corporate learning survey 2015 final version

LEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES BUDGET CONSTRAINTS42% OF RESPONDENTS DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIESUNCERTAIN AND COMPLEX SENIOR MANAGEMENTCUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT BUSINESS PERFORMANCE DRIVE FOR GROWTH COMMERCIAL ACUMEN HIGHPOTENTIALS VOLATILE ENVIRONMENT COACHINGTIME TALENT MANAGEMENT RETURN ON INVESTMENT BLENDED LEARNING 2015 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGECLIENT-CENTRED CONTROLLING COSTS OBJECTIVESLEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES BUDGET CONSTRAINTS42% OF RESPONDENTS DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIESUNCERTAIN AND COMPLEX SENIOR MANAGEMENTCUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT BUSINESS PERFORMANCE DRIVE FOR GROWTH COMMERCIAL ACUMEN HIGHPOTENTIALS VOLATILE ENVIRONMENT COACHINGTIME TALENT MANAGEMENT RETURN ON INVESTMENT BLENDED LEARNING 2015 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGECLIENT-CENTRED CONTROLLING COSTS OBJECTIVESLEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES BUDGET CONSTRAINTS42% OF RESPONDENTS DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIESUNCERTAIN AND COMPLEX SENIOR MANAGEMENTCUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT BUSINESS PERFORMANCE DRIVE FOR GROWTH COMMERCIAL ACUMEN HIGHPOTENTIALS VOLATILE ENVIRONMENT COACHINGTIME TALENT MANAGEMENT RETURN ON INVESTMENT BLENDED LEARNING 2015 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGECLIENT-CENTRED CONTROLLING COSTS OBJECTIVESLEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES BUDGET CONSTRAINTS42% OF RESPONDENTS DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIESUNCERTAIN AND COMPLEX SENIOR MANAGEMENTCUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT BUSINESS PERFORMANCE DRIVE FOR GROWTH COMMERCIAL ACUMEN HIGHPOTENTIALS VOLATILE ENVIRONMENT COACHINGTIME TALENT MANAGEMENT RETURN ON INVESTMENT

CORPORATE LEARNING PRIORITIES SURVEY 2015USING LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

TO ACHIEVE STRATEGIC BUSINESS AIMS

Contents

Executive summary 2

Key findings 3

1 Organisational and development priorities 3

1.1 Organisationalchallengesinthenextthreeyears 3

1.2 Developmentprioritiesforkeystaffgroups 4

1.3 Prioritystaffgroupsforexecutivedevelopmentin2015 6

1.4 Peopleandtalentmanagementobjectivesandtrends 6

2 Learning and development activities and trends 8

2.1 Learninganddevelopmentspending 8

2.2 Annualexternallearninganddevelopmentbudgets 8

2.3 Planneddevelopmentactivitiesin2015 8

2.4 Timeinvestmentindevelopmentactivitiesbyemployeegroup 9

2.5 Preferredlearningmethodsbyemployeegroup 10

2.6 Learninganddevelopmentsupportandevaluation 12

3 Working with business schools 14

3.1 Choosingabusinessschoolandtheperceivedbenefits ofexecutiveeducation 14

3.2 Choosingcustomisedexecutiveeducation 16

3.3 Choosingopenexecutiveeducation 17

4 Methodology 18

Corporate Learning Priorities Survey 2015

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Welcometothe2015HenleyCorporateLearningSurvey

Nowinitssixthyear,theHenleyCorporateLearningSurveysurveyed368executivesfrom39countries,thelargestevergroupofrespondents,fortheirviewsonorganisationallearningprioritiesandchallenges.Thisyear,weaskedevenmorein-depthquestionstoreallyunderstandindetailwhatourclientorganisationsandexecutivesaretryingtoachieveinlearninganddevelopmentaswebegin2015.

Thesurveyresultsconfirmwhatwehavebecomeincreasinglyawareofinrecentyears,thatleadershipdevelopmentatalllevelsintheorganisationhasneverbeenmoreimportant,butthatrespondentshavetobeabletoachievethisdevelopmentwithinabroaderorganisationalcontextofsignificanttimeandcost-controlpressures.ThismeansthatHenleyandotherprovidersmustworkwithclientstodemonstratetheROIoflearninganddevelopmentinitiativesandplaceevenmoreemphasisonaligningprogrammecontentandlearningprocesseswithorganisationalobjectives.

ThanksgotoeveryonewhotookthetimetocompletethequestionnaireandtoHenleyfacultyandexpertsfortheiranalysisoftheresults.Wehopethatyouwillfindtheresultshelpfulincomparingyourownthoughtsonorganisationalleadership,learninganddevelopmentwiththebroadersetofexperiencesofalmost400others.

Steve Ludlow HeadofExecutiveEducation

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Executive summaryOrganisational and management challenges in 2015 and beyond:•Thechallengesfacingmostrespondentorganisationsinthenextthreeyearswillbethedevelopmentoforganisation-wideleadershipcapabilities,withtheissueofcontrollingcostsequallydominant

•Thisorganisationallandscapetranslatesintothemostreporteddevelopmentprioritiesforseniormanagementbeingthedevelopmentofleadershipcapabilitiesand,inparticular,leadinginavolatile,uncertainandcomplexenvironment

•Forhighpotentials,theemphasisisondrivingtheorganisationforwardthroughthedevelopmentofleadershipcapabilitiesalongsidecommercialacumenandcustomerengagement.

Learning and development plans and spending:•Asin2014,coachingisthedominantlearninganddevelopmentactivityplanned,with85%ofrespondentsplanningtousethisapproach.Coachingisalsomostlikelytobeidentifiedasthe‘preferred’learningmethodforseniorexecutivesandforhighpotentials

•Constraintsonlearninganddevelopmentactivitiesrelatetotimeaswellascost.Forexample,42%ofrespondentsthoughtthattheoptimaltimespentondevelopmentforseniormanagementwasonlyuptofivedaysperyear,whichposesthechallengeofhowbesttosupportseniorexecutivesintheirlearningastheydotheirjobofleading.Regardingfinancialconsiderations,almostasmanyrespondentsthoughtlearninganddevelopmentbudgetswouldfallin2015aspredictedarise(21%and23%,respectively),withtheremaining56%predictingabudgetstandstill

•Blendedlearning(partonline,partface-to-face)isaplannedactivitybyoverhalfofrespondentorganisationsduring2015,asisindividualonlinelearning.Despiteonlinelearningnowhavingenteredthemainstreamfororganisations,thepurelyonlinelearningoptionistheleastpreferredactivitytypebyeverygroupwithintheorganisationfromfirst-linetoseniormanagement.

Executive development – the focus on organisational impact:•Two-thirdsofrespondentsfeelthatexecutivedevelopmenthelpsthemtoachievetheirorganisation’soperationalobjectives,butthereisnoconsensusamongthemajorityofrespondentsonhowbesttomeasurethereturnonthisinvestment

•Thechallengefororganisationsin2015,accordingtobothrespondentcommentsandquantitativefeedback,istoachievetherequiredexecutivedevelopmentwithinbudgetconstraintsandtobeabletomeasure,understandanddemonstratetheimpactofthatinvestment.Peopleandtalentmanagementobjectivesarealsomorelikelytobefocusedonassistingthedriveforgrowthandcompetitiveadvantagethaninrecentyears

•Accordingtothesurveyresults,thechallengeforbusinessschoolpartnersistoworkcloselywithorganisationstohelpthemachievethisunderstanding,andtoensurethatexecutivedevelopmentinterventionsareclient-centredwithafocusontheabilitytoimpactbusinessperformance.


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Key findings

1Organisationalanddevelopmentpriorities1.1 Organisational challenges in the next three yearsThesurveynotonlyexaminesthelearninganddevelopmentprioritiesoforganisations,butalsoaddressesthebroaderorganisationalcontextinwhichlearninganddevelopmentplaysitspart.Fortwoyearsnow,thesurveyhasaskedrespondentstotelluswhicharethemostpressingorganisationalchallengestheywillfaceinthenextthreeyears.Thefollowingchartoutlinesthetoptenin2015andthecorrespondingpercentagesfrom2014.

In2015,thedevelopmentoforganisation-wideleadershipcapabilityisthechallengemostoftenselectedbyrespondents,asin2014;although,thisisnowexactlyequalledbythechallengeofmanagingcosts.Thefocusoncostcontrolisechoedbycommentsofrespondentsthatshowthepressuresbeingfeltinsomeorganisations:‘substantial funding shortfall and rising demands’,and‘sustaining growth and a healthy work environment to enable people to manage the challenges of less resource with more responsibility’.

Elsewhere,manyofthechallengeshaveelicitedsimilarlevelsofresponseyear-on-yearbutthechallengesofaddressingtechnologicaladvancesanddomesticcompetitionhaveseenslightdropssince2014.Thewordingoftheoptionfor‘organisation-wideleadershipcapability’isaslightalterationfrom‘developingleadershipcapability’in2014,whichmayaccountforthesignificantdifferenceinthenumberofrespondentschoosingthisoption,thoughitisstill

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Organisation-wide leadership capability

Managing costs

Effectiveness of management teams

Speed of change

Achieving cultural change

Managing growth

Accessing and implementing new ideas

Domestic competition

Addressing technological advances

Major re-organisation

Organisational challenges in the next 3 years

20142015

Organisationchallengesinthenext3years

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themostpopularchoice.Thefactthatcloseto60%ofparticipantssignuptothisquitestretchingambitionsignalsapotentialshiftinourunderstandingofwhereleadershipcapabilityhastositinmodernorganisations–leadershipisbecomingseenasanorganisation-widecapabilitythatincludesthemany,notjustthefewatthetop.

Thesurveyalsoaskedrespondentstodescribetheirownlearninganddevelopmentchallengesinparticular.Thefollowingsampleofresponsesshowsthatinlearninganddevelopmentcostcontrolandresourceissuesarealsodominantthemesingoinginto2015,whiletheneedtodevelopmanagersandleadersisstillvital:

• Retaining adequate time and focus on development when work pressures increasing whilst workforce at all levels reduces – abstraction from the workplace is bigger issue than L&D provision

• Objective: to develop leadership capacity to drive forward changes and remain competitive

• To stretch our learning/development of key business leaders but do it for less money

• Getting the right balance between meeting the immediate needs of the business and investing in developing the talent for the future

• Financial constraints are our major challenge

• Dropoffofbusinessandredundanciescanmakeitdifficulttogainbudgetary sign off

• Training budgets are being cut and the company are focusing on operational efficiencies.ThedriverforL&Din2015willbetoshowvalueformoney.

In the current business landscape of discontinuous change, the smart companies will try to get extra competitive advantage by harnessing the human factor. Talent development is the answer to the fault lines that exist within organisations, and within the current system as a whole. This makes the development of new talent, who can make the needed repairs, crucial for the future. This development of talent does not mean just attending courses but an intricate engagement by senior executives with the top talent within their organisation. How many CEO’s currently have quarterly or even annual meetings with their high potentials, for instance? That is also why tailored programmes focused on individual organisational needs and challenges are needed more than ever. In turn, organisations in this climate are looking for that extra level of customer focus from business schools that can really understand the needs of their top talent and take organisations away from a functional and myopic view by providing global insights from research and access to a global network.

Andrew Kakabadse,ProfessorofGovernanceandLeadership,HenleyBusinessSchool

ProfessorAndrewKakabadse

1.2 Development priorities for key staff groupsTranslatingorganisationalneedsintodevelopmentplansisakeypriorityforbothHRandnon-HRleadersandmanagers.Weaskedaboutthedevelopmentprioritiesfortwokeygroupsofemployeesin2015:seniormanagersandhighpotentials.


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Whilethedevelopmentofleadershipcapabilitiesiskeyforboth,thetwogroupshaveverydifferentdevelopmentneeds.Inadditiontoleadershipcapabilities,highpotentialsaremostlikelytobeexpectedtodevelopkeyskillsintheareasofcustomerengagementandcommercialacumen.Thedevelopmentprioritiesforseniormanagementareleadingwithinavolatile,uncertainandcomplexenvironment,afocusonthedevelopmentofcoachingskills,aswellasbothformulatingandexecutingstrategy.

Onaverage,seniormanagershaveagreaternumberofdevelopmentprioritiesincomparisontohighpotentials,forwhommorefocusedplansareinplace.Theleastreportedprioritiesforseniormanagersaredevelopingentrepreneurialthinkingandcommercialacumen.

I was interested to see the focus on ‘VUCA’ (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) skills in leadership development. As the organisational context becomes ever more complicated – internally and externally – leaders are increasingly faced with dilemmas that have no obvious answer, and for which more traditional leadership development approaches have left them unequipped. Through my work at Henley, I see this time after time resulting in issues in strategy development and deployment in organisations, as leaders struggle to know what to do when they don’t know what to do. Capabilities such as judgement therefore become much more relevant.ThechallengeforHRistofindthemeanstodevelopthecapabilitiesthatallowcurrentand future leaders to thrive in these VUCA situations, while managing their own dilemma – that of needing to manage costs. This may require them to fundamentally review some established practices. Business schools must be able to work with both leaders and HR functions to support the development of these capabilities and approaches, since the need for them is only going to increase with time, and organisations that have not adequately recognised their importance will likely fall behind.

Professor Nick Kemsley, Co-DirectoroftheHenleyCentreforHRExcellence,HenleyBusinessSchool

ProfessorNickKemsley

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Leadership capabilities

Leading in a complex, uncertain environment

Coaching skills

Strategy execution

Strategy formulation

Developing management teams

Customer engagement

Innovating successfully

Managing reputation and risk

Commercial acumen

Entrepreneurial thinking

Staff development priorities 2015

High potentials

Senior management

Staffdevelopmentpriorities2015

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1.3 Priority staff groups for executive development in 2015Respondentswereaskedaboutthelikelihoodoffourdifferentstaffgroupsbeingincludedinexecutivedevelopmentplansfor2015.Theoptionsrangedfrom‘verylikely’(scoring5),to‘veryunlikely’(scoring1).

“Thefindingsofthe6thAnnualHenleyCorporateLearningSurveyrepresenttheothersideofthecoin showing the characteristics of successful organisations highlighted by the recent All Party Parliamentary Group report examining the future of management and leadership in the UK entitled‘Management2020:LeadershiptoUnlockLong-termGrowth’.Itconcludedthatsuccessfulorganisationshadthreedistinctivefeatures.Purposeandvalues-includingcleararticulationofsocialbenefitsandleadershipaccountability.People-howtheorganisationpreparesmanagersandleadersatalllevels.Potential-howdoestheorganisationsupportthenextgenerationofmanagers and leaders. These success factors closely chime with the challenges highlighted by this survey including that of ‘overall leadership capability’, ‘effectiveness of management teams’, ‘speed ofchange’,‘growth’and‘culturalchange’.Successfulorganisationsinvestindevelopmentoftheirpeople at all levels. They succeed because they have outstanding people, hence, better equipped to deal with environmental turbulence, managing change and securing growth.”

Professor Abby Ghobadian,HeadofSchoolofLeadership,Organisations&Behaviour

ProfessorAbbyGhobadian

In2015,asin2014,developmentplansfocusonseniormanagement,followedbyhighpotentialsandthenmiddlemanagement.Thereisaslightdropinthelikelihoodofallofthesegroupsbeingincludedindevelopmentplansyear-on-yearthough,whichmaybearesultofthereportedcost-controlchallengesin2015.Thenewgrouptobeincludedin2015,first-linemanagers,arethegroupleastlikelytobeincludedinplans.

1.4 People and talent management objectives and trendsWenowhaveenoughdatatoseehoworganisations’peopleandtalentmanagementobjectiveshavedevelopedoverthelastthreeyears.Everyyearweaskrespondentstoreportontheirobjectivesinthepreviousyearandthen

1 2 3 4 5

Senior management

High potentials

Middle management

First-line managers

Likelihood of inclusion in 2015 development plans by staff group

Average rating2014

Average rating2015

Likelihoodofinclusionin2015developmentplansbystaffgroup


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The fact that talent retention is once again the most selected objective by our survey respondents shows the importance of continuous investment in the learning and development of managers because the quality of leadership that people experience is a crucial reason for them to stay with an organisation. Moreover, the more senior the executive being developed, the more this investment in both money and time should be focused on their capability to develop others within the organisation. To turn it around: for every senior executive who doesn’t currently prioritise their own leadership development, their key people and their key people’s staff will be getting a poor deal and this might affect retention.

Timeawayfromtheofficeshouldnotbetheissue,ifseniorexecutivedevelopmentisgiventhepriority it needs to help organisations address the challenges they report in this survey. Also, managingcomplexitymightbesomethingthatisverydifficulttoreplicate,forinstance,inapurelyonlineenvironment.Socompaniesarefacingadilemmathattheywanttocontroltime spent away by their senior people and the costs of executive programmes, but leadership ofcomplexdecisionscan’tbetakenonboardinfiveminutesonthego.Neverthelessforourpart,wealsoneedtounderstandbetterhowexecutiveslearnwithintheirday-to-dayworkingenvironments and how executive development interventions can even better harness and interactwiththaton-the-jobdevelopment.

Dr Bernd Vogel,AssociateProfessorofLeadershipandOrganisationalBehaviour;Director,HenleyCentreforEngagingLeadership;HenleyBusinessSchool

DrBerndVogel

People and talent management objectives: reports and predictions

2012%

2013%

2014 %

2015predictions%

Retaintalentinthebusiness 80 75 78 79

Maintainandbuildemployeeengagement 78 79 73 80

Supportyourorganisation’sdriveforgrowthandcompetitiveadvantages 60 61 67 78

Attractnewtalentintothebusiness 57 60 66 75

Equipleaderstodeliverchange 54 52 54 73

Aidsuccessionplanning–particularlyataseniorlevel 43 41 39 64

Enablegrowthininternationalmarkets 29 25 30 45

topredictwhichobjectiveswouldfeatureinthefollowing12months.Since2012,theorderofpriorityhasnotchangedwithtalentretentionandemployeeengagementbeingthemostfrequentlyselectedobjectives.

Supportingthedriveforgrowthandcompetitiveadvantagehasseena7percentagepointincreasesince2012,andattractingnewleadersintothebusinesshasseena9percentagepointincreaseinthattime.Theprioritiesfor2015showthatobjectiveswillformasimilarpatternto2014though,asusualwiththissurvey,respondentsgivehigherpredictionsforfutureobjectivesthanreportingwhatthefocushasbeeninthepreviousyear.Inparticular,thedriveforgrowthandcompetitiveadvantageispredictedtobeasmuchapriorityastalentretentionandemployeeengagement.

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2Learninganddevelopmentactivitiesandtrends2.1 Learning and development spendingAlmost80%ofrespondentspredictthattheirbudgetswillbethesameorlargerin2015than2014,withonlyoneinfivepredictingabudgetcut.However,afterajumpin2014,predictionsofbudgetgrowthhavedecreasedsincelastyearwithconfidencelevelsbackinlinewiththosein2013andfewerthanoneinfourpredictingabudgetincrease.

2.2 Annual external learning and development budgetsTheannualspendonexternallearninganddevelopmentofourrespondents’organisationsvaries,reflectingthediversityoforganisationsthatcompletedthesurveyintermsofsizeandtype.Athirdofrespondentorganisationshavebudgetsexceeding£250,000,anotherthirdbetween£50,000and£250,000,and40%havebudgetsofupto£50,000.

2.3 Planned development activities in 2015In2015,individualcoachingwillbethemostusedlearninganddevelopmentactivity,with85%ofrespondentorganisationsplanningtousethisapproach.Peer-to-peeractivitiesarenext,followedcloselybyblendedlearning,whichwillbeusedbyoverhalfofrespondents.Teamcoachingandindividualonlinelearningarealsoplannedactivitiesforoverhalfofrespondentorganisationsin2015.

Will your next learning budget be… 2013%

2014%

2015%

Largerthanthepreviousyear? 21 31 23

Thesameasthepreviousyear? 57 54 56

Smallerthanthepreviousyear? 22 15 21

Annualspendonexternallearninganddevelopment

£0-£50,000,40%

£50,001–£250,000,

27%

£250,001–£500,000,

14%

£500,001–£1,000,000, 7%

More than £1,000,000, 12%

Annual spend on external learning and development


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We are noticing how buyers of senior management programmes are looking for much more integration of methodologies to create a richer learning experience and a better chance of embedding the learning. Providers who can engender learning through cleverly related media will design the most powerful solutions for their clients. The need for online delivery has increasedaspartofablendedprogramme–wherewereallyhavetomakethefacilitatedface-to-face experiences of every variety count and deliver more, as organisations want to reduce travel time and costs.

Claire Hewitt,HeadofLearningDesign,ExecutiveEducation,HenleyBusinessSchool

ClaireHewitt

2.4 Time investment in development activities by employee groupWeaskedrespondentshowmuchtimetheyconsideredtobeoptimalfordifferentgroupsofemployeestospendonlearninganddevelopmentactivitiesperyear.Despitethepriorityplacedelsewhereinthesurveytothedevelopmentofseniormanagement,thisdoesnottranslateitselfintotheinvestmentofsignificanttimetodedicatetotheseactivities.Thisisthegroupwiththeleastamountoftimeconsideredoptimalfortheirdevelopment,withover40%ofrespondentschoosingthe0–5daysperyearoptionforseniormanagers.Itisnotclearwhetherthisisdrivenbytheseniorexecutivesthemselvesorbyothers,butonerespondentcommentedthattheirorganisationaldevelopmentchallengewas, ‘getting senior managers to do any!’

Thiscontrastswithhighpotentialsforwhomnearlyhalfofrespondentsfeltthatatleast11daysperyearwastheoptimaltimetobespentondevelopment.

Planneddevelopmentactivities2015

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Individual coaching

Peer-to-peer activities

Blended learning (part online, part face-to-face)

Team coaching

Individual online learning

Externally accredited programmes

Customised executive education

Open executive education programmes

Group online learning

Planned development activities 2015

2014

2015

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Theissueoftimeawayfromworkisbroughtupagainintheresponsestothequestionaboutcurrentlearninganddevelopmentchallenges:

• Making the time available due to business targets

• Time available for training with challenge of client requirements and deadlines

• Challenge:Availabilityofmiddlemanagersandfront-linemanagersawayfromday-to-daymanagement

2.5 Preferred learning methods by employee groupThefollowingchartsshowthecontrastingpreferencesofemployeegroupstodifferentlearningformats,asreportedbyoursurveyrespondents.Respondentsfeelthatfirst-linemanagerspreferclassroom-basedlearning,incontrasttohighpotentials,whoarereportedtoprefercoachingfollowedbyexperientiallearning.

Despitethefactthatindividualonlinelearningisplannedby52%ofrespondentsfor2015,itappearstobetheleastattractiveoptionforalloftheemployeegroupssuggestingthatitisseenascost-andtime-efficientbutnotnecessarilyanattractiveoptionfortheindividualsthemselves.Thechallengeoffindingtherightlearningformatmixwasreportedbytworespondentsinresponsetothequestionabouttheirlearninganddevelopmentchallenges,‘findingagoodblendofonline/face-to-face/experientiallearning’and,‘findingtherightqualityMOOCsforonline learning’.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Executive and seniormanagement

High potentials Middle management First-line managers

Optimal time in executive development activities by employee group

0-5 days per year 6-10 days per year 11-15 days per year 16+ days per year

Optimaltimeinexecutivedevelopmentactivitiesbyemployeegroup


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0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Executive and senior management Middle management

Preferred learning and development activities by employee group

Classroom-based Blended (online/face-to-face) Coaching Project-based Online Experiential

Amongmostseniormanagement,groupcoachingisreportedasthepreferredoption,byovertwothirdsofrespondents,Middlemanagersarereportedashavingmorediversepreferenceswithnosinglemethodstandingout.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

High potentials First-line managers

Preferred learning and development activities by employee group

Classroom-based Blended (online/face-to-face) Coaching Project-based Online Experiential

Preferredlearninganddevelopmentactivitiesbyemployeegroup

Preferredlearninganddevelopmentactivitiesbyemployeegroup

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Important initiatives before and after executive development activities

Importanttoembedlearning

%

ImportanttomeasureROI

%

Respondents‘regularly’undertakingthisactivity

%

Provideongoingcoaching 74 14 25

360-degreefeedbackreviews 72 39 30

Reviewexecutive’sdevelopmentplans 70 30 37

Post-programmefollow-upprovidedbyprogrammeprovider

62 33 25

Askexecutivetogiveformalfeedback 55 36 41

Reviewimpactofexecutive’sbusinessprojectifpartofanexecutiveprogramme

51 48 25

Provisionofadditionalonlineresources 49 8 17

Reviewexecutive’sKPIs 44 52 32

ReviewKPIsofexecutive’steam/s 36 52 27

2.6 Learning and development support and evaluationRespondentstolduswhichmethodstheyfeelareimportantbeforeandafterexecutivedevelopmentactivitiestohelpembedanexecutive’slearningandtomeasurethereturnoninvestment.Itisclearthemeasurementofreturnoninvestment(ROI)isaquestionthathasnotyetbeenansweredsatisfactorilybythemajorityofrespondents.

Respondentsaremorepositiveabouttheimportanceofabroadrangeofinitiativesthathelptoembedanexecutive’slearning,withalmostthree-quartersselectingongoingcoachingasimportant,alongwith360-degreereviewsandreviewingtheexecutive’sdevelopmentplans.

Themostlikelyactivitiestobeundertakenregularlybyorganisationsaretoaskexecutivesthemselvestogiveformalfeedback,thereviewofdevelopmentplansandKPIs,and360-degreereviews.Ongoingcoachingisregularlyprovidedinaquarterofcases.

Coaching has become a core element of Henley’s Executive Education programmes, because organisations and delegates clearly recognise its value in supporting individuals to ‘up their game’.Itskeybenefitisindevelopingconfidenceandemotionalresilienceinleaderswhoarepressuredtodeliverevermorewithless–improvedconfidenceincreasescompetenceanddelivery of outcomes. Feedback from a recent programme focussing on change leadership, where coaching played an essential underpinning role, was that many of the change projects being run by delegates were delivered ahead of schedule, and used fewer resources than originally planned.Thiswasademonstrablereturnoninvestmentintermsofbothfinancialcost-savingand increased organisational effectiveness.

Claire Hewitt,HeadofLearningDesign,ExecutiveEducation,HenleyBusinessSchool

ClaireHewitt


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Onerespondenthighlightedthedifficultytheyencounteredwithembeddingandmeasuringtheimpactoflearningintheirorganisation, ‘Our challenge remains developing leaders and impacting the business at the pace the business leaders expect. They see clear developments with the leadership style of the participants, but they are less convinced about impact on business achieving their goals.Moreworkin2015onthis!’thoughothersaremoreadvanced,andfeelthatthelinkbetweenexecutiveeducationandorganisationalobjectivescanbemade, ‘Embedding the learning objectives of the participants has resulted in clear connections to business results’.

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0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Quality of faculty

Client-centred approach

Positive feedback from trusted sources

Quality of case studies for learning

The school's original research and thought leadership

Global outlook

School learning facilities

Provision of virtual learning

Prominence in rankings

'Very important' factors when choosing a business school

2014

2015

3WorkingwithbusinessschoolsBusinessschoolsoffermany,andinsomecasesall,oftheservicesthatrespondentsplantoutilisein2015.Thesurveymeasuredwhatorganisationsconsidertobeimportantfactorswhenchoosingabusinessschoolpartnerorprogramme.Thethreechartsbelowshowthefactorsratedas‘veryimportant’byrespondentswhenchoosingabusinessschooltoworkwithintheprovisionofexecutivedevelopment.Resultshavebeencomparedwiththepreviousyeartoseehowthechanginglandscapeoforganisationalchallengesandfocusmaybealteringwhatisdesirableinabusinessschoolpartner.

3.1 Choosing a business school and the perceived benefits of executive education

In2015,comparedtothepreviousyear,respondentsareevenmoreconcernedwiththequalityoffaculty,client-centredapproachandpositivefeedbackfromtrustedsourceswhenchoosingtoworkwithabusinessschool.Theprovisionofvirtuallearningisbecomingmoreimportantfromasmallbase,andnow28%ofrespondentsfeelthatthisisveryimportantwhenchoosingabusinessschool,whichismoreinlinewiththepopularityofblendedlearningactivityfor2015.

Two-thirdsofrespondentsagreethatexecutiveeducationdoeshelptheorganisationtoachieveitsoperationalobjectives.Belowaresomeexamplesofhowrespondentsdescribetheimpactofexecutiveeducationintheirorganisations:

• Developing talent to lead the business, innovate and develop client services

• Bypropagatingknowledgeandinnovationmethodologiesfirstinternally,andthenoutside to clients in professional services environment

‘Veryimportant’factorswhenchoosingabusinessschool


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• With executive education, leaders are making decisions and choices with greater knowledge, tools and expertise to draw on

• Ensuring capability and knowledge in key strategic areas

• Providingleading-edgethinkingandfocus

• Inspiring and kick starts people into thinking about new ways and innovations to push the business on

• Produced an understanding of leadership rather than management and helped the large cultural shift required towards proactive change in this organisation

• Weneedourexecutivestohaveaccesstothethoughtleadersintheirfieldsandexecutive education helps achieve this

• Focussing on current issues that are most likely to affect organisational success

• Developmentneedsareidentifiedaspartofactionplanninginrelationtoperformance management measures – which are in turn linked to delivery of strategic outcomes

• Increases performance, reduces cost (cheaper to grow our own than buy in), brings in fresh thinking, challenges the status quo

• Takingtimeoutofthedynamicworkplaceisvitalforexecutivestoreflectandconsider how they can be better equipped to meet their personal and corporate challenges

• In particular, in developing strategy and managing change.

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3.2 Choosing customised executive education

In2015,theabilityofcustomisedexecutiveeducationprogrammestoimpactonperformanceandbusinessissuesisevenmoreimportantthanpreviously–thisisselectedbyalmostfouroutoffiverespondentsas‘veryimportant’.GiventhelackofamajorityviewofthebestwaytomeasureROIfromourprevioussection,thisisclearlyanunresolved,butimportant,issuefororganisationsandtheirbusinessschoolpartnerstoaddress.Thismessageisjustunderlinedbythefactthatthereisa9percentagepointincreaseinrespondentsreportingthattheabilitytodemonstrateareturnoninvestmentisa‘veryimportantfactor’forthemin2015.

Respondentcommentsreflectthechallengesweseereflectedinthe‘veryimportant’factorsforbusinessschools:

• Connection with the real world, applicability

• Creativeandfuture-lookingsolutions

• Relevance of course to development objectives

• Good understanding of business imperatives

• Outcome-focusedlearning

• Business focused based in reality – ability to demonstrate how concepts work in real life

• Collating and gaining agreement for key needs across the business in a timely way; helping leaders consider the issue to be solved/addressed rather than just identifying a course to attend.

‘Veryimportant’factorswhenchoosingcustomisedexecutiveeducationprogrammes

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Ability to impact on performance/business issues

Use of experienced practitioners and tutors

Quality of teaching faculty

Understanding of my organisation

Experts in executive development

Ability to demonstrate return on investment

Bespoke approach to meeting our needs

Clear plan for implementation

Experts in organisational development

‘Off the shelf’ approaches easily adapted to our needs

'Very important' factors when choosing customised executive education

2014

2015


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3.3 Choosing open executive education

Foropenprogrammes,thepriorityareasaresimilarin2015to2014,withthequalityofteachingfaculty,useofpractitionersandindustryexpertsandcompetitiveprogrammefeesbeingmostoftencitedasveryimportant.Thereisa9percentagepointincreaseinrespondentsselectingtheprovisionofexperientiallearningsince2014,whichisalsoreflectedintherelativelyhighlevelsofrespondentschoosingthismethodaspreferentialamonghighpotentialandseniormanagementgroups.

‘Veryimportant’factorswhenchoosingopenprogrammes

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Quality of teaching faculty

Use of practitioners and industry experts

Competitive programme fees

High proportion of experiential learning

Individual focus on participants

Attention to post-programme impact

Word-of-mouth recommendation

Networking opportunities offered

Prominence in rankings

Who else will be on the programme

'Very important' factors when choosing open programmes

2014

2015

4MethodologyThesurveywascompletedonlineinNovemberandDecember2014bycorporateclientandnon-clientcontactsofHenleyBusinessSchool.AlinktothequestionnairewassenttorespondentsviaemailandpostedonLinkedIn.TheonlinequestionnairewascompletedanonymouslywithaprizedrawincentiveofaniPadAir,whichwasdrawnatrandom.TheanonymousonlinequestionnairewasdesignedwiththehelpofHenleyBusinessSchoolprogrammedirectorsandfaculty,withparticularhelpfromDrBerndVogel,DirectoroftheHenleyCentreforEngagingLeadership.

The sampleRespondentswereamixofexecutiveandseniorHRandnon-HRdirectorsandmanagersfromabroadrangeoforganisations–SMEstomajorcorporations–acrossallsectors,bothintheUKandoverseas.Wereceived368responses–thehighestresponsesincewebeganthissurveyin2009.Respondentscamefrom39countriesand70%werefromtheUK,withathirdfromHRrolesandoverhalfatdirectorlevelorabove.

Up to £20 million,

34%

£21 - £50 million,

11%

£51 - £200 million,

17%

£201 - £500 million,

11%

£501 million +, 27%

Organisation annual turnoverOrganisationannualturnover

CEO/Managing Director,

14%

Director/Head of

Department, 41%

Manager,23%

Other,22%

Respondent job titleRespondentjobtitle

HR, 32%

Non-HR, 68%

Your job functionYourjobfunction

Under 200, 34%

201 - 500, 11%

501 +, 55%

Number of employees in organisation? Numberofemployeesinorganisation

CorporateLearningPrioritiesSurvey2015

Formoreinformation,pleasecontact:

Executive EducationHenleyBusinessSchoolGreenlandsHenley-on-ThamesOxfordshire,RG93AU

[email protected]+44(0)1491418767

www.henley.ac.ukV51/15

EFMD

HenleyBusinessSchool@HenleyBSchool@NKemsley_Henley@Kakabadse

Press OfficeJudith Hunt

[email protected]|+44(0)1727737989

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corporate learning survey 2015 final version

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business schools

key findings