How Essential is it to Appoint a Chief Learning Officer?

Learning is the key to organizational change. Transformation is not possible without your employees being inclined towards gathering more & more knowledge. Developing the skills of the personnel is a prerequisite for change and success which puts a certain amount of burden on the HR function to formulate creative strategies and policies to make learning an integral part of the organization’s culture.

Learning – A tool for development

It is believed by many experts that attracting evolution is only practical if business leaders shift their focus from managing employees to managing skills & knowledge. This way, your company can experience real learning that will give birth to useful insights and higher profits.

In the traditional sense, Human Resources is given the responsibility of identifying the right kind of talent, maintaining the company’s culture, finding people who are a fit for the organization’s environment, being the go-to-people for the staff and handling transition along with exits. Organizations that are more evolved allow the HR to arrange training along with taking learning & development initiatives since they have a belief that learning and people go hand in hand.

Nevertheless, it is time for the role of human resources to take a leap & move to the next level by amalgamating the learning objectives of the people and the organization in order to create real value which can be sustained for years.

Hence, many organizations have come up with a new role that will handle the L&D vertical for them and this position known by the name of Chief Learning Officer (CLO).

The Role & responsibilities of a CLO

There is a myriad of aspects that a CLO needs to handle to transform a company into a learning organization. First, they have to clarify the concept of people development by strengthening learning at the individual level.

Personnel grooming is not described as enhancement of functional competencies and technical skills but has another meaning to it in the comprehensive sense. It is all about being self-aware along with owning a drive to improve on a continuous basis. A learned employee is the one who understands the connection between their actions and the company’s outcomes.

The second important aspect that a chief learning officer must pay attention to is the creation of a climate that has the potential to amalgamate individual and organizational learning. To bring about this change in a subtle manner is not easy. It is a complicated process that requires shifts in the culture, value, techniques of working as well as the organizational structure.

Moreover, expanding and deepening personal visions in the staff members is necessary. This creates the cornerstone for a productive and motivated workforce. Usually, workers are assigned responsibilities and roles, provided with the opportunities to set their own goals and targets in addition to offering them the space to work. Such actions by the Chief Learning Officer is crucial to set the basis for clarity as well as concerted action.