The Changing Learning Landscape

"The use of online communities and networks, where employees are encouraged to co-create content, collaborate, share knowledge, and fully participate in their own learning, is helping to create far more enduring learning experiences."–Harold Jarche

Do the words "social media" excite you or scare you? If it's the latter, then you had better find a way, quickly, to overcome your fears, because if you don't, the workplace will leave you behind.

The ASTD Research report, "Transforming Learning With Web 2.0 Technologies," highlighted the fact that "Web 2.0 technologies do not play a major role in most learning functions today," but "many experts agree that these up-and-coming technologies will have a growing impact on learning in organizations over the course of the next few years."

According to Jeanne C. Meister and Karie Willyerd, the authors of this month's cover article and the book The 2020 Workplace, all the major technologies that will define the 2020 workplace are in the design phase now, and it's time to jump aboard.

Have you ever Tweeted, posted to a Facebook page, or commented on a blog? If not, what are you waiting for?

Companies are using social media tools to build brands for their products and services, capture new knowledge and best practices for company processes, collaborate across the organization, increase innovation, recruit new workers, and train employees, but they are also using them to recruit top talent and onboard new employees. By reframing the use of social networking technology, companies can increase communication, collaboration, problem solving, and competitive advantage with little cost.

Deciding to participate in social networking is not enough. As a learning and performance professional you must gain a clear understanding of how to leverage this technology to drive business goals. What are the top business drivers in your organization, and how can you use the tools to recruit, share knowledge, gain support for products and services, and decrease the company's bottom line? What are your competitors doing?

It is time for workplace learning professionals to redefine the role that social media will play in their learning initiatives because if they don't, they risk being left behind in this new workplace paradigm.

Paula Ketter
Editor, ASTD Periodicals
pketter@astd.org