Developing a Learning Culture in Public Administrations EAS 7 March 2008.

Developing a Learning Culture in Public Administrations

EAS

7 March 2008

Structure

• Commission Case Study

• What we understand by a “learning culture”

• Progress to date

• A request for help

The Commission: an HR Overview

• 30,000: 2/3 officials & 1/3 short contracts• 27 nationalities & 22 languages• 40 DGs & Services • Multi-sites (Brussels, Luxembourg, Ispra, over 160

delegations and representations world-wide)• Hierarchical structure

– Director-Generals (40+)– Directors (220)– Heads of Unit (1300+)

• Officials have a job for life (35 years)

Staff are “Knowledge workers”

• More than 60% of staff have an university degree

• Most functions and work deal with information and human relationships

• Complex work environment

• Cultural ambiguities liked and ignored by most colleagues

Strategic challenges

European Commissio

n

Efficiency

Customer service

Impact of Enlargement

Technology

External trust

and reputation

Managing our training

• Budget 2008 = 22.5m

• 50% Central

• 40 DGs = 40 training managers

• Outsourced - external contractors

Managing our training

• Implementing Rules 1994• Reform 2000• Training Policy 2002• Annual Learning & Development Framework• Progress = :), but...

Progress - quantity

• 2001 - 1 day per person

• 2007 = 7.7 days (peak = 2005 = 8.7 days)

• 98% of staff in at least one training event

• We are training...but are staff/the organisation learning and developing?

Central TrainingProgress 2000-2007

2000

• 87 titles

• 333 courses

• 12,352 p days

2007

• 400 titles

• 2,139 courses

• 45,299 p days

Our challenges• 2002 policy ...” developing a learnjng culture”...and

being “a learning organisation”

• Moving from training to learning

• Developing the individual and the organisation

• Learning how to learn

• Valuing and rewarding learning

L & D Challenges:1

• Induction & Integration

• Leadership and Management

• Knowledge Sharing

• Communication

• Language Training

• Organisational Development

• Professionalisation

L & D Challenges:2

• Course factory & volume of training• Absence rates in courses• Attracting and involving managers• Identifying needs• Getting out of the classroom• Learning transfer• Identifying the impact• Servicing distant locations• Relying on external contractors

What is the difference between training and learning?

• Learning...is the process by which new knowledge, skills and capabilities are constructed.

• Training... Is one of several responses that can be undertaken to promote learning.

What do we mean by a learning culture?

• Learning not just for the individual but for the team and for the organisation

• Learning from everyday work

• Making information and knowledge available to everyone

• Creating a climate where staff share their learning

Why aim for a learning culture?

• Keeping up with the pace of change• Stakeholder demands• Knowledge sharing and retention• Staff turnover• Staff expectations• Doing more with the same/less• Get away from the past• We must develop new knowledge and skills• We must be good at learning

Why aim for a learning culture?

• The majority of learning takes place in the workplace

• Much wisdom and the answers to most of our challenges already exists in the organisation

• Need to identify, share and manage learning

What this means for the Learning and Development Unit...

• Closer to our customers• Client managers• Help desk service• Internal consultancy• Using technology to offer and share

learning• Less reliance on external

experts/trainers

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Consultancy

Organisational development

Coaching and Mentoring

Learning in teams

Central Training Courses

What this means for local training managers...

• Better identification of real need

• Use of customer and staff feedback

• More creativity in the use of resources

• Synergies between services

• Making the most of networks and communities

What this means for line managers...

• Commitment from the top• Identifying needs• Providing coaching to staff• Building learning into everyday work• Encouraging innovation and knowledge-

sharing• Identifying and sharing learning from

successes and failures• Rewarding learning

Key Commission issues

• De-criminalising learning

• Breaking the mould

• Communities of Practice are the building blocks of a learning culture

• Using our own people

Questions for discussion...

What are you doing (or what could you do) to:

• Encourage the shift from training to learning?

• Develop and maintain a learning culture?

3 key activities...

• Managers being trained to coach staff

• Emphasis on competency frameworks

• Modular training (shorter, sharper courses/events)

Potential barriers

• Preoccupied with fire-fighting

• Not creating time to think strategically

• Too focused on procedures

• Reluctance to train other than fro immediate need

• Overtight supervision

• Top-down driven