LEARNING WHILE

WORKING
FRAMEWORK
Learning While Working is a framework that combines
the 70:20:10 concept with design thinking and a learning
ecosystem approach. The framework enables learning
professionals to generate new ideas about how to
accelerate learning at work.

www.sproutlabs.com.au
The Learning While Working If you haven’t already read the
Manifesto outlined the need for Learning While Working Manifesto,
a different way of thinking about we suggested you do so.
designing learning at work, to
prepare and enable organisations Read the Learning
to cope with the driving forces of
While Working
the 3Cs – Change, Complexity
and Collaboration. This Learning
Manifesto here
While Working Framework is
a work in progress that gives
more detail about how to make
learning while working a reality in
your organisation. It is based on
the way Sprout Labs works with
organisations to transform how
they learn.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 1

The problem with 70:20:10

70:20:101 is a great way to explain

how learning at work really
happens, but it’s often not easy to
translate into practice.

1
In case you haven’t heard of the 70:20:10 concept of learning, it was developed by Morgan McCall, Robert Eichinger and Michael Lombardo at the Center for
Creative Leadership in North Carolina in the mid 1990s. They said this about learning:

70% occurs as people engage in informal learning processes such as watching others, participating in workplace routines and undertaking challenging tasks.
20% arises from mentoring and coaching (mostly from a manager or supervisor).
10% is the result of formal courses and reading.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 2

It means new roles for
managers, employees
and learning and
development personnel.2
Unlike traditional
programs with a focus
on design, develop and
deliver, 70:20:10-based
learning programs are
all about the delivery
phase.

2
In other documents like our Planting the seeds of the 70:20:10 learning model in your organisation we talk more about these roles.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 3

Learning While Working principles

There is no ‘perfect’ 70:20:10

model because it is context-
sensitive to the needs of
the organisation and its
employees.

However, there are some

principles that are important to
70:20:10 learning models and
learning while working, though
not all apply to every learning
program or organisation.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 4

 Employees need to be supported to explore
5 new practices, try new approaches and
take on new responsibilities. Another way
of saying this is that employees should be
given the time to learn, recognising that this
adds value to the organisation over time.
Learning should be measured by
1 changes in performance.
On-the-job experience should be
Everyone should be seen to be always
6 scaffolded to allow learners to develop
2 learning. All modern work involves expertise.
learning.
Employees need to be able to take on
Leaders need to role model constant
7 projects.
3 learning and performance improvement.
Employees need to be allowed to practise
Learning needs to be seen as part of
8 and fail, learn and try again.
4 everyone’s work, regardless of their
position in the hierarchy. Employees need opportunities to see how
9 other people work – those both inside and
outside their organisation.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 5

 A key role for managers is to design work
5 for learning for their teams.

An employee’s manager is the key

1 enabler for learning. 6
Everyone needs to be given feedback on
their performance.

The manager’s role in learning

2 programs should be purposefully 7
Employees need to work with peers and
their manager to reflect and articulate
designed.
what they are learning and how change is
happening.
Managers need to be supported to
3 implement learning while working.
8 Work and learning should be social.

Managers need to act as learning

4 coaches for their team members.
Social learning activities need to be
9 visibly approved and encouraged by the
organisation.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 6

 Learners should be able to quickly Formal learning should enable learners
1 and easily access the information 4 to practise making realistic decisions
they need. over time.

Often, formal learning is not the Formal learning should focus on the
2 solution to performance 5 individual learner’s needs. Learning should
improvement. be personalised.

Formal learning should be focused on Formal learning should be designed as

3 processes, i.e. decision making and 6 a component of a blended program that
performance improvement, not on includes the involvement of managers and
content, i.e. information. the transfer of new approaches into the
workplace.

Depending on the focus of the learning program, different principles need to be brought to the foreground. These
can help drive the design of your learning ecosystem as well. One way to determine your learning principles is to
apply the design patterns for learning.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 7

Changing the way the 10 is designed

Sometimes when people first Digital learning offers a powerful set

come to the 70:20:10 learning of tools to help make this happen.
model they see it as a way to
reduce formal learning. The
design patterns below outline
situations where formal learning is
still needed.

One of the core ideas of

the Learning While Working
framework is to focus formal
learning on improving workplace
performance and behaviours,
which means that the ‘10’ should
be radically different to most
current eLearning. It shouldn’t just
be information provision. Learners
should be actively involved in
making decisions that are realistic
and reflect what they would be
doing in the workplace.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 8

Design patterns for learning

The functions of learning and development

The Finnish academic Päivi Tynjala, in her paper Perspectives into learning at the workplace3,
outlines the functions of learning as mainly fitting into one of three types of function.

Introducing new Sharing existing Creating new

1 knowledge to an 2 knowledge and 3 knowledge and
organisation practice new practice

Introducing new knowledge is Sharing existing knowledge and Creating new knowledge and
one of the classic activities of practice is another of the classic practice is a relatively new
learning and development. It’s activities of learning and function of learning and
what happens when learning and development. It’s what happens development. It’s about building
development organises a face-to- during an induction or onboarding a culture of continuous learning
face course on coaching because program. It’s the process of and construction, supporting
of a skill gap, or on using a new showing ‘how it’s done here’. The employees to learn and enabling
piece of software. The aim is to 70:20:10 learning model can be the organisation to transform
generate new knowledge and powerful for sharing knowledge. itself.4
behaviours. This is easier said
than done and often involves
more than just organising a
course and expecting the change 3
Tynjälä, P. (2010) ‘Perspectives into learning at the workplace’, Learning and Instruction, 20(6),
to happen. pp. 533-548.
4
Pedler, M., Burgoyne, J. and Boydell, T. (1997) The Learning Company: A strategy for
sustainable development. 2nd edn. London: McGraw-Hill.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 9

 These functions are useful Design patterns are repeatable
because they can be used by methods for solving problems.
learning and development people The idea was originally described
or managers to sort learning by architect Christopher
and performance problems into Alexander in his book A Pattern
functions, and then apply some Language5 and is now extensively
of the design patterns outlined used in computer science.
below.

When using 70:2010 each of the

functions of learning and
development has a different
design pattern and uses different
learning while working principles.

5
Alexander, C. (1977) A pattern language: towns, buildings,
construction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 10

Introducing new knowledge to an organisation
– learning transfer

New knowledge
Learning programs or
activities that aim to
introduce new knowledge
to an organisation normally
begin with some formal
learning.

The challenge is then to transfer

that formal component into a
new way of working. In recent
years there has been extensive
work done in this area of learning
transfer.
New knowledge

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 11

Some of the features and approaches you
might see in this type of program are:

Most of these A process of employee Manager and

1 programs would start 1 and manager mapping 1 participant
with a course or a series the impact of the formal accountability
of spaced small courses learning program on the
employee’s performance Workplace learning

2
Simulations and and sometimes the team’s
performance
2 guides for managers
story-based courses and employees about
workplace learning
2 Coaching and mentoring activities

Scaffolded practice
3 Communities of practice 3 over time

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 12

Sharing existing knowledge and practice
– sharing knowledge

Depending on the complexity Sharing knowledge

of the task, learning programs
that aim to share knowledge
can often start as informal
learning or social learning.

One of neuroscience’s recent

discoveries is that humans have
‘mirror neurons’. We naturally
copy the actions of people around
us. This means the process
of watching and following can
be a powerful way of sharing
knowledge.

Sharing knowledge

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 13

Some of the features and approaches you
might see in this type of program are:

Workplace learning eBooks and reference

1 guides for managers 1 Coaching and mentoring 1 material
and employees about
workplace learning
Communities of practice
activities
2 and other forms of
social learning
Partial tasks that allow
2 learners to practise only
parts of the task Using wikis to develop a
3 jointly authored ‘book of
knowledge’
Scaffolded practice
3 over time
4 ‘Working out loud’

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 14

One of most powerful ways to enable and
accelerate knowledge sharing is ‘working out loud’

Bryce Williams described it with a simple formula:

Working out loud Observable work Narrating your work

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 15

John Stepper has expanded this definition to be:

‘Working out loud starts with making your work visible in such
a way that it might help others. When you do that – when
you work in a more open, connected way – you can build
a purposeful network that makes you more effective and
provides access to more opportunities.’

In practice that process can be as simple as

a team sharing an update in a social network
about what they have been working on.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 16

Creating new knowledge and new practices
– innovation

Creating a learning
organisation takes solving what
is called a ‘wicked problem’.
Creating new
A wicked problem is a problem knowledge
that is difficult or impossible to
solve because of incomplete,
contradictory or changing
requirements that are often
difficult to recognise.6

Learning and development activity

in this area is normally multi-layered
and overlaps into areas that often
are the domain of organisational
development. A project that aims
to create new knowledge and
practices will most likely begin with
informal learning and then look for
ways to foster an environment that Creating new knowledge
sparks new ways of thinking.

6
Rittel, H.W. J., Webber, M.M. (1973) ‘Dilemmas in a general theory of planning’, Policy Sciences, 4, pp. 155-169.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 17

Some of the features and approaches you
might see in this type of program are:

Jams and hack events where groups work together

1 to rapidly build a prototype of a new service, 1 Coaching
process or a new way of working

Communities of practice
2 Project lessons-learned sessions and retrospectives
2 with a focus on generating
new ideas, not sharing ideas

Employee-driven innovation projects. These might

3 receive project funding, or employees might give
their time to work on a project that is not normally
part of their day-to-day work.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 18

Bring it together – learning ecosystems
and design thinking

It’s difficult to bring the 70:20:10 learning model into reality. The principles and design patterns covered
in this framework are a starting point. It takes a combination of learning ecosystems to bring together
the components and a different approach to learning technologies and design thinking.

What is a learning
ecosystem?

A learning ecosystem is made up of On the next page is a description

components that work together to of what a 70:20:10 learning
create a whole learning experience. ecosystem could look like. Your
The relationship between the own model might be different.
components means that the overall
experience becomes more than the
sum of its parts.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 19

Components of a learning ecosystem

Gardeners
Learning from each other Pathways
Learning ecosystems are not just about resources ‫ ־‬the Guides to learning while working
driving force behind a learning ecosystem is the people
involved. This includes managers and peers inside and outside
A learning ecosystem is learner centred, which means
the organisation. Learning together is a time when employees
learners need to become more self directed. Employees need
can reflect on and articulate what they have learned.
guidance and pathways to help them learn while working.

Learning Ecosystem

Streams
Learning in the Foundations Hothouses
flow of work
Knowledge supports Spaces to rapidly practice new skills
In a learning ecosystem,
learning becomes part of The foundations of the learning
the flow of work. It’s part of ecosystem depend on having great Formal learning becomes a learning ‘hothouse’,
the environment and is knowledge-based support systems in where learners are provided with somewhere to
integrated into tasks. place that enable employees to practise the decision making that they will be doing
access knowledge when they need it. on the job and gain rapid feedback.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 20

Pathways – guides to learning while working

A learning ecosystem provides Most employees need some

learners with choices about what guidance in how an ecosystem
and how they learn. It is learner works and how to operate as a self-
centred, which means the learner guided learner. Setting up a self-
needs to become more self- guided learning ecosystem doesn’t
directed. A self-directed learner is mean that people are merely told
able to: ‘go learn’ – they still need learning
and performance objectives.
• self-assess and identify
learning needs These goals and the guides to
• find resources and people to support employees can be thought
assist them of as pathways linking each stage
of the learning process. The
• practise and trial new
guides might provide links to tools
behaviours and skills and gain
and resources, e.g. links to self-
feedback on performance
assessment tools and reflective
• articulate and reflect on what questions.
they have learned
• evaluate and measure their
own learning.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 21

Gardeners – learning from each other

Learning ecosystems are not just about resources – the driving

force behind a learning ecosystem is the people involved.

Repeatedly it’s been found that Many ‘70’ learning approaches Learning from others is not just
the employee’s manager is the involve strategies such as job about copying and reproducing
key to their learning experience. rotations or mentoring, where what other employees do.
In 70:20:10 learning models, learning from others is critical. Humans are social and form an
managers have a dual role: understanding of the world through
providing feedback to their team conversations with others. There
member about their performance, are many ways these conversations
and leading conversations that can happen, ranging from
encourage reflective thinking and questions and answers, to working
continuous learning. out loud and employees sharing
their current work projects, to
Jay Cross wrote extensively about online debates.
informal learning as being the
‘natural way to learn’. Informal Learning together is a time when
learning is often a process employees can reflect on and
of looking at what peers are articulate what they have learned.
doing inside and outside of an This means the ‘70’ in the 70:20:10
organisation and literally copying learning model can go from being
them. merely an experience to being a
learning process.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 22

Hothouses – spaces to rapidly practise new skills

When I got started in training, I The idea of a flipped classroom A similar way of thinking is that
focused on providing learners is not new. The flipped classroom formal learning becomes a learning
with real experiential learning approach focuses on using face-to- ‘hothouse’, where learners are
experiences. I quickly realised face or online virtual classrooms for provided with somewhere to
that learners often needed time peer-to-peer learning, an approach practise the decision making
to practise new skills and get that removes the provision of that they will be doing on the
feedback before they start on real information from the learning job and gain rapid feedback.
tasks. experience. The risk with flipped classroom
models is that the formal learning
experience becomes a content-
focused information dump. When
formal learning experiences
are hothouses, the learning
experiences are based around
the same context and decisions
an employee would face in the
workplace.

Providing these opportunities for

practice is often left out of 70:20:10
learning approaches because of the
focus on experiential learning.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 23

Streams – learning in the flow of work

As work is becoming more is also a place for employees to

complex, learning and work is reflect and articulate on lessons
often merged. For the employee, learned. Learning becomes part
a new and challenging task or of the work environment. Learning
project often means the need for in the flow of work brings together
new capabilities. In most of these many of the aspects of a learning
situations there is not time to first ecosystem – learners needing
learn and then do the task. to have goals, learning from
Learning needs to happen in the peers, having access to the right
flow of work. It is not a separate knowledge and supports.
activity, it is integrated. For
instance, a collaboration platform
that is used to manage a project

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 24

Foundations – knowledge supports

Often, the only way to access A key question to be posed The idea of a learning ecosystem
an organisation’s practices is when beginning to explore provides learning and development
through their training programs. workplace performance is, professionals with a framework and
This is one reason that learning approach for making the 70:20:10
‘Is this an information problem
gets confused with content. One model a reality. As a framework it
of the root causes of performance
or a behavioural problem?’ provides a way to move beyond
problems can be the organisation’s designing courses and instead
intranet and knowledge bases. design more holistic, strategic
In these same organisations approaches to learning.
there is typically confusion
between knowledge management
and learning. A good learning
ecosystem ensures learners have
access to a range of job aids and
support resources. These become
the foundations of the learning
ecosystem.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 25

Digital learning ecosystems

eLearning in the workplace has involves technology. Marketing

become associated with self-paced has moved away from terms such
linear modules that are often no as e-business and e-commerce,
more than slide-based information and now digital marketing is the
dumps with a quiz at the end. term of choice. Using the term
But eLearning could be so much digital learning brings learning into
more. Learning technologies offer alignment with how other areas
powerful possibilities for social and within an organisation are thinking
peer learning, spaced learning over about digital technologies.
time that supports and enhances
the 70:20:10 learning model, and Most often, an LMS is somewhere
learning while working. that an employee goes to complete
the learning they are required to do.
The use of learning technologies The LMS has evolved in such a way
in the workplace can be enhanced that it is used to push learning to
by refocusing on digital learning. employees, but with learning while
Sprout Labs’ definition of digital working, employees need to be
learning is any type of learning that able to pull information.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 26

Digital learning ecosystems

When someone is working and Other industries take a different each component has a specialised
they need to solve a problem, they approach. In digital marketing, function but they all work together
don’t need a course. They don’t for instance, many organisations to function as a whole. In a modern
even need a small piece of micro work with an ecosystem of workplace we need an ecosystem
learning. Often all they need is technologies, or ‘stacks’. These are of learning technologies to support
information. The act of solving a a combination of platforms where learning while working.
problem and doing a task is when
learning happens. This is the
70:20:10 learning model in action,
and is why 70:20:10 approaches
often focus on performance
support.

In the past, many organisations

(and LMS vendors) have seen
the LMS as being a one-stop
solution for all their digital learning
problems. It’s a monolithic
centralised platform. This approach
doesn’t accept that people don’t
always learn from courses and that
a single tool is rarely a perfect fit.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 27

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Learning portal

In a learning ecosystem, a learning

portal often becomes the central
hub. The user experience for this
is different to an LMS – it’s more
like the rest of the web. A learner
can freely navigate around and
doesn’t need to enrol in a course
to access learning experiences.
The learning portal doesn’t have
to be a new system. It can be a
section of your existing intranet.
A learning portal approach is more
learner centered than an LMS.
What does it mean to be learner
centered? It means focusing on
what employees need, not what
the organisation needs (which is
most often compliance training).

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 28

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Most people want to get better There are some risks with the
at their job, and a learning portal learning portal style approach.
approach helps them to do so. Sometimes the tools that are used
to build learning portals are more
A learning portal is built with small content driven – Wordpress, for
pieces of content, so an employee instance – and these platforms
can grab what they need when are harder to make interactive
they need it. It is a perfect platform experiences with. There is a risk
for effective content curation, the that the learning experience
central hub that brings together all becomes passive and relies too
the parts of the learning ecosystem, much on content. But if the learning
including feeds from social learning portal is about accessing content
platforms. as part of the flow of work, then the
actual process of doing the job task
This type of platform is sometimes becomes a learning experience.
called a ‘continuous learning This is a perfect example of the
platform’ to differentiate it from an 70:20:10 model in action.
LMS.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 29

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Learning record store

If the learning portal is the learner and other platforms are combined sophisticated measurement
hub, then your learning record together. Having your learning approach. They are less about
store is your data hub. A learning records separate from your LMS looking at the activity and more
record store is a system for storing also means it’s easier to replace the focused on measuring outcomes. A
learning statements using the LMS. couple of ways that digital learning
Experience API (xAPI) standard. technologies can be used to
xAPI is a flexible, powerful way to A challenge of moving to a 70:20:10 enhance learning while working are:
deal with the problem of having learning model and learning while
• online learning logs where
learning data coming from multiple working is how to measure and
employees record what they
places beyond just the LMS. evaluate learning. Compared with
have learned
xAPI becomes the glue that holds evaluation approaches to classic
• recording evidence of learning
together all the components of learning programs, such as post-
in a portfolio.
your learning ecosystem; data course surveys, 70:20:10-based
from your learning portal, LMS learning programs call for a more

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 30

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Learning management Authoring tools

systems
What is often forgotten in a learning are more like the rest of the web,
LMSs are not going away, but they ecosystem is the authoring tools. where the user can freely navigate
are evolving. Organisations still The tools are what defines the and search for information on either
need to allocate and track training learning experience and in many a desktop or a mobile. This leads
that employees do. But the LMS’s cases they are what is holding us to content being more usable for
role as the central element in digital back. learning while working.
learning is disappearing. Often
it’s not the functionality that is the A business might talk about As businesses move faster, learning
problem – LMSs often include wanting their employees to be more experiences need to be designed
tools that allow them to be used for self-directed in their learning but and developed faster. Cloud-based
continuous learning – the problem then they build modules that force eLearning authoring platforms
is that they are being used only to us to listen to a voiceover for fifty make it faster to design, develop,
push learning to employees. minutes with the navigation locked review and deliver eLearning
down. We need experiences that projects.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 31

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Social platforms

An important component of a
modern learning ecosystem is
social learning – learning with
others and learning from other
people. As work becomes more
social, with platforms like Slack
and Microsoft Teams, working and
learning is coming together. We
don’t need to rely so much on a
separate social learning platform.

This raises the question about

when your LMS should be used,
and when instead to rely on your
social learning or collaboration
platform. A rule of thumb is that
if your social activities are closely
linked to course material then you
should use your LMS.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 32

Technologies to support a learning ecosystem

Virtual classrooms

When we think about social

learning the first thing that comes
to mind is text-based platforms like
Facebook. But social learning is
not just about text platforms. Virtual
classrooms, webinar platforms and
online meeting rooms are tools
that are often overlooked for social
learning. If they are designed to
be interactive they provide a great
way to share and build knowledge.
Most facilitators could easily move
their face-to-face programs online,
using platforms such as Slack and
Microsoft Teams to merge text,
audio and video conferencing.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 33

Your learning ecosystem beyond learning technologies

Learning doesn’t just The other key element in a learning

happen in systems that are ecosystem is mobile applications.
controlled by the learning and We’re now seeing employees given
mobile learning platforms that
development function of an
provide just-in-time information and
organisation. guidance or offer a place for micro
learning and daily practice of tasks.
When an organisation maps
out all the places and systems
One of the powerful things about
that employees use for learning
xAPI is that data from these types
they often find a complex map
of platforms – that are not normally
of interrelated elements. An
thought of as being learning
overlooked element is the intranet
platforms – can be fed into your
– it is usually the first place that
learning record store.
employees will look for guidance
about doing a task.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 34

Design thinking

Learning and development Design thinking is both a mindset

“
professionals often go looking for and a process. As a mindset it’s
examples from other organisations. a combination of analytical and
This is a great way to learn what
... a human-centered design thinking. In learning we
has worked or not worked in approach to innovation that already have the ADDIE process
another organisation but what is draws from the designer’s (analysis, design, development,
really needed is a way to generate toolkit to integrate the implementation, evaluation)
a learning model that works in a needs of people, the but ADDIE is about designing,
specific organisation’s context. possibilities of technology, developing and delivering a
course. Design thinking is a more

”
and the requirements for
Design thinking provides a set of generalised open process that
business success.7
processes and tools to generate allows learning professionals to go
new approaches to learning beyond just designing a course to
that add value to learners and designing a learning ecosystem.
organisations. Tom Brown, To explain the process in more
president and CEO of IDEO, depth we’ll look at how it works in
defines design thinking as: practice.

7
Read more at https://www.ideo.com/about

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 35

Design thinking in practice

Meet Rebecca.

Rebecca is a learning
consultant who is designing
a new onboarding program
for assessors. We are going
to follow how Rebecca
applies design thinking to this
problem.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 36

Understanding

An important aspect of design thinking is developing a

deep, rich understanding of the end users.

Understanding the employee is because they have seen training done repeatedly. It typically takes
the foundation of a learner-centred as the solution to all performance five repeats to understand the root
approach. This is the classic problems. The challenge for cause that is underlying a particular
learning analysis stage. learning and development lies problem. The technique was
in finding the root cause of the developed at Toyota as they were
This understanding phase has problem. One of the most powerful redesigning their manufacturing
traditionally been one of the areas tools to help us do this is called processes and has since become
that learning and development has the 5 whys. During a 5 whys part of the toolkit and process of
been weak in. This isn’t always conversation one person asks lean manufacturing.
learning and development’s fault. questions that begin with a ‘why’
Often it’s the organisation’s fault in response to a statement. This is

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 37

Understanding

In Rebecca’s case she

interviews new assessors,
spends some time
watching and following
how they work (being
a fly on the wall). She
looks at where they
commonly make mistakes
or have difficulty. She
is building an empathic
understanding of what it
means to be a learner in
this situation.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 38

Understanding

Rebecca’s end product from

this stage is a series of fictional
learner stories (these are often
called ‘personas’). She gives
each of them a name and
associates an image with them.
These go up on the wall of the
office and help both Rebecca
and others in the organisation
to understand the complexity,
performance issues and
diversity of the employees’
learning needs.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 39

Exploring

The exploration phase is about In organisations with complex technical work areas the co-design
creating a number of possible process is often extremely important because the subject matter
program designs that can be experts often feel like they own the expertise and how it should be
prototyped. To do this Rebecca
taught.
brings together a group of people
to co-design the approaches. The
sessions begin by looking at the The group seeks
personas from the understanding inspiration from what
stage and then exploring other organisations are
possible solutions. While this is doing. They don’t just look
happening the group is integrating for it inside of learning,
the relevant learning-at-work they look for possible
principles into the designs and examples from areas
design patterns for learning. It’s like sport. Creating new
a knowledge sharing learning solutions often comes
problem, so from the design about by combining ideas
patterns Rebecca knows that the from different disciplines
model will focus on informal and together in a new way.
social learning with some formal
learning.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 40

Exploring

One of the challenges of 70:20:10 and blended learning

programs is that they are hard to explain.

They are multi-layered, and most These can be used during design rapidly explore and test different
of the time the elements change workshops and for documenting options. Different combinations
over time. At Sprout Labs we are how programs work. During of possible strategies are
developing a visual planning system workshops we print these out at combined and recombined to
for 70:20:10 learning programs. A0 size and use sticky-notes to ensure each aspect of 70:20:10
is addressed meaningfully.

Project Onboarding for new assessors

For Rebecca this exploration
phase sometimes feels like she
Starts working
on partially
Developing portfolio
of evidence that is
is beginning to prototype. As
she builds these maps of how
real tasks
measured in a
CBT system

programs might run she finds

herself telling stories to explain
Works closely with
Is connected to
the possibilities.
coach
a group of peers

Worked examples
simulate real cases

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 41

Prototyping

From the exploration phase area of design thinking called

The challenge with 70:20:10 learning Rebecca has three possible ‘service design’ that has similar
programs is how to prototype them. designs prototyped. In problems. Service design
learning programs the prototyping normally starts with
voice of the learner is what is called a low-fidelity
often forgotten or is not prototype that is quick to make
included – the opinions and or explain but is technically not
thoughts of the learning correct. The parallel in interface
and development area often design is a paper prototype,
replace the learner’s voice. where instead of mocking-up
Rebecca wants to prototype an interface on a computer
the program with the learners they are built out of paper. The
and managers who will be users testing them simulate a
involved in its delivery. click by pointing at a piece of
paper, then the tester swaps
The requirements are the piece of paper for the next
extremely different from screen. Service design can be
prototyping an online module prototyped with stories, maps,
or running a pilot face-to- simulations and role plays.
face course. They often have
more parts and are harder to
organise quickly. There is an

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 42

Prototyping

LEARNER STORIES
Rebecca begins by outlining the
program with visual maps and
stories. Then she takes these
to potential learners and their PILOTS
managers to gain feedback and LOW ROLE
HIGH
test the concepts. FIDELITY PLAYS
FIDELIT Y
She moves backwards and
forwards between the prototyping
phase and the testing phase,
adding more detail to the LEARNER JOURNEYS
prototypes and discarding the
approaches that are not working.
Then, as the model becomes better
known, sections are built and
implemented and a pilot is run.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 43

Testing

We have just seen that the testing prototypes and final pilot are
She treats the prototypes and
and prototyping stages can cross similar to the way she worked
pilot as an experiment. over. The processes and tools during the understanding stage.
that Rebecca used to test the She watches, asks and answers
questions and explores how the
program is running. During the
understanding stage of the project
Rebecca decided what were the
key performance outcomes that
she was going to measure. She
chooses only two metrics that the
programs can directly affect.
During the early stages, when
the prototype is rough, she asks
the learners and managers if they
feel that it will deliver on those
outcomes. During the pilot these
key performance measures are one
of the key things she is testing.

During testing Rebecca’s mindset

is more analytic than during the
exploration stages.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 44

Evolving

UNDERSTANDING

As the program is being

implemented it’s important for it
EVOLVING EXPLORING
to be improved and constantly
re-invented. This constant
evolution is a way that learning
and development can role model
consciously learning while working,
and create new knowledge.
Rebecca keeps using the same
testing phase to monitor and check
that the program is working. She is
constantly asking questions about
how it can be improved.

TESTING PROTOTYPING

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 45

Designing learning for work

This document has outlined some

principles, design patterns, a model
for a learning ecosystem, and
explained how design thinking can
be used to generate new models of
learning at work.

Hopefully these will be useful for:

• learning and design

professionals, when thinking
about solutions to learning and
performance problems
• managers, to design team
processes and activities to
maximise learning
• managers working with
individuals to develop their
skills.

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 46

Sprout Labs builds digital learning
platforms that enable enterprises
to author, deliver and measure high
impact digital learning ecosystems

To find out more about Sprout Labs, visit:

www.sproutlabs.com.au

author: Robin Petterd

design: Iona Dierich
© Sprout Labs

SPROUT LABS | LEARNING WHILE WORKING FRAMEWORK 47