Council Post: Why CEOs Need To Promote Lifelong Learning In Their Companies

Caren Merrick, CEO of the Virginia Ready Initiative, is a technology entrepreneur, investor, board director, and executive.

Whether you work as a truck driver, manager, receptionist or CEO, the current moment is a perfect reminder of why all of us should commit to and take advantage of the many ways we can easily become lifelong learners.   

For example, regardless of industry, Covid-19 forced people overnight to learn new things like how to navigate a variety of video conferencing solutions, discern how to effectively communicate via instant message and, most importantly, decide which method is a better fit for a particular conversation. Those whose industries were particularly hit hard had to look into learning something totally new in order to pivot, survive and thrive.

But to be clear, lifelong learning doesn’t always have to be about gaining new career skills. Lifelong learning takes many forms, from podcasts by experts to webinars and online courses. And I believe successful leaders are those who embrace and encourage their teams to pursue lifelong learning even if it isn’t directly connected to the demands of their day-to-day job.

Why? There are actually quantifiable benefits to be realized by leaders and teams supporting employees pursuing any kind of lifelong learning. I believe creating a culture of learning can improve employee engagement. And according to Gallup’s State of the American Workforce report (registration required), businesses with engaged employees have been known to have 41% lower absenteeism, 17% higher productivity and 21% higher profitability. 

I know from personal experience that investing in employees’ personal development is powerful. One of my team members, for example, loved attending a writing course. While it didn’t have a strong connection to the day-to-day operations of our business, she came back energized and ready to work; she felt personally happy and fulfilled, so she was more engaged. Another team member recently shared how powerful listening to a certain podcast was for her during the pandemic. It created a space for her to think and inspire her in work and life.  

For managers and teams to see the same pros, there are three simple steps they can take right now to foster a better work environment by way of lifelong learning:

1. Walk your talk.

Executives should lead by example and be lifelong learners themselves. It’s important that you are open to trying new things and sharing the experiences you’ve had — from reading a great book to a course you took to pursue a passion project — and then share what you are discovering with your team members. 

In my experience, not only will this candor foster a sense of camaraderie with your team members, but it may also inspire the team to explore their interests through a course, podcast, webinar or more. 

2. Ask people on your team what they want to learn about.

Do you know what the people on your team are curious or passionate about? What would they like to learn? Ask them. As a leader, you can’t know what your employees are interested in learning unless you ask. It’s much simpler and more effective to get direct feedback as opposed to a top-down program that invests time or money in options the team might not get excited about.

The topics or courses might not directly tie to their jobs, but giving employees the opportunity to invest in themselves, whether through a class on poetry, writing, leadership, economics, emotional intelligence or even a hobby like SCUBA diving, could positively impact their performance and, in the long run, benefit your company. Ask your team. They often have the best ideas.

3. Provide incentives.

This one might be obvious, but the price tag is often the only thing standing in the way of someone taking steps to learn something new. Offering to pay for whichever kind of enrichment they choose will provide the encouragement many need to pursue personal development.

If you are worried about securing a return on the investment, you should suggest that participating employees write a reflection piece or lead a lunch-and-learn session to share what they’ve learned with others. And if there simply isn’t room in the budget to pay for each course or training, you can go another route by offering employees an extra day of personal time off to balance out the cost.

Over the past year, we’ve all been forced to adapt and change, and change is one of the few things about the future of which we can be absolutely sure. By encouraging your team members to be lifelong learners — and modeling lifelong learning yourself — you can better ensure your team’s happiness, your business’s success and perhaps your own happiness, too.


Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?


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