We say 'training and development' all the time. Or learning and development.

But we rarely stop to understand the difference between them and the impact those differences have on strategy. I never did anyhow except at a surface level.

I spoke with James Aird about this. James is an L&D consultant with a Master of Education from Harvard. Interestingly, he learned the trade in conflict areas like Iraq and the DR Congo.

James took us on a journey through the distinct aspects of training/learning vs development in an organization, and how they cater to different organizational needs. For example:

🎓 Learning, and training are, more or less, the same thing and directly meet organization requirements.

🌫️ Development if fuzzier - with a ton of strategic implications related to skills gaps, recruitment and retention.

🆉 Gen Z has a lot of hopes and expectations for great development. A strength IMO.

💻 An Learning Management System (LMS) will help you deliver and track it. James recommends one for any organization with 20-30 employees or more.

This episode is has a lot of information for HR professionals who want to improve their understanding of L&D and how L&D can impact so many modern organizational problems. It's not just about upskilling - it's about creating a culture of learning.