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ATD Blog

Spotlight on the LXCI: How Optimistic Are Learning Leaders?

Wednesday, February 25, 2015
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Did you know that ATD Research polls learning executives on a quarterly basis about how optimistic they are about the health of learning and releases the results in a free online report? The Learning Executive Confidence Index is released four times a year: in January (for Q4 of the previous year), April (Q1 of the current year), July (Q2 of the current year), and October (Q3 of the current year).

The LXCI Is a Valuable Resource for Learning Professionals

Learning professionals at all levels turn to the LXCI as a valuable source of information on where organizational learning is headed in the short-term. The report not only provides statistics based on the survey data, but also analyzes various economic trends that affect learning.

The Big Number: What Is the LXCI Score?

Each quarter, the “Big Number,” or the LXCI Score, is calculated. This number provides a measure of learning executives’ optimism.

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The LXCI is measured on a 100-point scale, in which a higher index score reflects a more optimistic outlook for the learning function in organizations and a lower index score reflects greater negativity. An index score of more than 50 indicates more positive than negative responses (meaning most learning executives feel that the health of learning will improve over the next six months).

The LXCI score is based on learning executives' six-month forecasts for four key indicators: 

  • the ability of learning executives to meet organizations’ learning needs
  • the impact of learning on corporate performance
  • the perception of the value of learning within organizations
  • the availability of resources needed to meet learning needs. 

To provide some context, since 2008, when ATD first began calculating the LXCI, the lowest LXCI score was 55.1 in Q1 2009 and the highest was 69.9 in Q4 2013. In almost every quarter, the score has been between 60 and 70. Between 2010 and 2014, the average score was between 65 and 66.
What Does the Latest LXCI Score Tell Us?

The latest LXCI, for Q4 2014, was released in January. Learning executives were generally very positive, and the score continued to show an upward trend—it was 68.2 in Q4 2014, which is more than a point higher than Q3’s score of 66.9 and more than two points higher than Q2’s (65.7).

The sunny outlook shown by learning executives reflected the healthy growth of the U.S. economy in the second half of 2014. Of particular importance to learning, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 321,000 new jobs were created in November, a number that exceeded projections and job creation from the previous month. In addition, consumer spending and GDP growth were healthy. As workers adapted to frequent changes in technology and markets, the importance of learning stood out.

The Q1 2015 LXCI will be released in April. Although it is difficult to predict what it will read, economists expect strong economic growth in 2015.

I’m a Learning Executive—How Can I Make the LXCI Better?

If you are a learning executive interested in participating in very brief, online surveys, please email us at [email protected]. Additionally, if you have suggestions or feedback on the LXCI, please email us.

Keep Up on the LXCI and Download Past Reports

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The next report will be released in April. It will be available for free at www.td.org/lxci, where past reports are also available for download. You can also follow us on twitter @atdresearch to get the latest updates on new research, including the LXCI.

About the Author

Maria Ho is the manager of ATD research services. She serves as ATD's senior research program strategist and designer and provides oversight and direction for all of ATD's internal and external, industry specific, and market research services. Prior to joining ATD, Maria was a public policy researcher, data analyst, and writer at the Pew Charitable Trusts in Washington, D.C.

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