Picture this: For months, you've been working hard on the strategy for a new learning program. You confidently present it to key stakeholders, looking for their commitment to back it. They ask some good questions then say you did a good job. The meeting ends. Now what?

If you are an L&D leader working towards becoming a more strategic business partner, it's likely you are already developing trusted relationships with stakeholders throughout the business. It's no secret that a solid relationship with the right people is one of the most important factors in moving away from working as an order taker and towards working as a strategic business partner. But have you included all of the relevant groups in that mix?

Turns out, taking orders is a vital part of the change process for L&D to move from a transactional to a more transformational working partnership with the business.

Yes, L&D. We can have a bigger impact on our organizations when we shift our focus, our mindset, and our approach away from that of an order taker to one where we work as strategic business partners. Also, it's not that black and white. We can't simply swap one for the other.