Autonomous Learning in the Workplace

Jill E. Ellingson,Raymond A. Noe

• Editore: Routledge
• Anno: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781317378259
• Edizione: 1
• Argomento: Didattica
• Categoria: Leadership nella didattica

Traditionally, organizations and researchers have focused on learning that occurs through formal training and development programs. However, the realities of today's workplace suggest that it is difficult, if not impossible, for organizations to rely mainly on formal programs for developing human capital.

This volume offers a broad-based treatment of autonomous learning to advance our understanding of learner-driven approaches and how organizations can support them. Contributors in industrial/organizational psychology, management, education, and entrepreneurship bring theoretical perspectives to help us understand autonomous learning and its consequences for individuals and organizations. Chapters consider informal learning, self-directed learning, learning from job challenges, mentoring, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), organizational communities of practice, self-regulation, the role of feedback and errors, and how to capture value from autonomous learning. This book will appeal to scholars, researchers, and practitioners in psychology, management, training and development, and educational psychology.

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AUTONOMOUS LEARNING IN THE WORKPLACE

An Introduction

Raymond A. Noe and Jill E. Ellingson

Traditionally, organizations have invested in formal training and development programs to insure employees have the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary to perform their current job as well as to prepare them for future positions and career opportunities. In fact, one estimate is that US organizations have spent over $160 billion on formal training and development (training, 2014). Formal training and development activities refer to training and development courses and events, including classroom instruction, on-line courses, college degree programs, and mentorship programs which are systematically designed and organized by a company. Formal training and development programs have specific goals, learning objectives, assessment instruments, and expectations (Chen & Klimoski, 2007). Further, these programs are not voluntary in the sense that employees are required to attend and complete them. Formal training and development programs give organizations the opportunity to provide consistent and programmatic ways for employees to enhance their knowledge and develop their skill sets. They can also be “strategic” in the sense that they contribute to and align with business goals by directly developing human capital and enhancing the firm’s ability to attract, motivate, and retain talented employees. Further, formal training and development programs have been shown to benefit individual and firm-performance as well as society as a whole (Aguinis & Kraiger, 2009).

For these reasons, organizations will continue to use formal training and development programs to enhance employees’ knowledge and develop their skills. But, as reflected by the title of this book, “Autonomous Learning in the Workplace” attention is shifting to how employees are developing their skills and acquiring knowledge outside of formal training and development programs. One estimate is that informal rather than formal learning accounts for up to 75 percent of learning within organizations (Bear et al., 2008). Also, although instructor-led training continues to be the most frequently used training method, the use of technology-based methods including e-learning, online learning, and mobile learning is growing (Association for Talent Development, 2015). These methods give employees a great deal of control over what and when they learn and are often used to encourage continuous learning which is not required or organizationally-mandated.

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Our interest in autonomous learning and editing this book came from two insights. First, we recognized that how people learn in the workplace is changing (see Noe, Clarke, & Klein, 2014). There is greater awareness that learning in the workplace involves more than just attending formal training and development events, courses, and programs. Employees learn informally, through talking with colleagues, searching the internet, watching videos, and even taking free on-line courses offered by educational providers that are not affiliated with or sanctioned by their employer. There are a variety of autonomous learning “methods” discussed in the popular press and practitioner journals, such as TD, that individuals are using to acquire knowledge and skills, including Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), informal learning, communities of practice, social media, and even YouTube videos.

Our second insight was that we know surprisingly little about the individual differences and contextual factors that influence the use of autonomous learning and how to evaluate its effectiveness. We believe that autonomous learning in the workplace is an important and emerging area where practice is evolving and innovating, yet research lags behind. For example, research shows that self-regulation is important in learning in formal training programs, but we suspect it may be even more important when learners take complete responsibility for how and what they learn. Further, there are many studies showing that manager support is a key influence on employees’ motivation to learn and participation in development activities, but we know little about how work characteristics can facilitate (or inhibit) autonomous learning which occurs outside of the safe, dedicated learning space of a training room or classroom.

As a result, we asked scholars from a variety of disciplines including management, education, and industrial/organizational psychology to provide their perspectives and insights on autonomous learning. Our hope is that this volume will provide a useful starting point for readers to understand autonomous learning as well as to stimulate research that can inform practice about how to best design and create conditions for effective autonomous learning.

What is Autonomous Learning?

In the most basic sense, autonomous learning has been defined as the ability of the learner to take charge of their own learning (Holec, 1981). However, we believe that to differentiate autonomous learning from formal training and development in which learners can and should take charge of their learning, we need to consider a more complex conceptualization. First, autonomous learning is voluntary, meaning it is not required or imposed by an organization’s formal human resource development policies and practices. Rather, the individual chooses to actively participate and put forth effort toward learning (Garaus, Furtmuller, & Guttell, 2016). Second, autonomous learning involves unstructured experiences. This means that employees are not learning in order to meet predetermined or planned learning objectives. Also, there are no prescribed specifications for learning content or process. Autonomous learning is similar to the idea of continuous learning in the sense that it occurs due to individuals’ ongoing awareness of the need and value of learning (London & Mone, 1999). Third, autonomous learning generates human capital. Although employees have the freedom to choose their learning behavior, those behaviors must result in employees gaining information that builds knowledge or skills relevant to their job or career. Finally, autonomous learning behavior is not administratively or operationally supported by the organization. However, an organization’s culture or values can emphasize a continuous learning philosophy which facilitates autonomous learning.

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From our perspective, autonomous learning encompasses several other learning concepts that have been studied in the training and development and education domain including employee development, self-development, self-directed learning, voluntary employee development, workplace learning, and informal learning. Employee development refers to “the expansion of an individual’s capacity to function effectively in his or her present or future job and work organization” (McCauley & Hezlett, 2001: 314). Self-development encompasses all deliberate activities not formally required by the organization that an employee engages in to acquire and enhance job knowledge and skills (Orvis & Leffler, 2011). Self-directed learning is a process in which learners take the initiative in identifying their learning needs and goals, choose learning resources and strategies, and assess learning outcomes (Knowles, 1975). Voluntary employee development refers to employee participation in non-mandatory, discretionary learning activities related to the current job or to long-term effectiveness and career development (Hurtz & Williams, 2009). Workplace learning refers to the processes by which employees acquire new or develop further their existing knowledge, skills, and abilities through engaging in the kinds of interactions and activities provided by opportunities that naturally occur in the workplace (Nikolova, Van Ruysseveldt, De Witte, & Syroit, 2014). Finally, informal learning includes a wide range of behaviors and activities such as knowledge exchange, feedback-seeking, experimentation, reflection, innovative behavior, learning from non-interpersonal sources, and learning from mentors and supervisors (for example, see Bednall, Sanders, & Runhaar, 2014; Noe, Tews, & Marand, 2013). Clearly, research is needed to understand how these constructs fit together and whether the definition for autonomous learning outlined above serves as the underlying construct for these other self-directed learning concepts.

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Why is Autonomous Learning Increasing in Importance?

It is important to note that autonomous learning is not “new.” Over 20 years ago, numerous scholars in the education field studied various aspects of autonomous learning (e.g., how to facilitate autonomous learning, identifying the characteristics of autonomous learners) in school and university settings (e.g., Clifford, 1999; McCombs & Whisler, 1989). What is “new” is the increased importance and recognition on the role of autonomous learning as a substitute for or extension of formal training and development in the workplace. There are a number of forces responsible for the increased importance of autonomous learning. These forces include workplace and workforce characteristics, greater awareness of the value of human capital for competitive advantage, advances in technology, and increased emphasis on learner- rather than instructor-driven instruction.

Workplace and workforce characteristics. Time and workload demands, budget constraints, and a geographically dispersed workforce impede organizations from offering and employees from attending and participating in formal training and development programs (Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 2012). Even when employees do attend formal programs, it is difficult for them to bring the level of energy and attention needed to learn due to work role demands. Formal training and development programs are often unable to anticipate, and as a result deliver, the skills and knowledge that employees need to deal with nonroutine, unpredictable, and quickly changing task demands and requirements. Consider the skills gap that many companies face, especially those in the manufacturing industry or research sectors. Companies have invested in advanced machinery, and tools and equipment to improve the productivity and quality of goods and services. But current employees lack the technical skills needed for these changed jobs (www.themanufacturinginstitute.org, 2014).¹ Further, such skills are not readily available in the labor market meaning that companies cannot use recruitment and selection to resolve their demand. Many CEOs of U.S. businesses believe that the skills gap will result in loss of business, revenue, dissatisfied customers, and delays in bringing new products or services to the marketplace (Gaul, 2014). Skill deficits are not just an issue for the U.S. India, Russia, Japan, Italy, Spain, and countries in Western Europe are also having difficulty finding employees with the skills needed for jobs in skilled trades, engineering, and sales (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2013). One autonomous learning solution that companies are relying on to enhance the skills of individuals in the labor market is to work with MOOC developers such as edX and Udacity to develop courses which can deliver needed skills (e.g., Meister, 2013). Current and future employees can choose to take these courses and complete an assessment, earning a certificate to show they have mastered the course content.

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Employees’ expectations about what they desire from work and their careers are also increasing the importance of autonomous learning. Many employees view their careers as boundaryless and self-directed. This means that many employees expect to frequently change jobs and employers. Studies have shown that 25 percent of employees have held five jobs or more by age 35, and 20 percent of employees 55 and older have held ten jobs or more (Wolf, 2014; www.careerbuilder.com, 2015²). For companies, remaining competitive in a quickly changing marketplace requires downsizing, merging, entering new businesses, and exiting declining markets. As a result, they cannot insure employees have job security. This means employees need to refine and add to their skill set throughout their careers, by “learning for a living,” which includes enhancing current skills and adding new ones to meet current job demands, preparing for leadership opportunities, and ensuring employability should they lose their jobs or seek new opportunities (Molloy & Noe, 2010). “Learning for a living” requires learning that is self-motivated and proactive, i.e., autonomous learning. Employees’ expectations about work are also changing. These expectations may be higher for millennials in the workforce, but regardless of their generation most of today’s employees value opportunities to develop their skills. However, they also want flexibility to decide when and where to work (and to learn) to effectively balance work and life demands (Butts, Casper, & Yang, 2013). The desire for skill development coupled with the need for flexibility suggests that employees will increasingly seek autonomous learning opportunities that best fit their needs and schedules both on and off the job.

Increased awareness of the value of human capital resources for competitive advantage. According to resource-based theory, a resource is anything that can potentially provide an organization with a competitive advantage (Barney, 1991). Resources include financial capital (e.g., monetary assets and cash), physical capital (equipment, technology, delivery systems), and human capital (e.g., knowledge, skills, abilities). Research shows that human capital resources are significantly related to company performance (Crook, Todd, Combs, Woehr, & Ketchen, 2011). Human capital resources that influence a firm’s strategic goals are unique in the sense that they are not commonly held by competitors, are difficult to imitate, and nonsubstitutable. These resources have the greatest potential to contribute to a company’s competitive advantage (Acedo, Barroso, & Galan, 2006; Barney & Wright, 1998).

Employees’ explicit and implicit knowledge may be one of the most important ways through which human capital contributes to competitive advantage (Kogut & Zander, 1992). Explicit knowledge is well-documented and easily articulated. It includes processes, flowcharts, formulas, checklists, and definitions. Explicit knowledge is often obtained by employees through participating in formal training programs. Tacit knowledge,...