ATD Blog
Listening to our learners’ needs is crucial to the effectiveness of a learning solution.
Mon Feb 03 2025
Over the past month, I’ve been helping my dad close his dental practice after 41 years of service. As patients share congratulations and gratitude, one detail has stood out: many thank him for listening. At first, I found this hilarious because dentists are notorious for making conversation while their hands are in your mouth (my dad is certainly guilty of this). But, I later realized it’s a lovely acknowledgment of a skill he instilled in me: active listening.
Active listening is deep engagement with someone. Instead of just hearing the words, you consider what they mean to the individual. You take note of the verbal presentation, like how words are emphasized, and nonverbal cues, like body language or facial expressions. When there’s an opportunity to respond, you prioritize the individual over yourself. Rather than inserting a personal quip or offering advice, paraphrase what you heard or ask a clarifying question. Dig deeper into their thoughts and remarks.
Active listening is an act of empathy: it makes the speaker feel heard or seen. Moreover, it allows you to better understand them, which in turn helps you meet their needs. When applied to learning design, the result of active listening is building a learning experience that is designed for all. By truly hearing what learners express—whether it’s a preference for alternative formats or the need for accommodations—you can create solutions that are equitable and accessible to all, not just the majority.
Understanding our learners’ needs is crucial to the effectiveness of a learning solution. Read that sentence again.
We all acknowledge that learning is an inherently complex process. Countless factors affect it and differ for individuals. Where one person prefers watching how-to videos, another person prefers a live demonstration. This information affects the direction of your learning design, and you learn this information through listening, specifically through discovery.
By definition, discovery is a research process that aims to gather information about a problem in pursuit of a learning solution. In my opinion, this definition can create misconceptions. If your sole focus is to solution, then you’re doing discovery wrong. The objective isn’t to identify learning outcomes, it’s to reveal the learners’ needs, preferences, frustrations, pain points, and past experiences. Discovery requires active listening.
While I’m not so bold as to label myself an expert at listening, I have established a few valuable practices when conducting discovery. This is a summary of my top five that you can try in your own discovery calls:
1. Learners should define their own needs—not subject matter experts (SMEs) or stakeholders.
SMEs provide deep knowledge about a topic or practice; they speak from an expert perspective. You’ll lean on them to understand intricacies and specific details. Stakeholders will provide requirements related to learning duration, technology, and the terminal objective. They might also decide the modality of the solution. Both roles have vital information to share, but they are not the learner and cannot dictate exactly what the learners’ needs are.
2. Focus on the conversation instead of your list of discovery questions.
It’s customary to generate questions for discovery calls. However, it should not be treated as a grocery list: the goal is not to cross off every question. Instead, focus your attention on what the learner is sharing. Listen for insights that reveal gaps and ask follow-up questions. Reference your list only after the learner has exhausted their thoughts or opinions on a topic.
3. Take note of who’s doing most of the talking (hint: it shouldn’t be you).
Listening is difficult to do when you’re doing the talking. This is obvious, but it’s still worth saying. I’ve certainly been guilty of monopolizing a discovery call. Sometimes it’s because the learner is shy or unopinionated. Other times, it’s because they’ve said something that triggers a million ideas in my mind, thus causing a crazy tirade of solutioning. To prevent this from happening, I place a sticky note (digital or physical) on my computer with a single word: LISTEN.
4. Get the learner to think like a designer.
Questions like “If you had to train someone on this skill, how would you do it?” or “How would you teach a new hire/friend/child about this topic?” reveal the learner’s modality preferences. It’s also an opportunity to reveal nuances that may differ from how a stakeholder or SME understands a topic.
5. Crosscheck for consistency between interviews.
Analysis is part of discovery: take all the insights and look for patterns. Ideally, the learners’ needs are aligned and clear; they match the terminal objective provided by the stakeholder. Sometimes it doesn’t work out this way. Maybe the learners want different types of learning experiences because their scopes differ. Perhaps the learners express the same need, but the stakeholders are pushing training on an entirely different topic. In such situations, it’s imperative that you share your findings with decision makers.
Designing learning without learner-centric discovery is as silly as filling a tooth without getting X-rays. X-rays disclose the level of decay so that the proper treatment can be applied. The same principle applies to learning: if you can understand knowledge gaps and learner needs, you can create an effective learning solution. Effectiveness alone isn’t sufficient, though. It is our responsibility as L&D professionals to design for all. By actively listening to learners and considering diverse needs, we can create accessible, inclusive learning environments that empower every individual to succeed.
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