Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2019 - 45

ULTIMATELY, THE
CHOICE ISN'T FOR
TALENT OVER TECH;
SMART ORGANIZATIONS
EMPHASIZE BOTH.
skill. It encompasses work habits and
communication preferences. We wouldn't
necessarily connect it to technical skills,
yet there are work cultures that rely
heavily on collaborative technology for
communication. Cultural fit is a broad
umbrella and encompass a lot of factors.

talent crisis may soon pose as pressing a
risk as technological disruption, we need
to be much more deliberate about taking a
talent approach to designing our learning
teams. By reimagining the learning
talent-to-technology relationship, we can
work from need to solution rather than
solution to need.
JTBD is not the production of training
classes, online modules, videos or job
aids. Addressing performance gaps
through influence and insight requires
leaders to have a talent mindset.
Learning leaders must recognize that a
professional's ability to provide influence
and insight is more difficult to assess
than exposure to certain authoring tools.

A TEAM'S TALENT STACK
What might it mean to intentionally
design the team's talent stack? Though
the metaphor is not perfect - the
inherent complexity of talent makes it
difficult to create taxonomies or definitive
competency profiles - thinking about
the expertise we need to make our
teams successful is often secondary
to other considerations. First of all, we
need to consider which soft skills will
contribute to the end objectives. As a
benchmark, LinkedIn ranked the top
five soft skills: creativity, persuasion,
collaboration, adaptability and time
management. Of course, recruiting for

creativity and persuasion would require
a different approach than recruiting
for tool experience. Such an approach
is difficult to automate and requires
more investment in robust vetting,
qualification and analysis of cultural fit.
Recent research by Training Industry
regarding the success factors of external
L&D talent reveals that cultural fit is as
important as cost in selection criteria.
However, factors such as cultural fit or
alignment with values don't typically
appear on the competency profile for
a learning leader. Cultural fit differs
from emotional intelligence in that
we generally agree that it's more of
a style, preference or mindset than a

Ultimately, the choice isn't talent over
tech; smart organizations emphasize
both. Instead, it's understanding that
talent contributes as much to the
ecosystem as technology, and prioritizing
L&D talent strategy can help learning
leaders bring sustainable value to their
organizations. Developing a team with
adaptability will enable them to embrace
new technologies. It's time to put as much
analytical effort into planning, curating
and vetting our talent needs as we do
into selecting the right technology.
Keith Gibson, Ph.D., is the vice president
of business development for TTA (also
known as The Training Associates).
Michael Noble, Ph.D., is the COO and
chief learning strategist for TTA. Email
the authors.

ASSESSING THE TALENT STACK OF YOUR TEAM
What are the
underlying jobs this
team must perform?

persuasion,
collaboration, etc.)
does the team need?

What needs are better
met with outside, ondemand talent?

What business
acumen is required
to carefully analyze
performance and make
recommendations?

Which technical
skills demonstrate an
aptitude for learning?

How can our talent
strategy scale to meet
large, unforeseen
challenges?

What combination of
soft skills (creativity,

What cultural factors
should we consider?
How can learning shape
or influence culture?

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MAGAZ INE -TRENDS 2020 I WWW.TR AI NINGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

| 45

https://www.trainingindustry.com/magazine

Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2019