Chief learning officers should be both managers and teachers

Nick van Dam, chief learning officer (CLO) at McKinsey, is passionate about learning.

His role in the company is to oversee leadership development and skill building. He fulfils this for some 25,000 colleagues globally, while also teaching as a visiting professor at several prestigious universities.

He claims research proves that learning makes one's life much more fulfilling. Moreover, during the last 40 years, scientists have demonstrated that our capacity for learning does not diminish as we grow older.

There is no doubt that people really can continue to learn throughout their entire lives.

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Learning and development receives top priority

Nick says that he noticed how companies are finally taking professional learning seriously so that it has now become a strategic priority. Modern technology makes learning easier. In the end, however, it is we ourselves as individuals who need to accept a commitment to lifelong learning.

Learning is a crucial activity at McKinsey. Until the 1960s, there were organised Saturday morning training sessions or seminars attended by consultants. Even today, building new capabilities remains the cornerstone of the firm: on-the-job learning in the form of apprenticeships is a central tool of career development.

Virtual learning is not only for the wealthy

In 2016 Nick was a finalist in McKinsey’s social-impact awards. He is the founder of e-Learning for Kids, an initiative that has already helped over 15 million children to gain an education.

Nick says that, thanks to the growth of the Internet, online learning resources can be accessed by children even in developing countries. Developers in India, project managers in the Netherlands and a global team of volunteers run this truly virtual organisation.

Teachers also are using the e-lessons so as to improve the quality of their classes.

-jk-

Article source McKinsey & Company - global management consulting firm
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