A CareerDNA Case Study

Smart Shopping for Talent Development Solutions

Market Dynamics: with annual, worldwide out-of-pocket spending on corporate talent development in excess of $100 billion (research by Mike Dulworth and Frank Bordonaro published in Corporate Learning), the supply side is blossoming. Talent management executives can now shop within a rich market. But a rich market does not translate to a rich budget.

So, if you are shopping for:

Curriculum, an online tool, a delivery platform, consulting intervention, talent management process, assessment tools, or a coaching service

The challenge is simple:

You need to be the best possible buyer for your company. The economics are lean and there is little room for rework.

The Scorecard Approach: given the market dynamics, we've been advising clients to focus religiously on five points throughout all stages of the purchasing process. We call it "scorecarding". Here's our CareerDNA approach in shorthand:

1) Scalable: How well does the asset cost- effectively reach the people you want to reach, without quality loss?

Performance in today's organizations depends on initiative, leadership, innovation and teamwork everywhere, at once. Simple economics dictate that scalability be part of any credible talent management solution. In one recent assignment, the corporate team ended up shifting from "mostly classroom" to "mostly desktop" Eight years ago, a 50-50 mix was considered "leading edge"; the new numbers are more like 30-70, with lots of blending.

2) Engaging: Learning happens from the inside out, tapping the learner's sense of passion and the personal significance of their work and career.

The user interface of an LMS would be an example where this factor weighs heavily. If you have "turned over" your LMS shopping to the IT department, you might rethink before you disengage. Lots of LMS users have post-purchase problems getting traffic to the site, technical merits not withstanding. Does the home page grab you, promoting a sense of self-discovery? If it doesn't, it probably won't grab your associates either.

3) Mass-customized: Does this asset allow individual users to cue up and consume the content they need most, based on their specific role, career objectives, and current proficiency?

Take a look at the home pages of your top competitors. Under the "Who We Are" tab you are likely to see a quote from the Chairman saying "development is the employee's responsibility". This is a big shift. For you as buyer, it means "spray and pray" learning delivery is obsolete. The best development assets make use of self-assessment, including interests, passions and strengths, aligned with a flexible learning menu.

4) Renewable: Does this asset capture and feed you critical information about talent and skill patterns, so that you can better analyze needs?

A good learning solution has a built-in data collection and reporting plan, so that you become smarter each time an employee learns. Likewise, the best solutions have flexible or changeable content and are able to satisfy current development objectives, while regularly adapting the content to revised priorities. Look for content providers who offer a standard, high-quality learning format (online case method, video scenarios with "best choice" testing ;) backed up by a rich choice of topics and skill areas.

5) Close to the work: Every talent management professional has to ask "will this learning solution help us translate high -level strategy into ground-level reality?"

For one key client, prosperity absolutely depends upon delivering a high-value experience at the customer front. They are not alone; recent CEO survey's show that corporate leaders place strategy implementation among their top three concerns. Talent development means finding new ways to deliver learning to the people and places where the critical work is happening. As a "smart shopper" you will see a great range of quality among suppliers in how well they address this issue. Ask them: "How does this asset put learning where the real work is?