Learning 3 – what are the key competencies for learning professionals?
On Friday I attended the Learning 3 symposium at the British Museum in London along with Jane Hart, Laura Overton and a crowd of others, mostly from the UK Further and Higher Education sectors.
Here’s a picture of me at the event producing a 30-second series of sound bites on what the future of Learning and Development needs (the picture links to a video on the Learning 3 Ning site).
What our hosts LLUK (and particularly Briony Taylor) wanted to stimulate was a dialog around this question:
What are the skills and competencies needed by the lifelong learning sector now?
During the day I put out a quick Twitter poll on this, as it seemed odd to be discussing Learning 3 in a room without pulling in the wider learning community. Jane Hart did the same.
The learning Twittersphere was engaged: we generated quite a few replies….
Here are some suggestions of key competencies needed for today’s L&D professional:
- Willingness to experiment with new media (Clark Quinn)
- Adaptability (Panic Button)
- Performance consulting (Charles Jennings)
- Listening (Mark Kirkwood, engageandgrow)
- Ability to create an engaging presentation (Busynessgirl)
- Deference (Si Fowler)
- Enquiring mind (engageandgrow)
- Digital literacy (JCMeister)
- Being an active learner (HJarche)
Some of these may be more attitudinal rather than strictly competencies, but it’s an interesting mix. What do you think?
For more on the continuing conversation, visit the debate on the Learning3 Ning community.
