Sunday December 13, 2009

Topic: Employee Management

Resource: “Custom Learning Becomes Standard for ImprovingWorkplace Performance”. Special Ad Section T+D, November 2009.

With the end of the fiscal yearand the conclusion of evaluations for the previous year, my attentionfrequently turns to future strategic goals and opportunities. I always makesure to include employee training in the scan for improved opportunities.Training is critical to retaining a productivity edge, engagement, and focus.However, with tighter discretionary budgets, it is imperative that the trainingbe valuable, timely, and specific to the issues in the workplace. Theprinciples of ROI apply to training just as it does to other parts of the valuechain. The difference is the benefits from cost savings and revenue growth maybe supported by intangibles that don’t show up on the financial statements suchas brand equity, cooperation, and trust. In the referenced article thecommentator take this argument even farther and argues that learning must nowbe customized at different levels, go beyond managers, and include new modes oflearning from things such as role plays, gaming, and the use of social mediatools. “Custom learning demands mean that an off-the-shelf product is just thestarting point…they want context that is relevant to their work environment”.The commentator sees the next wave in interactive training delivered over theInternet and via wireless applications. This kind of real time service deliverycould be used to great effect to support knowledge transfer, make learning morefun, and cut down the delivery cycles and cost. “In contrast with trainingregimens of the past where off site training consisted of a lot of ‘good toknow’ information that might be needed later on the job, clients now expecttraining to deliver answers and information for immediate job performance.” Ithink that this insight is right on point and shows the best way forward forre-tooling training programs and acquiring new content. The one thing that Iwould add is that training should also be sustained over a longer period oftime to help improve retention and application on the job. If the training isflexible, relevant and timely the results should speak for themselves. Let meknow your thoughts on improving employee training.

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