Fostering Learning and Development
Supporting others to develop and learn, recognizing their achievements, and building an organizational culture where knowledge and growth are valued and rewarded.
Level 1. Engages in learning with others.
BEHAVIORS
- Shares knowledge and expertise regularly with others to support learning and improvement.
- Provides advice and guidance to others on how to perform work tasks or handle real or anticipated issues or concerns.
- Conducts post-mortems with colleagues to identify and support the application of lessons learned.
- Helps others reframe errors as a positive learning opportunity for feedback, review and development.
QUESTIONS
- Describe a situation when you shared your knowledge and expertise with other team members.
Probing Questions
* What prompted you to do this?
* How did they react to your support?
* What impact did it have on your own or others’ work?
* What were some of the outcomes?
- Tell us about a time when you worked with colleagues to identify “lessons learned” for a project or initiative.
Probing Questions
* What was the situation and what was your role?
* What approach did you take?
* How did you use this information?
* How did it work out?
Level 2. Coaches others.
BEHAVIORS
- Provides honest, timely, specific and constructive feedback.
- Uses fact-based approaches to help others identify learning gaps and developmental needs.
- Helps others assess progress against development plans.
- Reinforces and builds on others’ strengths to identify areas of improvement.
- Tailors coaching style to meet individual and situational needs.
- Publicly celebrates and compliments others on their successes in learning.
QUESTIONS
- Describe a time where you were successful in helping someone through a difficult task.
Probing Questions
* How did you determine that they needed help?
* What techniques did you employ?
* How did he / she respond to your efforts?
* What was the outcome?
- Tell us about a time when you provided feedback to others on their strengths and areas for improvement.
Probing Questions
* How did you communicate this information?
* How did they respond to this feedback?
* What follow-up actions did you or those receiving the feedback take?
* What was the result?
Level 3. Empowers others for ongoing learning and development.
BEHAVIORS
- Provides opportunities for development activities to encourage high performance.
- Encourages others to take responsibility for managing their own learning.
- Assembles teams with complementary skills, promoting a supportive environment for team members to be self-directed and learn from each other.
- Support team members to take risks and explore new approaches.
- Encourages team members to ask questions and express their thoughts about their work.
QUESTIONS
- Using a specific example, describe some of the techniques you have used to empower others to take responsibility for their ongoing learning and development.
Probing Questions
* How did you go about this?
* What tools/activities did you use, or encourage them to use?
* What was the result for the employee?
* How did this impact your team?
- Describe a situation where you encouraged team members to take risks or explore new approaches.
Probing Questions
* Describe the risk or new approach.
* How did you encourage them to consider new options or approaches?
* What role did you play in the process?
* What was the outcome?
Level 4. Builds a continuous learning and development environment.
BEHAVIORS
- Implements organization-wide mechanisms and processes to promote both formal and informal learning.
- Ensures that developmental resources and time are available and provided equitably to all employees.
- Ensures that learning and development policies, systems, and processes are evaluated and modified as needed to maximize the achievement of intended results.
- Communicates the long-term benefits of ongoing learning and development for both the individual and the organization.
- Develops programs that reward increased levels of expertise, including career progression and further learning opportunities.
- Ensures that processes are in place to facilitate the sharing of lessons learned across the organization.
QUESTIONS
- Describe a situation where you invested time and resources to support continuous learning in the organization.
Probing Questions
* What activities did you undertake?
* How did you identify the financial and other resources needed to facilitate continuous learning?
* What measures did you put in place to evaluate the impact and success of the initiative?
* Describe the results.
- Tell me about a time when you were required to develop and implement a program to support and recognize ongoing development, including career development.
Probing Questions
* How did you go about identifying the need and developing the program?
* Who did you engage in the process?
* Describe the elements of the program?
* How did you measure success?
Level 5. Creates a culture of continuous learning and development.
BEHAVIORS
- Sets the vision and values with respect to continuous learning, development and improvement.
- Develops strategies to promote continuous learning and development in the organization.
- Sets clear expectations about investments in developing employees.
- Promotes a culture that encourages a supportive continuous learning environment.
- Sets the example through continuous personal learning and development.
QUESTIONS
- As a leader, what have you done to set an example for your organization through your own learning and development?
Probing Questions
* What have you done on a daily, weekly, monthly basis?
* How have others in your organization responded?
* Give me some specific examples of how your own development efforts have influenced others?
* Give me some examples of the impact of your own development efforts?
- Describe a time when you recognized that a shift in culture was needed to achieve higher levels of innovation through ongoing learning and development.
Probing Questions
* What were some of the signs that this shift was needed?
* What actions did you take to promote your vision for change?
* What strategies did you identify and implement?
* What was the ultimate impact?