Continual learning is a necessity, but you can’t adequately learn the new things you need without unlearning the things you don’t. When you fail to unlearn, workforce development will fail.

Stephanie Shuler, chief people officer at LifeLabs Learning, discussed this topic during a thought leadership spotlight at From Day One’s February virtual conference. She shared insights on the topic, “The Competitive Advantage of Unlearning: Why Workforce Development Fails Without It.”

“This concept of unlearning is really interesting and important to me, because underneath all of our L&D and workforce investments, there’s this quiet failure that we really don’t talk enough about,” said Shuler. “We’re in this age right now where we’ve maybe never had as much learning coming at us at one time, more platforms, more certifications, leadership programs, sprints and academies, and yet, the behavior inside a lot of our organizations does not appear to be changing or having lasting, meaningful change at the same speed that our strategy expects or demands.”

Additional pressures result from the influx of AI offerings and learning and development become more skill-based with little regard for behavioral conditions that are important to make these skills stick. 

“In order to have transformation, you need not just for skills to be learned, but for them to stick and be adopted,” she said. “The issue is not whether people know how to do it, or whether there’s enough training, it’s about whether we’re able to recognize the skills and norms that we’re not training on, and those are the skills and norms that no longer serve us as an organization,” she said. “Do we have the courage to stop doing what once worked, even if it creates friction?”

Additions and Subtractions in L&D

Problems arise when strategies are revised faster than the systems and norms that support them. New learning often builds on old foundations, optimized for the past rather than the future. Learning alone adds knowledge, but true transformation requires both addition and subtraction.

A company can deliver an engaging, informative workshop, yet if the results don’t materialize or fail to create impact, the training may be judged ineffective. In reality, the old learning wasn’t unlearned, preventing the new knowledge from taking hold. “Unlearning is not just simply a mindset, it’s really a system skill,” said Shuler. 

“You can learn new skills, but you can’t translate those new skills into sustained behavior until you’ve acknowledged what is no longer going to serve you,” she said. There must be performance expectations up front along with feedback systems and recognitions for a managed transition. 

Additionally, traditional training can stall because the behaviors and systems are contradicting themselves. In addition to training, there must be transformation. Shuler used the example of AI. Companies are training their teams on AI concepts, but even though the training is completed, there must be additional layers to ensure the best possible outcome of the training completion. “Teams are using AI and they’re drafting faster, but then they’re going back to the same processes and the same workflows and standards, so you don’t really get any fundamental shifts from that.”

Before launching a learning and development program, it’s crucial to examine the metrics that matter. Ask what drives career growth and what motivates performance so your programs align with real impact. Focus on what will actually stick. “The goal is going to be whether or not the skills are going to show up in how people work, especially when pressure hits,” said Shuler. “If it’s not repeatable, then it’s not going to stick, and if it doesn’t stick, it's not going to drive change.”

Workshops are going to help reinforce new ideas, but it’s the systems that decide if the new ideas succeed and are put into motion. “It goes beyond training and the workshops, it goes toward design and culture questions that L&D absolutely should be a part of.”

Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, LifeLabs Learning, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. 

Kristen Kwiatkowski is a professional freelance writer covering a wide array of industries, with a focus on food and beverage and business. Her work has been featured in the Bucks County Herald, Eater Philly, Edible Lehigh Valley, Cider Culture, and The Town Dish. 

(Photo by BeritK/iStock)