Learning specialists: how do they measure impact?

The bigger picture

The work of learning specialists comes with a lot of TO DOs to be checked, and among their responsibilities, we could mention the following: 

• Review organisational learning needs
• Come up with and implement learning strategies based on these needs
• Develop a series of learning methods that could be used for various types of learning approaches, such as coaching, training, hands-on practice, job-shadowing, etc
• Oversee budgets and negotiate contracts
• Monitor the success of the eLearning programs that have been implemented

Thus, the monitoring is one of the final steps in the work of learning specialists, but why is it so important? First of all, because all the items mentioned above are not a one time job, but rather a repetitive process, which must be adapted on the run based on a series of factors. And the success of a certain eLearning program is one of these factors. 

In order to measure it, learning specialists must take into consideration two important factors: why and who? The why refers to the objectives of your eLearning projects, because you should know what you want in order to know if you’ve achieved it, right? Also, you must be very clear about the audience you’re targeting because the notion of success always depends on the people. A certain eLearning program must deliver valuable results for some people, while being completely ineffective for others. 

How do learning specialists measure it?

There are various items that learning specialists must use to measure the impact of an eLearning program, and we will talk about some of them, but you are welcomed to talk to us about other aspects that have been valuable for your evaluation. A brainstorming session between learning advocates is always a good thing, isn’t it? 

Knowledge transfer

This should be an important objective to be accomplished in the work of all learning specialists who deliver a training plan.. We do not want mere knowledge, but rather information that can be transferred to the workplace, helping employees to deal with certain tasks, while reacting efficiently when a certain situation they’ve encountered during the training encounters in real life. 

Performance improvements

This is where the objectives set before the training comes in place. If you know what you wish to accomplish, then you know if the performance rates in that area have risen. For example, if you want to increase the sales’ team opportunity to close rate, then that’s what you measure afterwards. If you want to raise the efficiency of a team moving from a waterfall approach to an Agile methodology, then you measure results implemented while using the new concepts. 

The number of employees that engage with learning content

This has more to do with the engagement you’ve brought using a specific eLearning program, which is really important and it is directly related to outcomes of it. Passive learning is never the answer, and L&Ds specialists always know that, because it is a real challenge. 

Feedback from the learners

Learning specialists should never forget about the importance of feedback coming from learners aka the employees, because they are the audience of your training, right? Ask them if they find it easier to complete a task after a certain training, if they found the content engaging enough, if the evaluation methods were appropriate to test the certain knowledge, etc.