To address the ever-changing needs of today’s business environment, new technologies are continually coming into the market. Learning technology is no exception. However, learning technology does not just stand on its own. The technology works within an ecosystem that must be designed and managed to ultimately deliver a learning program that drives business outcomes. The learning technology ecosystem consists of the tools, platforms, people, and processes that enable an organization to create, deliver, manage, and analyze its learning content.
ATD Research surveyed 212 talent development (TD) professionals to understand the different features of their learning technology ecosystems and how they use the learning technology tools available. You can find the full report, sponsored by Eloomi, here.
Our study, Learning Technology Ecosystems: Tools, Programs, and Strategies, found that, for TD professionals, the top three most important features of learning technology ecosystems are:
1. Ease of use for learners
2. Security measures
3. Data collection and reporting
To effectively leverage data collected from learning platforms, organizations also need to have a data governance strategy in place. According to our study, two-thirds of organizations had a data governance strategy, but only 49 percent of those organizations reported that their data governance strategy provided more uniform data across the talent development function. If your organization is looking to set up a data governance practice or you want to assess your current strategy, use ATD’s tool Considerations for Creating a Data Governance Practice to ask yourself the right questions.
Your organization may already have a robust learning technology ecosystem in place, or you may be auditing your current capabilities to produce better learning and business outcomes. Wherever you are in your journey, you can use this report to benchmark and help plan your next steps in aligning your learning technology ecosystem with your organization’s current and future needs.
Tessa Guiv is a researcher for ATD; [email protected].