The COVID-19 pandemic has been a tricky tightrope for many businesses, especially small ones, to cross. There is no foolproof way to become a successful business, though there are certain strategies that help increase the chances of success in a post-pandemic world.

One of these strategies is called agile strategy.

In this article, we discuss how agile tactics can be employed as part of learning and development (L&D) to ensure that both the organization and its members are geared for success.

What is an agile strategy?

Essentially, an agile strategy involves being adaptable. In using this strategy, business owners must be prepared for certain possibilities, knowing that they may never actually come to pass. This strategy is meant to help you turn around on a dime and helps get a product or service up and running as quickly as you can without sacrificing quality. These principles can be applied to your training strategy for a more effective L&D function overall.

How Agile Helps L&D

It ensures courses are up to date.

One of the common pitfalls of employee training is aging: the tendency for training and development to remain the same, despite changing market conditions.

An agile strategy ensures that L&D courses are periodically updated to make use of new technologies and methodologies. It also enables employees to respond to changing requirements and challenges faced by the organization.

It enables both vertical and lateral development.

Agile methods empower employees by providing them with lateral growth. Instead of climbing a hierarchical ladder, members are given opportunities to learn about related fields, thus opening new avenues for their career path. This is true for both new hires and older hands.

It allows for cross-skilling.

As members get lateral training, it allows them to expand beyond their roles and provide more benefit to the organization as a whole. This cross-skilling means that employees are not limited to their specializations, but can understand other job roles and even take over in some capacity when needed.

How L&D Can Be More Agile

There are multiple ways that agile strategies can be employed to improve L&D courses.

Use a knowledge management system.

A knowledge management system is a tool for centralizing institutional knowledge into one source where it can be easily stored, shared, and updated. This means that everything from company rules and regulations to best practices and job processes can be conveniently accessed for the benefit of anyone needing the information.

For L&D, this means that learning courses and training videos can be uploaded, accessed and shared as needed. It also allows training professionals to measure the success of their program in terms of solid key progress indicators (KPIs) like views, downloads and shares.

Abandon any aging processes.

As noted above, training programs tend to become dogmatic and inflexible over time. Agility demands that such courses be regularly audited and updated to respond to changing organizational needs and market conditions.

This is better accomplished if the courses and materials are stored in a knowledge base, so that they can be more easily accessed and updated as needed.

Documenting is just as important as creating.

As L&D courses get updated, it’s important to document the changes made and what versions there are. Documentation allows training managers to review any changes or deviations, and to roll back to previous versions if needed.

Take advantage of new tools.

The COVID-19 pandemic popularized the use of remote work and videoconferencing. As companies shift to work from home, traditional classroom-based learning has gone out the window.

Make sure your L&D process utilizes the latest tools for learning. Online courses and audio-visual presentations enable employees to learn from the comfort of their own home, at their own pace. Video conferencing apps like Skype, Zoom, or even Slack’s Huddle feature ensure they get the support they need, while a knowledge base or self-help portal can cover basic issues and FAQs.

Many Pandemic Modifications Are Here To Stay

The phrase “post-pandemic” is a bit of a misnomer. Rather than the risk of COVID-19 no longer being a thing, the restrictions made surrounding it are relaxing. This change in restrictions allowed companies to return (relatively) to normal.

As remote work has opened up new avenues for doing business, so too should training and development adapt. The use of agile strategies ensures that training keeps pace with this profound shift in corporate culture.