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What Customers Want From L&D
I recently read a report by the UK-based Institute for Employment Studies entitled: “What Customers Want From HR: The views of line managers, senior managers and employees on HR services and the HR function.” (September 2008).
The study was conducted in five organisations (retail, electronics, local government, health and the civil service). More than 100 customers of HR (managers and employees) participated in face-to-face discussions and over 840 completed a survey questionnaire.
As I was reading the report, it struck me that the findings were especially pertinent to L&D professionals. Below is a list of the six main findings with ‘L&D’ substituted for ‘HR’. Do these statements ring true to you?
One observation that I particularly relate to is: “Managers find the idea of an [L&D] business partner a natural and attractive one. They do not want business generalists in these roles, but [L&D] professionals who also understand the business.”
Geoff Rip
ChangeLever International
1. L&D should engage more seriously with finding out what its customers need and their experiences of current L&D services.
2. L&D needs to be responsive – clear about what it is there for and what services it offers; easy to contact; and able to respond quickly, efficiently and effectively.
3. Managers want an independent-minded L&D function, which understands the workforce and can help management balance employee and business needs.
4. Customers do want an L&D function with strategic business impact, but this is about solving problems that are strategically important for the business, not about separate L&D strategies.
5. The customers of L&D want a ‘proactive’ L&D function, which spots issues ahead of time and works closely with managers to address them.
6. Customers want professional L&D support from real ‘people partners’.
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