“Align L&D with business strategy” sounds sensible, but it leaves out an important question: which decisions can learning leaders actually influence? An enterprise strategy, a business-unit plan and an operational improvement agenda create different capability requirements.
Enterprise-level decisions
At the enterprise level, leaders make choices about growth, risk, technology, operating models and investment. L&D can contribute evidence about whether the workforce can execute those choices, where capability constraints could derail them, and which interventions would be required.
Business-unit decisions
Business-unit leaders translate strategic choices into products, services, capacity and performance targets. Learning leaders should understand the work that produces those outcomes and help distinguish skill constraints from problems involving tools, processes, authority or incentives.
Operational decisions
At the operational level, managers determine how work is organized, supported and measured. Here, L&D can help test whether people can perform the required tasks and whether changes improve actual results.
Does L&D need a seat at every table?
No function can attend every decision forum. Participation should follow the materiality of workforce capability to the decision. Sometimes a formal seat is justified; sometimes timely evidence, a decision brief or direct partnership with an accountable leader is more effective. The goal is influence over relevant decisions, not meeting attendance.
How can L&D earn influence?
- Start with a live business decision rather than a proposed training calendar.
- Bring evidence about performance constraints and workforce readiness.
- Offer feasible alternatives, including non-training interventions.
- Make costs, dependencies and accountability explicit.
- Return with evidence of whether the intervention worked.
See How to diagnose a performance problem before training and CATALYST Learning & Strategy for related guidance.
If you are evaluating a workforce capability or learning investment decision, describe the decision in a consultation enquiry.
By Ravinder Tulsiani, DBA. Related book: Beyond Courses.
