Based on CLC Learning and Development Research Global HR

Learn & Adapt Fast_

On the Job Learning

2

About this pack… Why you should use it??

Selecting the right On The Job Learning Experiences That Will

Help Your Direct Reports to Learn from Their Daily Work

PURPOSE

Managers can use this tool to identify

development opportunities for their direct

reports in on-the-job experiences across six

different categories of work, and then to plan

and track these experiences.

CONTEXT

Managers often struggle to identify which on-

the-job activities provide valuable learning

experience for their direct reports. Based on

CLC Learning and Development research, the

activities in the High-Impact On-the-Job

Learning Activity Map are the most effective

at developing employees on the job.

INSTRUCTIONS

Provide this checklist and individual

development plan template to managers to

help them identify critical and high-impact

activities for employees’ development.

These tools will help managers to track the

progress of their employees against their

high-impact on-the-job learning activities

and enable them to integrate development

into their employees’ day-to-day work.

3

What is On The Job Learning?

On-the-job learning activities are work activities for your employee that push beyond the type of activities they already do well, allowing them to gain new skills and abilities. This can include new tasks or projects, or applying new skills or perspectives to improve their execution of existing responsibilities.

What is on-the-job learning?

What are the benefits of on-the-job learning?

“”

Traditional Learning On-the-Job Learning

Effective on-the-job experiences can increase how much learning an employee uses later by up to 67%

What are the best types of on-the-job learning?

Good on-the-job learning experiences share the following characteristics:

Instructions for Line Managers:

On-the-job learning is one of the most powerful tools available to you as a manager when it comes to developing your teams and direct reports. Use this page as a reference tool for introducing yourself to the benefits and

hallmarks of effective on-the-job learning.

Characteristics

Discomfort—Does the activity fall beyond the employee’s normal comfort zone?

Accountability—Will the employee own the outcome of this activity, regardless of whether the outcome is positive or negative?Visibility—Is it easy to spot the lessons an employee should learn from this activity?

Relevance—Will the lessons learned be useful for the employee’s current role?

4

How do I decide which skills should be developed?

Instructions for Line Managers:

To help your employee learn on the job, select an area or skill in which the employee could benefit from improvement. The simplest way of starting this is to select one of the three reasons for development listed below.

Day-to-day observation

Results or delivery against objectives

Feedback from co-workers

Role requires new skills

Role requires improved skills

Something you noticed the employee struggling to achieve

A skill required due to a change in the employee’s role

Potential sources of information

Potential role requirements

Potential development plan components

Developing skills that are required to improve performance in current role

Developing skills that are required to ready employee for promotion to next role

A skill to build upon in the employee’s development plan

5

What are the characteristics of effective On The Job Learning

activities?

Discomfort

Instructions for Line Managers:

The most effective on-the-job learning experiences meet all four criteria listed below. Use the questions within each box to help diagnose whether a potential experience meets each criteria.

Accountability

Visibility Relevance

Employees should be pushed beyond the type of work they already do well

Employees should own and be responsible for the results of their work

Employees should see a clear lesson Employees should learn specifically what they need to know in order to do their jobs

Does the activity fall beyond the employee’s normal comfort zone?

Does the activity represent an increase in job responsibility or scope?

Will the employee own the outcome of this activity, regardless of whether the outcome is positive or negative?

Will the employee receive targeted feedback (formal and/or informal) during and at the end of this activity?

Is it easy to spot the lessons that the employee should learn from this activity?

Is it clear why the lessons would be useful to the employee?

Will the lessons learned be useful for the employee’s current role?

Does the activity closely align with the work that the employee performs on a day-to-day basis?

Will the activity help the employee progress to the next role in his/her career within the organization?

6

What types of activities are available to my direct reports?

Gaining Access to Best Practice

Accepting Broader Responsibility

Undergoing Change and Adversity

Experiencing Challenging

Relationships

Making Difficult Decisions

Persuading and Teaching

Instructions for Line Managers:

Having identified the criteria for effective on-the-job experiences, you now need to find specific on-the-job experiences within your organization that match these criteria. To help you do this, we have identified the six

types of opportunity that are usually available to employees, and provided some examples within each type of opportunity. Use this guide as a tool to help you select the right type of activity for your employees.

Activities

Shadow a coworker to see how he/she conducts his/her work

Work with a recognized expert

Experience a notable success in work

Work in a situation with rapidly changing circumstances

Handle a crisis or turn around a failing situation

Persuade a senior manager to take a difficult action

Teach coworkers how to do a component of their jobs

Work with people from other business units, functions, or locations

Work with multiple people with contradictory or competing views

Work with difficult customers or coworkers

Make a risky decision with potentially adverse consequences

Make decision(s) outside area of expertise

Increase the amount of responsibility

Undertake a challenging assignment

Participate in a group to solve a real business problem

Fill in for a manager temporarily

Activities Activities Activities Activities Activities

Employees can see the right way to do their

jobs

Employees can gain valuable experience

from larger or harder tasks

Employees must learn how to be flexible and

adaptable

Employees gain interpersonal skills

Employees can refine their knowledge and communicate better

Employees can assess and think deeply about

difficult situations

7

Line Manager Resource:

On The Job Learning decision making templateInstructions for Line Managers:

Now that you have familiarized yourself with the steps required to identify effective on-the-job learning experiences, use this page to identify some specific examples within your organization that you can provide to

employees on your team. The numbered boxes will help remind you of the things to bear in mind, and should help you decide which potential experiences are most appropriate for your employee.

ReasonCharacteristics (Y/N)

Type On-the-Job Learning OpportunityDiscomfort Accountability Visibility Relevance

Example: Take on a broader, more visible leadership role

Yes Yes Yes Yes Accepting broaderresponsibility

Participate in two-month rotation leading Project X in Location Y

2. Mark whether or not the activity aligns with each of the characteristics of effective on-the-job learning. The best activities will align with all four characteristics.

1. Select the reason for on-the-job development (e.g., something you noticed the employee struggle to achieve, a skill required due to a change in the employee’s role, or a skill to build in the employee’s development plan).

3. Choose which type of on-the-job experience you can provide to the employee (e.g., gaining access to best practices, accepting broader responsibility, undergoing change and adversity, experiencing challenging relationships, persuading and teaching, or making difficult decisions).

4. Confirm a specific on-the-job experience for your direct report based on the preceding steps.

8

Instructions for Managers:

Provide this template to your direct reports to prepare a development plan and ensure that high-impact on-the-job learning activities are included in their development plan.

Staff Member Name: Manager Name:

Development Goal•Goals include both strengths

and development areas.

•Goals are tied to performance

goals.

Skill Being

Developed(What is the

employee going

to do?)

Action Steps(How will the employee do it?)

•Steps should be taken by the employee and by the manager

(e.g., coaching).

•Approximately 80% of action steps should tie to your current

job assignments and responsibilities; less than 20% should be

formal classroom or online training.

Success Measures(How will I know if the employee has achieved the

goal?)

•Success measures should allow for gradual,

realistic growth.

•Success measures are easily visible and

therefore, measurable.

Target

Completion

Date

Date of Next

PDP Meeting

Goal #1 1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Goal #2 1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Goal #3 1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Goal #4 (Optional) 1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

I have read and discussed my PDP with my manager. I have read and discussed this PDP with my direct report.

Staff Member Signature:_____________________________ Manager

Signature:______________________________________

High Impact On the Job Learning Activity Map / PDP Template

9

What are the pitfalls associated with On The Job Learning?

Instructions for Line Managers:

While it is important that on-the-job learning activities stretch your direct reports and allow them to grow into new roles and responsibilities, you should take care not to stretch them to breaking point. Use this tool to help

ensure balance: if you can answer ‘yes’ to a few statements within each box, your employee is probably comfortably stretched. If you find yourself answering ‘yes’ to most or all the statements below, your employee

may be at risk of being stretched too much.

Learning from Results________ The employee is expected to meet clearly-defined standards for success in the job________ The employee regularly receives manager and/or peer feedback on how well he/she is doing________ Apart from the feedback received, the nature of the job provides a good sense for how well the employee is doing________ Within the job there are structured moments for reflection on the successes and failures the employee has encountered so far

Fulfilling Responsibilities________ The employee often works with internal and external stakeholders________ The job requires collaboration with different stakeholders who have competing agendas________ The employee often has to work against challenging deadlines________ The employee has to accomplish tasks that are beyond his/her area of expertise________ The environment in which the employee works changes rapidly ________ To fulfil his/her responsibilities, the employee has to accomplish tasks through individuals over whom they have no formal authority________ The employee sometimes teaches (formally or informally) his/her co-workers how do to part of his/her job in which they have experience

Drawing on Others________ The employee’s manager trusts him/her and provides him/her with a great deal of autonomy to get things done________ The employee often has to collaborate with people who are difficult to work with to achieve the things he/she needs to get done________ The employee regularly works with senior colleagues and/or employees who are recognized as experts in their fields of work________ The employee regularly works with people from other business units, functions, and countries________ The employee sometimes has to persuade his/her manager to take difficult actions________ When faced with difficult problems or issues at work, the employee turns to people inside or outside work for support

Rising to the Challenge________ The job stretches the employee to accomplish tasks expected of someone at a higher level in the organization________ The outputs of the job are highly visible, meaning that successes and failures are obvious to others________ The job challenges the employee to build new skills________ The employee sometimes has to make risky decisions that could have a significant negative consequence________ The employee has to handle major crises that arise at work________ If the employee’s team does not meet its performance targets, the employee will be held (at least partly) responsible________ Co-workers ask the employee to solve problems________ The employee sometimes has to fill in for his/her manager temporarily, either doing some of the manager’s work or filling in for the manager at meetings

0–10 Yes’s: This job has limited opportunity for much development and you should look for ways to build more stretch and challenge into your employee’s work.

11–20 Yes’s: This job has several of the critical elements that will stretch and develop your employee.

21–25 Yes’s: This is potentially a challenging role. Make sure it is not stretching your employee too far. The critical test is to ask yourself how confident you are that your employee can navigate through the next year successfully.

Key

10

THANKS