Will Learning&Development be replaced by a chatbot soon? My opinion column for PeopleMatters magazine in Sep 2017, India's leading magazine in Human Resources space.

1. |SEPTEMBER 201752
Technology will solve our problem
of energy-draining automated
tasks that can easily be ‘taught’ to
and outsourced to a machine, but
it will not be the silver bullet that
solves all our L&D issues
M
ost of us in Learning & Development field
battle with technology every day and the
role it should (ideally) play in our lives as
HR professionals and even more so in the lives of
our employees.
Many solutions exist in the market and we are
often tempted by the idea that a ‘Big Bright Tech-
nology Enabled Future’ will bring answers to all
issues. But the reality is – it probably will not.
Technology will solve our problem of energy-
draining automated tasks that can easily be
‘taught’ to and outsourced to a machine (just the
way we did decades ago on the manufacturing
lines). But it will not be the silver bullet that solves
all our L&D issues. As the field of corporate knowl-
edge becomes increasingly fragmented, technology
is a welcome ingredient of simplifying tasks like
identifying the right content, tracking the learner’s
consumption or facilitating connections within
peer groups or reaching out to experts. Many of us
are using LMS platforms that are doing most of the
above with the varying degrees of quality.
However, we cannot outsource the organiza-
tional engagement bits – cultivating learning skills
and inspiring motivation to learn. Recent research
reports say we are dealing with an overwhelmed
learner. Battling daily demands of an ever-chang-
ing world, an average employee today has less than
1 percent of mind-space available to dedicate to
higher consciousness activities such as learning.
Our learner probably has just enough time to
browse for that simple tip on how to deal with a
specific problem in hand — just-in-time, now and
fast. If the attempt of finding an answer looks
more cumbersome or time-consuming, it will go on
to-do list, but not always being attended to. Days of
lengthy training sessions are gone. No one has the
capacity or patience.
And while learning professionals will argue
that the process of obtaining and memorizing new
information has not changed regardless of the
dynamic environment we live in today, there are
two clear trends which are emerging:
• A need for micro-learning (short content avail-
able on demand to find an answer to a specific
problem); and
• New learning skills — the ability to prioritize,
detach from everything demanding for our
attention and the focus to build skills more
strategically.
The former could be supported with technol-
ogy — a hyper-effective knowledge management
system that archives and retrieves all the content
you have within your organization; and serves as
an advisor on how to navigate the database and
where to find the experts. I can help even with eve-
ryday tasks like finding that 1-page document on
influencing styles or getting a seat on the next lead-
ership classroom training. Chatbots are becoming
increasingly popular as messaging services are
taking over social media apps in markets across
the globe. To build and train a bot is no longer sci-
ence fiction as the price is affordable and not just
an exclusive right of big corporations. But will this
meet all the needs of our learners?
This situation is like giving a new toy to a child
— you might think it is cutting-edge in the toys
industry, but the little one might not share your
enthusiasm and will probably still ask for your
attention once the initial infatuation fades away.
Digital learning tools should free up time of
L&D professionals so that they can invest it in
more strategic tasks and focus their energy on
better understanding of the both learners’ and the
business needs. With advancement in technology,
L&D professionals have a make-over task ahead
of them and will need to learn some new skills.
As more parts of our work become replaceable by
technology solutions, our businesses will expect
us to be more involved in the changing dynamics
— to be able to better diagnose the capability needs
and direct learners to the right solution in a sea of
options.
The conclusion is quite simple — no matter
what investment you are planning for your next
L&D technology solution, ensure that you have
thought through the organizational engagement
plan and one for honing your own skills.
How will you communicate the benefits of
the solution to your employees and why should
they engage with it? Is it indispensable enough to
deserve space on their smartphone home screens?
How will their day-to-today work become better,
simpler and of higher quality because of this solu-
tion? Are you creating a meaningful experience for
the learner?
If your answers to these questions predict just
marginal improvement (or increasing complexity),
you are better off not investing.
Will L&D be replaced by a chatbot soon?
Technology, as tempting as it may seem, is not a solve-it-all; L&D professionals will need to invest
significant effort in translating technology into a meaningful experience for the learner
Katarina Karalic
Learning & Development Leader,
Procter & Gamble (Indian Sub-
continent, Middle East & Africa)
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