Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2019 - 62

CLOSING
D E A L S
EMERALD GROUP ACQUISITIONS
CREATE A PORTFOLIO
OF LEARNING BUSINESSES
BY TARYN OESCH

Emerald Group was founded in 1967
as a publishing company whose goal
was to "champion new ideas that would
advance the research and practice of
business and management," according
to Emerald Publishing's website. Since
then, it has expanded, finding a natural
fit for learning and development
(L&D) products and services as part
of its mission to "help [people] make
decisions that count based on research
that matters." It acquired GoodPractice,
an e-learning and LMS company, in
2015; Towards Maturity, an L&D research
firm, in 2017; and Mind Tools, a digital
learning and performance support
company, this spring.
"Our two businesses have grown around
a shared ethos of delivering researchled learning solutions supported by a
firm evidence base," says Peter Casebow,
CEO of Emerald's corporate learning
division, says of Emerald and Mind Tools.
"Bringing together two leaders in this
space [in GoodPractice and Mind Tools]
will allow Emerald to strengthen our
offerings and the service we provide to
our clients, while supporting a greater
number of learners worldwide."
Recent Training Industry research pointed
to a widespread belief among executives
that training is important to business
results - but also that training is
not as effective as it needs to be
to provide a source of competitive
advantage. These findings indicate that
learning leaders should connect L&D
to long-term business strategy; "take risks
with the form and function of the L&D
practices"; and find ways to integrate
talent management, acquisition and
development. Similarly, according to

| 62

the press release announcing the
acquisition, Emerald Group's "ambition
is to unlock the talent and potential
in people to help make decisions that
lead to real change and positively
impact performance."

TAKE RISKS WITH THE
FORM AND FUNCTION OF
THE L&D PRACTICES.

"We started Mind Tools because, as
managers ourselves, we struggled
to find resources to help us develop
our own careers," said Mind Tools cofounder James Manktelow in the press
release. Providing training in topics
from leadership and team management
to stress and time management, in
formats from templates and worksheets
to microlearning and infographics, as
well as an app, Mind Tools is aimed at
managers wanting to develop their
personal and professional skills.
However, it also has a corporate arm and
boasts customers such as Mastercard,
AstraZeneca and Randstad, according
to its website. It offers online content
as well as a learning management
system (LMS) and reporting, and while
its website says its services are aimed
at all levels, Mind Tools is a member
of the leadership training market, one
of the fastest-growing segments of
the training industry. Indeed, Training
Industry's 2019 report on the leadership
training market found that self-paced
learning, whether online or offline,
has been growing in popularity over

the last few years, partially due to
the rise of dispersed teams and the
virtual workforce.
While Emerald Group's focus right
now is on integrating the businesses
successfully, Casebow says, "We are
ambitious to grow and will continue
to explore the market for suitable
opportunities that meet our strategic
vision. Emerald Group is growing
faster than the industry average and
facing the disruption we see coming
to the academic publishing market,"
(learning leaders know well the impact
of disruption). "Our ability to be agile in
the market is really helping us respond
quickly as the client needs evolve. From
a learning perspective, the demand for
tools to support workers at the point
of need continues to grow, and we're
seeing global growth in all areas."
Casebow believes that the interest in
"how data, analytics and AI can improve
the quality of solutions for learners" is
well deserved, but he doesn't anticipate
any significant breakthroughs this
year. "There are some very interesting
experiments going on, some of which
we're involved in and others, we are
watching with interest. I suspect the
main breakthroughs in this area will
come in 2020 and beyond."
So, stay tuned for updates from Emerald
Group and Mind Tools - and other
companies across the leadership training
market - as they continue to innovate
in the way they deliver leadership
development programs online, in person
... and whatever comes next.
Taryn Oesch is the managing editor of digital
content at Training Industry, Inc. Email Taryn.

https://www.trainingindustry.com/press-release/e-learning/emerald-acquires-mind-tools-and-strengthens-its-position-as-a-leading-global-learning-business/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/press-release/e-learning/emerald-acquires-mind-tools-and-strengthens-its-position-as-a-leading-global-learning-business/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/magazine/may-jun-2018/transitioning-to-a-virtual-workforce/ https://www2.trainingindustry.com/Executive-Perspectives-on-the-Business-Impact-of-L-and-D https://www2.trainingindustry.com/state-of-the-leadership-training-market https://www.trainingindustry.com/articles/performance-management/merging-talent-acquisition-management-and-development/ https://www2.trainingindustry.com/state-of-the-leadership-training-market https://www.trainingindustry.com/articles/performance-management/merging-talent-acquisition-management-and-development/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/articles/performance-management/merging-talent-acquisition-management-and-development/

Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2019