Welcome to the world of accelerating change. Whether your organization is navigating the challenges of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into its work, transforming itself to address supply chain uncertainty, dealing with marketplace disruptors, expanding into new markets or perhaps all of the above, the struggles are real.

This VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) world, where unpredictability reigns, challenges employees to keep their skills current and relevant for whatever is coming next. And it’s no surprise that they lean on us, the training experts, to help them prepare to navigate the shifting sands ahead.

For organizational leaders, training professionals provide much-needed context and guidance. By leveraging solid consulting skills, training personnel can add value, helping leaders identify root causes of business problems and design a path forward to a desired future state.

To perform in these contexts, training professionals need to keep two skill sets fresh: credible business acumen and relevant learning and development (L&D) skills.

It’s simple on the page, but it can be a lot to juggle alongside day-to-day execution responsibilities in an environment of continuous change. An analogy about the shoemaker’s children running around barefoot is apt here and often resonates with training professionals — they’re so busy making shoes (or learning experiences) for others that they don’t have time to make them for themselves. Sound familiar?

Fortunately, there’s a straightforward methodology that can help: the “20%-time” framework. It’s one I’ve used throughout my career and have shared with countless training professionals who have integrated it into their work.

Before we dig in, let’s first clarify components of the two skill sets, both of which are integral to the Training Manager Competency Model.

The Elements of Business Acumen

Business acumen, at its most basic level, is a clear understanding of the business you support and the industry and environment in which it operates. There’s a lot of nuance to this, however.

According to Harvard Business Publishing, the three key business acumen competencies for leaders at all levels to master include:

• Strategy fluency: How does your organization generate revenue, operate and serve customers or the public? What are the stated strategies and goals and why have these been chosen? How does each person’s role contribute to achieving strategic goals?
• Financial literacy: What do the financial statements tell us about your organization’s health? What financial metrics are most important to the firm?
• Industry/market knowledge: Who are your competitors? What differentiates your firm? What are the best- and worst-case market dynamics and where are you now in relation to these?

These overlay other critical skills that contribute to demonstrations of business acumen, like strategic thinking, political savvy, decision-making, analysis, targeted communication and problem-solving.

The Evolution of L&D Skills

Tools that help us meet learners where they are — physically, mentally and skill-wise — are continually evolving, largely due to advances in technology. These tools are not only transforming the learner experience but also helping L&D professionals become more efficient and agile in their own roles.

To build learning agility among our learners and operational agility within our training teams, we must be able to select and apply the right technologies — and use them effectively. Doing so requires both an understanding of the technology landscape and the discipline to practice using these new tools regularly.

We also need to explore ways we can leverage what we know from learning science and support learners with extended learning experiences, such as deliberate practice and coaching, and assess their performance in meaningful ways over time.

Introducing the “20% Time” Framework

It’s a lot to learn — or relearn — as our organizations evolve.

In my first role as an internal L&D consultant, I asked for guidance from another function’s consultant. What had made him so successful?

His answer was simple: Dedicate 20% of your time to learning about your customers, the business and your function. The justification he shared was that the environment in which your clients operate will continuously change, as will the tools and best practices of your functional area. The best way to serve your clients well is to keep your finger on the pulse of what’s changing and use this knowledge to offer expert guidance.

The simplicity of the advice belied the complexity of following it. Dedicating 20% of my time was roughly one day a week. I was already working too many hours to meet my clients’ needs.

What I found, however, was that I could achieve this — or at least get close — by shifting my mindset. It wasn’t about adding hours; it was about repurposing hours by starting with an intention to learn. This clarity of purpose made a significant difference.

Techniques to Leverage 20% Time

What does it take to achieve a 20%-time commitment to your own learning without adding hours to your week?

Start with intention

Identify what you want to learn or improve and capture this in a “learning journal.” When I started, this was a simple notebook. Now, I use an online whiteboarding tool like Mural to record my intentions, collect links to resources, capture weekly takeaways and consider how I might use or build on what I’ve learned.

Review what you’re already doing

Many of your current activities have learning opportunities embedded. To see them, you need to change the lens through which you view them.

• Re-envision “boring meetings” as opportunities to learn about the issues and the people involved. Don’t just show up at a client’s meeting and give your update. Watch and listen for cues that tell you how people feel about your update and other issues on the agenda. Who in the room wields power, and how do they use it? In addition to learning more about ongoing initiatives and announcements, you’ll learn who the influencers and detractors are, which will provide insight into how you might approach building buy-in for key initiatives.
• Treat each learning event you facilitate as an ad hoc focus group. What can you discern about your learners and the world in which they function? What concerns do they voice? What gets them excited and with what do they struggle?
• Seek opportunities to observe your learners during their daily work. While this is more challenging in some remote or hybrid work environments, it’s not impossible. Consider including a site visit in your annual needs assessment. What challenges do they face? How do processes and technology really work? How do employees use tools designed to reinforce previous learning? How do they find answers when faced with new situations?

Weave in high-value learning opportunities

Look for opportunities on your weekly calendar to dive more deeply into relevant topics. It might be an hour here or 15 minutes there, but the time will add up quickly.

• Set aside time daily or weekly to read or watch. Now that I commute less often, I use my morning “commuting time” to review industry newsletters, read articles and book chapters and watch videos on relevant topics. If you do commute, you can listen to industry-specific or L&D podcasts. General and business news sources are also good for broadening your awareness of issues that might affect your company.
• Attend virtual industry roundtables and technology demos. Select those that help enhance your skills and keep you abreast of changes. Often, these are scheduled at lunch time and take less than an hour.
• Talk to an expert. This could be someone inside your organization or someone you know through your network. Schedule a 15-minute coffee chat to understand their perspective on an issue. My favorite regular coffee date was with our finance person. She was always willing to confirm or correct my understanding of key data points from our quarterly reports.
• Listen to the quarterly earnings call. If your company is public, they will have regular earnings calls for analysts that provide ratings on their stock. During the earnings call, you will hear insights from the company’s leaders about their quarterly results and what they are forecasting for the year.
• Follow experts and join industry communities on social media. Pay attention to issues they are discussing. What could affect you and your organization?
• Schedule time for deliberate practice. Set aside time to practice using new tools or technology to increase your fluency.
• Make it a collective exercise. Engage other training team members by creating a forum or vehicle for everyone to share their 20%-time learnings. Make it a regular team agenda item or leverage technology to create a shared virtual space for people to add their categorized items.

While these techniques might not add up to 20% of your time every week, an aspirational focus will help you keep your own skills fresh and relevant. This will help you maintain your credibility with the audiences you serve and ensure your recommended solutions are on point and you continue to add value.