Move Over LMS, Here Comes the Learning Portal

By Sean P. Murray

January 14, 2011

3 Min read

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The Learning Management System (LMS) was originally designed for “managing” learning across the enterprise. That is, the true customer or end-user for the LMS is the training department, often charged with keeping track of who has taken what course. To use the analogy of a university, the LMS is the administration office. You remember, the face-less bureaucracy that tracked courses and credits earned.  The administration office is not what inspires college students to achieve higher levels of...

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Build Trust and Be Transparent

By Sean P. Murray

August 27, 2010

2 Min read

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The Fourth annual Ethics and Workplace Survey published by Deloitte found that over one third of Americans will be looking for a new job in the coming year. And of this disgruntled group, the key issues that are driving turnover are a lack of trust and lack of transparency.   These results reinforce the value of building trust with your employees through transparent and open communication.  What employees are looking for, especially in times of change and turmoil, is senior leadership that they...

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Urgency for Leadership Development is Growing

By Sean P. Murray

August 9, 2010

2 Min read

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Leadership development has long been considered a discretionary expense.  During economic downturns it is often one of the first budget line-items to be cut.  However, there was a different feeling this time around.  As we entered the recession in 2008 and 2009  there was hope, and some evidence, that  companies had learned from past downturns.  Eliminating leadership development only left them further behind when the economy did start picking up again, as it inevitably does. In the Wall Street...

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Alignment of Learning to Business Goals

By Sean P. Murray

August 4, 2010

2 Min read

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Has the recession forced organizations to more closely align learning objectives to business goals? A new study by CLO Magazine surveying over 1,500 senior learning and development executives found: “90 percent of CLOs believe their learning will be more aligned with organizational business objectives this year. That’s music to some executives’ ears.” Jim Gillece, AlliedBarton’s senior vice president and chief people officer, talks in the article about the importance of well-defined leadership...

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Feedback is a Gift

By Sean P. Murray

February 3, 2010

3 Min read

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“Get a feedback loop and listen to it. … When people give you feedback, cherish it and use it.” – Randy Pausch (1960 – 2008) was a Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University and a best-selling author, who achieved worldwide fame for his speech The Last Lecture, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and having only a few months to live. Most people, by now, know the story of Randy Pausch and his Last Lecture.    The book was a best-seller and the video of the lecture...

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The Enterprise of the Future: What Does it Mean for Training?

By Sean P. Murray

December 15, 2009

3 Min read

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IBM interviewed over 1,000 CEOs and asked them what the enterprise of the future will look like.  What IBM discovered, and recently published in a study,  is that future organizations will be even more dependent on collaborative global teams to drive innovation.  In the opening letter, IBM’s CEO, Sam Palmisano says: “A focus on innovation works. That is also evident in this year’s study results. Those of you who are making the boldest plays — pursuing the most global, collaborative and...

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Something to be Thankful for: Your People

By Sean P. Murray

November 25, 2009

2 Min read

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As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow with our families, now is an appropriate time to take account of the many things to be thankful for at work.  As a leader, what comes to mind for me is the debt and gratitude I have for the people I have the honor to work with everyday.  So how do I, as a leader thank the many people around me who not only contribute to my success, but more importantly to the success of the organization?  One way is to simply say “thank you.”  But another more...

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New e-book: Getting More from Your Investment in Training

By Sean P. Murray

November 10, 2009

3 Min read

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The current global economy is forcing people and organizations to find ways to do business more efficiently and more effectively. Companies are revisiting strategy, markets, R&D, size of workforce, and their entire cost structure. There is an intense focus on business results with an added emphasis on trimming anything that doesn’t directly contribute to the success of the organization.  These same forces are affecting training and development departments at corporations across the globe...

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Web 2.0 is the Future of Corporate Learning

By Sean P. Murray

November 5, 2009

3 Min read

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A much discussed article by Tony Bingham, the President of ASTD, appeared in the August 2009 T+D Magazine under the title “Learning Gets Social.”  In the piece, Tony delivers a shot across the bow for many learning and development departments, saying basically, if we all don’t get on board and start leveraging and supporting Web 2.0 technologies for learning, we’re simply going to be deemed irrelevant by the businesses we support.   The article quotes Karie Willeyard, CLO of Sun Microsystems...

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Leadership and Time Management

By Sean P. Murray

October 28, 2009

5 Min read

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Earlier this month, while catching a flight home to Seattle from New York City after a long week on the road meeting with clients, I made it to my seat, sat down and breathed a huge sigh of relief.  For a moment, it was bliss.  I knew in a few hours I would be home to see my family.  But then the slow, creeping realization set in that my email in-box was overloaded with hundreds of emails I was unable to get to while on the road.  Furthermore, I had five voicemails on my cell phone and probably...

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