4 Tips to Build a Learning Culture

One of the things managers and L&D teams struggle with is establishing a culture that creates a constant desire of knowledge and growth within team members. Teams that continue to learn and evolve have better opportunities to succeed, innovate and find the next best practice. Building a learning culture takes a bit of work, but it pays off immensely. Here are five ways you can promote a culture of learning within your team and at your company.

Hire people who love to learn. This seems obvious now that I've said it, but it is something that most hiring managers ignore during the interview process. As candidates about how they stay up to date on their professional knowledge, how they ramp up on new products or skills, and what they're currently learning.

Have dedicated time for professional development. It's rare to hear some one say they have time in their day for learning - it's something that needs a bit of brute force. One leader I worked with had her entire organization block an hour on their calendar every other week to independently spend time on professional development.

Integrate professional development goals into company goal setting. During goal setting, have team members integrate their learning goals - is there a specific course they'd like to take, a conference they want to attend, or an industry group they want to participate in.

Share learning opportunities. This is both general and targeted; for example if you see a webinar on leading effective QBRs you think your team would benefit from, email the registration link to everyone encouraging them to attend, while you may directly send a video on time management strategies that you found helpful to a person on your team who struggles with it. Encourage your team members to share learning resources or opportunities too.

What have you done on your team to encourage ongoing learning? Let us know in the comments.