#21 🎮💡💎 Podcast notes: Value proposition design (12/14)
Recently, I've had a nice conversation with Liz Ștefan, the host of the L&D Spotlight podcast. Here's the part where we discussed about value proposition design (min. 47:07 in the podcast episode).
Liz: And if I flip it around, L&D also has almost the obligation to itself to explain its purpose and its value to the other business functions. I would assume, no?
In the same simple terms, explaining. The reason I'm saying this is that because often L&D isn't necessarily perceived as value adding, or not as obviously value adding as the Sales function, or the Customer Support Function.
And I'm thinking that, in order to keep itself relevant, L&D has the task of understanding how and why other business functions exist in the organization, then it's almost a duty of L&D towards itself to also explain itself.
Bülent: I wouldn't necessarily use "duty", because it's another loaded word. But it makes sense, it's something valuable to have this clarity on: What's the value that you provide?
And here there are various tools, activities, like there's this idea of Value Proposition Design - this activity through which you explore various types of value that you could provide and would be relevant for your internal or external customers, and then you decide on a simple value proposition. So something that you don't need 10 pages to explain.
If the L&D team would have an internal website where they could present the value they are offering, the services, products and everything, the value proposition is the phrase that you would see in the middle of the first page of the website.
So what's that catchy phrase that the others, that are the beneficiaries of that value, would resonate with, about what L&D creates for them.
So that's why in Value Proposition Design you need to get to the essence of what you're offering. And not have long, multiple paragraphs, we're doing this, and that helping you and reducing hassle and allowing your growth, career. No. What's that simple phrase that communicates the value that you are creating for your colleagues.
That's an exercise that I would encourage all the listeners to do. Or if you already have a value proposition that you have been communicating to your colleagues in the organization maybe to revisit it as a quick exercise together, as the L&D team, because you might be surprised of how much this context of value in your organization and also outside has changed in the past few months, years or so.
The central idea, I guess, after reflecting back on all our conversation today is around this connecting to value, to what value is. For the organization as a whole, for various parts of the organization, for the customers and other entities outside the organization, but that have links with the organization. And, of course, what value is for you, as the L&D professional or the whole L&D team.
That's something that connects a lot with strategy.
Bülent Duagi is a Sr. Strategic adviser for Tech companies and a lifelong learner. He works at the intersection of Strategy, Foresight, Leadership, Org Design, Product and Capability Development. Connect on LinkedIn and learn more by exploring his professional one pager.