed is evaluated together.

Regular rounds of reflection exchange experiences from work and qualification and adapt the design. In a company in the food industry, a learning architecture for incident management in the event of glass breakage was set up in this way. At the beginning, observation points are defined by which the course and effect of the process can be determined. At the same time, the usual evaluation frames are examined: what have they made possible so far, and what have they prevented?

Recurring obstacles can point to roles, processes or cooperation. These insights should flow back into organisational development. In this way, individual further training becomes a shared development task.

Many people development departments monitor themselves. They determine the need, set the learning objectives, carry out the measures and then evaluate the success. This often leads to results being glossed over and management questioning them.

Two test questions help. Which systems secure the transfer from the measure to the workplace? And how is it ensured that new competences and behaviours are further deepened at the workplace? Those who can answer with verifiable material have organised the transfer. There is also the question of which procedures are used to measure the benefit of the measures. The learning objectives also deserve a look: to what standard are the development objectives of a measure defined?

Learning architectures and blended learning link qualification with a specific change task. A person can understand a method in a seminar and still not use it if their role, scope for decisions or work process remain unchanged. Therefore, before the learning format, it is clarified which real task is to be worked on afterwards and who will give feedback.

In the people development audit, transfer assurance and the support system are explicitly areas of examination. After a first application, experiences are collected: which capability is still missing, which condition prevents its use and what does the organisation need to change? These observations influence the next learning phase. Participation and satisfaction can be documented, but on their own they do not prove a change in everyday work.