Andy Andrews
When job roles shift – as they often do during organizational transformation – the task gets even bigger. New roles need fresh learning pathways. Outdated ones are retired. And every course, module, and resource needs to be aligned to the skills that matter.
On paper, it sounds like an admin job, but it’s actually one of the most complex and time-consuming parts of workforce planning. For instance, the extensive IBM Talent Framework Library that we often recommend to Lexonis’ clients contains thousands of invaluable skills definitions. Even if a client were to use a proportion of these, the work and effort required to map appropriate learning manually, is onerous. However, there is a solution!
Why Mapping Matters
LinkedIn Learning’s 2024 Workplace Learning Report found that 85% of L&D professionals see skills-to-learning mapping as essential for closing gaps, yet 63% lack the time 1 to do it well. Without it, you risk:
- Learning that doesn’t address priority skill needs
- Employees are unsure which development will move them forward
- L&D teams are spread too thin to focus on strategy
And with most large organizations now using 4 – 6 different learning platforms 2, each with its own tagging and structure, manual mapping can quickly become unmanageable.
How it Works in Practice
We’ve seen this challenge time and again in large, complex organizations – from global IT providers to multinational manufacturers. Job architectures are reviewed, new roles are introduced, and others are retired. Skills frameworks evolve to match the future direction of the organization.
The next hurdle is mapping every relevant piece of learning from across multiple platforms to the updated skills framework. Done manually, this can take months.
