Managed learning services are reshaping how organisations adapt and thrive in an era of constant change. We consider how they enable effective workforce development and future readiness.
Studies show that over half of our workforce are missing the skills required to succeed. As innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI), continue to transform our tasks and approaches, internal learning and development (L&D) functions often struggle to keep up with the rapidly evolving skills requirements, access learning from various providers and manage these processes efficiently.
In this changing landscape, the role of managed learning services (MLS) has become more critical than ever. But what specific roles do MLS play in supporting organisations to innovate and ensure their workforce is consistently skilled?
We sat down with Capita MLS experts Andy Bower (MD of Workforce Development), Sarah Faulkner (Head of Learning Operations), and Nick Weir (Director of Business Support) to discuss the transformative role of MLS in reshaping client partnerships & delivering innovation.
The role of MLS in supporting organisational change and innovation
“Organisations are changing,” explains Nick, “and it's vital that we work with our customers to ensure that their employees remain competent and confident in their roles.”
Sarah believes the biggest change from a workforce development perspective is the seismic shift in learning strategies. We’re moving beyond the “old pick and pack Amazon approach” of transactional learning. Today, it’s about developing deep, collaborative partnerships. This evolution marks a departure from merely reacting to needs to proactively shaping learning environments that foster innovation.
Andy Bower emphasises the importance of the ‘service’ element in an MLS, which often gets overlooked in commercial contexts. He explained that MLS should not be viewed merely as a transactional market where organisations can buy off-the-shelf solutions. Instead, MLS should operate in collaboration with customers to understand their changing learning and training requirements, ensuring their workforce remains future-ready. “It’s not enough to be ready for now…It's about putting in place the enabling skills, capabilities, confidence, and competence to transform and change in response to future requirements.”
Leveraging MLS to drive organisational capability
An effective MLS can offer organisations more than they could achieve on their own, whether that’s through easy-access to best-in-class skills providers, removing time consuming admin (such as contracting, procuring, booking and finance), and transforming and growing access to learning at speed.
The fundamental capability of an MLS provider in achieving this is adaptability, as Nick says; “we have to move with the same level of agility and flexibility as our customers”. That means having a structure that “can scale up and down easily and at pace” in times of high demand, such as when a significant change to skill requirements occurs, at a speed that your own L&D teams cannot match.
To deliver that adaptability, Sarah adds, requires an innovative technology ecosystem; “you need a great supply chain, and to leverage hyperscalers like Microsoft, AWS, ServiceNow, and Salesforce to support customers”. This provides platforms and tools that help people access skills faster and can be of particular support to smaller organisations. The stronger the ecosystem, the lower the cost of delivery is, and thus the lower the cost to the client - LearningPlace is an example of such a platform.
Why insights are a game changer
Andy explained that operational efficiency is not enough to make an MLS worthwhile today or in the future. Instead, he sees a primary role of an MLS being “expertise and insight; the opportunity to have a strategic partner working with you at a scale that even the largest companies would struggle with.” A good MLS should provide insight into what is happening across your sector. “It’s about conversation, engagement, and collaboration.”
Creating this insight, Nick says, relies on “our broad scope of customer and supplier base”, and our ability to analyse trends and reflect them back to clients.
Informing skills development through MLS data
In the context of change and innovation, this insight can be integral to the long-term competitiveness and success of organisations. Andy stressed that an MLS should have a data set that allows for comparison across the sector. “It should provide insight into common skills pathways that we’re seeing across our client base and industry and help organisations ensure they are doing the right thing.”
Sarah concurs, explaining that “this market reach and insight are where MLS excels, helping organisations move beyond administrative tasks to scalable solutions.” This insight is enhanced, she adds, by training needs analysis expertise, “our consultants support with training needs analysis - including DSAT specialist for regulated industries - to identify critical skills gaps and develop a plan to address them.”
This, Sarah explains, can then be transferred into access to the right skills development, at the right time. “We work in collaboration with our customers to identify critical skills and align training with those skills. We collect masses of data for our customers, which helps us to shape the picture of what they need. We can then provide more of what they do need - via experts in those skills - and take away what they don’t.”
Overcoming barriers in partnerships
Clearly, a managed learning service can be transformative in ensuring you get the right skills, to the right people, faster. However, there are common barriers that prevent such a service delivering that.
A lack of trust and collaboration between both parties is a common barrier to success. Addressing this, Andy highlighted the importance of aligning expectations and building strong relationships, stating, “There needs to be clarity about activities and open engagement to prevent a lack of trust.” Sarah agrees, adding that “visibility of key business challenges and strategies is crucial. Building open and honest collaborative relationships helps align the managed learning service with upskilling for the future.”
Nick raises another challenge, which he sees all too often: the over-complication of the learning strategy. He gives the example of a learning evaluation, instead of a succinct, repeatable list of metrics, “…we end up with 50 questions that are very specific to the organisation…the upshot of that is nobody fills them in because it’s too complicated, and when you are trying to compare across industries, it does not give you a clear comparison.” All in all, this approach provides no value to the client organisation. In short, “…processes should be kept simple to avoid detracting from value-added activities.”
From transactional to strategic: Creating long-term value
Moving beyond transactional relationships, MLS can catalyse significant advantages:
Unlocking internal potential
Sarah highlights the true value of managed learning services, saying that an MLS “takes away the headache” of admin and repeatable processes, allowing internal teams to “focus on strategic work.” This can upskill your internal teams to deliver long-term value, similar to our work with a large financial client who revamped their learning data strategy.
Partnerships for progress
Nick emphasised the importance of partnerships: “Our greatest successes come from being seen and treated as an extension of the customer.” This approach ensures your workforce stays ahead, equipped for future challenges.
Avoiding complacency
Andy cautions against the transactional drift of MLS, driven by rising costs: “Many MLS’ have become transactional, driven to the bottom line…the opportunity advantage around the service element has been lost, and we need to recover it.”
Transform your organisation with Managed Learning Services. Equip your team to navigate change and be prepared for future opportunities. Contact us at learning@capita.com to learn how.
Find out how we can support your learning and development requirements:
James Eynon
Senior Learning Consultant & Leadership Coach
Since 2015, James has led various L&D initiatives, focusing on practical solutions for learning cultures, data impact, reskilling, and leadership. James’ pragmatic approach to both consultancy and facilitation has resulted in the creation of a new workplace culture model, in which hybrid working is an integral part.
