New Association for Talent Development research finds that technology and talent development are interconnected and together play a critical role in creating, delivering, managing, and analyzing learning in the workplace.

(Alexandria, VA) November 30, 2021—A new Association for Talent Development research report about learning technology ecosystems uncovered the technology platforms, social learning tools, and strategies that talent development professionals use to foster learning cultures within organizations.

“E-learning authoring software and learning management systems were the platforms and tools most frequently included in learning technology ecosystems,” according to the Learning Technology Ecosystems: Tools, Platforms, and Strategies report, sponsored by Allego. “Organizations that made full use of the features and capabilities of these core technologies were more likely to be high performers.”

Learning technology has the potential to drive business and learning results, and this report shows the benchmarking data and best practices that high-performing companies use with their learning technology. Formally reviewing existing platforms and tools in the learning ecosystem at least annually to ensure they remain current with business and employee needs was associated with heightened organizational performance.

The report also examined the skills that talent development professionals needed to leverage technology and the common challenges experienced in building and maintaining a learning technology ecosystem.

Survey respondents said the drivers to build and maintain learning ecosystems include:

• Improving learner experiences (better engagement, more ease of use, greater personalization)

• Increasing the ability to comply with regulations (for example, deliver and track required compliance training)

• Creating more overall efficiency in designing, delivering, and evaluating training

The barriers, they added, are:

• A lack of skills on the talent development staff

• A shortage of workers on the talent development staff

• Insufficient funding for learning technology ecosystems

The report explored a talent development team’s proficiency level in four skills: learning and mastering new technologies, selecting the appropriate technology for objectives, solving technology-related problems, and leveraging data to improve operations and experiences. The highest percentage of advanced proficiency was 29 percent for learning and mastering new technologies; the lowest advanced proficiency level was leveraging data to improve operations and experiences at 13 percent.

A free webinar about the report findings will take place Tuesday, December 14, at 2 p.m. ET.

About ATD

The Association for Talent Development (ATD) is the world’s largest professional membership organization supporting those who develop the knowledge and skills of employees, improve performance, and help to achieve results for the organizations they serve. Established in 1943, the association was previously known as the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD).

ATD’s members come from more than 120 countries and work in public and private organizations in every industry sector. ATD supports talent development professionals who gather locally in volunteer-led US chapters and international member networks and with international strategic partners.

For more information, visit td.org.