Tag Archive for 'custom training'

Elearning Development Process

Published on August 29, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

How do we set the right expectations with our clients? How do we make sure that they understand exactly what the responsibilities are to assure that the execution of an elearning project we were hired to develop runs smoothly through its life cycle?

We assign a project manager to work with the client to communicate all the tasks, responsibilities, due dates and risks. The project manager’s responsibility is to make sure the client understands and signs off on the project schedule. This should be enough right?

Sometimes it is not.

A client will look at a project schedule and read a task, see who is responsible for completing it, and agree on the date it must be completed by. S/he will have “signed off” on the schedule. Agreement has been reached.

And then, client tasks (which we have absolutely no control over)  are not completed on time.

  • “The SME got pulled to another, more pressing, project.”
  • “We are still compiling global feedback.”
  • “We weren’t aware that legal has to give a green light and they said they needed at least 2 weeks.”
  • “Sorry, my priority this week changed and I had to focus on something else.”

You get the picture. My project managers have all complained about this. How do we handle this? We just do.

Our mantra is that “the client rules.” We are extremely flexible and allow for — and know how to handle — these types of delays. The problem is when at the end of a project, a client comes back to us and says: “The course was great but unfortunately it was too late.”

Granted, we have all of the emails that clearly point out that the project’s delay was not our fault but the client’s. But so what? Ultimately, it is our project, and our responsibility. And nobody is going to care whose fault it was. The client is just going to remember that it was “too late.”

I constantly coach my project managers on this issue. The best, and most productive, thing to do to counter this kind of response is to educate, educate, educate. Educate the client about the process of developing elearning. Educate the client about the effort that each task will entail. Educate the client about the inter-dependencies of a task.  Educate the client about the repercussions of missing a date. Educate and communicate.

Can eLearning deliver business results?

Published on July 20, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

No and yes.

We all know it is people who can deliver business results, so then the question becomes does eLearning empower individuals to deliver business results? Again,  the answer is no and yes.

No, not all eLearning is created equal as we all know.  Some eLearning is just simply informational and that is fine if that is its purpose (e.g. a vacation policy).  But if the purpose of the eLearning investment is to add value then it must provide an interactive learning experience with knowledge that is relevant and meaningful to my job.  But wait there is more!  If the individual then uses this knowledge in his or her job then we could say that we have a chance at proving that our eLearning investment can deliver business results.  And, the opposite is true, if the individual does not use the knowledge provided then we can’t say we have a direct impact on business results.

So does your eLearning end when it ends or does it impact individuals’ behavior?  How do you know they actually used it or even committed to using the knowledge you provided?  If you know the answers to these questions you already know you are delivering business results with your eLearning investments.

What is Instructional Design? Does it make a difference?

Published on July 12, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

We often talk about the importance of instructional design in workplace learning, but are we all talking the same language?  For example, the instructional design degree has only been formally offered in US higher education institutions like Florida State and San Diego State among a few others.  So when foreign eLearning and training companies claim they have instructional designers, what do they mean?

Instructional design in its simplest definition is the practice that concerns itself with developing learning experiences that achieve sound instructional goals.  This is a pretty loaded definition, let’s take a closer look.  “Learning experiences” can be defined as the actual interactions that occur between the learner and the instructional content.  For this experience to be effective adult learning theory states that it must be meaningful and relevant to the learner.  Now, what about “sound” instructional goals?  It happens to be that “sound” is the most often found adjective, in this case, of instructional goals.  It means that the goals have been well thought out, are achievable and hence make sense or are “sound”.

The question you need to ask youself is:  can instructional designers who are far from our culture, context, idosynchracies, nuances and out of touch with the intricacies of how business is run, create effective learning experiences for our employees?

Practice what you preach

Published on May 24, 2011 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

So many times in our lives we have encountered people who say one thing and do another. In our professional lives as well, how many times have we engaged a company or vendor who preach something and then turn around and do something else? This is one of the main complaints we get from our clients. They come to us after having hired another vendor who basically “didn’t get it.” For our clients, “it” means what they originally hired them to do, their company culture, their timely requests, their internal processes. The list goes on and on.

That is why when I received the following email from a viewer of one of our YouTube educational videos, I was so thrilled that someone had caught on to one of the main tenets of our business strategy and the reason why we have remained in business — successfully– for over 10 years. (And definitely the reason why our clients keep coming back to us for more).

So here it is: “I am currently a graduate student at Kaplan University, in the department of Higher Education.  As part of a class assignment we were instructed to evaluate your 10 minute presentation on YouTube [on delivering an engaging virtual classroom presentation]; and would also, at your request, like to give you some feedback. I thought that you did an outstanding job of creating a concise, informative, and practical educational experience.  I really appreciated seeing the image of who I believe is you, but either way, that image of a woman dressed professionally, appeared to be the instructor; thus making it feel more like a traditional classroom experience.  The narrator’s voice was clear, and contained a lot of inflection, conveying an energy and enthusiasm that was engaging. The graphics appeared very professional and there was a nice continuity between all of the graphics.  The video suggested that a presentation incorporate more visuals with little text, and in that manner and a few others, you modeled the concepts you were instructing about.  Teaching about teaching is a unique process, one that I feel best is done along with demonstration.  All too often, I feel that teachers adopt a “do as I say, and not as I do” philosophy.  I think I am among many learners who respond better to a “practice what you preach” approach. My professional goals include teaching educators how to be more inclusive, and this video, although focused on a different topic, really gave me some practical strategies for developing our own e-learning experiences.  Like I mentioned before, teaching about teaching, especially in a manner that excludes an educator’s ability to rely on social cues, and other informal assessments, really require a level of creativity, and ability to plan effectively, of educators. Job well done!  Thank you for your helpful suggestions.” (Phillip A. Collazo, CYT, Director of Education, Project AWWOL)

It’s simple. “Practice what you preach.” Why is it so difficult for people to actually achieve this? Where does this cognitive dissonance come from?  I think a lot of individuals and companies out there are caught in the game of “I want to be this way” (I want to be healthy, I want to have a fulfilling career, I want to be successful, I want to exceed my customer’s expectations, I want to create the ultimate and best product…you get the idea) but have not done any of the work that it takes to get there. So instead of being healthy, they go have lunch at McDonald’s, instead of being fulfilled, they go for the job with the biggest paycheck, instead of listening to the client’s needs and expectations, they focus on what they consider best, cheaper and faster.

It’s time to look at ourselves, our company, our purpose and understand that success (as a parent, a friend, a business owner, a company) can only come from integrity that is aligned with the basic principle of practicing what you preach.