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4 BUILDING A CULTURE OF LEARNING: The Foundation of a Successful Organization 4 BUILDING A CULTURE OF LEARNING: The Foundation of a Successful Organization EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A workplace in which learning is a valued way of life, knowledge is readily shared, and performance steadily improves— at both the individual and organizational levels—is the vision that drives companies to establish and expand cultures of learning. Organizations are more competitive, agile, and engaged when knowledge is constantly and freely shared. However, despite the obvious benefits, only 31 percent of organizations have well-developed learning cultures. New research from the Association for Talent Development (ATD) and the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) reveals that robust cultures of learning are distinct hallmarks of organizations that consistently produce the best business results—companies that lead the world's markets in revenue growth, profitability, market share, and customer satisfaction. Through the lens of high performance, ATD and i4cp explore the practices talent development leaders are applying to drive vibrant learning cultures at Marriott International, SAP, Merck, and other successful organizations. The research identifies actions business leaders in top companies take to support those cultures, looks at the roles played by employees, and the constructive contributions to be gained from effective talent management processes. Robust cultures of learning are distinct hallmarks of organizations that consistently produce the best business results. Characteristics that define learning cultures can vary, but talent development leaders described such essential traits as closely aligned business and learning strategies, organizational values that affirm learning's importance, and an atmosphere in which learning is so ingrained that it simply becomes "a way of life." In such organizations, agility is more evident and change is not only embraced but exploited, while employees develop growth mindsets and seek out new opportunities to learn and to share knowledge with their colleagues. Organizational leaders play critical roles in cultures of learning, acting as learning catalysts, motivating employees, and sharing their knowledge and expertise through leaders-as-teachers programs. Some leaders serve on governance or advisory boards, providing guidance to learning and development (L&D) functions and helping shape learning approaches that directly affect the bottom line.

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