Are you developing your team(s) with shadowing or self-directed learning?

Both.
Some things are better learned while shadowing and some technologies are better by reading/watching videos, especially if the employee need to learn the theory first. I see shadowing more as a practical part of the study/training

I do both self directing and shadowing. We also discuss complex and convoluted topics along with research from Gartner and Forrester expertise as we are members of both organizations.

Yes, its critical to keep up skills and motivate teams

Its a mix of both. We have mentoring or pairing programs in experienced colleagues and leaders work with those who are less experienced or sometimes new; and we have the self directed training material / courses and certification programs as well.

We’ve seen that a blend of learning on own and shadowing someone help gain multiple perspectives and improve the overall experience.

I have always tried to balance a mix of both. Everyone learns differently, but I also think it is important to balance their comfort zone with new challenges. Learning through shadowing has immense value, but not every person has a clear person to shadow for their learning. However, even when relying on self-directed learning, I think it is important to set goals for those individuals and give them a framework to follow while allowing them some freedom in how they take courses and pace themselves.