Bailey is a modern professional learner seeking their first job. They want a learning experience that is collaborative, flexible, and allows them to take ownership of their development. Rather than traditional training methods, Bailey prefers networking with colleagues, accessing on-demand resources, and learning through real-world experiences and social collaboration on a daily basis. Human resources and learning and development professionals should empower self-directed learning, support manager-led development, and provide modern training options to help Bailey and other modern learners thrive in today's workplace.

1. I am Bailey.
I am currentlylooking for my
first job.
I am a Modern Professional
Learner.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 1/12
© C4LPT, 2017

2. Although I know I will need to learn how to do my job, after
spending many years in the education system learninglike this …
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 2/12
© C4LPT, 2017

3. … I really don’t want to have to sit through a
boringinduction programme and feel like this …
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 3/12
© C4LPT, 2017

4. I want to get to know
the people in the
company and what the
place is like.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 4/12
© C4LPT, 2017

5. I don’t want to have to take
e-learning course after
e-learning course on the
tools, systems and processes
I need to use …
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 5/12
© C4LPT, 2017

6. … I just want to get stuck
in and learn as I go.
And if I have a problem
with my work I want to
be able to ask someone
for their help …
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 2/12
© C4LPT, 2017

7. ….or else find some help/support on the intranet.
If not, I can just Google my own solution
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 6/12
© C4LPT, 2017

8. And I want to be able to
make use of the digital
tools, resources and
networks I use outside of
work and on the Web –
like YouTube, Twitter,
Pinterest, LinkedIn, and so
on – and not be
constrained to only those
that the organisation
uses.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 7/12
© C4LPT, 2017

9. I want to keep in constant touch with what
my team is doing – and in particular how
they deal with the different aspects of their
work. I want to be able to ask them for help and advice –
as well as share my ideas and thoughts with them.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 8/12
© C4LPT, 2017

10. I want a manager who is interested in me and takes
the time to involve him/herself in my development,
who gives me constructive feedback, and who is
there to guide me and coach me when I need it.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 9/12
© C4LPT, 2017

11. I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 10/12
I want to learn something new EVERY DAY
because I know that is the only way I will
keep my place in the workforce of the
future.
© C4LPT, 2017

12. I want to be able to improve myself in the way
that I want – not be told to go off on a course
that someone else has decided I should take –
but to find the content or people that are
going to help me achieve MY OWN
professional goals.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 11/12
© C4LPT, 2017

13. And for that reason I want to keep MY
OWN digital record of what I am doing to
improve myself (and my successes) as I want
to demonstrate to any future employer that I
take my career development seriously.
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner 12/12
© C4LPT, 2017

14. I am Bailey.
I am a Modern Professional
Learner.
How can you help me survive
and thrive in the modern
workplace?
I am Bailey. A Modern Professional Learner
© C4LPT, 2017

15. I am Bailey.
I am a Modern Professional
Learner.
How can you help me?
Although Bailey is a Millennial,
she is not the only employee
who feels like this. This is not just
a Millennial attitude! Learning
habits of the workforce are
changing. We need a new
approach to learning in the
modern workplace learning.
What does that mean?
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 1/12
© C4LPT, 2017

16. Although I know I will need to learn how to do my job, after
spending many years in the education system learning like this …
Exposure to traditional educational practices has put Bailey and many others off
learning, so you need to re-think how you can help her learn for, at and through
work in more modern ways, as well as prepare her for her future.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 2/12
© C4LPT, 2017

17. … I really don’t want to have to sit through a
boringinduction programme and feel like this …
First of all, do you really need to provide
classroom training? If so, consider the Flipped
Classroom approach. Remove all broadcast
content from the classroom and ensure it is
only used for collaborative activities – applying
what has been learned. Or offer it over a
longer period in the form of an online Guided
Social Learning Experience.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 3/12
© C4LPT, 2017

18. I don’t want to have to take
e-learning course after e-learning
course on the tools, systems and
processes I will need to use …
Turning everything into e-learning is not the answer, either. You need to
completely re-think what should be offered online and how it should be done.
For training situations think more of running “learning campaigns” providing a
variety of formats over time to deliver the message in different ways, rather
than time-constrained courses.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 4/12
© C4LPT, 2017

19. ….or else find some help/support on the intranet.
If not, I can just Google my own solution
But mostly what is required are short, visual, flexible resources - which employees
can access and use on demand through different devices (desktops, smartphones,
tablets, eg) – in the way they want.
But don’t think you have to
provide everything. Curate the
best content from the Web.
Better still, help individuals hone
their web search skills – so they
can find authentic, reliable
resources themselves too.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 5/12
© C4LPT, 2017

20. And I want to be able to
make use of the digital
tools, resources and
networks I use outside of work and
on the Web – like YouTube, Twitter,
Pinterest, LinkedIn, and so on – and
not be constrained to only those that
the organisation uses.
Encourage and support
employees to build their
own MPL Toolkit
comprising the
professional networks,
resources and tools that
bring them value.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 6/12
© C4LPT, 2017

21. I want to get to know the
people in the company
and what the place is like.
Helping to foster connections
across the organisation is key in a
connected company. It’s not what
you know but who you know!
Networking is usually seen as the
most important part of a training
event, so why not coordinate
networking events.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 7/12
© C4LPT, 2017

22. I want to keep in constant touch
with what my team is doing – and in
particular how they deal with the
different aspects of their work. I want to be able
to ask them for help and advice – as well as share
my ideas and thoughts with them.
Informal social learning and
social collaboration are
essential in today’s
workplace.
So helping to build social
teams to share knowledge
and experiences effectively,
as well as to work out loud –
underpinned by social
technologies – is important
new L&D work.
And helping groups to solve
their problems collectively is
more effective than imposing
a “solution” upon them.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 8/12
© C4LPT, 2017

23. I want a manager who is interested
in me and takes the time to
involve him/herself in my
development, who gives me
constructive feedback, and who is there to
guide me and coach me when I need it.
Managers have an important
new role in the modern
workplace – taking responsibility
for people development – and
not just passing this off to L&D.
Managers will need help in
developing coaching skills, as
well as the art of giving
feedback, and how they can
build a growth mindset in their
people.
They will need to be role models,
showing how they are constant
learners – so they can build a
continous learning mindset in
their teams – i.e. not one simply
dependent on training.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 9/12
© C4LPT, 2017

24. I want to learn something new EVERYDAY
because I know that is the only way I will
keep my place in the workforce of the
future.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 10/12
Encourage daily reflection on
work experiences to extract
the learning from the work
Enable (through protected
learning time) a daily
learning workout.
Curate/create continous
knowledge flows.
Encourage daily drip-feed of
information (blogs) or
instruction.
© C4LPT, 2017

25. I want to be able to improve
myself in the way that I want –
not be told to go off on a course
that someone else has decided I
should take – but to find the
content or people that are going
to help me achieve MY OWN
professional goals.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 11/12
Empower employees to take responsibility for their own self-development.
Help them set their own professional goals, identify content/people/activities to
achieve them – that best suits them.
© C4LPT, 2017

26. And for that reason I want to keep MY OWN digital
record of what I am doing to improve myself
(and my successes) as I want to demonstrate to
any future employer that I take my career
development seriously.
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners 12/12
Support individuals to record
their progress and evidence
their performance in their
own digital portolio - rather
than in a central learning
system.
Help them to share what
they have learned and can
now do – with their team.
© C4LPT, 2017

27. How can you help me
survive and thrive in the
modern workplace?
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners: Summary
Facilitate collaborative
classrooms/guided social
learning experiences
Provide flexible resources
for on demand
performance support
Run learning campaigns
Support development of
MPL skills, toolkit
and digital portfolio
Coordinate
networking events
Help managers with their
people development skills
Enable a daily learning
workout
Provide continuous
knowledge flows
Help employees set their
own professional goals
and identify the resources
to achieve them
I am Bailey. I am a Modern
Professional Learner.
SUPPORT
MANAGER-LED LEARNING
© C4LPT, 2017
Encourage and support
social learning and
social collaboration
Support daily reflection
EMPOWER
EMPLOYEE-LED LEARNING
PROVIDE
MODERN TRAINING
Do some of this …. And more of this

28. I am Bailey. I am a Modern Professional Learning
was produced by Jane Hart,
Centre for Modern Workplace Learning
http://modernworkplacelearning.com/
Providing independent advice and consultancy to
L&D on how to support today’s modern employees.
Our public online workshops can help too:
MODERN TRAINING
SUPPORTING MODERN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING
http://modernworkplacelearning.com/activities/
How L&D can support Modern Professional Learners
http://modernworkplacel
earning.com/books/book
-2/