Real Learning Real Results

Stop Trying to "Do More with Less," Do Better!

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:21:00 -0400

In order to do better, maybe we need to do less, not more. If we focus on the learning initiatives that are linked to important corporate initiatives and leverage good design principles, like doing the proper amount of analysis before we jump into content, maybe we could just do things better. While it may not be possible to only develop learning for important corporate initiatives, if we can successfully reframe some of those requests that don’t really require training, we will have more time to do the right things right. Once we have identified only those projects that can benefit from learning, we can also use our instructional design skills wisely. The “art” of instructional design is in knowing which techniques to employ and to what degree of rigor based on the needs of each new situation. Instructional design used correctly doesn’t cost time and money, it saves time and money.

All businesses do things to make or save money, but it is not just activities that make them successful. Successful businesses achieve real results. Many learning organizations today are focused on activities by taking orders for training programs and not pausing to focus on business results. The very notion of “doing more with less”, an often quoted corporate mantra, is part of the problem. If a learning organization is charged with doing more with less, there is even less chance they will pause to make sure they are doing the right things. Too often the emphasis is on hurrying to get started, putting something online or in the classroom and moving on to the next project.

While it is good to do things efficiently, it is more important to do the things that achieve business results. Instructional Design is a systematic process for designing effective learning in a very efficient and structured manner. The science of learning psychology and adult learning theory are important components of successful instructional design as well. The outcome of good instructional design is observable, measurable and replicable. If your instruction is well designed, you should be able to observe that particular behavior in the work habits of your performers. You should be able to measure the results of your learner’s performance against a predetermined standard. Whatever learning programs you design and develop should be able to achieve the same results over a large audience, if implemented properly. In the end the most important aspect is not the training program itself or even a positive experience as reported by the learner. The only thing that really matters is that your learners achieve a desired business result.

Instructional Design is Art and Science

Mon, 06 May 2013 16:32:00 -0400

I believe instructional design is part art and part science. I have always liked both science and art, so maybe that’s why I’m still fascinated by how instructional design works after using it for 35 years.

Let’s take a look at the science part of instructional design first. Instructional design, as I learned it, is based on the field of behavioral science. B. F. Skinner’s principle of Operant Conditioning explains a lot about learning and motivation. The principle says that animals and humans are motivated by and learn from a stimulus from their environment followed by a response from the learner. One of my professors illustrated this point beautifully by asking us if we knew the key to the universe. Now there’s a question that will get your attention. We didn’t know, but he did. He explained that the field of cybernetics, invented by Norbert Weiner in 1948, was in his opinion, the key to the universe. I believe he is right about at least one thing. It is the key to how people learn.

He explained it this way. If a plane takes off from New York to fly to Los Angeles, the pilot doesn’t wait until he thinks he is in Los Angeles to check his position. In fact, he and his navigation equipment are constantly checking position and sending back corrective feedback messages throughout the entire flight. And that, he said, is how people learn.

Instructional design today is influenced by cognitive science in addition to behavioral science. But since cybernetics is a study of systems, its basic principles still hold. The human mind is a system and if we want to make a change in that system (by having someone develop a new skill, for instance) we have to understand its inputs, outputs, and controls.

Weiner himself explained that cybernetics was a way for humans to control their environment through communication. He says that “when a human sends a message, they are only aware that it has been received once the recipient replies, either verbally or non-verbally.” If you think about a lot of training events where information is merely transmitted to a group of people, this strategy doesn’t really fit Weiner’s model. When there is no communication and no corrective feedback, there is much less learning. This underlying philosophy of cybernetics is something to keep in mind if you are asked to do rapid e-learning development.

Now let’s talk about the “art part” of instructional design. One of the things an artist does as he creates a work of art is start with a design in mind, but the artist is willing to change and improve the design as the piece is created. The artist allows the piece to evolve by critically viewing the piece or even getting feedback during pivotal points in its creation. I learned this during my undergraduate years of fine art training and have found it invaluable as an instructional designer. This is why developing prototypes and getting feedback from learners can be one of your most valuable design tools.

Instructional design models give you another opportunity to approach your craft as an artist and a scientist. When it comes to choosing a model, I think there are number of very sound instructional design models in use today. It does not matter as much which one you use as it does how you use it. The reason some people become disillusioned with instructional design models is that they try to use them as a cook book approach so they can do the same things every time they approach a new instructional solution

Instructional design models are intended to make the design of instruction systematic and therefor more efficient. Because the output of one step becomes the input for the next step, they also make a logical progression that does not rely on what worked last time and keeps our design decisions relevant to what we are trying to achieve. They are not intended to be used exactly the same way in all situations. So we could say that instructional design models are developed in a systematic or scientific way, but the use of them often has to change in a more creative or artistic approach.

Dana and Jim Robinson Receive ISPI Award

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:16:00 -0400

Certainly, the highlight of this year’s ISPI conference for me was the awards luncheon at which Dana and Jim Robinson received the Thomas F. Gilbert Distinguished Professional Achievement Award. The Robinsons have received many awards, from organizations including ASTD, SHRM and ISA. It was especially nice for me to see them receive this award from ISPI to recognize their achievements and contributions to performance improvement. They began their business, Partners in Change in 1981 in Pittsburgh, PA. By the time they retired in 2010, they wrote seven books and spoke at numerous conferences for ISPI, ASTD, Training Magazine, CLO Magazine and ROI Conferences. They have left a lasting contribution to the performance improvement profession over their 30 years in business together.

I first met Dana and Jim in 1995 when I was introduced to them by one of my best clients. By that time I had been running my business for ten years. We were happily taking orders for training, sometimes asking a few questions about training goals but usually, just developing the best learning solutions we could. For the first time in my career, a client challenged me to align training goals with business goals. Fortunately, the client also introduced me to Dana and Jim and they taught me how to do that. In 1996, I hired Jim to do a performance consulting workshop for my company. Our shift from training to performance improvement was not immediate, but it has been lasting. Since, that workshop I have never been able to listen to a training request without asking questions.

Over the past 18 years, Jim and Dana became mentors and also great friends. I’ve had so many people who have influenced my career and helped me throughout my life, but no one else has had as much influence over my career and business as they have. As they retired, I found myself writing and speaking more and more about the things they have taught me. I attended every keynote, every workshop, every conference session I could as they traveled and spoke. I bought every book and incorporated their processes into our work at Handshaw. I have recently begun helping my clients transition from training to performance improvement, all based on what I learned from them.

Even more than learning their processes and tools, I have tried to emulate their generosity and their integrity to the profession. They offered their processes and tools freely in their books and conference sessions. They always made time to help anyone who was interested in learning from them. They are staying very active in their retirement and it was good to see them at the ISPI conference reconnecting with their friends and colleagues. I’m hoping for the sake of the profession that they will stay connected from time to time. We all owe them a great deal!

Thank you Dana and Jim for all you have given us. You have left a great legacy!

New Handshaw, Inc. Website

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:05:00 -0400

Please take a few minutes and review our new company website. The website offers some great new project case studies about real training and results!

Let us know what you think and what else you would like to see or have access to on our website. Our team stands ready to work with you on your design and development, performance consulting, or custom technology needs!

www.handshaw.com

The Road to Reno in 2013

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 10:08:30 -0400

It’s time again for THE Performance Improvement Conference from April 12 – 14 in Reno, NV. My schedule this year will be very similar to last year. I’ll be conducting a full day pre-conference workshop on Saturday the 13th called, “Analyzing Performance gaps – The Gaps Map. This workshop is based on the work of Dana and Jim Robinson. I will explain how to complete the various portions of the gaps map in order to analyze performance gaps in an organization and prescribe appropriate solutions to achieve business goals. The workshop will feature a video role play of a sample meeting with a client to gather information to complete a gaps map. Following the video, I will have other sample scenarios for participants to complete their own gaps maps while meeting with me as their client in the prepared scenario.

Sunday, I’ll be meeting with other chapter leaders for the annual Chapter Leaders’ Workshop. On Monday morning April 15th, I’ll be presenting the same topic of Saturday’s workshop in a 90 minute format. After a brief explanation of the gaps process, I’ll show the sample video role play and we will conduct as many role plays with volunteers from the audience as we have time for. Asking for volunteers for the role plays, is risky because I never know exactly what will happen, but that makes it that much more fun and interesting.

Finally, at lunch on Monday, my friends Jim and Dana Robinson who are responsible for whatever I am able to teach others about Performance Improvement will receive the much deserved Tomas F. Gilbert Distinguished Professional Achievement Award. This award recognizes outstanding and significant contributions to the knowledge base of Human Performance Technology. Dana and Jim have published seven books in the field and helped dozens of clients through their company, Partners-in Change.

Before I met Jim and Dana, the world of Performance Improvement seemed complicated. It did not seem within the realm of an instructional designer to be able to practice successfully. What they did in their seven books and countless workshop and presentations was to give all of us easy to understand principles to use performance improvement in our companies and with our clients. They gave us tools, like the gaps map, that put performance improvement within the grasp of many practitioners in the training and HR fields.

Dana and Jim are happily retired and living in the warmer climate of Raleigh, NC. Since I live in Charlotte, NC, I get to see more of them now. I will also be watching and applauding as they receive their award in Reno. Thank you Jim and Dana for all that you have given to all of us.

Reframing Training Requests - Greater Atlanta ASTD

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 08:50:00 -0400

On the evening of April 8, I will have the pleasure of presenting “Training Request: Ask Questions First” to the Greater Atlanta chapter of ASTD. This presentation helps trainers interact with their clients as consultants and not be perceived as order takers. This sixty minute session presents eight principles for reframing a training request. I will use a video role play to demonstrate how the principles are used in a reframing meeting with a client, and then I will ask two participants from the audience to do a live role play. The rest of the participants will have the opportunity to provide feedback based on the eight principles.

The business reason for the reframing meeting is best summed up by Emily Wilkins in her comment on last week’s blog. If I may quote you again, Emily: “Organizations aren’t interested in training, they are interested in performance. They just don’t know what else to say when a performance problem arises other than, “We need training.” It’s time trainers have the courage to say, “Maybe…but let’s do some digging.” The outcome of the reframing meeting is to do exactly what Emily suggested. We are not trying to arrive at a new solution in the reframing meeting. We are merely trying to get permission to gather some more data. With better data, we can complete a gaps map which will point out the gaps and causes, which in turn will help us design better solutions. Keep in mind, these solutions may or may not include training.

The reframing and gaps map process I use is based on the work of Dana and Jim Robinson of Partners in Change, Inc. Dana and Jim are recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award from ASTD. They have been an inspiration to me and are great friends.

Is Performance Improvement a Threat to Training Departments?

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 10:45:00 -0400

There is a recurring industry theme that I suspect may come across as a little threatening for training departments and trainers. That recurring theme is that we should do less training. I understand why this may be worrisome when you first think of it. If I’m in the business of developing and/or facilitating training, it does not sound like the best career move to tell my manager that we need to do less training. I recently attended Roger Addison’s excellent evening meeting and one day workshop for ISPI Charlotte. There was one phrase though that I heard Roger use over and over again as I listened to him. In response to many questions, his answer began with “Yes… and…”

Let’s apply this to the question in my title. Is performance improvement a threat to training departments? Yes, it could be a threat, especially if we do nothing to replace the training that we don’t provide. Now here’s the good part, doing less training could be the best thing we can do to increase our value to our organization and our clients. Instead of just taking an order for more training, which costs our organization money, we might take additional time to find out what the real business goal is, and what kinds of training or performance improvement activities would impact the achievement of that goal in a positive way.

A fair question might be, “What does that look like and how long does that take?” It’s hard for me to speak from personal experience, but I actually had a corporate job once. It was back in 1979, right after graduate school, and I just started asking questions about our first training request like I was taught to do by my professors. My boss told me he felt more like a detective than someone who provided training. Interestingly, Roger used that same word, “detective” to describe what we do. Along with that, another theme I heard was to be “observant”.

If you are a trainer who is somewhat intimidated by the prospect of doing less training, or using some of the complicated performance improvement models out there, relax. Roger is definitely one of the most successful performance consultants out there and he just keeps it simple and practical. It is my belief though, that if you are in the learning and performance business—and that includes trainers—performance consulting is something you can’t ignore.

Consider that a better value proposition for your organization might not be “doing more with less”, but doing less training better. Even more importantly, we can use training where training will solve a performance problem and apply other solutions where training is not the best solution or the only solution. The next time you get a training request, you can tell your client, “Yes we can do training, and…”

Greater Atlanta ASTD - April 8, 2013

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0500

April 8, 2013
Greater Atlanta ASTD
“Performance Partnering: Reframing Training Requests” 5:00-8:00 PM at The Home Depot Store Support Center

See the Events page for more information.

THE Performance Improvement Conference - April 13 &15, 2013

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0500

April 13th, 2013 - The Gaps Map Workshop

April 15th, 2013 - The Gaps Map Concurrent Session

ISPI International Conference
THE Performance Improvement Conference
Reno, Nevada

See the Events page for more information.

Training 2013 - Orlando

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 08:00:27 -0500

Training Magazine continues to attract more attendees to their excellent conference. Attendance this year was 2,000, which is back to 2008 levels. The Monday evening Gala for the Top 125 draws a well-dressed crowd for the annual awards event. The attendees for this event were anxious to see if they went up a few numbers while some may have slipped a few numbers in the ranking. Regardless of the outcome, they were all smiles for the banquet and entertainment.

The Training 2013 staff is always creative and not afraid to take a few risks with their selection of keynote speakers. The result is definitely not your basic keynote, but always something out of the ordinary and thought provoking. I’ve enjoyed every one for the last few years.

This conference doesn’t have conference tracks, but every time slot is filled with a variety of topics from performance improvement to technology and leadership topics. I was impressed with the sessions I attended as well as the usual list of the big name speakers who always like to come to this conference.

It is still my favorite.

Performance Partnering at Training 2013 Conference & Expo

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 08:00:21 -0500

It’s time to go back to one of my favorite training conferences, Training 2013 Conference & Expo, in Orlando Florida. If you haven’t registered or just want to see what it is all about, go to www.trainingconference.com . I will be presenting a Hands-On Clinic on Performance Partnering: Proactive and Reactive Performance Consulting, February 20^th, 12:15 to 3:15 PM.

During the session I will present my eight principles for Proactive client meetings, which includes the skills required to develop a consultative relationship with key clients and leaders in the organization. I will also present the eight principles for Reactive client meetings, which focuses on how to reframe a client request in a way that will yield better results for both you and the client. These principles will be supported by videos to demonstrate how to use them and then I will let the audience take over with live role plays. The interactions during the live role plays are always a surprise and a learning experience for everyone, so be sure and stop by to see what happens. See for yourself how well the principles work on the first try after very little instruction. Hear feedback from your colleagues. Then, imagine how well they can work once you have had a chance to practice them for a while.

These are the same principles that the Instructional Designers and Performance Consultants of Handshaw, Inc. use when working with our clients to manage relationships, improve processes and/or develop learning solutions for our clients.

If you are attending Training 2013 and looking to improve how you and/or your department engage with clients, stop by my session. Pick up some new tactics and engage in interactive learning. I invite you to take a sneak peek of the role play demonstrations by clicking here or the Resources link on the Home page.

If you would just like to know more about Performance Partnering and how it can change your business, take a look at the workshop description on this site or send me an email. I’ll be happy discuss it with you in detail.

Looking forward to Training 2013!

p.s. If you need some new reading material on Performance Partnering, click here for my recently published article in Training Magazine. Thanks!

Guest Blog - Influencing: The Art of Being a Performance Consultant by Kelly Phillips

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 08:00:20 -0500

Finally, it’s the day of the big training launch. You’ve used every bit of adult learning theory, creative talent, and design experience to create a training program that will knock it out of the park. You did a thorough analysis, followed ADDIE to the letter, and tested and verified that your training is going to meet every objective the business leader set out at the beginning of the project. But, from your seat in the back of the room your excitement quickly turns to dread as you realize the students simply aren’t connecting with the material like you thought they would. You did EVERYTHING right! What happened?!

The problem is that you let the business leader set your program objectives. Gasp! “But isn’t that their job?” you ask.

Well, in theory, yes. The business leader’s job is to identify the problem, do a root cause analysis, and come to you with a full understanding of how providing training to their employees can contribute to the solution. But let’s face it, all too often that’s not what happens.

Learning to Influence Without Authority

What often happens is the business leader has a performance issue with their staff and wants to train them to do a better job. But what if training isn’t the answer? What does an Instructional Designer do then? It’s not your job to tell the business leader how to run their department, right?

Instructional Designers should be designing to solve a business problem, and in order to get the heart of that problem they must also sometimes act as a Performance Consultant. A successful training program is one that changes behavior, imparts knowledge and skills, and meets a business need. If you’re designing to the wrong objectives, your training will fail, ADDIE notwithstanding. So give yourself permission to design successful training.

Many Instructional Designers are intimidated at the thought of pushing back on the business leader’s training solution. At many companies, it’s not appropriate to tell a business leader how to run the business. When the success of your training is on the line, you can’t wait for permission to speak up.

Use your knowledge of analysis to get into the business area and verify that the business leader’s assumptions about the solution are correct. Identify the pain points and if you find issues that training won’t fix such as broken processes, document them. You can document the issues and let the business leader decide how to resolve them, or suggest resolutions yourself. And now comes the hard part. You’re “just” an Instructional Designer. How do you get the business leader to listen to you?

Influencing without authority is a skill that you can develop just as you developed your instructional design skills. The business leader thinks they want training. But what they really want is for you to solve the performance problem they’re having with their staff. Clearly articulate the pain that they’re feeling and follow it up with a solution that provides the desired end result. They need to understand immediately that your solution will free them from the pain of the performance problem. If you like that “light bulb” moment when the students get the concept you’re teaching them, you’ll love it when the business leader realizes you have found out how to make the pain go away.

You can read more of Kelly’s work at EffectiveTrainingDesign.com and RedFeatherNetworking.com

Guest Blog - Maximizing Mobile Learning (pt. 2) by Peter Engels

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 08:00:30 -0500

Last time we talked about how and when to use mobile devices in a larger training strategy that will leverage their strengths of accessibility and immediacy. This week, let’s look at how mobile devices impact resource design. There are a few unique characteristics that you should keep in mind as you design mobile resources: small screen size, touch capabilities, and synchronization.

Small Screen Size
Tablets have screens comparable in size to small notebook computers, but mobile phone screen sizes vary wildly, from as small as 320 x 240 pixels on some Blackberries to as large as 640 x 960 on the iPhone. With less real estate, every element added must be meaningful and intentional. Keep your content direct to limit extra text and keep images and videos small enough that they can be viewed without scrolling.

Many newer devices also replace the physical keyboard with a digital version that appears when needed and can require up to half the screen space on a mobile device. Avoiding text entry interactions removes this concern.

Touch Capabilities
Touch screens add a fun, interactive element to your resources with the right planning. Your learners will be using one fingertip for control, so size and space elements with this in mind. Try this: move your mouse pointer to the darker border of this blog and place your finger next to it on the screen. See the size difference? That is how much bigger your clickable elements have to be.

Fingertip control comes with different functionality, too. Think through how your learners will interact with the resource as you design it: a rollover is a great way to present information, but not if the screen prevents them from accessing it. Clicks, swipes, and drag-and-drops will work the same using a mouse or a touch screen.

Synchronization
Most users synch their devices so that they can access the same resources on their phone, tablet, and desktop. Job aids, databases, and other mobile resources should also be tested on traditional computers to ensure learners will have access to the same help in any situation.

It is also common to use more than one device at once. If an employee is experiencing software troubles, a troubleshooting resource on their mobile device will allow them to look at both screens at once. Using images and instructions that can be directly compared from one screen to another can be a powerful intervention.

Matching the right design with the right purpose will help your mobile learning strategy grow to become a valuable, effective resource for your learners.

Part two of two

Peter Engels, Instructional Designer/Developer, Handshaw, Inc.

Guest Blog - Maximizing Mobile Learning by Peter Engels

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 08:00:00 -0500

Mobile learning has become the current “next big thing” in training, and the numbers show it. Recent enterprise technology studies show that nearly 73% of companies allow smart phones for work purposes and 50-60% have added tablets to their tech offerings. Naturally, if a company is going to invest in these resources they want to see them used, and training is a likely candidate for mobile application deployment.

As you think about your mobile learning philosophy, there’s one fundamental question to ask: Why would a learner access training resources on a mobile device instead of a conventional desktop or laptop computer?

If you own a smart phone think about how you use it. My guess is you usually have it with you and it’s probably within arm’s reach – inside a pocket or nearby bag, or next to you on your desk right now (Did you just check for it?). I would also guess you always keep your device powered on. Not counting the talk and text functions, how do you use the “smart” capabilities of your phone? E-mail, news, looking up directions to a destination as you leave, or looking up more information about a topic that comes up in conversation are all commonly reported uses. Mobile devices are always available and when we need information throughout the day it’s the first resource we turn to.

Your clients and/or employees are going to look for training on their mobile devices to function the same way, providing support that is just-in-time and just enough. Unless your learners have completely replaced their desktop or laptop computer with a tablet, it is unlikely they will access a traditional training course on their mobile device. What they will look for are job aids, short audio or video demonstrations, and interactive knowledge banks for an answer to a specific job-related question at the moment they need an answer.

When you are asked to create mobile-based training, keep this in mind and design mobile tools that are enhanced by the always available, just-in-time way we use our devices. Your training will see more wide-spread adoption and will become a useful resource for your learners.

The second part of this series will get into the nuts-and-bolts of designing for mobile devices.

Part one of two

Peter Engels, Instructional Designer/Developer, Handshaw, Inc.

Let's Pledge To Do Better in 2013!

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 09:48:00 -0500

I’ve never been very good at making New Year’s resolutions, but here is something fairly simple. Let’s just try to do better in 2013… There is no doubt we have all seen tough economic times. Many people are still looking for employment and I hope this year they find it. Those of us who have jobs in learning and performance improvement have to pledge to do better this year. We must accept the responsibility to move beyond being order takers for training programs, and pledge ourselves to be solution finders. We need to look beyond the mere request and make an effort to link training goals to business goals. Once we identify the right reasons to develop learning, then push beyond “check-in-the-box” programs that present information without providing practice and feedback or measurement of results. Let’s pledge to ask for the time and the resources to develop learning that will make a measurable difference and achieve real business outcomes. We all know we can’t make everything we do fit these criteria, we have to pick our battles. When you find that client who is willing to work with you, give him or her your very best. No more excuses about the economy or the lack of time.

Let’s just do better…

Thank You for Your Support in 2012!

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 09:37:00 -0500

I really do enjoy my trips out to ASTD and ISPI chapters. Last week I ended my year with two really good ones. First, thank you to ASTD Birmingham for their hospitality on Monday, December the 3^rd. I had an enjoyable lunch meeting with them for what I think was a very good turnout for their chapter in a combined November/December meeting date. I used to do a lot of business in Birmingham and always enjoyed visiting that city. I hope you give me more reasons to return soon.I flew to Memphis on Thursday to attend and speak at a one day conference on December 7th in honor of ASTD’s National Learning Week. With one hundred people registered for the event, it was a huge success. The event featured four keynote speakers, good coffee and great food. I especially enjoyed the speakers dinner on Thursday evening at Corky’s Barbecue. Thanks for that one. There are a lot of great companies headquartered in Memphis to help support a vibrant and exciting ASTD chapter. Since we do have clients there, I know I will see you again soon.

In 2012 I had the opportunity to speak to nine ASTD chapters, three ISPI chapters and I did one webinar for the eLearning Guild. I also presented at the 2012 Training Conference and at the 2012 ISPI International conference. It has been a very good year for me and for all of us at Handshaw, Inc. There is one common theme to my travel to professional associations and all of my colleagues’ interactions with our clients. That common theme is how much we learn from all of you. We do listen to you and we do value the improvements that all of you make in our company. We have grown and evolved in many ways over the past 27 years of serving the learning and performance improvement profession. We wouldn’t be able to do that without our clients and all the professionals who take part in professional associations.

However you chose to celebrate the holidays, may you have a peaceful Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Building a Sustainable Performance Partnering Program (continued)

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 08:00:00 -0500

Last week I listed the initial three steps for building a sustainable performance partnering organization. Here are the next three steps along with a list to summarize all six steps.

The person who told me this story also told me that in her next job, where she was the director of training, she tried a different approach. She called her new approach “stealth consulting”. She approached her new clients with her Director of Training business card and didn’t tell them she was here to help them solve their business problems. She asked strategic, open-ended questions about their business issues. She found out what their business goals were. She asked for time and permission to gather additional data and she completed her Gaps Maps. As she and her clients discovered a variety of solutions to improve performance and achieve business goals, she became the trusted partner. Rather than talking about becoming a performance consultant, she simply became one.

5. Manage the common problems of change and adoption - Moving from training to performance consulting is a change in the way your organization does business. Like any other change initiative, change has to be managed. Only you know whether the “stealth” approach or a more formal approach will work in your organization. The best way to approach this situation is to do a gap analysis of your own company. One of my favorite clients, used to say, “Every organization has a culture, whether it is intentional or not.” Since you are making an intentional change in culture by introducing performance consulting, you need to identify the gap between how your organization functions today and how you want it to function after the change initiative, especially with regard to human performance. Once you have identified this gap, you can begin to design programs to facilitate the change.

6. Document results and success to build a sustainable program - Perhaps the biggest challenge in any organizational change is making that change sustainable. Most of us are familiar with organizations who like to introduce the flavor of the quarter. It is important to manage change by not allowing too much change, and when you do bring on a new effort, stick with it. The best way to ensure sustainability is to make sure you share your positive results. You will make some mistakes and you will have some successes. When you do have successes, and you will have early successes, showcase that client and the work you have done together. Most importantly, take time to measure your results so you can showcase your success. No sales presentation in the world can top the value of positive results, or as Mark Twain put it, “Fewer things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.”

Finally, let your clients take credit for the good results you have produced together. This may be a bit difficult for you to do, but it is the best way to build a sustainable performance partnering program in your organization.

Here are the six principles for your review:

1. Develop sponsorship through leadership and a vision

2. Develop the skills of your potential Performance Partners

3. Develop a trusted partner relationship with your clients

4. Introduce the program into your corporate culture

5. Manage the common problems of change and adoption

6. Document results and success to build a sustainable program

Please contact me by email at dick.handshaw@handshaw.com if you have questions or write a comment below. Click on the Workshops tab to see the workshops that Handshaw, Inc. offers to help you with your Performance Partnering Program.

Part three of three

Building a Sustainable Performance Partnering Program

Tue, 04 Dec 2012 08:00:00 -0500

Hopefully last week’s blog piqued your interest in performance improvement. This week, I’ll offer some thoughts on how to build a sustainable performance partnering organization. Introducing performance partnering into organizations is not new. Jim and Dana Robinson of Partners in Change were doing it for years before I met them in 1995. In their experience, the leader of the initiative was paramount to their success.

The all-important first step is to develop sponsorship within your organization, and that takes leadership and a vision. Performance Improvement crosses many corporate lines and your initiative can fail if you don’t have support in several areas. If you are initiating this effort from a training organization, that’s fine, but you need support and cooperation from other areas like Human Resources and/or Organizational Development for starters.

1. Develop sponsorship through leadership and a vision - The first thing many organizations think about is the skills development of the people who will become the Performance Partners. I strongly recommend that you get your sponsorship, leadership and vision in place before you spend time and money on skill development. If you are not the leader of your training or learning organization, that’s fine, too. But, you will need whoever that person is to be your sponsor and take a leadership position with you. Once you have a vision and committed leadership, you can begin to inspire the rest of your team.

2. Develop the skills of your potential Performance Partners - Books and workshops are a good start for skill development, but make sure the workshops don’t merely present content. The best way to truly learn performance partnering skills is through practice and feedback with role plays. I know this because this is how I learned the skill and it is how I teach it today. As your performance partners begin to apply their skills, I also recommend they work in pairs. It’s sort of a buddy team like scuba diving. One person can conduct a meeting while the other observes and takes notes. The observer can act as a coach and give feedback to the meeting leader based on the principles learned in the skills building workshop.

Whatever skill building approach you use, make sure it has both proactive and reactive consulting components. Typically, your clients are not out there just waiting for you to walk into their offices and help them solve their business problems. You will have to proactively, over time, become a trusted partner relationship with your clients. Once you have built a trusted partner you will be able to influence solutions that may be beyond your current control. Learning a reactive approach, which Jim and Dana Robinson call the “reframing” meeting, will help you gain permission to gather more data when you suspect you are either not hearing the whole story or maybe being asked to solve a problem with training when training is not the answer.

3. Develop a trusted partner relationship with your clients – Developing a trusted partner relationship takes time. Many instructional designers may not have pictured themselves being relationship builders when they were in graduate school or when they accepted a position in training. Welcome to the real world; this is a relationship business. In reactive consulting, you will use a series of questions and your client’s own data to either confirm a training request or to discover new and better solutions. Reactive consulting is something you will do when your client approaches you and it requires a good bit of skill and patience. Proactive consulting is something that happens when there is no pressing deadline or stressful initiative on the table. It is something initiated by you, the performance partner. It is a series of informal meetings where you attempt to assess the nature of your client’s business and ask strategic questions to be better prepared when a new initiative does arise. It is through these proactive consulting meetings, scheduled by you on a regular basis, that you will achieve a trusted partner relationship with your clients.

Next week I will list and discuss three more principles for building a sustainable performance consulting organization.

Part two of three

Why Doesn’t EVERY Organization Use Performance Improvement?

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 08:00:00 -0500

This has been a challenging year for internal training departments. Our company has seen many organizations go through major re-organizations in 2012. And with every re-organization we are familiar with, we have seen layoffs of trainers and instructional designers. Where is the role of performance consulting in these organizations? In many cases, it has been difficult to find evidence of a performance improvement effort.

It’s clear that many organizations are trying to cut costs by moving people around and reducing headcount. This is neither a new nor innovative strategy. A better idea might be to reduce the number of “Band-Aid” type training programs that are developed and only develop training for training goals that can be linked to business goals. This is the role of performance improvement, to link training goals to strategic business goals. This would dramatically reduce the amount of time productive employees spend away from work attending training classes or sitting through e-learning programs and increase the quality of training programs that contribute directly to the achievement of strategic business goals.

Perhaps the answer to why this isn’t happening is because there is some personal risk involved on the part of those who choose to practice performance improvement instead of being an “order-taker” for any training request that comes their way. We are definitely sticking our necks out when we offer to be responsible for affecting outcomes rather than completing activities. This might also have something to do with the fact that many organizations rarely follow up training initiatives with any kind of data gathering to see if any of the desired results were achieved. Measurement and evaluation go hand in hand with performance improvement.

It seems to me that our resources would be better spent to find out why certain business results are not achieved, identify all the causes for the shortfall—not just those related to performance—and implement a variety of solutions designed to mitigate the causes of failure.

Launching a successful performance improvement initiative in your organization will take time, but it is not difficult. There are risks, as I mentioned, but the rewards will outweigh the risks. One of the most important factors in creating a successful performance improvement initiative in your organization is to find or cultivate leadership with a vision. Having committed leadership is the only way these initiatives can achieve sustained results. Next, you must build internal skills in a consistent manner. Attending training and reading books is not enough to build skills as a performance consultant. You need to practice your skills with a colleague who can coach you and give you feedback on your performance. You need to seek champions in your organization and make them successful. Once you can accomplish a successful solution or two, you only need to leverage your results to keep a sustained effort. Become a true Performance Partner to your organization…

Next week’s blog will provide more thoughts on creating a performance improvement organization.

Part one of three

Heading South for the Winter...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 08:00:00 -0500

…or for a few days at least.

In December, I’ll be visiting two of my favorite southern cities: Birmingham, AL and Memphis, TN. Two things they both have in common are great hospitality and great barbecue, but that’s not really why I’m going.

On December 3rd, I’ll be visiting the Greater Birmingham Chapter of ASTD – AL to deliver one of my most requested presentations, “Instructional Design: Demonstrating Value through Results”. The industry and many of our clients have seen a resurgence of interest in instructional design in the last five years or so. This program will focus on three low cost, high value components of instructional design that I don’t see in use that often. The primary focus of the presentation is increasing the best practices of instructional design and getting positive results.

On December 7th, I’ll be attending and speaking at the annual Employee Learning Week Event sponsored by the ASTD Memphis, TN chapter. This year the focus is on performance improvement with a one and a half hour session called, “Performance Partnering - Proactive and Reactive Performance Consulting”. This session is based on the work of Jim and Dana Robinson. We all know we would like to have earlier input with our clients and we would like to be valued more as consultants and business partners. This session uses video and live role plays to help you master the skills of proactive and reactive performance consulting.

If you live near Birmingham or Memphis, please take the opportunity to attend.