Think Tank Report

New Tech,
New Skills
Challenge and opportunity in
financial services learning

John Helmer
 Think Tank Report: New Tech, New Skills
Introduction
The financial services sector is
a leader and bleeder in learning
technologies. As such it acts as a
bellwether for business in general.
And though it faces disruptive
developments very particular to
the sector, such as Fintech and
so-called ‘challenger banks’, these
are at root driven by technological
change, which is producing
similar manifestations of digital
disruption across the business
landscape. We all have a lot to
learn from what is happening in
financial services learning.
That having been said, the challenges
are particularly intense in this sector.
Longstanding and traditional financial
services companies are fighting for their
business life: staying still is hard enough work,
let alone moving forward and growing. To
survive and thrive, these organisations need
to innovate.
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L&D still has work to do in changing attitudes.
Embedding learning technology into the
organisation can still be perceived as a risk,
especially at a financial services organisation
with tens of thousands of employees.
However, L&D has many opportunities to
grasp the initiative and contribute to the
success of the financial services sector as
it looks to meet the challenges of changing
markets, increased regulation and the rise
of fintech. As professionals conversant with
both technology and learning, L&D should
seek to work alongside the business. To do
this it must be familiar with the business
objectives and so be able to provide relevant,
cost-effective solutions using the latest digital
products allied to sound learning to increase
productivity and performance.
Lumesse Learning hosted a Think Tank
Dinner where we brought together expert
practitioners working in Learning and
Development to discuss these issues. This
document highlights the key themes that
arose during the dinner.
 Think Tank Report: New Tech, New Skills

Part One
Technology as Driver
What are the major challenges thrown up by technological change, and how are these
translating into learning need?

‘What is the point 1. The challenge of ‘always-connected’. 4. Providing choice. Don’t place the learning
of building content In their everyday lives, learners use a behind a firewall making learners go through
proliferation of devices and expect to be a security wrapper when there is no risk.
on a learning
always connected. They expect the tools Access needs to be encouraged partly
management they use for everything to also be used for through use of ubiquitous platforms such as
system if the learning. L&D has to make that transfer. YouTube. Think about whether learners want a
learner could just Learning should harness multiple always- work device or to bring their own. Remember,
connected mobile devices. Understanding learners will have different views on wanting
find the answer
how people use technology (and how that use to separate learning from their personal life.
more simply changes), L&D can assimilate that experience
5. Make the learning interactive and just
through an for its benefit.
in time. In the complex world of financial
internet search?’ 2. How to do more than Google. Learning services receiving learning at the point of
systems should work with the sophistication need could be transformational. Learning
and savviness of learners. L&D is in danger of built into work processes could increase
being constantly behind its learners. It needs productivity by reducing the time taken to
to be able to react quickly – so learners don’t complete the task and minimising mistakes.
go elsewhere and find an answer or solution
6. Close working upfront. Having L&D
somewhere on the web which may not be of
properly integrated and involved with the
sufficiently high quality. This is particularly
system design would ensure key points are
important for regulated financial services
identified and highlight where support is
where using a wrong answer could lead to a
required. For example, a financial services
breach of regulations. L&D needs to be able
worker could receive instant answers to
to monitor and validate the learning which
every query – through a help video or piece
learners are undertaking.
of pop-up text – when completing a mortgage
3. Deciding what learning is desirable. application. Achieving such integrated
The learning needs to be bespoke to address troubleshooting learning requires close
the situation; it needs to be of the right working between L&D, the digital team and
quality; it needs to be capable of being the business upfront, before processes are
accessed quickly; learners need to be able to designed and rolled out.
drive the learning and own the experience.
And that includes just in time and bite-sizing
learning which financial services learning
does not often embrace. Learners look at the
length of the learning and will abandon it if
it is too long. The cut-off point appears to be
five minutes. Tops. All this represents a many-
faceted challenge.

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 Think Tank Report: New Tech, New Skills
Part Two
Technology as Helper
Where are the opportunities technology is now providing for learning, and how can learning
teams take advantage of them?
1. Using Big Data. One of the biggest
challenges for L&D is the impact Big Data
is having on business competitiveness. The
collection of huge volumes of data and the
subsequent analysis opens up opportunities
for learning to discover ways to improve
areas such as performance and engagement.
However, to take advantage L&D will need
to upskill to improve its ability to handle,
interrogate, synthesise, manipulate, interpret,
and then gain insight from that Big Data. Yet,
at the moment, those skills are missing from
L&D where handling data may not extend
much beyond Excel.
Using Big Data to its full potential is like
moving from analogue to digital. L&D needs
to put itself in a position where it can utilise
Big Data, identifying the ‘touch points’ where
it might need to work with the business
in making sense of the data. L&D should
be ensuring it is taking steps to have the
capabilities to reach that place. For instance,
it may need to look to use tools such as
visualisation tool Tableau.
2. Changing attitudes. In some areas
technology-based learning is still not wholly
accepted by business and line managers. For
instance, completing online learning at a desk
is seen as a poor use of time – a distraction
from the real work. And even techniques
such as flags indicating online learning is
happening does not prevent interruption.
The course with its social connections
continues to carry value. Introducing learning
technology into the organisation is still
perceived as a risk, especially at a financial
services organisation with tens of thousands
of employees.
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3. Start with the user experience (UX). The
learning industry must continue to explore
how to use technology to create effective
learning. A stronger marriage needs to be
forged between instructional design and
learning technology. Technology can be used
by L&D to improve the training experience of
the users. Just because it has to be completed
does not mean that quality can be forgotten.
This is especially important in helping
learners remember rather than just a tick box
exercise proclaiming completion.
4. Meeting the learning need. Technology
has the challenge to meet the learning
need – and prove to do so in helping learners
to do their job better – rather than being
perceived as just good fun or a gimmick.
If online learning is just seen as cool it will
eventually fall out of favour. In a society
where consumers have high expectations of
the design and functionality of their devices,
L&D should be aware that they need to mirror
those standards in the learning which they
provide. That means speed, functionality
and ease of use of learning on the device
consumers choose.
Apps such as YouTube have created a
culture where material creation is possible
and accepted. The younger generation in
particular seems happy and able to consume
a lot of content. L&D should use the tools that
are popular now – in 2017 that is Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat... But it will soon
change, so be alert.
 Think Tank Report: New Tech, New Skills

‘If you can change 5. Grabbing attention. L&D needs to create
behaviours rather imaginative, usually bite-sized communication
because employees are receiving so much
than just create
information which is simply lost. Getting the
knowledge, you’ll L&D message heard among all the others is
get the business difficult. Making it simple and easy to engage
engaged.’ is essential to produce results.
Speed helps communication and updating.
Need to remind users to complete compliance
training? Send them a nudge to change the
behaviour – perhaps an animation of sharks
circling… L&D who take such actions know
they cause spikes in activity.
6. Temporary is good. With the pace
of change in financial services sector
compliance, L&D has to be aware that
regulations and training requirements will
constantly be altering. Assuming a ‘it won’t
last attitude’ means looking to produce
training cost-effectively – for instance, using
cameras on phones to film subject matter
experts (SMEs).
Assuming it won’t last also helps to engender
the idea of good enough is good enough. The
days of long lead times on video production
is over. Partly because if L&D creates perfect
videos it won’t be allowing users to create
valuable content through less than perfect
videos. L&D has to consider how much it
wants to see learners as mere consumers of
its output. Why not producers of their own
content which L&D curates? One roundtable
participant only allows one take these days.
7. L&D needs to take responsibility for its
own skills upgrade. If L&D does not take on
that role and responsibility then technology
will simply pull ahead far into the distance.
Learning needs to readjust its mindset. A
few years ago, car mechanics needed to
know solely about cars – now they need to be
technology-literate. Similarly, for L&D it is no
longer enough to just know about learning.
A deep understanding of technology is also
required.

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 Think Tank Report: New Tech, New Skills
Part Three
Taming the compliance beast
What are the regulatory pressures resulting from tech innovation – and what would be a
game-changer for regulatory / mandatory learning?
‘L&D needs a 1. The relationship between compliance and
constructive learning can still be difficult. A compliance
department in one financial institution asked
dialogue with
L&D for a 100-page online module about
compliance where the internal ratings-based (IRB) approach
it can challenge to capital requirements for credit risk (part
and push back if of the Basel II guidelines). L&D knew it
would never be accessed. However, showing
necessary.’
regulators that such a module exists may help
to satisfy them.
L&D needs a constructive dialogue with
compliance where it can ask; what are the
learning objectives? Can the training be
pared back? Are all these questions and all
this wording really needed? Those questions
can impact the cost and effectiveness of
the learning. Together with compliance
L&D should measure the improvement in
compliance achieved.
Internally L&D should be challenging
compliance on why they are asking for certain
learning, engaging more with the compliance
rules to proactively understand what the rules
require.
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2. L&D is battling a history of poor online
compliance training, including clunky
learning management systems (LMS).
Therefore, overcoming the low expectations
of the business and learners and, crucially,
being perceived as experts that can add
business value remains an uphill struggle.
Ironically, when e-learning does work then
it can be handed a long shopping list of
training by compliance and risk. The danger
is that learners then feel bombarded and
overwhelmed so L&D should look to manage
expectations – how much learning can users
handle? – and communicate compliance’s
training expectations.
In compliance L&D needs to be creative –
engage with a refresher course before the full
module – while keeping the learner audience
in mind: maybe use comic book strips or
superheroes to make the points.
L&D needs to remember to include the learner
in the design. Asking the intended audience
is always important because they can know
more than is realised and can contribute.
When designing learning ensure it is always
relevant. Don’t put in training which the
audience will never use. Extraneous material
wastes time and devalues even the relevant
learning. L&D needs to look at how to achieve
personalisation.
 Next Steps
If you would be interested in joining one of our future Think Tank
events and contributing your insights...
Or if you are interested in exploring further how the right blend of
technology and broader learning tools can help you deliver award-
winning L&D programmes across your global business...

Contact us!
Get in touch on +44 (0) 1273 829700
Email learning@lumesse.com
Visit us at www.lumesselearning.com

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