Cynthiann King leads the design, development, implementation, management, and maintenance of company-wide employee training initiatives and programs for Toll Brothers, a national, luxury homebuilder firm with more than 5,000 associates.
How do you define talent development at Toll Brothers?
We don't have a formal definition of talent development, but we have a mission statement for HR and learning and development, which we developed as a team: "Mirroring the high standard of luxury embraced by our company, we seek to hire, engage, train, and retain the best employees, providing them with luxury services through a full array of excellent benefits and professional development opportunities."
Our part of the mission is to provide associates with professional development opportunities, which may include formal training, stretch assignments, mentoring programs, and coaching. Our goal is to develop our talent by offering associates many different opportunities to grow, do their jobs well, and sustain their ability to perform well and succeed.
How have you seen the company's approach to learning and development evolve?
Prior to my joining the firm, there had not been a full-fledged learning and development leader. There was lots of training going on and some professional development, yet it wasn't consolidated into a single focus, nor was most of it formalized. We did not have a robust learning management system nor any competency models. Today we have both those things and more.
The way we design, deliver, and evaluate learning and development has evolved in the past five years. We've introduced a variety of learning methodologies, including microlearning. And coaching and mentoring opportunities have expanded.
What are the most important components of talent development at Toll Brothers right now?
- Supporting the change to new and better technology infrastructure and tools to take advantage of the state-of-the-art in homebuilding.
- Building the skills and processes to transition smoothly to these changes.
- Providing learning and mentoring to Toll Brothers' 5,000+ employees, from laborers to executives.
Where does L&D fit into the org chart?
I report to CHRO Joy Roman, who reports to the CEO.
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