Formal Learning is mandated by organizations and it’s usually offered through training events such as scheduled courses, workshops, seminars, virtual classrooms, certification programs, etc. However, the evidence is overwhelming that Informal Learning is the biggest component of learning in the workplace. An important aspect of creating a learning culture is to offer a learning environment where individuals are accountable for their own learning needs. So the challenges are:

• Can formal learning lay a foundation that will support the informal learning process?
• Can we provide tools and systems (e.g. Subject Matter Expert Location Programs, Knowledge Repositories, etc. ) that enable the informal process to be more efficient and effective. Reduce the 15 hours a week to 10?
• What can we learn from the informal process that may – or may not – inform a somewhat more formal approach?
• How can we figure out when any learning – formal or informal – is not even needed? Where does ‘just doing it’ and moving on without ever learning a thing, become acceptable in terms of performance?
• Can we discern where a more formal approach is really useful? Where does it realy help someone learn to begin to know and/or do something?

Click here to view Formal and Informal Development Options at Reuters.

Source: David Grebow and Reuters