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Developing Human Capital
Book

Developing Human Capital

Using Analytics to Plan and Optimize Your Learning and Development Investments

Gene Pease, Bonnie Beresford and Lew Walker
Wiley, 2014
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

The economy and the workforce have evolved beyond the traditional understanding and capabilities of many human resources (HR) and training divisions. As HR analysts and learning experts Gene Pease, Bonnie Beresford and Lew Walker argue, other professions effectively leverage data and evidence in making decisions, yet HR and learning officers generally rely on experience and instinct. Even so, most seasoned learning and development professionals will find nothing new in this manual’s first few chapters. The fun begins when you jump ahead to the fourth or fifth chapters, and thoroughly read the eighth and ninth chapters, as well as Appendix F, which offers terrific advice on collecting needed data. getAbstract recommends that less-experienced learning and HR officers read the entire book, which – including the content-rich appendices – offers action-oriented advice and tools to dive deep into HR and learning analytics.

Summary

New World of Learning

Organizations must keep, engage and inspire their workers on a one-to-one basis. Today’s five generations of employees – each with differing views of loyalty, work and motivation – increase and complicate the challenges of running a smooth workforce. The technology of work and the skills and comfort-level gap between millennials and older generations mean that organizations must adapt to the work styles and preferences of their employees.

These changes coincide with the introduction of accessible, powerful analytic tools that can help HR leaders understand workers individually and deliver tailored, just-in-time learning options. HR officers can offer customized employee incentives to motivate specific recipients. Using predictive analytics in learning and development can enable a flexible curriculum of customized courses for one person at a time, available as the learner’s time and preferences allow.

Ensure that your firm’s leaders share your attitudes about measuring. Some ask for accurate measurements and reports, but then punish those who bear bad news. Encourage learning leaders and instructors to share poor results to spur future improvement...

About the Authors

Gene Pease leads a workforce analytics company. Bonnie Beresford won the “Excellence in Practice Award” from the American Society for Training and Development for her work in learning analytics. Lew Walker, vice president of HR at AT&T, speaks frequently on learning and development at conferences nationwide.

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