In this latest article from Brady, he explores Learning and Development Categories – how to clear the fog and clarify your L&D programs to support employees and also appease stakeholders who need to understand what you do better.
When Learning and Development starts to feel like a long list of courses, folders, and last-minute requests, it’s a sign that structure is missing. Learning and Development Categories bring clarity where there is chaos, turning scattered training into a structured programme that supports employees, aligns with business goals, and shows stakeholders the real value of L&D. Instead of reacting to every request, this approach helps L&D teams plan with purpose, fill skills gaps faster, improve performance, and build a learning strategy that is clear, measurable, and built for long-term impact.
| Highlights |
|---|
| 1. Without structure, L&D becomes reactive, but clear categories turn training into a strategic function. |
| 2. Categorising learning makes it easier for stakeholders to understand, support, and invest in L&D. |
| 3. Most programs start with just one category, but adding more creates a stronger, more balanced learning strategy. |
| 4. Putting role knowledge into structured training improves consistency, performance, and business outcomes. |
| 5. Strategic innovation in L&D ensures organisations keep pace with technology, software, and changing skills needs. |
Lamenting a Long List of Learning
You’re a Learning and Development professional for your company. You’ve got a list of folders a mile long in your cloud drive and on your desktop. The only differentiation is the name of the course in each of the folders. You have courses like Communication Skills, Styles in Word, Formatting Cells in Excel, etc.
While it’s a robust list, you aren’t sure what to do with any of it, except to keep piling on new courses and folders to the already seemingly endless list. You may not even know what you really have, especially if you inherited the list and haven’t audited the pile.
Your heart is in the right place – you want to meet the needs of your organization.
Don’t Just Be an L&D Order-taker
The truth is that a solid framework is vital for the longevity of a learning and development program. Without it, the learning and development partners wait for stakeholders to tell them what to do. They become order-takers, stressing over getting the order out on time. Their only concern is whether or not people like the product – and then move on to the next order in the stack.
Sure, L&D programs will take requests – it’s part of the deal. Sometimes they come at the last minute, sometimes months in advance, but they are requests, nonetheless. It feels like we need to be reactive to every request, everywhere, all the time. But consider this…
When a learning and development program becomes solely reactive, it loses its edge.
How to use Learning and Development Categories
A simple way to strengthen the framework of your program, regardless of the field, is to classify the training provided into five Learning and Development Categories:
- Basic job skills
- Professional development
- Performance improvement
- Leadership development
- Strategic innovation
Ideally, a learning and development program will have all five components. Realistically, every program I have ever inherited only initially had one of the five. I added more to make the programs more robust. So, rather than feel terrible that not all of the Learning and Development categories are present in your current role, start with what you have.
I’ve seen programs of both types: some that were running in a strategic direction, and some that were running in every direction. The difference was the structure of their programming. Categorizing the available training helps bring order and measurable outcomes to the chaos. If the training content is disorganized, what we deliver both in-person and in writing will be disorganized.
Let’s dive into each learning and development category to gain a better understanding of how they can work for you.
1. Basic Job Skills
If you’re like me, you are a strategic part of the company’s first impression on new employees. They’ve gone through the application and interview process, looking from the outside, but now they are on the inside. The first impression is pivotal. If it goes negatively, think of all the positive interactions you now have to have to change it. All the while, your new employee is advertising your company’s initial shortcomings to their social network. This could deter potential employees from applying as well.
Then, once you introduce them to your company, you set them free to learn their role-specific process. You wish them the best of luck and to reach out if they need anything. You may even offer them a ‘smile sheet’ to give you insight into how much they liked you and the training. We leave their basic job skills to the experts who have been doing the work for years. They will do a fantastic job of teaching them the ropes.
Until we put it in writing, all that knowledge is in someone’s head, is left to interpretation, and will be delivered differently every time. We can’t enhance what we don’t know, because the information is siloed. Once role-based processes are quantified, then we can improve on them. We can see gaps based on what other people are doing, and possibly doing better. We can increase output, streamline processes, and improve business outcomes.
I have used Intellek Create and the LMS to enhance my employee onboarding experience. As a result, new employees show a 90% understanding of their role within the first 45 days of employment. It seriously does work!
2. Professional Development
This L&D category has a plethora of possibilities. Workshops, podcast-style learning, videos, conferences, articles, books, mentorship, and modules are just the bird’s-eye view of what is available. While this can be a difficult piece to make mandatory, it can still be made known on a voluntary basis. If we invest in our people to help them improve their skillset, we are creating a sustainable workforce. If done intentionally, we will have no shortage of those who want to grow.
Note: the chosen training delivery methods should be based on the desired outcomes, along with the budgetary constraints set by your company.
Professional development is a way to show we’re willing to risk losing someone because of their growth, while simultaneously improving business outcomes because of the new skill. Professional development sparks collaboration, which improves both the employees’ connections with each other and the business process. When the focus is on creating better employees, we naturally create better processes.
Modules are available through Intellek Learn. They cover everything from communication skills to ethics, productivity, and managing stress at work. These can enhance the other components you make available to employees. A learning environment does not have to break the bank to be viable. Some of the most impactful things I have done in learning and development were minimal in cost, but produced massive training ROI.
3. Performance Improvement
This learning and development category can induce knots in people’s stomachs. A performance improvement plan is a stressful experience for some people. If we consider it a chance to collaborate on direction instead of dictating, it can create psychological safety.
It should not be, “You’re making too many mistakes – here’s a self-directed plan to stop making so many.” We should invest the time in the individual to see where their performance gaps are at the beginning, middle, and end of the process. The simple truth is this: blind spots are invisible to the people who have them, but visible to the people around them. How can we expect people to see their blind spots without guidance?
Along with learning paths for new employees, you can also assign individual courses to employees within Intellek LMS. You can put due dates on them as well, so the employee has a specified amount of time to complete them.
You can also view progress on the courses, so if a course is stuck halfway, you can check in to see if the employee needs any assistance to complete it and see the progress of knowledge checks. If an employee can’t quite pass them, it can invite conversation.
4. Leadership Development
Leadership is not a naturally inherited skill. I’ve seen multiple companies thrust someone into a leadership role and expected them to lead because they have a new title. Unfortunately, they miss a key point: a great employee does not automatically become a great leader because of a leadership title.
Investment in their growth and understanding as a leader is paramount to ensuring their success. While they aren’t a new employee (unless hired externally), they are new to a role they may have no experience to compare.
The same options available for professional development are available for leadership development. When we tap into what could be beneficial to their learning curve, we help them uncover their hidden potential. It’s a massive boost to their confidence – and in turn enhances their rapport with their team; when the leader is calm, it reflects on the team.
Intellek Learn has several leadership-based courses on effective communication, as well as work-life balance. They also have a large assortment of courses on how to conduct effective meetings, leading up, employee motivation, and how to conduct effective performance reviews. If you are looking for an initial boost to give your leaders a foundation, these courses can do just that.
5. Strategic Innovation
AI is here. Software is upgrading at lightning speed. According to the Diffusion of Innovation theory, we have people and companies that are the first in line to take hold of the newest thing. At the opposite end of the spectrum, we have people and companies that will be dragged by their feet across the adoption finish line years later.
I’ve seen this in person. I’ve been a part of companies that had version 1 or 2 of a software program that was already on version 8. On a more basic level, I’ve also seen companies that had processes in place for decades and have not been willing to adopt new methods because they were historically stuck. The methods, albeit slow and non-productive, were comfortable. Why change what’s working? Growth and change are scary.
Intellek Learn eLearning content is always at the forefront of offering the most up-to-date courses based on software upgrades. Comprehensive categories on LexisNexis Casemap+, Best Authority, and Docusign eSignature, along with an offering for Microsoft Copilot, are just some of the pieces that you can add to fill in the gaps on your learning puzzle.
Using Intellek for L&D categories
Modules are available through Intellek Learn. A multitude of these are available in a simulated experience, so users don’t have to fear making a mistake in a live environment. Knowledge checks are also available if you want to gauge understanding. Another great feature is that the guides can be downloaded to use at any time. If a person is away from their desk, but needs to view a guide, there’s a downloadable hard copy to review.
Intellek Create allows you the opportunity to build modules based on role-specific responsibilities. You can customize the module to include knowledge checks, screenshots, and even an auto-scroll feature when a user clicks on the correct area of the screen. It can minimize the learning curve for your employees. Where off-the-shelf content is unable to get company-specific information based on certain software features, Create helps me fill the gaps.
In Intellek LMS, you can make compliance groups, which can track both internal and external training that goes towards CLE accreditation if you are a law firm, or CPD for others. These groups also have the feature that lists the bar association numbers of attorneys.
Also in the LMS, you can create role-specific learning paths and customize them based on the content you’d like your new employees to be competent in. They can be timed, made to take the courses in a specific order, and perpetually available (instead of disappearing after being taken).
Why use Learning and Development Categories?
Categorizing your learning program can also reap dividends for you. It brings transparency to what you do, so people don’t have to guess any longer. I even have a program guide that walks through the courses, types of offerings, and assessments we have. If you’re working toward buy-in, Learning and Development Categories are a major step in the process.
Learning and Development shouldn’t feel like an endless list of courses and requests; it should feel like a clear, structured system that supports people, improves performance, and moves the business forward.
When you organise your program into clear categories, you create visibility, purpose, and direction. Stakeholders understand the value, employees understand their path, and L&D moves from being reactive to being truly strategic. Start with what you have, build over time, and you will turn learning from a collection of courses into a program that genuinely drives growth.
With over 25 years of experience in designing and implementing impactful training and leadership development programs, Brady has consistently driven organizational success by enhancing employee performance, fostering leadership capabilities, and delivering measurable cost savings. His expertise spans multiple industries, where he has successfully tailored programs to meet diverse business needs while aligning with strategic goals.
