Shrug

Do they know what L&D does?

In General L&D by JD Dillon

Do you know what the L&D team does here?

I mentioned the idea of “lack of L&D role awareness” as a symptom of an unhealthy learning and performance ecosystem during my vSession with the ATD Forum earlier today. Coincidentally, Jane Hart asked a related question this morning on Twitter …

Do people – especially frontline employees and managers – really understand the role L&D plays and the value you bring to the organization? What would they say if I asked them? Would I hear things like …

  • “They schedule me for classes sometimes.”
  • “They run the LMS (or whatever themed name its called in your org).”
  • “They trained me when I first got here.”
  • “L and what? Oh, you mean training.”

Needless to say, these answers don’t inspire confidence in the value L&D brings to the everyday needs of employees. Whether or not upper management feels L&D is delivering desired outcomes, the entire organization – again especially the frontline – must understand what L&D does and the role they play in helping the team succeed.

What would the perfect answer be IMO?

They help me do my job better …

Simple – but powerful!


So what would your employees say if they were asked about the role of L&D? Have you ever bothered to ask?