The Future of

Training and

Development
Increased Use of New Technologies for
Training Delivery
 The use of new technologies will increase for several
reasons:
 The cost of new technologies will decrease
 Technology will help employees to better serve
customers and generate new business
 It can reduce training costs
 It allows trainers to build into training the
desirable
features of a learning environment
 Training can be delivered at any place and
time

11-2
Table 11.1 - Future Trends That Will Affect
Training
•Need to contribute to sustainability
• Use of new technologies for training delivery at instruction •
Breakthroughs in neuroscience about learning
• Greater emphasis on speed in design, focus on content
• Increased emphasis on capturing and sharing intellectual
capital and social learning
• Increased use of just-in-time learning and performance support
• Increased emphasis on performance analysis, Big Data, and
learning for business enhancement
• Increased use of stakeholder-focused learning, training
partnerships, and outsourcing training

11-3
Training for sustainability
Sustainability refers to a company’s ability to make a profit
without sacrificing the resources of its employees, the
community, or the environment. A growing number of
companies have made sustainability an important part of
their business strategy. Training and development can
contribute to companies’ sustainability initiatives by
providing learning opportunities for employees in
organizations in developing countries that lack the
resources, providing development experiences for
employees in poor and emerging countries that benefit the
local community, and teaching employers to protect the
environment
INCREASED USE OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR
TRAINING DELIVERY AND INSTRUCTION

The use of social media, smartphones, and other new technologies will likely increase
in the future for several reasons. First, the cost of these technologies will decrease.
Second, companies can use technology to better prepare employees to serve
customers and generate new business. Third, use of these new technologies can
substantially reduce the training costs related to bringing geographically dispersed
employees to one central training location (e.g., travel, food, and housing). Fourth,
these technologies allow trainers to build into training many of the desirable features
of a learning environment (e.g., practice, feedback, reinforcement). Fifth, as
companies employ more contingent employees (e.g., part-timers and consultants) and
offer more alternative work arrangements (e.g., flexible work schedules and working
from home), technology will allow training to be delivered to any place and at any
time. Sixth, new technologies will make it easier for training and performance support
to be accessible to learners anytime and anyplace.
BREAKTHROUGHS IN NEUROSCIENCE
ABOUT LEARNING
This is leading to a better understanding of how we learn,
which can be used to design more effective training and
development programs and adopt multiple training
knowledge at a time.
Greater emphasis on Speed in Design, Focus in
Content, and Use of Multiple Delivery Methods
 Rapid instructional design (RID): Group of
techniques that allows training to be built
more quickly.

11-7
Increased Emphasis on Capturing and
Sharing Intellectual Capital
 Sharing knowledge and contributing to intellectual
capital will become more common as
collaborative social networking technology and
Web 2.0 tools make this simpler to implement
 Social network analysis: Map of informal
connections between employees
 Trainers must be technologically literate

11-8
Increased Use of True Performance
Support and social learning
 In the future, employees will:
 Be presented with short learning episodes embedded in their work
 Be alerted when the learning episodes are needed
 Have direct connections to experts
 Be continuously connected online wirelessly
 Have simulations for guidance
 Learning will become just-in-time
 Social cyborg - Integrates social networks into the way they think, learn,
and solve problems
 Social networking platforms will be part of learning management systems

11-9
Increased use of just-in-time learning and
performance support
Companies are moving away from courseware and classes
as a performance improvement method and are instead
adopting true performance support that is available during
the work process. Just-in-time learning (or embedded
learning) refers to learning that occurs on the job as
needed; it involves collaboration and non learning
technologies such as microblogs, and it is integrated with
knowledge management.
Increased Emphasis on Performance Analysis
and Learning for Business Enhancement
 Training departments will need to:
 Focus on interventions related to performance
improvement
 Provide support for high-performance work
systems
 Develop systems for training administration,
development, and delivery that reduce costs and
increase employees’ access to learning

11-11
Increased Emphasis on Performance Analysis
and Learning for Business Enhancement
 Training departments’ responsibilities will include a
greater focus on:
Systems that employees can use for information on
an
as-needed basis
 Cloud computing: Provides information technology
infrastructure over a network in a self-service,
modifiable, and on-demand

11-12
INCREASED USE OF STAKEHOLDER-FOCUSED
LEARNING, TRAINING PARTNERSHIPS, AND
OUTSOURCING TRAINING
 Partnerships help:
 Individuals prepare for higher-skill and higher-wage
jobs
 Attract new companies to the area by integrating:
 Employee retraining
 Elementary through high school career education
programs
 Career academies
 Higher education programs into a lifelong learning system

11-13
Table 11.3 - Skills for Future Trainers

11-14