We decided early on that we’re in the business of learning. We measure our success by the learning experiences that we create, not the delivery of training.
What does that mean? When we’re learning, we're not only acquiring new knowledge and skills, we're also blazing a new path by cultivating our own understanding and application.
Patricia Leonard wrote an article on learning versus training and she nailed it:
Training is a core step in the process of learning, but it is not learning itself. Even training that leads to a proof of mastery or certification cannot be labeled as learning. To learn is to do, to apply, to morph, and adapt to the knowledge or skill acquired in training to the circumstance.
Training is part of the solution, but it’s not the whole solution. Learning simply goes beyond training. For example, your employees might need to learn about compliance requirements or processes. There’s an opportunity for skills training here, but learners also need to practice what they’ve learned and demonstrate their knowledge in meaningful ways in order to modify their behavior and on-the-job performance.
“Training versus learning” is not just about semantics. Training is event-driven, and learning is about experience. We’d love to find out how you differentiate between learning and training in your organization.