What happens to Learning and Development during this health crisis? A high percentage of employees are working from home, and that number is rising. Employees are anxious about the future, with fewer than four in 10 feeling very confident that they will be able to continue to meet the requirements of their job successfully, should the outbreak continue.

During this crisis, how are leaders thinking about training and development? Indeed, as leaders contemplate their medium- to long-term strategy, they might be considering how to cut nonessential expenses – and that might include investments in employee development. During an emergency, it's common for companies to scale back their development efforts. When cost-cutting becomes the new normal, training and development are likely added to the list of things to downsize.

That's a mistake.

The impact the right employee development process can have is massive. Gallup finds that organizations that have made a strategic investment in employee development report 11% greater profitability and are twice as likely to retain their employees. But with many cities locked down and many employees working from home, opportunities for classroom training are non-existent – at least in the short term. Consider the following alternative strategies to keep investing in employee development during this crisis –

1. Offer ongoing support and coaching. One in two employees feel well-prepared to do their job considering the COVID-19 crisis. Prior to COVID-19, Gallup research found that 26% of employees strongly agree that the feedback they receive helps them do better work. During a crisis, organizations must acknowledge and address anxiety and uncertainty. Employees want an emotional outlet. Equally important, they want to talk about how they can continue to do good work and contribute in the future. Managers play an important role here – specifically by operating more like coaches than bosses. More frequent check-ins and coaching conversations are a necessity right now.

2. Emphasize critical skills, but don't forget behavioral skills. As this crisis fades, there will be greater urgency felt to prepare leaders and employees for the future. This will require HR and learning professionals to dramatically reorient and revise their training calendars. We can often learn the wrong thing from crises – fear, risk avoidance and a survival mindset. That's why it's so important that leaders use these experiences to develop people to adopt a problem-solving, opportunity-focused mindset. Not only does this help employees throughout their careers and lives, but it also ensures that organizations recover faster and adjust more effectively to the new future of work, post-pandemic.

3. Create a virtual network of learners. Before the crisis, alternative and multiplatform learning modes were on the rise. Many organizations have successfully implemented e-learning. But the actual effectiveness of these methods remains uncertain – primarily because few organizations have tested them out. Gallup's research shows that developing a blended learning approach (online and instructor-led) is most effective. Indeed, as many people participate in remote education from their homes or preferred settings of choice, often while dressed down, a sense of inclusion is rapidly created. During the crisis, virtual learning must be emphasized, but companies ought to encourage open learning and peer-to-peer learning with other employees. This requires investing in the right learning technologies. But equally important, it requires creating a culture where open feedback and dialogue, and collaborative decision-making are encouraged.

Even as the uncertainty amid this disruption continues, companies would do well to keep investing in employee learning and development. It matters now, for employee support, and it matters for the future of your company -- however that may look after this crisis abates. This time is an opportunity to curate a balanced learning and development program – one that brings the best of online, instructor-led, and experiential learning in a way that best supports employees during this crisis. Doing this effectively will continue to motivate and inspire them beyond the crisis.

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