1. Learning and Development
L&D
CHAPTER 14
Adding value

2. THE PURPOSE OF THE CHAPTER
To explain how L&D activity can add value to an organisation.
KEY THEMES
Clarifying ‘added value’
The Value Chain model
Align, engage and measure: aligning the people
Engaging the people
Measuring the data

3. ADDING VALUE: A DEFINITION
To add value is to make a difference where it matters most. It means producing outcomes that enable the organisation to respond better than it could before to challenges and threats, and to do so at a cost – in the widest sense of that word – that is considerably less than the value of those outcomes.

4. PORTER’S VALUE CHAIN OF THE FIRM (1980)
A firm’s value chain consists of five linked primary activities that convert inputs into outputs
Inbound logistics
Operations
Outbound logistics
Marketing and sales
Service
‘Support activities’ are those that underpin these five primary activities. These include:
Management of the administrative infrastructure
HR policies and practices
Research and development
Procurement

5. GREEN’S (1999) THREE-STAGE ‘ADDING VALUE’ FRAMEWORK
Align
Point people in the direction of the organisation’s purpose and corporate goals.
Engage
Develop their belief and commitment to the organisation’s purpose and direction so that they are willing and capable of ‘going the extra mile’ in working for it and its corporate goals.
Measure
Provide the data that demonstrate the value-adding results your activity achieves.

6. FOUR WAYS OF MEASURING THE VALUE OF LEARNING (Anderson, 2007)
Learning function efficiency measures
Used to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the learning function
Key performance indicators and benchmark measures
Used to evaluate L&D processes and performance through a comparison with external standards
Return on investment measures
Used to establish the economic benefits of specific learning and training interventions compared with their costs
Return on expectation measures
Used to assess how far the benefits expected by stakeholders from the L&D investment have been realised – ie to establish ‘added value’ of the investment