For many learning professionals, building a transformative culture of learning within their organization is the ultimate goal—and for good reason! Without a successful culture of learning, the one-off tools and training you offer—no matter how innovative or engaging they are—won’t be as effective in creating lasting behavioral change. It’s a bit like planting a tree. You can plop a sapling in the ground, but if the soil doesn’t contain the needed nutrients, the tree won’t grow. It’s the same with learning. You can create incredible learning experiences for your learners all day long, but if learning isn’t baked into the culture of your organization—if it’s not a part of the soil in which your organization grows—you’ll be missing out on the most meaningful impact.

In order to get the most out of your thoroughly researched and meticulously designed L&D efforts, your organization needs a transformative culture of learning.

What is a culture of learning?

The Association for Talent Development describes a culture of learning as a culture “in which employees continuously seek, share, and apply new knowledge and skills to improve individual and organizational performance.” Sounds pretty great, right? But this kind of culture doesn’t just happen. It must be purposefully created and constantly cultivated.

Transformative learning

In her LinkedIn Learning guide to creating a culture of learning, Dr. Britt Andreatta claims that every organization already has a culture of learning. Some are transformative—intentionally built for growth and development—but many are simply neglected, which causes harmful effects that ripple out into every corner of the organization. In neglected cultures of learning, people still learn (people are always learning), just not for the benefit of the organization. Instead, they learn conformity; they learn limits. In order to avoid this sad and stagnant reality, you must develop a foundation for transformative learning.

What is transformative learning? It’s “the expansion of consciousness through the transformation of worldview and capacities of the self.” In a nutshell, transformative learning is the ability (and willingness) to change how we see and do things. So it makes perfect sense that the most effective cultures of learning are built on this perception of change. After all, learning exists to create change.

Benefits of a learning culture

The goal of continuous training (upskilling and reskilling) is fairly straightforward: team members gain or hone skills in order to benefit their organization. But the goal of creating a culture of learning goes far beyond just acquiring and improving skills. The goal of transformative cultures of learning is to create teams of driven and adaptable learners who are prepared to overcome any challenge.

Fosters a growth mindset

You’ve probably heard the saying, “When you stop growing, you start dying.” Despite the harshness of the wording, the message is clear. Embracing a culture of lifelong learning is one of the most powerful ways to achieve a growth mindset. By continuously investing in your team’s learning and development, you not only show them that you support their growth; you also encourage them to adopt their own growth mindset. This opens the doors to innovation and creativity, through which you might just find solutions that could take your organization to the next level.

Encourages employee investment

When you successfully cultivate a culture of learning, your team members don’t just engage with the learning material you provide; they ingest, digest, and then reinvest it into the organization. Why? Because they feel valued; they know that their growth matters. A transformative culture of learning recognizes that every learner is unique and offers up the best possible learning experience for each specific learner.

This not only helps the individual’s growth but also the growth of the organization, for said employee—now empowered by their positive and meaningful learning experience—is more likely to share their knowledge with their coworkers, reinvesting the value of learning in the organization. Not to mention, having a robust culture of learning significantly improves employee retention and talent acquisition.

Develops adaptable employees

When learning is treated as a way of life within your organization, you set the stage for meaningful behavioral change. And that is, after all, what learning is all about, right? It’s no secret that the most successful companies prioritize innovative learning and development. They do this because they know that “learning as a way of life” is the best and most proactive approach to the challenges of the ever-changing work landscape. Adaptable employees are expert problem solvers. They think more creatively and have an instinct to innovate. In other words, they’re your greatest asset.

How to build a culture of learning

Now that you know the benefits of a transformative culture of learning, it’s time to build one for your team. But how exactly does one do that, you might be wondering. Where should you begin? Let’s consider some steps you can take to start laying the foundations for your culture of learning.

Embed learning in your culture

In many organizations, learning is treated like an event; a task on a to-do list; something that takes team members away from their daily duties. But that disconnected, one-off approach to learning will never achieve a transformative culture of learning. If you really want to create a culture of learning, then learning must be baked into your company’s vision and values. It should be part of every team member’s everyday work life.

Choose systems over schedules

Humans are wired to learn. And with today’s endless access to information, workers are learning all the time. Throughout the course of their day, they digest blog articles, podcasts, video tutorials, and more. Many of them are already adept at learning in the flow of work. So why do some L&D initiatives rely solely on scheduling a four-hour workshop once a year and expect learners to retain (and expertly implement) what they learn? It’s an outdated approach.

In her Forbes article on building a culture of learning, The Academy of Tomorrow CEO Lital Marom encourages leaders to “Gently remind employees about learning opportunities through daily feeds, allow people to see what their peers are learning and recommend and set goals and deadlines for training.” Remember, learning is a process. By making learning a habit—a part of your team’s everyday experience—you’ll ensure your learners are more inclined to absorb, retain, and utilize what they learn, fostering a culture of continuous (and meaningful) learning.

Along with that, ensure that the systems you create have a purpose behind them. Use what you know as a learning leader—like the benefits of social learning—to make decisions about what sort of systems to employ.

Empower your employees

In his Harvard Business Review article on building a strong learning culture, James McKenna urges employers “to help employees become expert learners — people with the will to learn, the skill to do it effectively, and the ability to apply that learning in ways that positively impact their performance and that of their teams.” But where do you start?

If you’re on a mission to transform the culture of learning in your organization, start with what your employees are learning on their own. Lital Marom claims that “The key to success is in aligning organizational needs and learning resources with employees’ interests and development needs.” Chances are, your learners know what they want to learn; that’s why they read blog articles, listen to podcasts, and watch video tutorials. If you can show them that your organization is ready and willing to invest in their specific learning objectives—thereby giving them a sense of ownership over their learning experience—they will be more likely to engage with the material and implement what they’ve learned. Then, once you’ve identified the material that will resonate with your learners, you can start crafting the learning experience.

Prioritize accessibility

Learning should meet people where they are. And in today’s work landscape, people exist (and learn) in a variety of places and with a diversity of abilities. Workers learn independently, asynchronously, incrementally, and through various mediums. If you truly want to encourage a culture of learning, you must prioritize accessibility. This might include crafting strategic blended learning experiences, creating accessible eLearning courses in Rise, or working to ensure your learners have access to the best content. Don’t make them hunt for what they need. Create the conditions for learning and support the desire to learn by curating a library of inclusive and empowering learning opportunities for everyone in the organization.

Guide and provide feedback

In a perfect world, your learners would be able to expertly master the balance of learning in the flow of work, retain all the valuable information they absorbed, and then share what they learned with the organization in order to benefit the collective. And while that vision is achievable, it won’t just happen on its own. L&D leaders, along with managers and supervisors, must be willing and able to guide their team members on their learning journeys and provide feedback on their progress. Creating a culture of learning is a team effort, and every player matters.

The future of learning

At Maestro, we envision a reality where leaders, learners, and L&D professionals know that time and money spent on learning is the best investment they can make. It is our vision to create a world where a culture of learning is the driving force behind every organization. Why? Because we know that transformative learning is vital for growth and lasting success. If you share our vision for the future, join us and the thousands of learning professionals dedicated to inspiring change through learning.