As the need to attract, retain and grow talent moves to the top of the strategic agenda, L&D has the chance to become as vital to business as finance or marketing. In the new world, L&D needs to be about value not cost; outcomes not activity; proven contribution to the business not audience delight. Traditional development solutions are either custom or off-the-shelf – the first is slow to create, expensive and lacks responsiveness; the latter tends not to be fit for purpose, a one-size approach that fits no-one.

1. Cile Johnson
Senior Vice President, Clients
The bite-size
revolution in learning

2. © Mind Gym
The bite-size revolution
2
What
works?
Blocks and
releases to
bite size
The bites in
bite-size
Bite-size:
In practice
The
bite-size
revolution

3. © Mind Gym
The future of learning
3
Little and often with distributed practice delivers greater
personal and business value.

4. © Mind Gym
With great results
4
12%
20% 13% 25% 23%
“I have stopped
smacking my
son since I came
on this program.”
Prosocial
behaviour
Peer
problems Hyperactivity
Conduct
problems
Emotional
symptons
“My husband said to me,
‘you haven’t shouted all
week,’ I realized it’s
because of what I’ve
learnt here.”
“I have found this course
fantastic – my child now
sleeps in his own bed for
the first time in 6 years.”
Positive sustained changes 3-5 months after program

5. © Mind Gym
Blocks to
bite-size in your
organization?
5

6. © Mind Gym
4 reasons why we don’t
6
Longer = Better The event
is the hero
Design for
the outlier
We say that
people are
different, but
we treat them all
the same

7. © Mind Gym
Longer = better
7
London
New York
7.5 Hours
$1,000
4.5
Days
$2,000

8. © Mind Gym
A day’s worth of value in 90 minutes
8
0.00 0.20 0.40 0.60 0.80 1.00 1.20
Knowledge of the
various influencing styles
which can be used in
different situations.
Understanding of
my own preferred
style and it’s impact
on others.
Ability to adopt
different influencing
styles to suit others’
styles or differing
situations.
Mind Gym 90-minute workout Day long Two day
Standardized shifts

9. © Mind Gym
With added distribution
9
9
Low High
Performance
improvement
Numberofpeople
Source: Donovan & Radosevich, 1999
½σ
Massed
practice
Spaced
practice

10. © Mind Gym
Illustrative value proposal
10
Traditional approach Bite-size approach
Program 1 day’s learning
2 x 90 min learning session
1x 30min transfer task
1x 30min booster session
Costs
Cost of time of
20 ppt @ $107,410*
$8,913 $4,456
Facilitator/ trainer costs $4,000 $5,500
Travel & Expenses $2,000 $500
TOTAL COSTS $14,913 $10,456
Benefits
Improvement in performance 5% 6%†
Utility value (20 ppt.)** $107,410 $128,892
ROI 620% 1270%
* Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages, Management occupations, May 2011 at 241 working days per year.
** Utility is calculated by taking salary x performance improvement.
† ½ of one standard deviation greater transfer and therefore performance improvement (Donovan & Radosevich, 1999)

11. © Mind Gym
The bottom line… Miniaturization pays
11
17% Performance
improvement 200% Greater return
on investment33% Cheaper

12. © Mind Gym
The event is the hero
12
Context
setting
Learning
event
On the job
application
>40% <20% >40%
Engage
Activate
Participate
Individual transfer is the hero

13. © Mind Gym
Design for the outlier
13
“A meeting moves at the
speed of the slowest mind
in the room. All but one
participant will be bored,
all but one mind underused.”
Slowpoke
“All the facts in detail.
You end up with bloated
experiences and
unnecessary content.”
Skeptic
“Wants a collaborative
or facilitative approach to
everything. Every avenue
of conversation is explored,
every concept generated
by the group.”
Dialogue
junkie

14. © Mind Gym
Designing for application
14
Context
• Simulations
• Role plays
• Case studies
• Problem-based learning
• Action learning sets
• Online forums
• Ruthless pragmatism
Hug the context

15. © Mind Gym
Hug the context
Designing for application
15
Context
• Simulations
• Role plays
• Case studies
• Problem-based learning
• Action learning sets
• Online forums
• Ruthless pragmatism
Context
Context
Context
Context
• Consider use of
general principles
• Multiple
illustrations
• Seeking multiple
contexts for application
• Identify similarities
between contexts
• Storytelling
and metaphor

16. © Mind Gym
Activate tactics
16
Activate
Make the
transfer problem
explicit
Use
management
observations and
coaching
Use after
action reviews
Incorporate
transfer tasks
into the workflow

17. © Mind Gym
We treat people all the same
17

18. © Mind Gym
Mass customization
18

19. © Mind Gym
Mass customization of learning
19

20. © Mind Gym
Before and after the bite-size revolution
Traditional
• Longer = Better
• Design for the participant outliers
• The event is the hero
• We say that people are different,
but we treat them all the same
Bite size
• Miniaturize & Distribute
• Design for context of application
• Transfer is the hero
• Mass customization

21. © Mind Gym
Join the revolution – Your mission
21
1. Seek ways to miniaturize your learning experiences. In
terms of content, what is the vital few?
2. Create engagement. Tap into the self-interest of the
participants.
3. Use distributed experiences. Spaced practice delivers
much better value than massed practice.
4. Tune the environment to activate participants’ prior
learning.
5. Develop value proposals to win over business
stakeholders.

22. 1 million
Participants
1,200
Companies
250
Coaches
30
Languages
40
Countries
2013
Learning Company
of the Year
New York
London
Dubai
Singapore

23. © Mind Gym
Engaged participants
23
Welcome!
Why are you here…?
‘Because it’s Wednesday
and my manager said
I needed to attend.’
A
‘I am here because my role
requires influencing customers
to buy. This will help me do this
better. I’ll also get better at
persuading my teenage daughter.’
C
“Most companies have
type ‘A’ learners. Type ‘C’
are the only ones who
drive ROI.”
Robert Brinkerhoff
‘Because I want to learn
about influencing people
so that I can persuade
my husband and kids.’
B