 industry – which is basically all of them now – you could switch to using “Lead” and “Lag” measures.
Lead measures are indicators predictive of future results. They are the behaviours that individuals demonstrate that are predictive of a specific outcome. For example: If an employee always calibrates their tools before commencing work, this activity would be predictive of fewer defects.
The number of defects is a lag measure. Lag measures are indicators of historical performance. They’re called lag measures because they aren’t available until after they can no longer be changed. The current “number of defects” report is unchangeable – assuming the data is accurate. We can’t go back in time and change how many defects occurred.
We can however, look at the behaviours of employees – the lead measures – and make adjustments that are predictive of fewer defects, which should improve the next “number of defects” reports.
Finding the right “lead measures” can be difficult and requires the active participation of business leaders… but, it’s a tremendously beneficial process to go through and gives you specific, clear direction on how to design your learning objectives.
Learning the Language of Your Business
Okay, so, how do you learn the language of your business? Unfortunately, there probably isn’t a course or job aid to help you out. There’s no Rosetta Stone here. So, you need to do what humans have been doing for centuries… immersion. You need to immerse yourself in your business, spending more time with the people who make your organization run and less time with your HR friends. Not that we don’t like HR, it’s just that they too are speaking the wrong language.
This means meeting with and listening to the leaders of the business, but also spending time with the front-line, the people actually doing the work. You might be thinking: “Where the heck am I going to find time to ‘immerse’ in the business just to learn the language of the business?” To which I’ll reply: “How the heck are you building training programs if you never actually go to where the work is done to understand the learners, their work environment, their constraints, and their challenges?” Yes! Part of your job is going to the learners, in their work environment and learning from them. At least, it’s part of your job if you actually want to make a difference for your organization…
How the heck are you building training programs if you never actually go to where the work is done to understand the learners, their work environment, their constraints, and their challenges?
One More Benefit
There’s a fringe benefit to this as well… actually, it’s not really a fringe benefit, it’s a tremendously huge benefit. When you’re seen “on-the-floor” with the operation, you build credibility. You’ll be taken more seriously and seen as a person who is “part of” the operation, instead of an outsider.
When you’re part of the team, you’ll also receive input that is more candid and feedback that is more actionable. And, who would have guessed, all this just by committing to learn the language of your business.
Alright, folks let’s wrap this up – here is a rapid-fire recap for your pleasure:
- Language varies from country-to-country, region-to-region, and even business-to-business. If we fail to learn the language of our businesses, we remain “outsiders” and building credibility will become incredibly difficult for us. We need to take the time to connect with, meet with, and spend time with the individuals who are making our organizations run. They have the best, the most important information we can possibly gather. And, by spending time with them we will speak more like them, which will allow us to communicate more effectively when we’re trying to initiate training initiatives.
- On that note, it would be great to have a resource that provides alternatives to L&D language that are easier for business leaders to consume. Send me your thoughts, what should we include on that list? If we get enough of them, I’ll put up a blog to feature them.
What do you think? Do you agree that le