by Daniel Wymoczyl
Training Coordinator
April, 2019
In our previous article, we introduced the business case for investing in learning solutions, one of the key enablers to unlocking the potential of your current workforce. Daniel Wymoczyl, Training Coordinator at Orbium delves deeper into what organisations need to consider when scoping out a learning and development solution, ensuring you and your employees get the most out of training.
Choosing the right partner for a learning and development programme is the most critical element of the training journey. Training partners should combine tailored, on-site training with customised, engaging eLearning resources. The former covers the training itself as well as managing and facilitating change overall. The latter provides a more standardised approach, with ample opportunities for progress analysis, results measurement and almost endless reusability.
The secret to Orbium’s proven record in training, implementation and change management can be found in 3 areas:
Orbium help clients get the maximum value from their workforce. We are able to deliver and advise on areas such as software-as-a-service (SaaS), eLearning (including software simulations) and electronic performance support systems (EPSS), making enterprise solutions available with as few as ten end-users in mind.
The process of creating Learning & Development resources at Orbium follows an acclaimed instructional system design framework – ADDIE – whose focus is utility. ADDIE maintains the advantages of sequential development, with carefully chosen means being employed to reach the identified goals. At the same time, it offers the many benefits of iterative prototyping through continuous and multidirectional revision and evaluation.
The more anchors connecting the end-user to the learning agenda, the more likely they are to engage with the course material. Therefore, it is important to create a setting that relates to users’ experiences, reflects their work environment and even mimics the relationship with a real client. When faced with a training task, participants are also provided with the real-world context, which goes in line with the Contextual Teaching and Learning approach.
To evaluate if a training programme has been a success, the design must allow for the collection of measurable, comparable data. Successful training programmes are designed to ensure that key stakeholders are made aware of the progress employees have made in training. It is also possible to evaluate onsite with trainers. Not only assisting, but also appraising performance on-location.
To ensure that your organisation’s workforce is adequately trained and prepared for a go-live with a new software solution, an integrated approach is necessary. For our clients, we have designed a complete framework for user training in an implementation project. Our training framework has a clearly developed timeline and digitised resources every step of the way, to complement classroom training and in-person consultations, as illustrated below:
An example of a personalised and blended learning solution programme across the project lifecycle
In order to keep costs in check, there are two further issues companies should consider. Firstly, training design and delivery models are often deliberately conceived so that they can be applied to as many contexts and scenarios as possible. For software training, these methodologies should be simplified and customised to clients’ needs.
Secondly, in the process of creating L&D deliverables, multiple roles are assigned to ensure the respective tasks are addressed by the right people. Typically, L&D specialists supporting an implementation project include:
Experience shows that while these roles can be taken on by different individuals the scope of their activities has to overlap to some degree. Therefore, added value is generated when multiple roles are assumed by a single specialist to bring greater training efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Orbium’s learning solutions provide a blended method to your software implementation project, enabling staff to be supported while obtaining the required knowledge and skills needed. This provides a higher return on learning investments and brings faster results with lower risk.
