New Research by ATD: Lifelong Learning Leads to Heightened Engagement Levels for Individuals and Organizations
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (PRWEB) September 25, 2018 -- Lifelong learning leads to heightened individual and organizational engagement levels, according to new research from the Association for Talent Development (ATD) and the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp). According to the report Lifelong Learning: The Path to Personal and Organizational Performance, sponsored by OpenSesame, better market performance is also correlated with organizations that foster a culture of learning.
The survey specified lifelong learning as the self-motivated, ongoing pursuit of knowledge for personal or professional reasons, occurring formally or informally, intentionally, or incidentally.
More than two-thirds of talent development leaders said improved engagement was the leading benefit their organizations expected to gain from encouraging lifelong learning.
Participants also cited better organizational performance, improved talent retention, enhanced ability to respond to changing business needs, and greater competitive ability as organizational-level benefits of encouraging lifelong learning.
“New technologies like robotics and artificial intelligence, changing work processes, and shifts in customer buying habits make it important for us to help people cultivate that drive to learn,” Michael Kessler, chief learning officer at BAE Systems, said in the report. “We have to have people who are not just able to react to changes, but who are interested in learning about them proactively, so we can get ahead of the game. That’s the real strategic differentiator.”
According to the report, high performers are more likely to make developing lifelong learning behaviors a priority. Only 37 percent of all organizations actively encourage lifelong learning, but 55 percent of high-performing organizations do.
Other key findings in the report are:
- Building a learning culture is a high-performance enterprise practice that promotes lifelong learning and is strongly tied to better market performance and learning effectiveness. However, fewer than one in five companies currently make lifelong learning an organizational value, tie it to internal mobility or compensation, support it with rewards and recognition, or include it in performance expectations.
- 50 percent of companies overall are taking action to encourage their employees to be self-directed learners. Self-directed learning occurs when employees take control of their own learning by setting goals, deciding how they’ll learn, then evaluating their learning progress.
To learn more about the research attend a free webcast on September 26, 2018. Information about obtaining the full research report can be found at http://www.td.org/lifelonglearning.
About ATD
The Association for Talent Development (ATD) is the world’s largest professional membership organization supporting those who develop the knowledge and skills of employees, improve performance, and help to achieve results for the organizations they serve. Originally established in 1943, the association was previously known as the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD).
ATD’s members come from more than 120 countries and work in public and private organizations in every industry sector. ATD supports talent development professionals who gather locally in volunteer-led U.S. chapters and international member networks, and with international strategic partners. For more information, visit http://www.td.org.
Avra Bossov, ATD, http://www.td.org, +1 7036839218, [email protected]
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