Recruit, Inspire & Retain Newsletter -- Training Systems, Inc.

Used with permission from Cathy Fyock, a TRAINING SYSTEMS, INC. Associate.

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●	The Leadership Genius of George W. Bush: 10 Common Sense Lessons from the Commander-in-Chief, by Carolyn B. Thompson & James W. Ware.

●	Understanding Leadership Competencies, by Patricia Guggenheimer & Mary Diane Szuk

Both available at http://store.fastcommerce.com/trainingsys. (10% off by typing “RIR” in Special Instructions). Or e-mail books@trainingsys.com.

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TRAIN SO THEY’LL LEARN

The Need for Rapid E-Learning Development

For decades, technology-based training has promised to give us the power to increase the scale and reach of training.

As we’ve rushed into e-learning, however, many have found that the time and cost to build excellent content sometimes overcomes these advantages. The "traditional" approach takes many months to build and can cost tens of thousands of dollars per learning hour.

Many training needs come with urgent development timelines (e.g., get this program out in the next few weeks) and short shelf life (e.g., in three months this will be out-of-date). Often these types of training have smaller budgets, smaller teams, and require the subject-matter experts to share their knowledge more directly with the learners.

There's a new training category emerging, called "Rapid E-Learning." It’s an approach that changes the development model, the tools, and costs dramatically less.

Rapid E-Learning Defined
These methods are a cross between knowledge management and e-learning. Knowledge management uses collaborative technologies to encourage subject matter experts to share their knowledge and e-learning delivers skills and knowledge in a streamlined and methodical way.

Rapid E-Learning:
-	Training that can be developed in less than 3 weeks
-	Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) act as the primary development resource
-	A well-known tool (e.g., PowerPoint) or user-friendly templates form the starting point for the e-learning
-	It includes simple assessment, feedback and tracking
-	Media elements that enhance learning but do not create technology barriers may be included (e.g., voice)
-	Learning modules can be taken in one hour or less

The key to a successful Rapid E-Learning program is having a development process (including tools) that makes it easy and quick for a SME to develop a course.

When to Use Rapid E-Learning
Consider using Rapid E-Learning for these types of content:
*	Helping people learn the difference between what they did before and what has changed
*	Content that will go out of date
*	Topics that require frequent and regular updates
*	Issues/skills that must be addressed immediately
*	Topics that may preface a group training or more detailed blended learning

Notice that, in the list above, mastery or certification of skills isn’t included. Rapid E-Learning techniques are best used for teaching conceptual information. Rapid E-Learning can be blended with other forms of training to achieve higher level skills, or they may morph into skills development training over time.

An Example
Bayer HealthCare used Rapid E-Learning to provide safety refresher training and continuous product updates. They created a Rapid E-Learning training for the field sales and service staff.

Sales reps are responsible for selling Bayer's diagnostic systems. They need to be kept up-to-date with the latest advancements in product and medical technologies. If the sales representatives don't have the latest information, they could end up conveying out-of-date research or wrong product information when making a sale.
Service reps maintain Bayer's high-tech medical laboratory equipment, and work with lab samples, needles and other tools. Poor or non-existent training can result in injuries or illnesses. They need to be continuously updated on safety procedures to keep injury rates as low as possible.

Within Bayer's field sales and service organization, there are in-field trainers who are responsible for keeping the sales and service reps up-to-date. The trainers need to provide timely training around the world. Although the trainers were very used to dealing with highly technical medical equipment, they were not particularly PC-savvy. Bayer HealthCare was using Lectora software, but they found that with Lectora alone, it was difficult for non-PC savvy trainers to make the shift from on-the-job training to e-learning. The structure and detail required was difficult for the in-field trainers to master because it was very different from the face to face training they were used to doing.

The solution was to provide the in-field trainers with an easy-to-use product, called Articulate, which converts PowerPoint screen shows to Flash with audio narration, which can then be integrated into Lectora software.

One of the keys to this group's success with Rapid E-Learning is training that helps the in-field trainers learn how to create Articulate modules. They learn templates, color scheme, fonts and course length.
Once they’re trained, Bayer HealthCare can create and deploy an e-learning training in about 3 weeks. If a high-quality PowerPoint screen show already exists, then the turnaround time is even less—10 business days.

Like many medical organizations, these learners work long days and usually fit training in before their day starts or after it ends. The Bayer HealthCare standard is to create small training modules that focus on product training. They found that if a course is over an hour long, the complaints roll in and the course completion rate goes down significantly.

Another factor that helped the Rapid E-Learning succeed is that most of the trainers are good communicators. They are former sales and marketing professionals and trainers, so they had good training skills already. If that weren't the case, it would be a lot tougher to create quality content fast.

Last year, the Bayer HealthCare team deployed 19 courses using the Rapid E-Learning methodology.

Excerpted from a newly released industry study called Rapid E-Learning: What Works?: Tools, Techniques and Best Practices.

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●	Blended E-Learning, by Larry Pielawski & David Metcalf

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RETAIN THE BEST

Vision Writing: Retain Employees by Making Them An Integral Part

Use these instructions to write & come to consensus on a vision — for a job, for a team, for a department, or for the whole organization:

Have each person write the vision — where they want to go/the team/the department/the organization.
Form 2 circles of chairs facing each other. Half the group sits on the chairs of the inner circle facing outwards and the other half of the people sit on the outer circle of chairs facing inwards.
Each person reads their vision to the person they are facing. They then massage their visions until they both agree on one vision. Once all the pairs have a joint vision the inside group moves to the right and the outside group moves to the right. Continue the massaging, writing, and moving until they have shared their vision with everybody.
Ask if there is any agreement on the vision. Have several people read out what they have.
You will find there is great agreement and you may have the vision that everybody is comfortable working with. If not, work as a whole group until unanimity is achieved.

Speed Caution: you need to allow plenty of time. Some people will feel that it is not worth the time, but persist. Their resistance lessens as the consensus grows.

Besides arriving at a vision that is acceptable to all, the really big benefit is the extraordinary conversations people have had about where they want to take the organization. You can create some interesting changes & achieve extraordinary results in profitability and in reducing costs when staff are in charge of where you’re going!

Call TRAINING SYSTEMS, INC. at 800-469-3560 for more ideas!

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●	Organizational Vision, Values, & Mission, by Cynthia Scott, Dennis Jaffe & Glenn Tobe

●	Successful Strategic Planning, by Stephen Haines

Both available at http://store.fastcommerce.com/trainingsys. (10% off by typing “RIR” in Special Instructions). Or e-mail books@trainingsys.com.

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Buy The Leadership Genius of George W. Bush: 10 Common Sense Lessons from the Commander-in-Chief from our online TRAINING SYSTEMS, INC. catalog or by E-mailing or calling 800-469-3560.

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Recruit, Inspire & Retain

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The Need for Rapid E-Learning Development

Vision Writing: Retain Employees by Making Them An Integral Part