Learning and development

Learning and development is about more than just training. It encapsulates all activities that may be undertaken to ensure that employees have the ability to carry out their current and future roles. Identifying the learning needs at individual, team and organisation level is important as this enables the organisation to focus their efforts on the areas that will add most value to their operations. In organisations, there are usually formal and informal learning and development activities and they may be led internally to the organisation or delivered by a third party. As there can be significant costs associated with delivering learning and development activities, it is important that interventions are evaluated so that future deliveries can be further enhanced. This chapter also highlights the importance of evaluating interventions and transferring learning into the workplace.