HR Career advice
working as a head of learning & development
How popular are head of learning & development roles at the moment? Martyn Wright, Director of HR Recruitment at Robert Walters, explains.
These roles are very popular but also quite rare at the moment. Part of the reason for this is the nature of the job – not every organisation will have a head of learning & development.
Smaller businesses may instead employ generalists to carry out this work or have learning & development specialists at a junior level reporting into a senior HR generalist. The exception to this is often in banking and professional services – most of these organisations tend to have a head of learning & development.
Are there any myths about the role?
A head of learning & development is typically viewed internally as someone who delivers training – but this is rarely the case in reality. Typically, these people will instead engage external vendors or have a team responsible for this. Instead, a head of learning & development is normally responsible for devising an overall development strategy for a company and its employees.
What essentials do you need to become a head of L&D?
Although you may have progressed into one of these roles from a generalist background, a Head of L&D will need a clear specialism in learning and development. They will also need significant experience in a senior development role and of servicing a senior client base.
At the moment, the market is very risk averse so clients are demanding specific industry experience – seemingly regardless of the sector they operate within.
Financial services is a slight exception to this, with firms more willing to consider people from different types of organisations if they are exceptional. When an individual who has recruitment responsibilities has come from a different sector, they are also often more open to considering those from alternative backgrounds.
What will a head of L&D be doing on a day-to-day basis?
It is essentially a management and strategic role – most responsibilities are typical for someone at this level. For example, they will be required to meeting with Heads of Business on a regular basis and typically manage a team. They will also need to liaise with senior line management and senior HR figures to ensure the overall L&D approach is in line with the broader business strategy. Coaching senior executives is another key responsibility. Overall, it is potentially a very high profile role within a business.
What other HR jobs are in demand? Read our latest HR jobs forecast.