ASTD’s quarterly
Learning Executive Confidence Index (
LXCI) assesses the outlooks and expectations of learning executives for the next six months on a 100-point scale, modeled after the CEO Confidence Indices reported by
Chief Executive Magazine and
The Conference Board. The
LXCI provides a snapshot of learning executive confidence in the future and factors in expectations of their learning functions' abilities to meet learning needs and to show impact in key areas including corporate productivity, the status of learning as a key strategic component within the organization, and the availability of resources for learning. The report is published quarterly in January, April, July, and October each year.
The second quarter in 2013 saw a decline in confidence, with an almost three point decrease from 68.1 to 65.3. As seen previously for 2011 and 2012, both years commenced with strong optimism from learning executives (67.1 and 67.3 respectively), but confidence waned later in each year. By the second quarter of the year, organizations see a clearer picture of the year’s opportunities and budget usage, which can bring confidence levels down.
At the beginning of 2013, scores were extremely high, and have decreased during Q2 2013. Over the past four years, the unemployment rate has been consistently declining. Hiring is on the upswing, which in some cases could mean organizations are in a position to employ full time staff again, and in others, could just be a rise in temporary (seasonal) employment. However, learning executives may be shifting expectations from very optimistic to realistic in their outlook toward the impact of learning and development. Despite decreases in scores, optimism and confidence still remain strong. Although scores are in line with previous trends, it may be too early to make a conclusion to the effect of the new, modified LXCI calculation (where the indicator of learning as a key strategic component was replaced with how favorable the value of learning will be perceived).