How do you balance staff development needs with organizational goals and priorities?

1 Assess your staff's current skills and gaps

The first step to foster a culture of adaptability is to understand your staff's current skills and gaps. You can use various tools and methods to assess your staff's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) in relation to your organizational goals and priorities. For example, you can use surveys, interviews, performance reviews, feedback sessions, or self-assessments to gather data and insights. You can also use frameworks such as the 70-20-10 model, which suggests that 70% of learning comes from on-the-job experiences, 20% from social interactions, and 10% from formal education.

3 Provide ongoing support and feedback

The third step is to provide ongoing support and feedback to your staff as they implement their learning plan and apply their new skills and knowledge. You can use various techniques and tools to support and feedback your staff, such as regular check-ins, coaching sessions, peer reviews, recognition programs, or gamification. You can also use the GROW (Goal, Reality, Options, and Will) model to help your staff reflect on their learning journey and identify their challenges, opportunities, and action steps.

4 Encourage experimentation and innovation

The fourth step is to encourage experimentation and innovation among your staff as they develop and demonstrate their adaptability. You can create a safe and supportive environment where your staff can try new things, take risks, learn from failures, and share best practices. You can also foster a culture of curiosity and inquiry by asking open-ended questions, challenging assumptions, and inviting diverse perspectives. You can also reward and celebrate your staff's achievements and successes, no matter how big or small.

5 Align your staff's learning with your organizational vision and mission

The final step is to align your staff's learning with your organizational vision and mission. You can communicate and reinforce how your staff's learning contributes to your organizational goals and priorities, and how it adds value to your customers and stakeholders. You can also involve your staff in strategic planning and decision making, and solicit their feedback and input on how to improve your processes and products. You can also showcase and share your staff's learning stories and results with your internal and external audiences.