It's true that the world of talent development has grown and matured a lot in the past decade. There is much more C-level support, dedicated software, apps, you name it. However, one key ingredient is still sometimes lacking: the communications plan. Step one is to gain support and resources for your talent development initiatives. Step two is to begin demonstrating productive use and some form of return on investment. That begins with a great communications plan to drive quality engagement.

An organization's talent development function exists, among other reasons, to develop employees so that they're able to contribute to achieving organizational goals. But if employees likely won't remain with one company throughout their entire careers, and given the evolving work dynamics in place, it's to employees' advantage to take professional development into their own hands, to achieve their personal goals. Right?

In the talent development field, having a positive impact on companies' and individuals' success is what we strive for daily. While working for a Fortune 500 technology solutions and services company, I gained new perspectives on how to be a successful and effective talent executive. I was asked to join the company to reignite the learning and talent development capabilities of one of its business sectors—in fact, the largest with more than 22,000 employees. In the two years before my arrival...

Lately there has been much talk in the talent development industry about the business of learning, getting aligned with the business, and business metrics. However, many organizations still struggle in this area, and to a large degree, we as an industry are still just talking. It's high time that we turn that talk into action. To instill confidence that the learning organization...

Youths in the middle school age group are among the most overlooked and underserved population in Los Angeles. Experience has shown that youths are five times more likely to graduate from high school if they have a meaningful relationship with a caring adult. Enter the Los Angeles Team Mentoring program. The program was a perfect fit for California-based insurance brokerage firm Keenan & Associates's corporate social responsibility initiative to help young people get the right start in life.

In a previous blog, I discussed the term digital natives. Some say we should train digital natives differently because young people have grown up with technology and the Internet in all parts of their lives.

The Talent Development Executive Confidence Index ( TDXCI), formerly the Learning Executive Confidence Index ( LXCI), is a quarterly assessment of talent development executives short-term expectations for the health of the talent development function in organizations.The TDXCI is a composite score that takes into account four key indicators for how talent development executives believe the talent development function will change during the next six months: The TDXCI is modeled after the Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence, which rates CEOs expectations for...

One-size-fits-all training, executive-only coaching, and legacy corporate learning systems were once considered the norm, but most organizations and employees found them insufficient. Learning is becoming increasingly prioritized, as shown in Deloittes Global Human Capital Trends Report 2016 which showed that more than eight in 10 executives (84 percent) rated learning as important or very important.

As great as a program may be, you can't win everyone over.

The Talent Development Executive Confidence Index (TDXCI), formerly the Learning Executive Confidence Index (LXCI), is a quarterly assessment of talent development executives short-term expectations for the health of the talent development function in organizations. The TDXCI is a composite score that takes into account four key indicators for how talent development executives believe the talent development function will change during the next six months:The TDXCI is modeled after the Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence, which rates CEOs expectations for...

Sonic Automotives researchers then identified more than 24 pain points in the used car buyers experience that they could improve. These pain points included several issues with the sales process, with customers often thinking that they had to deal with too many people or spend too much time buying a car.Based on this information, the organization decided to launch three pre-owned car dealerships in Colorado by November 2014.

Launching evaluation programs that help inform improvements in the effectiveness of learning programs and the success of the business as a whole often proves to be a daunting challenge for organizations.

Sam Ladah, HR vice president of IBM cloud and talent, provides an inside look at the talent development function at IBM.

The talent development tools of the trade. Ann Parker outlines what readers can expect in the Fall 2016 issue of the Association for Talent Development's CTDO magazine.

Talent development is an accelerator for the transition to the "new" IBM.

The argument: Agile is the better method for developing learning solutions. ADDIE, SAM, waterfall, Agile—all are approaches that can be used by L&D professionals. And all have their advantages and disadvantages. Overall, however, does Agile come out on top?

Leveraging learning technologies is not an L&D strength, two independent studies conclude.

The Talent Development Executive Confidence Index (TDXCI), formerly the Learning Executive Confidence Index (LXCI), is a quarterly assessment of talent development executives short-term expectations for the health of the talent development function in organizations. The TDXCI is a composite score that takes into account four key indicators for how talent development executives believe the talent development function will change during the next six months:The TDXCI is modeled after the Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence, which rates CEOs expectations for...

Organizations face increasingly volatile and complex markets. To compete, they need a business strategy that counteracts negative forces and guides individual lines of business toward positive outcomes. The strategy needs to present leaders with guidelines on how to make decisions and allocate resources to accomplish key objectives, as well as define the actions people in the business should take (or not take) and...

Popular topics get a renewed analysis.