What Does It Mean for L&D to Be Strategic?
What does working strategically mean, anyway?
I recently read a note from someone reflecting on the evolving expectations of our profession. They said something along the lines of:
"Now I hear that I’m supposed to work strategically, but what does that even mean?”
It’s a fair question. For years, L&D work has been largely transactional. And “strategic” can feel like one of those vague, executive-level buzzwords reserved for people at the top. If you’re an individual contributor, it might feel like strategy isn’t your job.
I don’t think that’s true.
I believe there’s an opportunity for everyone in L&D, at every level, to work more strategically. It just looks different depending on where you sit. Let’s break it down in a practical way.
Strategy Starts with a Destination
To me, working strategically has two core components, a clear vision paired with a defined path.
A Clear Vision (The Destination): Strategy starts with a vision for the future, but a vision alone isn’t a strategy. It’s just a definition of where you want to end up.
A Defined Path (The Route):The strategy is the path to achieve the vision.
Think of it like a roadmap where the visionis the destination, clearly marked with a star. The strategyis the route the GPS gives you when you plug in the vision (destination). The business goalsare the mile markers you must check off along the way.
In L&D, our vision should align with the broader business vision. And our work should support the goals that move the organization toward that destination.
Where L&D Fits Into the Bigger Picture
Every part of the organization is created and funded so that the business can achieve its overall vision and goals and I mean every part: Sales, Marketing, Operations, IT, HR, and yes… L&D.
Organizational level goals are large enough that they require work across multiple functions to be achieved. Thus, each part of the organization should have its own sub-strategy (its own roadmap), that defines how it will use its own skills and expertise to contribute to achieving the goals and reaching the overall organizational destination.
For L&D, this means equipping and developing employees with the skills and expertise needed to achieve the organizational goals and realize the vision. Our own L&D sub-strategy reflects this.
Strategic L&D in Practice
Let’s make this real through an example. Imagine that in order to remain profitable and provide the products or services that solve our customers’ challenges (vision), the organization sets goals to increase revenue, reduce expenses, and improve retention for high performers.
While creating our own L&D strategy, we look at how we might contribute to these goals. We don’t need to contribute to all of them, just the ones where it makes sense. We also aren’t solely responsible (these are cross-functional goals), but we must do our part.
If we aren’t a revenue generating team, then increasing revenues won’t be on our list. But we could certainly contribute to reducing expenses and improving retention for high performers. Our aligned strategy might include the following:
Reduce expenses: Improve onboarding efficiency to shorten time-to-productivity.
Improve retention: Build leadership programs for high performers that grow internal talent and improve or shorten the path promotability.
These projects become part of our L&D strategy, mapped directly to the greater organizational strategy and measured along the way.
That’s working according to a business aligned strategy.
Strategy Isn’t Just the Plan, It’s the Decisions
There’s another part to working strategically that can be easily missed or forgotten. The strategy is the roadmap, built to get us to the desired destination but it isn’t something we set and forget. It also requires intentional decisions along the way to stay on course or pivot. Note that the most important word here is intentional.
Sometimes these intentional decisions relate merely to staying the course. That means we aren’t distracted by shiny objects or projects that seem easier or “more fun.” It means we don’t give into the pressure of pet projects and we resist the urge to add more content just because we are asked.
In fact, those who are able to truly work strategically say no a lot. They say no to the requests and projects that would distract them from the overall vision and goals. They don’t do work simply to be nice or helpful. They know that every time they say yes to something that isn’t part of the overall strategy, it leaves less time to achieve the goals. They also know there will always be more requests than resources and every time we say yes to low-impact work, we are also saying no to the more high-impact work.
Of course, sometimes we do say yes to this non-strategic work, but we do so intentionally. For example, perhaps we really want to work as strategic business partners in the organization and a particular project gives us an opportunity to build credibility and influence with a key stakeholder. That's enough because it moves us towards a larger goal.
There are other times when intentional decisions may relate to shifting the strategy itself. This may mean altering timelines based on roadblocks or shifting priorities based on newly emerging critical events or challenges. As a result, a decision may be made to abandon or set aside certain goals or programs.
These are strategic, intentional decisions that take data into account, are thoughtful, and aligned to outcomes. They aren’t reactive and they aren’t random.
What does this mean for roles at different levels of L&D?
Now we come back to where we started, defining what it looks like to work strategically depending on where you sit.
For Individual Contributors
As an individual contributor (Instructional Designer, LMS Administrator, Training Specialist, Coordinator, Facilitator, etc.) you may feel like you lack the ability to work strategically. You likely aren’t setting the overall L&D strategy or defining the goals, but you can still tie your work to it. In fact, doing so will not only add meaning to your work, but it will also prepare you for a role where you contribute to creating and/or leading strategy in the future.
Here are a few ways to start working strategically as an IC:
Connect your work to the bigger picture. What is the purpose of your role? How does it contribute to moving the organization forward? If you aren’t sure, ask!
Start every project or task with the end in mind. What is the end goal? What are the steps you need to take to achieve that goal?
Make intentional decisions. Ensure any pivots to your work are thoughtful and intentional. If you aren’t the one making the choice to change, ask why. Ask the reason this priority is now more urgent than other work and what’s happening in the greater organization to drive this pivot.
Build strategic skills. If applicable, learn additional skills like influencing without authority and performance consulting to help you work more effectively with stakeholders and contribute to intentional decisions on whether to work on project requests. Uplevel your business acumen as well so that you understand the bigger picture of the organization.
Work strategically day-to-day. As you plan your daily work, think about the outcome you want for the day, then make intentional decisions about what to work on. This is working strategically on a smaller scale because it starts with a vision, defines how to get there, and makes intentional decisions throughout the work.
Mid-Level People Leaders (Team Leader, Manager, Director, etc.)
Depending on your span of responsibility you may be making decisions around strategy for the year. It’s likely you are often the one who can best translate strategy into execution for everyone else. Your role is to align, focus, and protect strategic work. Here are a few best practices:
Make strategy visible. Don’t keep strategy a secret. Ensure everyone on your team is aware of the strategy and understands how their work contributes. Use this to ground the work and keep everyone on track. Remind them regularly and answer all their related questions.
Be careful with pivots. Be ready to pivot, but only when necessary. Too many pivots mean you won’t move forward. Make intentional decisions about changing course, ensuring they are aligned to the greater business vision and goals or, at minimum, part of tackling organizational or talent challenges that are blocking progress.
Practice saying no and redirecting. It’s likely you will find yourself in a position to push back on requests that don’t align to the larger goals or where learning won’t solve their problem.
Measure outcomes. Gather measures and put processes in place to track progress against goals, not just activity.
Balance strategy and operations. Not all work ties directly to big initiatives, but it should still support organizational success. Work with your team to balance the daily tasks with work on larger strategic goals.
Senior L&D Leaders
Those who work in the most senior L&D roles (titles will be defined by your organization), are responsible for creating and aligning the L&D strategy with the greater business as well as sharing it with stakeholders, reporting on progress, and making data-driven decisions on when to pivot. This is likely to look like:
Building the overall L&D strategy. A sub-strategy aligned to the business’s vision and goals, as well as challenges and criticalities that must be addressed for business success. The strategy should be grounded in data, not anecdotes.
Make trade-offs. L&D can’t do everything. Your role is to make tough decisions about what stays and what must be scrapped based on resources, priorities, and committed partnerships.
Communicate relentlessly. Share this L&D strategy continuously with other senior leaders as well as the larger L&TD team. Take on the role of CRO (Chief Reminding Officer) and ensure that everyone knows where they are headed and how they are contributing, constantly reinforcing alignment.
Measure and share impact. Establish clear metrics and a consistent process to gather and share them. Communicate results with stakeholders.
Recognize achievements. Recognize movement and achievements towards the vision, giving credit to those who worked hard to make it happen.
Use data to evolve. Use data gathered and the corresponding insights to make business decisions that inform future strategy.
Final Thought
Yes, our function needs to evolve to more strategic work. We won’t be invited to strategic conversations if we can’t demonstrate that we know how to work in this way, moving the business forward through people. But working strategically doesn’t just happen. For most, it takes focus, continuous alignment and communication, and intentional decision-making. It looks a bit different at each level, but it matters at every level.
How will you work strategically today?
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To learn more about how we might work together, including assessing your team’s current status with the L&D Strategic Business Partner Team Assessment and corresponding Team Development Roadmap,contact Jess today.
