Schlagwortarchiv für: L&D

How do we start talking about unconscious bias in the workplace?

/1 Kommentar/in , /von

“We know what unconscious bias is, and why it’s important. But we don’t know how to start having a conversation about unconscious bias in the workplace in our organisation”. This was a statement from leaders from a multi-national pharma company headquartered in Europe. Any organisation which is trying to build diversity and manage unconscious bias will start with this, or a similar statement. We worked with the group to break their words down into 3 sub questions and this post shares how we worked with our client to answer these questions.

Should we start with training?

Training seems an obvious place to start. But if you can’t make it mandatory (and ensure that 100% of your employees attend), the people who attend training will be self-selecting. We see this time and again on our training courses, when we hear the common comment “Person X should really attend this training”. Person X is usually a senior manager or a ‘problem’ colleague who probably really needs the training, except that no one seems willing to tell them!

Running training courses is also not practical for many industries. For example, about 50% of the employees of our pharma client work in labs. Small teams with a constant workflow will find it difficult to leave their workstations to attend training.

We are not saying that training is not part of the solution, just not the solution. In the next section you will see some ideas on how to work with people on this topic outside the training room.

How can we support attitude changes?

A workplace is a collection of people with different backgrounds, experiences and views. Everyone is entitled to their views but at the same time we have a right to ensure that the people who work with us work to our goals and values. ‘Inclusion nudges’ are a very effective way of achieving this. An inclusion nudge is defined as “a relatively soft and non-intrusive mental push that mitigates implicit bias and helps the brain make more objective decisions”[1]. Here are 3 types of nudges with examples:

Feel the need

In one organisation we work with, 24.5% of employees are women. What percentage of executives in the company do you think are women? The answer is 7.1%. What do you think about the gap between the two figures? This is an inclusion nudge based on data that aims to help people ‘feel the need’ for change by creating a kind of ‘ah-ha’ moment.

Process

A Process Nudge means changing a system or organisational process in order to eliminate bias by default. Changing the way you conduct meetings or screen candidates are examples of this kind of nudge. We know companies who use a Gender Decoder [http://gender-decoder.katmatfield.com] to ensure the language in job ads is not biased to male candidates.

Framing

The way we frame things can also nudge our brains to think differently about bias. Consider the question “Should we hire more women and ethnic minorities?” reframed as “Are we getting our fair share of the talent that is out there?” Which question would steer you to take action?

Inclusion nudges are a simple and cost-effective way to start working on attitudes and behaviours and they can be launched anywhere and anytime; on a poster in the office corridor, on the intranet, in a conversation in the canteen over lunch. In the next section you will read more advice on how to get these kinds of conversations going.

For more ideas on how to create nudges to reveal bias, see the post 9 Questions to Uncover Unconscious Bias:

 

9 Questions to Uncover Unconscious Bias

How do we convince people this is an important topic?

To put the question another way – what will motivate people to get interested and want to do something about it? For some this will simply be a matter of politics or ethics, i.e. it’s just the right thing to do. For others, this may not seem a topic that impacts their jobs. However, something that will appeal to everyone is the success of the business.

Two of the biggest concerns for organisations we work with are talent acquisition and employee engagement. Removing bias is a key component of managing these challenges. You just saw the link between bias and talent acquisition in the framing example above. Consider another common question, “How can we increase our employee engagement scores?”. Now let’s reframe the question as “Which people in our organisation don’t have a voice and how can we involve them more?”

In other words, by addressing diversity and inclusion we can find a way to address some of the biggest challenges that organisations face today. For more examples of the link between bias and common challenges faced by organisations, read this post What Is Unconscious Bias and Why Does It Matter?

Tackling unconscious bias in organisations means starting conversations that will interest and motivate people to do something about it. The key to doing this is to make the link between bias and what is important to everyone in the organisation.

Read more in this post…

What Is Unconscious Bias and Why Does It Matter?

 

We hope you enjoyed reading this post. If you would like to know more about our experience of working with clients in this area, feel free to contact us. Or, take a look at some of our training solutions in this area.

[1] Inclusion Nudges Guidebook: Practical Techniques for Changing Behaviour, Culture & Systems to Mitigate Unconscious Bias and Create Inclusive Organisations https://www.amazon.com/Inclusion-Nudges-Guidebook-Unconscious-Organisations/dp/152363541X

What will training look like in 2030? (survey)

/in , , , /von

Our clients have trusted us to deliver practical training solutions since 1994. One of the lessons we’ve learned over the years is the importance of spotting patterns. Being able to proactively meet our clients’ needs adds value and feels right. With that in mind, towards the end of 2020 we began gathering perspectives from our network. We spoke with 94 of our clients, leads and contacts (43 L&D professionals and 51 team leaders). 31 people were interviewed face to face.  The remaining 63 were initially interviewed through an online survey. Some excerpts and the results of the survey are below. If you are interested to read the full document, you can download it here.

The rise in individualised, self service training clearly shifts the obligation onto the learner

Almost everyone who took part in our survey envisaged training increasingly becoming personalised. This means that, for better or for worse, the responsibility for learning will shift to the learner. Employees will be expected to select, organise and take part in training, rather than have management and L&D mandate it and organize it.

 

“Training will be like scheduled TV and Netflix. Individuals will expect to find what they want when they want it and how they want it. Central L&D departments will be about making helping and guiding learners and scheduling if required. Learning is learner driven. The L&D departments are less needed” N.L. (CEO)

 

Technology is enabling and driving learning on demand

Almost all interviewees see technology playing an increasingly pivotal role in learning and feelings are mixed. More and more interviewees expect learners to access learning in a range of formats via smartphones and tablets. Many employers will choose this route as a low cost training solution. Some see technology as the driver behind this change, but interestingly a few pointed out that the very human desire to communicate itself is what pushes the advancements in the technology. Either way, technology in training is key to enabling and driving learning on demand.

 

“I see this digital training world being about learning on demand. Short, focused learning will be the majority. People have a problem or a need and then they find their own solution.” G.R. (L&D EMEA)

 

“I anticipate that the trends I’m seeing today will continue flexible learning, bite sized learning, the fragmentation of learning so that people focus on what they need to know or learn at that moment. This will be software based and virtual … and I feel that the solutions we see today with the big platforms is bullshit, but everybody believes in it. We used to have books and now
we have ‘animated summaries’. This isn’t learning” K.K. (L&D Manager)

 

Managers believe their companies will be investing more in learning but L&D professionals believe the opposite

This finding deserves to be explored more. None of the line managers expected to see L&D investment shrink BUT 41% of L&D professionals did. Equally surprising was that 60% of line managers expected to see more money invested in L&D … compared to just 18% of L&D professionals.

 

Thoughts are divided on the need to develop English language skills in staff

Both L&D managers and line managers are split down the middle on whether companies will need to be investing in Business English training. Our first assumption was that this was connected to the type of industry, the country or even the company size, but we could not find a pattern with the sample size (of 43 L&D professionals and 51 team leaders, managers and senior
managers).

 

“We will less likely hire staff who don’t have necessary language skills, and if we do we will be looking for a service to bring them up to speed fast so they can perform on the job”. D.F. (Technical Manager)

 

“I hear a lot from our HR that our new hires can work in English. I don’t think this is accurate. Some of them have spent a year in a foreign country, and many of them have good English listening
skills. But many of them aren’t so called advanced. They don’t have the communication skills we need and the emails they are writing just aren’t professional enough!” C.G. (Senior Manager)

 

 

Download the full version

If you are interested to read more about training in 2030, you can download the full version of the survey here.

The Secret L&D Manager: Encouraging a learning culture when budgets are tight

/in , /von

This week’s Secret L&D manager is Hungarian and is a Learning & Development Specialist for a global chemical company. In this post, he talks about the journey and the challenges of building and encouraging a learning culture in a large organization.

Go to the eBook

You were the first L&D manager in the organization. What sort of training budget were you expecting to have to work with when you joined?

Before I came here, I was working in a huge worldwide corporation where learning and development had a lot of money working –  close to about €400,000 per year. Looking back, we were definitely spoiled, and I was expecting something similar when I came here. That was my expectation. When I arrived, I was given a  budget of €10,000 and most of this was already allocated to translation work!

I wanted to be able to build a learning culture (see this post for more information). One of the things I have been doing (and haven’t yet finished) is to build a large library of free learning. This does take time but there are a lot of free, good quality things on the internet. You just need to be able to invest the time to find and assess them. I used our skills and competency models as the basis to build this and then I just matched these skills and competencies with an index of releavnt e-learnings, learning nuggets, MOOCS, e-books and podcasts.

I have also created internal webinars. My first step was to establish subject matter expert groups within our company and then we started to create something like internal TED Talks. People could learn about and from the different groups and different fields within the company. For example we would have one subject expert talking about dealing with difficult customers. It was a 1 ½  hour session and it was advertised, and people could join via Zoom.

How did you raise awareness of these learning opportunities and events?

Here I used 2 types of advertising; one is definitely the usual and very boring e-mail communication. I’m not sure it was very helpful but people did join as a result of this kind of communication channel. The other was creating and printing leaflets and brochures and placing them around the corridors and also in the canteen. This was definitely more helpful and effective. I based them on a silly cartoon that was going around on Facebook a couple of years ago.

These initiatives have helped to prove the worth of learning. Now I’ve got the management to actually spend and dedicate a real budget for learning this year, although with the coronavirus crisis who knows what will happen? But I’m pretty sure that this time I will be able to spend more and I’ve very concrete ideas of what I want to do. So for example I want to still further develop these internal webinars and I also want to continue with e-learning creation and creating the content internally.

The other thing that I’ve been planning on doing for a long time is implementing virtual learning and actually this is also a very timely thing. As you know  I have been in talks with you regarding implementing this.  When you think of the flu symptoms and all the sickness that are going around the world right now I think one of the best tools, let’s call it a tool not a method, is to use e-learning and virtual learning. Virtual learning, and it is not to be confused with e-learning, is when you go for an interactive training session but you don’t have to go anywhere. You can do it from your home or you can do it from your office.  It fits our company and the situation.

 

More secret L&D Managers

Who is the secret L&D manager?

The “secret L&D manager” is actually a group of L&D managers. They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with their peers.

 

Popular training topics

The Secret L&D Manager: Building a learning culture in a global organization

/1 Kommentar/in , /von

This week’s Secret L&D manager is Hungarian and is a Learning & Development Specialist for a global chemical company . In this post, he talks about the  journey and the challenges of building a learning culture in a large organization.

Go to the eBook

When you joined the company, what kind of learning culture did you find?

I think it’s really easy to answer this question, because when I joined my company, I can say that there was no learning culture. If I can take a step back, people have different understandings and definitions of the term “learning culture” . For me “learning culture” means there are people who like learning, there are learning resources and opportunities that people are encouraged to access whenever they need something or expect to need something going forward, and managers enable and encourage learning . Here, in all cases, there was nothing, so people were not, really empowered to learn. The second thing is that there were not a lot of resources available for learning. One of my priorities, and it’s also one of the reasons I was hired, is to create this kind of learning environment and then along with this also create a learning culture.

How were managers and the leaders in your organization seeing learning before you arrived?

I think, and this is only my perspective, that the management was saying, “Learning is very much needed” but when it came to the point where they had to invest they said, “We don’t have the budget for that”. On the one hand they definitely like the idea of learning. They talk a lot about learning and do want to enhance, improve and develop their employees. But actually, when an employee comes to them and says “OK we agreed that I need negotiations training” and they say, “OK go, have fun”, the employee has to find the seminar or resources. Employees would just Google something and then went come back with a course they had found that cost €20,000. For me this was the first problem because nobody knew if  it was a good course quality-wise, who the provider was and if they were a fit, whether the investment was reasonable or if the training was needed.  And then usually 99% of the managers said „sorry but we don’t have the budget for that“.

So how have you gone about building a learning culture?

What I did first was convincing management that learning and development really matters to our success as an organization. I used storytelling approaches to help them see why it is good to invest in learning, and how a company actually benefits from having a learning culture.  Then I showed them that, even if they don’t want to spend a lot of money, using informal or on-the-job learning is still going to create a lot of benefits for the company. For example, using job rotation or on-the-job development does work and can make a tangible difference.  Approaches like mentoring and internal coaching can and should be done. The managers in my company really bought into this idea. The first 2 or 3 things that I managed to do were ideas which didn’t cost a lot of money but were still very beneficial.

Another example where I actually created value and showed the management why learning helps an organization is when we set up the first e-learnings. We built these internally using a tool called EdApp https://www.edapp.com/. It’s a very good and  intuitive tool and easy to use. There were a lot of templates that we could instantly just choose and work with. I worked with our technical experts and together we created e-learning activities on areas such as regulation, process management and . tendering, and product management. We then rolled the e-learnings out to 200 people and the feedback from the participants has been really great.  Because of this tool we’ve been able to gamify the learning too.

What else have you done to continue building a culture since?

Communication is key. Whenever we have a new product or new system (e.g recruiting, performance management) we  connect it to the learning. For example, in our performance management you have an annual meeting about your performance with your manager, and you have to talk about your development.  Of course most people consider meeting a mandatory step and find it boring. I have worked with the managers to help them individually use this moment to create a better dialog with their employees, be more confident when giving feedback, setting goals etc etc. This combination of  building a catalogue of recommended training providers and training courses, building e-learning, leveraging managers and looking for single moments where we can connect learning to the business process shows why learning is important in a company and is the first steps of building a learning culture.

More secret L&D Managers

Who is the secret L&D manager?

The “secret L&D manager” is actually a group of L&D managers. They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with their peers.

 

17 practical ways senior managers and executives can support training and development inside their organization

/1 Kommentar/in , /von

Recently one of our clients asked me to co-facilitate a workshop at an annual global event. The client is one of the largest building materials companies in the world, and their annual event is attended by plant managers, country directors and executives. Amongst the presentations and plenary sessions they wanted to run 2 challenging workshops which would then lead to concrete action plans. One of these workshops focused on the ambitious goal of quickly becoming carbon free, and the other on training. 

Our client wanted to further strengthen their learning culture and ensure top-level management were playing an active part in this journey. Rather than asking the senior leaders “What do you need?” the question they wanted to ask was “So. what can you do?” – and the participants loved it.  They were more than happy to share their experiences and opinions, and all were quite vocal when expressing that learning and development was their responsibility. As one Indonesian plant manager said  “You at headquarters support us and help us, we like the e-learning and the virtual delivery offers … but we are the important ones because we need to make it happen”.

Based upon their input, and expanded through interviews with other clients, here are 17 ways that senior managers and executives can actively support training and development within their organizations.

Go to the eBook

  1. Ensure that the message of how training connects into your long-term health and strategy is lived by all levels. This means looking for opportunities to repeat this message and using concrete and relatable stories.
  2. Be clear to your L&D teams about where you see your future challenges. What will the critical skills be in 5 years time? What trends do you see in your market? Where do you see the skills gap? What are the core behaviours you want to see in your staff’s DNA? If you show them where you want to go they will help you get there.
  3. Support the building of a skills matrix for roles , then with a rolling 36-month focus, ensure training is connected directly to this skills matrix. This is an upfront investment that then provides a clear framework for deciding where training budgets go.
  4. Tap into “management by objectives“ behaviours and make learning a target for your management team.
  5. Encourage awareness that people learn through experience and exposure. Be an example and look into include and involve upcoming talents and high-performers.
  6. Expect your management teams to lead by example and actively join training sessions. This helps ensure that training is seen as strengthening for the future and not a sign of weakness or gaps.
  7. Be seen to be looking for training and development for yourself. This sends a clear message that training is about becoming stronger and not a sign of weakness.
  8. Insist that managers actively feed back to the central L&D team regarding their current and future needs, satisfaction levels, and ideas for the medium and long-term. Strive to make the internal customer surveys a formality.  Your L&D teams should know in advance what is working and what is not if they are benefiting from direct conversations with the regions.
  9. Ask to see that all training has a clear objective and that this is reinforced before, during, and after the training by line managers in person. This isn’t about checking quality, but rather showing the people involved in the before and after that you care, and these steps aren’t nice-to-have add-ons!
  10. Connected to above, insist that all training programs lead to follow up actions by team leaders and line managers. See #4.
  11. Ensue that clear and tangible training objectives are communicated at multiple touch points. Find stories and examples which connect the importance of learning and development to medium- and long-term goals. Yes, this similar to points 1 & 2 but we can’t emphasize it enough. If people understand the “why” then things happen.
  12. Whenever you visit a plant or site, take the time to meet the local training dept and ask what else you can do to support them. They’ll really appreciate this … and you are again sending a clear signal that training and development is strategically important to you.
  13. Get involved with your emerging talents programs. These people are your future. They’ll be energized by your involvement and they’ll energize you too!
  14. Commit to actively supporting a training session once a month by joining the first 15 minutes, explaining why this training is relevant, showing interest in the people in the room and being clear about what we want to see afterwards
  15. Show little tolerance for regions reinventing the wheel. Identify the core strategic programs needed by all regions– get these programs right through piloting them – and then make sure there is budget to adapt them to the local skill levels and languages.
  16. Get involved when budget ownership questions threaten the actual delivery of training. Help cut through the complexity of cost centers and encourage the company to work as one organization.
  17. When costs need cutting, defend training budgets and training availability. It’s too easy to cut it and the savings are often small compared to more painful options but the message is clear. Do you want your employees to see training and development opportunities as a bonus or as an expectation?

For more information

If you’d like to know more about how you can actively make the most from your training investment then download this simple and practical guide.

Related pages

Which topics are most suited for the live virtual training format

/in , /von

This week’s Secret L&D manager is German and has been working for one of the big management consulting firms for 13 years. She is part of a virtual L&D team responsible for internal training solutions for a global group of analysts, specialists, and managers across multiple time zones. In our previous interviews she has shared how and why her organization got started with live virtual training solutions, and what they have learned along the way. In this post she shares more of her experience and looks forward to the future of virtual delivery.

eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providers

Which topics have you learned work well virtually and which haven’t taken off?

As I mentioned earlier, we first used the live virtual delivery format for what we could call hard skills. This included technical skills and software training. Training on Excel, PowerPoint etc. We then used virtual delivery formats for training where there were a lot of tips, dos and don’ts. For example, how to build effective slides and engage your audience. If the training is about showing something directly and then facilitating a conversation about this, then virtual training actually works very well.

We have also had really good experiences with softer topics too. Many of our leadership programs are now delivered virtually. For example one of our management development programs has a kick-off webinar, two one-one-one coaching sessions and a wrap-up webinar —all facilitated virtual—as standard elements, plus during this journey the participants meet for a two-day residential workshop. The feedback from our managers is that this is one of our most popular and successful programs.  We also have a lot of softer topics where working virtually is part of the training goals. For example, “Presenting in a virtual environment” or “Leading virtual teams”.

One big challenge or obstacle in a virtual space is how to build up trust. You have so many things which are lacking in a virtual space which are usually vital to building up trust with someone, right? This could be the immediate reaction to the other’s physical presence – smiles, body language, eye contact, even smell – anything. We’re all humans and we react to one another’s presence. But what happens when there isn’t a physical presence? Tackling this kind of virtual training topic in a virtual training environment makes absolute sense.

Are there some topics that you’d never wanted to go virtual with?

That’s actually a good question. Some training concepts are not at first glance suitable, but over the years I have learned that it is really a question of design. The technology does have limitations, but this is continually improving. I would say the obvious ones that don’t transfer as easily to a virtual deliver format easily are those programs where there are a lot of role-plays required. It’s difficult when the softer expressions, body language etc. are important training elements. But even these can be approached in different ways.

It depends on the situation, the participants’ situations and our training goals. When I want to adapt communication, soft skills, leadership training, etc. for a virtual context I think it’s possible to do that training or program also in a virtual setting. In fact, I will say that it makes a lot of sense to do it virtually as this is the manager’s reality! Yes, it can be difficult with topics like assertiveness, difficult conversations, giving feedback etc.  On a tiny little screen, their body language is not really visible. I don’t know what their legs are doing, but I can see what their shoulders are doing, and maybe their arms, hands and face – and this is reality. If it’s leadership in a virtual environment or difficult conversations in a virtual environment, the virtual training setting works perfectly.

If you’re trying to practice something you only ever do face-to-face with people, then it’s not as strong but it still can work. I can only think of a couple of our programs which maybe aren’t so suitable for virtual delivery, but it’s really only a few.

Do you see a change in the way you’ll be using live virtual training in the future?

Yes and no. I think there’ll be a shift in L&D generally, and also inside our firm. On the one hand, we don’t want to fully give up on the residential trainings because it’s still a very different experience and people really do like them. You are spending maybe three days with each other, rather than three hours online. It is completely different – you get to know people, you have a different level of peer exchange, you establish defined accountability partners etc. If you are meeting in person you also talk more broadly about things which are happening in the business and topics which are very sensitive things. Often this is outside of the training, too. In these longer residential trainings, you often build friendships with colleagues that are important for the rest of their working life. It’s a different experience.

On the other hand, the internationalization of our people and company means we are finding that the people who require a certain skill and want to develop it are not actually based in the same location. Bringing people together for classical face-to-face training is certainly a cost question – but also a time and environmental one, too! I think virtual training will expand because of these factors. There is of course an additional benefit – it is also good that people from different countries, with different work styles and different backgrounds have more chances and opportunities to exchange ideas and approaches.

So, from the human side we certainly still want that people meet each other in person – but really it’s a question of the topic and taking everything into account. I expect virtual training will increase because of the benefits it offers when done well. It makes a lot of sense when you have a topic which can be actually broken down into modules, and where it doesn’t matter if you have a week in between modules (or maybe a week in between really helps!).

Today, virtual delivery is being integrated into all of our approaches. All stand-alone residential training events will also have maybe a virtual kick-off call, some exercises in between, virtual coaching calls afterwards, and virtual wrap-up meetings afterwards etc. This leads to a blended learning journey so people can integrate training into their work life and transfer what they have learned. It is easier to incorporate virtual delivery into our everyday work life.  I believe it will become more and more usual.

Lessons learned: making live virtual training work for our business

/in , /von

This week’s Secret L&D manager is German and has been working for one of the management consulting firms for 13 years. She is part of a virtual L&D team responsible for internal training solutions for a global group of analysts, specialists, and managers across multiple time zones. In our previous interview she shared how and why her organization got started with live virtual training solutions. In this post she shares more of her experience on how to deliver virtual training solutions well.

Go to the eBook

Based on your experience over the last five years, what advice would you give a fellow L&D manager who hasn’t organized virtual delivery before and is planning on trying it?

If this is your very first move into live virtual training, I would suggest you start with a hard skill. Something which is more about skills than behaviours, for example software tools, processes etc. I would then search for a pilot group. For me a good pilot group is a group who will give you clear and balanced feedback. You should invest some time in preparing the pilot group. See it like setting the scene in terms of change management. People will probably be very sceptical and may even complain. You want to help them build an open mindset and help them understand why this move to virtual delivery is a good idea for them and the organization.

If this is the very first time you’re trying live virtual training then make the time to go and talk with people one-on-one and win them over. People don’t understand actually how “live”, interactive and fun, live virtual training can be. They might be thinking about e-learning or webinars where they just listen for half an hour. You want them to appreciate that this is live and that they will be expected to contribute in the same way as if they were in the same room as the facilitator. Tell them it’s not going to be a passive and boring experience, just pick up the phone and say “Hey John, you’re suggested for this training, we have this really cool format on WebEx, and it will be working like this and we’ll get you a really good headset and this will be really fun. You’ll meet people from Brazil and from Russia and ….”. Then see what you can do to help them be comfortable with the technology. Think about setting up a WebEx call with them beforehand and show them what WebEx looks like, how it works, how you’re going to use—and a few tips on making it a good experience, like finding a quiet place for the training session without people listening in, without background noise etc.

You want to light a fire in them. You want them to talk about the pilot session to other people and say at the very least, “Hey, actually that was not too bad!”

What advice can you share on designing and delivering live virtual training?

First of all, I would also invest in finding a fantastic and experienced virtual facilitator. You want the participants to connect with them and the training and leave with a positive experience. You can either look for an external vendor or learn-as-you go internally.

If you are going external you want to find an external partner who knows what they are doing and can guide you. If I use our example of working with you at Target Training, when we first spoke, and you asked me “Do you want a producer or not?” I knew that you knew what you were talking about.

Why do you feel a technical producer is so important in virtual training?

There are many people who don’t know what a producer is and what a producer’s role is. For me the technical producer is actually a key part of virtual facilitation and this is often forgotten.

The producer takes care of the technical part and if you use a producer, you can leverage all the functionality available in the virtual training tools, like breakout rooms, polls, whiteboards, combining whiteboards and summarizing them, letting people share output from the breakout rooms, managing technical glitches, etc. There are so many things that can be leveraged so easily. When this is covered by a producer then the facilitator can actually focus on facilitating – the human part of it!

Using a trainer and a producer works very well and everyone knows exactly know who is responsible for what when they have glitches. A producer means fewer distractions. It’s really a key thing for me to have a seamless experience and I wish that producers would be standard. I am a big fan of that.

What do you think makes an effective virtual trainer?

Being an effective trainer virtually requires different approaches. Let me share our first experiences. Prior to deciding to make this jump to virtual delivery, we had of course built up over the years a large pool of trainers and training companies who we worked with company-wide. This pool had a lot of experience with us and there were also a lot of alumni amongst them. We decided to invest in them and their development and help them learn to deliver live training virtually. They knew our company, they knew our people and they knew what our firm is all about. This key learning part was completely covered.

We decided to invest in them and their development in three ways – training them, learning by doing, and giving them constant feedback about really excelling in the virtual space. When we started with live virtual delivery, we said, “Just give it a try and let’s talk after 1 or 2 sessions about how they were delivered”. Our experience was that not every trainer can or wants to make the jump, and that is ok.

When I think about the better experiences I have had with facilitators, like your colleagues, what they all had in common was their ability to do a remarkable job in really building up trust quickly. They knew how to engage others and help people open up. I have also seen them play a lot with the pace which is so important. Generally, in the virtual training environment, people (myself included) tend to be talking much faster than they would in a classic residential training. Slowing the speed down really helps a lot, but if you are the facilitator it can at first feel kind of awkward and unnatural. The virtual facilitator can’t always see the other person and then there’s a delay and you feel as if you are talking into a black hole. But talking too fast is far worse as the participants feel they can’t contribute and are being pushed through the training as quickly as possible.  For me an effective virtual trainer can adapt their pace and play around with it. And the supreme discipline for me personally is when a facilitator can use humor in a virtual setting and makes participants laugh.

How much virtual training is delivered by your own trainers and how much by external partners?

I would today it is 60 – 70% by externals and the remainder by internal trainers. We have developed our own internal train-the-trainer programs for virtual delivery. This is delivered by those pioneers who were basically there at the beginning. We offer a “train the virtual trainer” program to our internal trainers. Our experts benefit from the experience, tips, tricks and advice the facilitators themselves learnt over time. They learn about designing and delivering virtual training.

Do you see a difference regarding training design in virtual training?

Yes, it’s absolutely different! Make sure you think carefully about the training set-up and format. For virtual training, the training design and the training materials need to be approached differently. In terms of training design, ask yourself what actually makes a face-to-face training successful and how can I apply this to the virtual training design? You certainly still want a lot of exercises, so the training is engaging. And, as the learners’ attention span is much shorter virtually, you might need to play more with timing and move fluidly between trainer inputting to discussions and then to exercises.

And a final question – how large would you recommend the groups should be for live virtual training?

It very much depends on the topic. For topics which require interchange of more sensitive things, for example soft skills or anything about teams or leadership, we say five to six people per group with seven being our absolute maximum. For what we call” technical trainings” I think we can accept a few more because the exchanges, discussions and conversations aren’t as important. For these kinds of topics our maximum is 15.

In the 3rd and final part of the interview the Secret L&D manager shares her views on which topics are best suited for virtual delivery and how she sees the future of virtual training.

 

 

 

How and why we got started with live virtual training in our global firm

/in , /von

This week’s Secret L&D manager is German and has been working for one of the big management consulting firms for 13 years. She is part of a virtual L&D team responsible for internal training solutions for a global group of analysts, specialists, and managers across multiple time zones.  In this post, she talks about the need for virtual delivery, the challenges, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.
eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providers

When did your organization start delivering training virtually?

When I joined our L&D team four years ago, our department had already been offering live virtual training for about a year. Not everyone in the company was actively using it yet so we were kind of pioneers. The background behind our decision to introduce virtual delivery was that we had, and have, a big group of people who are spread across the world in different countries on different continents. There are people in hub locations, and these hubs are also spread across the world, and there are people who may belong to the same department but are located in some very remote locations.

The training challenge here was that if we used the classical way of offering what we call “residential” face-to-face training to all these people, we would have exceeded our budgets by far. And still we wanted to offer everyone a fair chance of having the same training options as their colleagues. We were actively looking at which trainings could be held in a virtual space and this is clearly linked to which trainings are actually most suited, or most easily converted, to virtual delivery.

We started with so-called hard skills like slide writing, using PowerPoint, Excel etc. but we then also quickly moved into other soft areas too. We were keen to make this move as the virtual approach allowed us to make a continuous learning journey out of a “one-off training” and enabled implementing learning into every-day life – this is clearly the biggest advantage.

So how quickly did you move into delivering live virtual training solutions for soft skills training, leadership development, etc.?

I think fairly quickly actually. Until about six years ago there weren’t any soft skills or leadership training programs for my global group at all because the group was just being established. The first training initiatives were the classical format – residential trainings of one to three days. However, within a year, a live virtual delivery format had been established and then it moved forwards fairly quickly. Nowadays we have a 50/50 split – half is virtual, and half is residential.

What have you learned along the way about organizing live virtual training?

We should split this question into the organizational part and the delivery and facilitating part — but we have learned a lot in both areas! Starting with the organizational side, as with residential training, too, we learned we need to block time with people, and in virtual training these time slots need to be convenient for multiple time zones. Then we needed to find a suitable and reliable tool of course. WebEx was rolled out globally in our company around this time, and we were very happy – it works well with only a few exceptions when people have a poor internet connection. Everyone has the same technology; everyone has the same starting point. This is actually a really big help.

We also learned that there is a difference between delivering the classic virtual training session and what we call a blended virtual format. Let me explain; we had training where everybody was in a different place behind their desks. What we also successfully tried is, for example, having ten people in Boston who wanted to do the slide writing training, and we also had four people in Munich, and three people in Madrid. In some locations we have dedicated video rooms—this means people are sitting on one table and in one corner of the room there is a TV screen and camera. The group in Boston sees the other groups in Munich and Madrid and the other way, too. The facilitator is live in Boston, so one of the locations does have the advantage of having a live facilitator in the same room – but the participants in the other locations have colleagues with them, too – and everyone can see everyone. So when it comes to exercises this “being in a room with colleagues” does have a really big advantage. Colleagues are motivating and challenging each other, and of course we shouldn’t ignore the benefit of group pressure when it comes to participation and focus. People are not checking emails or multi-tasking because there are other people sitting in the room in the same training. And we could offer training to locations where there were too few people to have a face-to-face training.

We did something similar for a “writing proposals” project with a sales team in the Far East. The trainer was in one room and everybody else was in another room. It can work really well.

Absolutely! If the room is set up properly, this comes close to recreating a live residential training. Of course, logistics-wise there can be some difficulties because you first of all have to have a certain number of learners in each office and then people of course change plans last minute etc. But this is similar to the challenges of classical residential training. We also had to book all those video rooms, so they were free at the same time etc. Then an important client meeting comes, and the team is thrown out; so logistics-wise that’s a little bit hard, but we found solutions. In general, the approach worked very well, and the learners said they had a really positive group learning experience.

When you made your first moves into live virtual delivery was there any resistance from people? For example, did you have people wanting to stick with the classic face-to-face training approach?

Of course – and to be quite honest there still is! Often people still frankly ask “Hey I’ve been invited to this virtual training. Is there a live residential training instead?” This is natural because many people prefer to go somewhere else to be really focused, meet people, limit interruptions etc. It’s a much more intense experience, let’s be honest. There was a lot of resistance at the beginning and we still get it sometimes. However, I would say it quickly became accepted – mainly because people have had very positive experiences with virtual training, and they have then shared their experience with others.

This is where we come to the absolute need for good virtual facilitation skills. When we started moving into live virtual delivery, we already had a strong pool of trusted facilitators. Many of them were external vendors who were brilliant in the residential live facilitation, but facilitating virtually is so different. I’m thinking back to a workshop I attended myself on “Virtual Facilitation” run by the American Talent Development Association. This trainer was a radio moderator and he gave tips and tricks on using your voice to make virtual training more engaging. One thing he said—that I have never forgotten—was that facilitating in a virtual environment feels completely awkward. It’s really like being a radio moderator. It feels like you are talking to yourself and you aren’t getting any feedback. He said you need to embrace this, and to accept the silence. You will feel super awkward at first. But people need you to act as a guide. When you ask a question, you have to wait until an answer comes, and you still have to smile into the camera—even if there is no one immediately responding. This is a big change and challenge for many facilitators. And just as with face-to-face training, space and time to think is important. It is just that the time feels longer and different in a virtual training world.

In the early days we invested in our internal facilitators. They got training on how to really adapt to this virtual training context because it requires very different tools and very different styles of facilitation. We also had to train long-term and trusted external vendors on what we needed.

Not every trainer can or wants to make that change – it’s a question of personal preferences. And of course, some trainers are much better delivering training face-to-face than virtually. It’s really a totally different skill.

 

 

In our next blog post this Secret L&D manager share more of her experience and advice on making virtual training a success

 

The secret L&D manager: What makes training effective?

/in , /von

This month’s secret training manager is Italian and has worked in a variety of fields including public research organizations and service companies. Here she talks with Scott Levey about the basic elements that make training and trainers effective.

eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providers

What makes training effective?

To me an effective training is a training that uses most of the senses. Meaning: seeing, hearing, touching. The learners need to experience things and be actively engaged. Of course, the training needs to cover the thinking side, but adult learners need to learn by doing things. A good training event also has to be designed to have different activities and moments. For example, it needs moments to listen and get input and ideas, moments to pause and ponder on the theory that was just presented to you, moments to experiment, and moments to recap. I want the trainer to also plan in multiple moments where they cover again the main and salient points of the training.  For me this is essential.  I would also say that effective training sessions need to have a certain pace and this pace changes depending on the moment.  After lunch the trainer will increase the pace to get people moving again. Alternatively, the pace may slow down if the trainer sees that the participants aren’t following what the trainer is trying to do or trying to say.  So that’s what I think makes an effective training.

What makes the trainer effective? I mean you yourself have worked with many trainers and you have also trained yourself, haven’t you?

Well the most obvious answer would be that the trainer is the subject matter expert. She is an expert in her field and has real experience … but that isn’t enough. I’m going to give you a trivial example but I think everyone can relate to it. It’s about my daughter. She’s in high school right now and her math teacher is brilliant. He has a very brilliant mind … but he is not a pedagogue, so he is a teacher by definition but he is not a teacher through experience, and he is not patient with them. He knows his stuff, and is really smart, but he doesn’t know how to convey the salient points to my daughter or his class.  When I think back to the many companies I have worked in, I have also seen similar experiences with internal training sessions ran in various topics. It could be IT related, quality management, HR or technical skills.  Being a subject matter expert is the start but not the end.

Being an expert is not enough; you also need to be an expert in pedagogy, you need to be patient and you need to be attentive to the participants and allow them to ask questions. You need also to be able to shut down any conversation that strays from the topic because it can become difficult and you can waste time and not reach your training goals. This is not good because as we know training has an agenda and you need to stay on track.

Somehow a trainer also needs to be very confident and have some leadership behaviors, because she’s the leader of the group for the time of the training. Finally, I think an effective trainer has to have those storytelling skills where you put theory and experience into a nice little story that illustrates the point. And is easy to understand and remember

So, what I’m saying is an effective trainer is somebody who

  1. Is a subject matter expert
  2. Is a good communicator
  3. Is people-oriented
  4. Can lead a group
  5. Has the skills needed to design training so there are the right moments at the right times
  6. Has the skills to deliver the training in an engaging way and manage the pace
  7. Is focused and reaches the objective set for the training

Train-the-trainer courses can really help for both new and confident trainers … but it is my opinion that nothing really beats experience. So that’s what I think makes a trainer a good trainer.

Who is the secret L&D manager?

The “secret L&D manager” is actually a group of L&D managers. They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with their peers.

You can meet more of our secret L&D managers here …

 

Organizing management and leadership training programs – the secret L&D manager

/in /von

This month’s Secret L&D manager is German, based in Germany and works for a global automotive supply company.  He/She has worked in training and development for over 7 years.

New Call-to-actionWhat is important to you when designing and rolling out a leadership program?

For me a successful leadership or senior manager program in our company can never be a “one size fits all” solution.  Leadership and people management is not like a manual. We don’t want a “that’s how you have to do it” approach and we are serious about offering an individualized approach. The programs we build with companies like Target give people a chance to identify whatever they need and benefit from support in applying this in their day-to-day tasks – or in their life as a whole. Individuals take different things from the program.

Who do you target when you set up management and leadership programs?

When I set up a leadership program we are typically involving managers and leaders from a broad range of different functions – from HR to finance, logistics to manufacturing etc.  This means I have to exclude functional topics from the training design because they won’t be relevant to the whole group.

What kind or development areas are you targeting when you set up management and leadership programs?

We’re working in a very fast-paced environment and there are always a lot of changes going on.  A lot of our managers and leaders are firefighting, and really involved in operational work. We want to focus on soft skills like strategic thinking, so that they can step out of the operational and build a broader view of everything.

It is really important for me that our managers have the chance to step back and have a look at the broader picture – this means looking especially at strategy and finance. The leadership program needs to tackle what finance means for our company and to ensure the leaders have a big picture of company decisions that are made based on our financial performance. This extends to them having a broader view on strategy.  Our programs support them in building a strategic view of the company, their area and their immediate objectives.

We also want them to develop a stronger understanding of the consequences their own behaviours have, for example, on an individual, team or another department. If they are stressed out and don’t recognise that somebody in their team is drifting away, that’s not good.  The programs develop them to focus on their people –  their team is what makes their life easier in the end. They need to see not only themselves, their own workload, their own fires that are burning but also to focus more on their people and our overall strategy and values.

Do to summarize, strategy, finance, self-awareness, leading teams, and managing and developing the people they are leading. We want them to just take a step back and have a look at this and to have also the chance to experiment with tools, models and ideas. Not every tool is suitable for every person so they should decide on their own what they want to apply in the day to day what’s useful for them.

What is important to you when designing the training interventions which make up such a program?

I want them to work in groups and have personal time with the trainer. We have a mixture of formats including 1-to-1 intakes, using a tool such as DISC or MBTI, face-to-face seminars, virtual workshops and individual coaching. As the participants in the program are coming from all over Europe we also look to reduce travel costs and time using webinars, e-learning, virtual training sessions. The intakes, accountability calls and transfer coaching are all normally done via phone calls or using Webex. Then there are 3 to 4 onsite events with the groups coming together and meeting each other. These could be at the headquarters, a nice seminar hotel or near a plant (so we can organize a plant visit). Cost- and time- wise it is just not possible that they are travelling every few weeks.

What are you looking for from the trainers?

The trainers, of course are a very important element. When we look for trainers it is important to us that they are flexible. Our audience is usually, during the day, under pressure and there can be last minute things coming up so they are not able to attend a the whole session or training. So we need the trainer to be timewise as flexible as possible so if somebody missed some content they don’t get lost in the program. The trainer needs to help them and give an insight into what has been done. They need to be supportive with the people through the whole process – that is really important. Then of course that they have to be able to handle different personalities, functions, nationalities and cultures.

You mentioned culture – what role does this play in delivering the training?

This is a huge challenge, I can tell you. It depends a little bit on which positions the people are coming from. If they are coming from central positions and travelling a lot, meeting a lot of people etc. then usually they are open to everything and it’s easier to work with them. People coming from the production sites somewhere far away in the middle of nowhere – then it’s sometimes hard for them to connect with the other leaders and the softer stuff. It’s also hard for the trainers to manage them in the right way because they are really stuck in their culture. They are not as open as the people who are already used to being in this international environment – but it’s really important to get them to the stage where they are more open to the other cultures and diverse people.

How do your managers and leader react to the programs you offer? And how do you assess the training ?

The reaction of the operational leaders to this approach is very very positive. There are people who are more willing to open up and to work on themselves than others but I must say that those people who opened up completely are the ones that benefited the most from the program in the end.

About assessment, after the training I usually do a post training assessment where it’s a questionnaire where I ask people different sort of questions.

Who is the Secret L&D manager?

The Secret L&D manager is actually many L&D managers.  They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with peers.

Implementing the 70-20-10 model- insights from a secret L&D manager

/in , /von

This month’s Secret L&D manager is German, based in Germany and works for a global automotive supply company. She has worked in training and development for over 7 years.

Why are you using 70-20-10?

We introduced the 70-20-10 model in 2016, mainly because too many people were thinking that “development” is just about training, and that if our company wasn’t providing “training” the company wasn’t developing people. The 70-20-10 model helped us show that learning and development is more than just training. Training is one tool, but you can develop yourself all the time. The 70-20-10 model is rolled out globally to our whole organisation. There are also individual initiatives that I have developed which are only rolled out in a specific business area in Europe and for specific development programs like our talent development program.

eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providers

How did people react?

I would say the majority of the people in our company did not really understand at first. Only those people who joined the sessions where we explained and showed what 70-20-10 is really about – they understood the sense behind it. Learning and development is not such a big topic in our company and is not the highest priority, so many people read about it and ignored it.

So how have you brought 70-20-10 to life in the organization?

I created an individual development plan, built around 70-20-10, specifically for participants in our training programmes.

Which kind of programmes?

A development programme for our most talented young professionals. First of all, I introduced the 70-20-10 model a little bit to them, and I explained what 70-20-10 is about – and what it is not about too. Mainly that 70% of everything they learn is learning by doing, 20% is learning from others and only 10% is learning by “training”. I must say people were quite surprised about this when I started talking to them about it, but they quickly related to it.  They saw it reflected how they had learned their technical skills, and also their softer skills.

I then introduced a new individual development plan, which I have here in front of me.  I structured it in different levels. First of all, people were asked to define an overall individual development goal. Strictly speaking they weren’t all SMART goals – some were closer to a vision for where do I want to be and by when. As most of the goals were very general, I asked them to explain a little bit about what they meant with this goal. Where they are now, where they want to be and what they think would change when they achieve this goal. These were the key questions we asked them to think about.

Then they had to define three key development areas that they need to work on in order to achieve that very goal. These areas had to be really, really specific. They have to be SMART.

Once they had defined key development areas, they had to define development actions. On the tool I gave them, these actions are actually structured using 70-20-10.  They need to define mostly “learning by doing” actions, then partly “learning through others” actions and the smallest part is the “learning in training” actions.

And then, last but not least, for the individual development areas they were asked to define key performance indicators where they can measure the success of their development. Using KPIs is very characteristic for our automotive supply company because everything is measured in KPIs here. This is a step they understand easily, and I didn’t have to explain to them what a KPI is. Everything they do is measured.

How do you get a KPI from a soft skill?

Well, that’s tricky. Let’s take the simple example of improving presentation skills. So development actions can be “I will present my project four times in front of my boss or my team, and one of these will need to be delivered virtually”. The KPI could be the number of presentations you have done.

So you are just tracking that it’s happening?

Yes. Another example for management training is if you give or receive positive feedback – yes or no – it can be measured. It just helps a little bit, like you said, to track it, to know that they have to document their status. It really helps them to be motivated or to stay motivated.

Have you integrated the 70-20-10 into your senior management programs?

We have.  I think the 70 is really covered by the business simulations we use. In these simulations people lead their own company, competing against each other and most of it is really learning by doing. They have to work with the numbers, they have to work with the reports, they have to make their own decisions. They have the chance to contact their trainers for example, or their colleagues, and ask them for advice, so that’s learning by others maybe, but mostly it’s the learning by doing.

How do senior managers respond to being asked to build KPIs for their own development?

I must say I only really push the KPIs with the young professionals. They need the orientation to have this measured and their development areas are way simpler than the ones from the very experienced senior leaders that we’re training. I don’t push measuring of the senior managers and leaders. I think at their level they should be capable of measuring themselves and knowing how far they have come with their development.

What advice would you give to another training manager who wants to try and introduce this 70-20-10 approach to their organisation?

Firstly, I would say it’s a very rational approach to learning and development. You have to look a little bit at your target training audience and at your people. I mean in our automotive world there are a lot of engineers, and a lot of very structured thinking. They need tools that fit into their rational world and I think 70-20-10 does this for them. Learning is quite abstract and 70-20-10 gives them a framework to put it into numbers. So if you would like to apply this in your company you should really look at what is your target group.

And I see that structure is reflected in the way you have built your tools. I mean you’ve got boxes that need filling in which fits with your target audience, tick boxes, % etc.

Exactly, I’ve got KPIs. As I mentioned, everything is measured here and that’s their way of working. It is what people are used to and comfortable with. I think if you are trying to implement this in a more “creative” or “service”  company you might see much more pushback to the way my tools are designed and the use of KPIs

Thanks for your time and for sharing!

You’re welcome!

Who is the Secret L&D manager?

The Secret L&D manager is actually many L&D managers.  They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with peers.

Business English training: on-the-job training (for the job)

/1 Kommentar/in , /von

On-the-job (OTJ) training has been a cornerstone in our approach to in-house Business English training since our first InCorporate Trainers started their jobs (one of them was Scott Levey). When we explain the concept of on-the-job training to potential clients, they “understand” what we’re saying … BUT …they don’t really “get” how effective and beneficial on-the-job training is until they have seen it in action. This post aims to explain what it is, how it works, and how participants benefit, using some non-specific examples of on-the-job training.

New Call-to-action

The benefits of on-the-job training

OTJ training is highly effective because the training takes place alongside and as part of your daily work. The trainer uses your work situations (your emails, your virtual meetings, your plant tours) as the basis for your learning. On-the-job training takes place at work, while you are working. This brings two huge benefits.

  1. You maximize your time because you are benefiting from training while you are working.
  2. You can directly transfer what you learn to your job. Your training is completely based on a real and concrete task. Everything you learn is relevant.

If you are familiar with the 70-20-10 model, you’ll know that 70% of learning comes through “doing” and from “experience”. Learning while you work is highly effective and this is the heart of on-the-job training.

“I helped Hans to de-escalate a situation in Supply Chain Management. Hans felt that the American party was wound-up and overly difficult. Hans brainstormed phrases with my help and he wrote a draft email. I helped him improve the structure and tone of the email and suggested he rewrote some of his sentences in plain English. A few hours later, the American party positively replied and the whole thing was solved by the time Hans went home.”

What exactly is on-the-job training and how does it work?

With on-the-job training, the trainer is there when you need assistance in preparing emails, specifications, manuals, reports, slides and other documentation. The trainer can support you in the planning, writing and reviewing stage. The trainer is also available to you for preparing meetings, phone calls, web meetings, teleconferences, presentations and negotiations.  They can then shadow you in action and provide personalized and situationally-based feedback.

On-the-job training focuses on your priorities at work and on you improving your business English in those areas. It can be

  • reactive where you ask the trainer for help “Can you help me improve these slides?”
  • proactive where the trainer encourages you to share work you have done/are doing in English “I heard you are involved in writing the R-Spec for the new project. How can I support you?”

“One of my participants, a product manager, had to deliver two presentations in English. It was basically the same presentation, but for two different audiences.  Observing her in our first practice session, I made a note of language points to work on. We worked on these, and a few other things (key messages, adapting messages to different audiences, Q&A session) over the next week. She delivered the presentations to me again, already with much more confidence and fluency – and then she practised with a few colleagues in a weekly group session and benefitted from both their positive feedback and the confidence boost.  Finally, I watched her deliver from the back and she did great.  After the presentations we debriefed and I shared my feedback (what went really well, what would she like to focus more on next time etc) . She was too critical of her performance and I helped her to be realistic about what she needs to focus on.”

What on-the-job training isn’t

What the trainer does not do is write the email/document for you (where’s the learning in that?). One common misconception is that on-the-job trainers are translators or proof readers. They’re not, in the same way that translators and proof readers aren’t trainers. Collaborative proof reading and translation can be an option, but the ownership needs to stay with the learner.

Another misconception is that on-the-job training is traditional “classroom training” during work time. The trainer will certainly use the “insider” view and what they have seen on-the-job to tailor traditional “off the job” training. This means your group training, coaching, 1-1 training, and seminars are closer to your workplace and that the transfer of learning is smoother.  But “on the job” training is learning while actually doing. There’s a good example of how this looks in action in an R&D department here.

“Three of my participants had written a 300-page instruction manual and they came to me with the request to help them improve it. Nobody in their department understood it enough to successfully use the system that it was meant to explain. I told them I would read it. Oh boy. We worked on writing with the reader in mind, structuring documents to make them scannable and writing in plain English. Visuals replaced paragraphs and we even created a few video tutorials too.  Four weeks later, they produced a second manual. Over one hundred pages lighter, it was clear, comprehensive, mistake free, and written in a style that everyone could understand, even me. As a result, the system that was supposed to make everyone’s job easier made everyone’s job easier.”

Bringing on-the-job training to life

We sign confidentiality agreements with our clients. Even when we don’t, we wouldn’t use their actual documentation online, so these examples are non-specific and Hans is not really called Hans … she’s called XXXX.

If you would like to know more about the benefits of this approach, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Der geheime Manager für Lernen & Entwicklung: Wonach suchen L&E-Manager in einem Trainingsangebot?

/in /von

Der geheime Manager für Lernen & Entwicklung dieses Monats ist Australier mit Sitz in Deutschland und arbeitet für ein amerikanisches Unternehmen, das Bildverarbeitungssysteme und Software produziert.  Seit über 18 Jahren ist er in der Aus- und Weiterbildung tätig: als L&E-Manager, Inhouse-Trainer und als externer Trainingsanbieter.

eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providersWas erwarten Sie von einem Trainingsangebot?

In erster Linie möchte ich sehen, ob der Anbieter mir tatsächlich zugehört hat. Ich möchte Nachweise dafür sehen, dass sie aufgenommen haben, was ich gesagt habe, und dass sie meine Erwartungen klar verstanden haben. Was ich damit meine, ist, dass das Angebot meine Bedürfnisse und die Informationen widerspiegeln muss, die ich ihnen zu Beginn gegeben habe. Als nächstes möchte ich auch einen Mehrwert sehen. Ja, ich möchte sicher sein, dass sie mir zugehört haben, aber ich möchte auch, dass sie etwas mehr an den Tisch bringen. Ich schätze, ich erwarte von ihnen, dass sie mir zeigen, dass sie etwas von ihrem Fachwissen und ihrer Erfahrung teilen, indem sie mir eine neue Idee oder eine Lösung für ein Problem anbieten, an das ich nicht gedacht habe.

Um ehrlich zu sein, will oder brauche ich nicht wirklich ein super detailliertes Angebotsdokument. In der Tat, je mehr ich darüber nachdenke, desto unwahrscheinlicher ist es, dass ich von einem 50-seitigen ausführlichen Bericht beeindruckt bin. Seien wir ehrlich, wir sind alle sehr beschäftigt, also möchte ich ein Dokument sehen, in dem sie es in Teile zerlegen, so dass ich einen klaren Blick darauf werfen kann, was passieren wird und wie sie es erreichen werden. Oh und nicht zu vergessen, das erwartete Ergebnis am Ende des Trainings. Also das, was Menschen nach dem Training besser können sollten als vorher. Deshalb schicken wir sie schließlich auf eine Schulung.

Natürlich möchte ich ein klares Verständnis dafür, wie viel mich die Trainingslösung kosten wird. Ja, ich weiß, dass es nicht immer möglich ist, alle möglichen Kosten zu identifizieren, aber was ich nicht will, sind böse Überraschungen später im Prozess. So als ob man plötzlich herausfindet, dass man für ein Business Class Ticket bezahlt. Das wäre ein Problem.

Wenn es das erste Angebot eines neuen Anbieters ist, welche Extras benötigen Sie dann?

Die Dinge sind ein wenig anders, wenn es jemand ist, den man noch nicht kennt. Wenn es das erste Mal ist, möchte ich wirklich ein Beispiel dafür sehen, wie das Trainingsmaterial aussieht. Dieses Aussehen und Gefühl ist mir sehr wichtig. Ich möchte sichergehen, dass das Material professionell aussieht und nicht z.B. voller Cartoons oder handgezeichneter Bilder ist. Am ersten Tag, wenn unsere Mitarbeiter in die Trainingseinheit gehen und das Material zum ersten Mal abholen, möchte ich, dass sie beeindruckt sind. Der erste Eindruck ist wichtig.

Ebenso möchte ich wissen, was sie am Ende des Trainings bekommen werden. Werden sie ein ganzes Folienpaket, PDF-Dokumente mit Notizen und Fotos von Flipcharts erhalten? Sie wissen, was ich meine. Was auch immer es ist, ich möchte das im Voraus wissen. Muster sind also immer eine gute Idee.

Benötigen Sie Informationen über die Anbieter im Angebot?

Generell nicht, ich mache gerne meine Hausaufgaben, bevor jemand mit mir zur Angebotsphase kommt. Ich möchte mich einigermaßen sicher fühlen, dass der Anbieter dem Job gewachsen ist, egal um welchen Job es sich handelt. Bevor ich also um ein Angebot bitte, habe ich selbst ein wenig recherchiert und das schließt Referenzen von den vorhergehenden Kunden und solche Dinge mit ein. So etwas sollte vor einem Angebot gehandhabt werden, nicht während oder nach dem Prozess.

Wie viele Angebote sehen Sie sich für eine Sitzung an?

Im Allgemeinen will ich 2 oder 3. Mehr, und ich verschwende meine Zeit damit, herumzustochern und mache dann eigentlich keine gute Arbeit dabei, die guten Angebote überhaupt herauszufiltern. Es gibt Zeiten, in denen ich genau weiß, wonach ich suche, und dann reicht wahrscheinlich ein Anbieter schon aus. Sicher, für mich als internen Trainingsanbieter ist es wichtig, mehrere Anbieter zu haben. Aber wenn es Kurse gibt, bei denen wir nur einen bestimmten Anbieter verwenden, habe ich damit kein Problem.

Welche Angebote frustrieren Sie?

Ich denke, die Sache, die mich mehr als alles andere frustriert, ist, wenn man das Gefühl hat, dass man gerade das Gleiche bekommt, was sie an alle schicken. Es macht mich verrückt! Warum habe ich 2 Stunden damit verbracht, meine Situation zu erklären und bekomme trotzdem ein allgemeines Angebot zugeschickt? Das gibt mir das Gefühl, dass ich meine Zeit verschwendet habe. Ich habe nie die Absicht und werde wahrscheinlich nie (oder sehr selten) ein Produkt von der Stange kaufen.

Und da ist noch eine Sache. Angebote, die keinerlei Erwähnung über das beabsichtigte Ergebnis erhalten und das, was wir eigentlich erreichen wollen. Ich würde sagen, das sind die beiden frustrierendsten Dinge.

 

 

Wer ist der geheime Manager für Lernen & Entwicklung?

Der geheime L&E Manager ist in Wirklichkeit eine Vielzahl von L&E Managern.  Es sind echte Menschen, die es vorziehen würden, ihren Namen oder ihr Unternehmen nicht zu erwähnen – aber anonym schreiben wollen, damit sie ihre Ideen und Erfahrungen offen und direkt mit Kollegen teilen können.

Neun Wege mehr zu lernen… effektiv, angenehm und einfach!

/in /von

Möchten Sie etwas effektiver, angenehmer und einfacher lernen? Dann merken Sie sich jeden einzelnen Buchstaben des Satzes im Dreieck und verinnerlichen die folgenden 9 Wege, genau das zu tun:

1. I Can – glaube es oder glaube es nicht!

Wie Henry Ford einmal sagte: „Ob Sie glauben, dass Sie etwas tun können oder ob Sie glauben, dass Sie es nicht können, Sie haben Recht!“ Entscheiden Sie sich dafür, an sich selbst zu glauben – Ihr Potenzial ist unendlich und Ihr Bestes steht noch vor Ihnen!

2. Creativity – sie ist unendlich groß – lassen Sie ihr freien Lauf!

Wir sind kreativ geboren! Auch wenn wir unsere Kreativität noch lange nicht genutzt haben, so wartet sie doch darauf, entfesselt zu werden! Wie der Blechmann im Zauberer von Oz, braucht sie vielleicht einen Tropfen Öl! Machen Sie heute etwas ganz Neues oder etwas Altes auf eine ganz neue Art und Weise. Ihre kreative Fähigkeit ist unendlich. Beobachten Sie spielende Kinder und Sie werden unendliche Kreativität in vollem Gange sehen! Lassen Sie sich von ihnen inspirieren!

3. Attention/Mindfulness – Lernen Sie zu fokussieren und zu entspannen.

Lernen Sie, Ihre Aufmerksamkeit dort hin zu lenken, wo sie am meisten gebraucht wird und auf das, was im gegenwärtigen Moment wirklich wichtig ist. Während unsere Gesellschaft immer schneller und schneller wird, besteht die Tendenz darin, einen Geist zu entwickeln, der immer „rast“ und anfällig für Ablenkung ist. Wir müssen lernen, unseren Geist zu entspannen. Lernen Sie Meditation, Entspannung, Yoga, Achtsamkeit, Tai Chi oder ähnliche Formen der Bewegung, die Ihren Geist beruhigen und Ihre Aufmerksamkeit verbessern.

4. Newness – Ihr Gehirn liebt Neues!

Als Sie zum ersten Mal diesen Planeten erblickten, war alles neu und in den ersten Jahren haben Sie gelernt zu gehen, zu reden, zu erkennen, zu essen und vieles mehr! In Zeiten großer Veränderungen lernen wir viel! Denken Sie also daran, wenn wir uns dem Wandel widersetzen, widersetzen wir uns auch dem Lernen! Also reisen Sie in eine ganz andere Kultur, lernen Sie etwas, von dem Sie dachten, dass Sie es nicht lernen könnten und probiere Sie ständig neue Wege aus, um alte Dinge zu tun. Wenn es nicht funktioniert, was soll’s, lernen Sie daraus und versuchen Sie stattdessen etwas anderes!

5. Learning Growth – Streben Sie kontinuierlich danach, die Art und Weise, wie Sie lernen, zu verbessern.

Vor dem Lernen sollten Sie sich ein Ziel setzen – das Wer, Was, Wann, Wo, Warum, Wie von dem, was Sie lernen möchten. Fragen Sie sich selbst – woher weiß ich, dass ich es gelernt habe – wie wollen  Sie sich selbst testen? Verschaffen Sie sich einen Überblick darüber, was gelernt werden muss. Benutzen Sie die linke und rechte Hälfte Ihres Gehirns – die logische und die kreative. Verwenden Sie zum Beispiel Farbe, Wörter, Bilder, Struktur, Bewegung, Rhythmus, Aufregung, Humor. Machen Sie es vor allem zu einem angenehmen Erlebnis! Nachdem Sie Ihr Lernziel erreicht haben, fragen Sie sich – was hat funktioniert und was könnte beim nächsten Mal besser gemacht werden?

6. Exercise – Den Körper trainieren

Recent research in Japan showed that people who exercise three times a week for half an hour have mental abilities 30% greater than those who don’t. It really stands to reason – do you think you learn more effectively if you physically exercise regularly? Test it and see – take time to exercise. The exercise can be gentle like walking, swimming, cycling or whatever type of exercise you like.

Neuere Untersuchungen in Japan haben gezeigt, dass Menschen, die dreimal pro Woche eine halbe Stunde lang Sport machen, sind geistig 30% leistungsfähiger als diejenigen, die dies nicht tun. Denken Sie, dass Sie effektiver lernen, wenn Sie regelmäßig körperlich trainieren? Testen Sie es und sehen Sie selbst – nehmen Sie sich Zeit für den Sport. Das Training kann so einfach sein, wie z.B. Gehen, Schwimmen, Radfahren oder jede andere Art von Übung, die Sie mögen.

7. Age – Den Geist trainieren

Egal wie viel Sie von Ihrem Gehirnpotenzial bisher genutzt haben, es gibt immer mehr zu nutzen – Sie habenn mindestens 100 Milliarden Gehirnzellen. Der Grund, warum wir glauben, dass sich ‚geistige Fähigkeiten mit dem Alter verschlechtern‘, liegt darin, dass die meisten Menschen es glauben! Es gab auch eine Zeit, in der wir alle dachten, die Welt sei flach! Wir lagen alle falsch! Beginnen Sie daran zu glauben, dass Ihre mentalen Fähigkeiten mit dem Alter steigen können…. trainiere sie. Use it or lose it.

8. Reinforce – Beobachten Sie was funktioniert: Das Gesetz der Verstärkung

Jedes Verhalten, das bekräftigt wird, wird sich in der Regel wiederholen – also beobachten Sie weiter, was funktioniert und feiern Sie es! Stärken Sie weiterhin die Dinge im Leben von denen Sie mehr haben möchten. Denken Sie an alles, was funktioniert, und fragen Sie dich dann – wie kann ich den Rest verbessern?

9. Never give up learning to learn – Lernen Sie das Lernen: Hören Sie nicht damit auf.

Lernen ist Wachstum. Wachstum ist Lernen. Hören Sie nie auf zu lernen, zu erforschen. Ihre Leinwand wartet auf Ihr kreatives Meisterwerk. Geben Sie Das Lernen nie auf! Geben Sie das Erlernen des Lernens nie auf!

Nun, wenn Sie so weit gelesen haben, Gratulation. Wie Einstein einmal sagte: „Die wahre Kraft des Wissens liegt in seiner Anwendung“. Entscheide Sie sich, mindestens eine Handlung zu ergreifen, nachdem Sie diesen Artikel gelesen haben, und lernen Sie mehr…. effektiv, angenehm und einfach! Lasst uns wissen, wie es voran geht!

Über den Autor

Sean ist ein führender Experte dafür, wie Sie mehr von Ihrem unendlichen, geistigen Potenzial nutzen können. Er trainiert und coacht Organisationen und Einzelpersonen weltweit, um dieses unerschlossene unendliche geistige Potenzial zu erschließen. Mit über 25 Jahren Erfahrung in der Trainingsbranche hat Sean Schulungen für viele Unternehmen und Organisationen weltweit durchgeführt. Sie erfahren mehr über ihn unter: www.MindTraining.biz

5 Fragen, die Sie unbedingt stellen müssen, wenn Sie ein virtuelles Trainingsprogramm einrichten

/in /von

Immer mehr unserer Kunden setzen auf die virtuelle Durchführung von Schulungen. Viele streben nach einer globalen Trainingslösung, bei der jeder Zugang zu der gleichen hohen Qualität der Ausbildung hat, unabhängig davon, wo sie sich befinden. Andere müssen die Reisekosten senken. Einige bewegen sich in Richtung mundgerechtes Lernen und bieten Training in kleineren Einheiten an. Dieses wachsende Interesse hat dazu geführt, dass wir bei Target Training häufig eine beratende Funktion bei Kunden übernehmen, die wenig oder gar keine Erfahrung im virtuellen Training haben. Nachfolgend finden Sie einige der Schlüsselfragen, die wir unseren Kunden nahegelegt haben, sich selbst zu stellen.

New Call-to-action

F1. Wie viel Erfahrung haben Ihre Teilnehmer im Umgang mit virtuellen Plattformen?

Es ist wichtig, die virtuelle Plattform, die Sie für die Durchführung von Schulungen verwenden, mit den Erlebnis- und Komfortzonen Ihrer Mitarbeiter abzustimmen. Wie vertraut sind die Teilnehmer des virtuellen Trainings mit der virtuellen Kommunikation im Allgemeinen?  Was können sie bereits tun? Und welche Systeme nutzen sie regelmäßig für z.B. virtuelle Meetings? Einige Teilnehmer nutzen täglich Videokonferenz-Tools für ihre regelmäßigen Check-Ins mit ihren virtuellen Kollegen. In einer solchen Umgebung sollten Sie ihre Fähigkeiten nutzen und Schulungen auf einer umfangreichen virtuellen Plattform mit vielfältigen und nützlichen Funktionalitäten durchführen. Webex Training Center und Adobe Connect sind gute Beispiele.

Wenn Ihre Mitarbeiter jedoch völlig neu in dieser Art von Arbeit und neu auf diesen Plattformen sind, dann machen Sie sich keine Sorgen. Geben Sie nicht viel Geld für eine hochwertige virtuelle Trainingsplattform aus, wenn die Benutzer die Tools nicht nutzen können.  Es gibt eine Menge einfacher, aber effektiver Plattformen, die für Ihre Mitarbeiter funktionieren könnten, und ihre Einfachheit bedeutet, dass es leichter ist damit zu arbeiten und es daher öfter genutzt wird. Erwägen Sie daher Skype für Unternehmen, Polycom oder BlueJeans.

Target Tipp – Wählen Sie eine virtuelle Trainingsplattform aus, die der Erlebnis- und Komfortzone Ihrer Mitarbeiter entspricht.

Q2. Was ist der kleinste gemeinsame Nenner, wenn es um Ihre technische Infrastruktur geht?

Viele unserer Kunden sind auf der Suche nach globalen Trainingslösungen für ihre Mitarbeiter auf der ganzen Welt – jeder sollte von dem gleichen Training profitieren können.  Wenn jedoch in bestimmten Teilen der Welt die verfügbare Bandbreite sehr langsam ist, Kameras deaktiviert sind, Soundkarten nicht Standard sind usw., wird dies unweigerlich Probleme verursachen und das Training negativ beeinflussen. Entweder wird diese Person echte Schwierigkeiten haben, voll am Training teilzunehmen, und/oder es wird zu Verzögerungen für alle anderen kommen.

Sie haben 2 Möglichkeiten – entweder arbeiten Sie mit dem kleinsten gemeinsamen Nenner, wenn es um Ihre technische Infrastruktur geht, und passen Sie dann die Ausbildung an dieses Niveau an ODER entscheiden Sie sich dafür, die Trainingsgruppe nach technischen Fähigkeiten aufzuteilen.

Target Tipp – Respektieren und passen Sie sich dem kleinsten gemeinsamen Nenner an, wenn es um Ihre technische Infrastruktur geht.

F3. Wie viel Erfahrung haben Ihre Mitarbeiter mit virtuellem Training?

Wenn Sie einen virtuellen Trainingsansatz für Menschen einrichten wollen, die bisher wenig oder gar keine Erfahrung mit dem Erhalt von virtuellem Training hatten, müssen Sie rechtzeitig planen, um ihnen beizubringen, wie sie das Beste aus der virtuellen Trainingsumgebung machen können.  Ihr Trainingsanbieter sollte dies für Sie tun können. Ein Teil dieser Zeit wird damit verbracht, die Teilnehmer in der Anwendung der Technologie zu schulen UND Sie müssen Ihren Teilnehmern auch helfen, mehr darüber zu erfahren, wie virtuelles Training anders aussehen und sich anders anfühlen kann. Der Vergleich mit einem klassischen Präsenzseminar wird nicht helfen.

Wenn Sie sich das virtuelle Training für Ihre virtuellen Teams ansehen, dann können Sie hier 2 Fliegen mit einer Klappe schlagen – as Team wird seine virtuellen Kommunikationsfähigkeiten entwickeln und gleichzeitig ihr Team stärken!

Target tip – Investieren Sie ein wenig Zeit in das Training der Personen. Damit diese sich in einer virtuellen Trainingsumgebung zurechtfinden und sich weiterentwickeln. Dies kann Teil der ersten Sitzung oder eine separate Veranstaltung sein.

F4. Wie viele Personen planen Sie zu den einzelnen virtuellen Trainingseinheit einzuladen?

Wenn es um klassische Präsenzseminare geht, sind sich die meisten Menschen bewusst, dass, wenn Sie das Training interaktiv und relevant für jeden Einzelnen halten wollen, Sie die Gruppengröße begrenzen müssen.  Gruppen von 10- 14 Personen sind üblich.

Beim virtuellen Training gehen viele Kunden davon aus, dass viel größere Gruppen möglich sind.  Meistens ist dies auf die Verwechslung von E-Learning und Webinaren mit virtuellem Training zurückzuführen.  Die maximale Anzahl von Personen, die wir zu einer virtuellen Trainingseinheit einladen möchten, wird von zwei Faktoren beeinflusst:

  1. Die Anzahl der Personen ist in einigen Fällen durch die Bandbreite begrenzt, die Ihnen und den Teilnehmern zur Verfügung steht. (siehe F2)
  2. Zweitens hängt es davon ab, wie einfach Sie die Gruppe leiten und das Training interaktiv und relevant für die einzelnen Teilnehmer halten können. Wir empfehlen dringend kleinere Gruppen – sechs ist die magische Zahl.  Größere Gruppen von bis zu 16 Personen können funktionieren, wenn Sie einen „Produzenten“ zur Unterstützung des Trainers einsetzen. Der Produzent hilft dem Trainer, die Funktionalitäten und Werkzeuge innerhalb der Plattform zu managen und die Interaktion und Fragen im Auge zu behalten.  Sie werden auch dann eingreifen, wenn die Technologie Probleme verursacht.

Target Tipp  – Halten Sie die Trainingsgruppen kleiner, als Sie es normalerweise bei einem Präsenztraining tun würden.  Investieren Sie in einen Produzenten, wenn Sie größere Gruppen wünschen, da es so günstiger ist, als Sitzungen zweimal durchzuführen.

F5. Was tun wir vor oder nach dem virtuellen Training, um das Lernen zu fördern und den Transfer zu unserem Arbeitsplatz voranzutreiben?

Think about how you can make this a more enriched learning environment, and how you can help your staff apply what they learn to their workplace.  An example of pre- and/or post-training could be using your in-house learning management system. Maybe a “flipped classroom” work where a lot of the learning is inputted before the virtual training itself (meaning the virtual training session focuses on application)?  How about individual accountability calls with the trainer after the training? Or on-the-job coaching delivered virtually as in our Presenting in a virtual environment training?

Denken Sie darüber nach, wie Sie das Training zu einer bereicherten Lernerfahrung machen können und wie Sie Ihren Mitarbeitern helfen können, das Gelernte auf ihren Arbeitsplatz anzuwenden.  Ein Beispiel für Pre- und/oder Post-Training könnte die Verwendung Ihres internen Learning Management Systems sein. Vielleicht ein „umgedrehter Unterricht“ (flipped classroom), in dem ein Großteil des Lernens vor dem virtuellen Training selbst behandelt wird (d.h. die virtuelle Trainingseinheit konzentriert sich nur auf die Anwendung)?  Wie sieht es mit individuellen Verantwortlichkeitsgesprächen mit dem Trainer nach dem Training aus? Oder on-the-job Coaching, dass virtuell durchgeführt wird, wie in unserem Training Präsentieren in einem virtuellen Umfeld?

Target Tipp – Positionieren Sie das virtuelle Training als Teil einer Lernreise. Unterstützen Sie Führungskräfte und Mitarbeiter dabei, die Rolle zu verstehen, die sie bei der Maximierung der Rendite der Trainingsinvestitionen spielen. Dieses eBook kann Ihnen helfen.

Go to the eBook
Wenn Sie mehr über virtuelles Training erfahren möchten, kontaktieren Sie uns einfach. Wir helfen Ihnen gerne weiter.

Virtuelle Vortragsweise: Erste Schritte

/in , /von

Obwohl viele Fachleute, Manager und Trainingsmanager von Virtual Delivery wissen, gibt es immer noch einige Unklarheiten darüber, was es ist und wie es funktioniert.  Hier sind einige häufige Fragen, die uns gestellt werden, wenn wir unsere Kunden bei der Integration von virtuellem Training in ihre Lernstrategien unterstützen.

Was meinen wir, wenn wir über virtuelles Training oder virtuelle Vortragsweise sprechen?

Virtuelles Training ist ein Training, bei dem sich einer oder mehrere der Teilnehmer nicht im selben Raum wie der Trainer befinden. Die Schulung erfolgt über eine der vielen „Unified Communication Plattformen“. Dieser Begriff umfasst Webkonferenz-Tools wie WebEx Training Center, Adobe Connect, Go Meeting oder Skype for Business sowie Videokonferenzdienste wie BlueJeans oder Polycom.

Virtuelles Training wird oft als eine internationale Lösung angesehen. So haben wir beispielsweise eine virtuelle Sitzung mit einem Trainer aus Frankfurt am Main und Teilnehmern aus Hawaii, Boston, Luxemburg und Singapur durchgeführt. Wenn Sie jedoch einen Trainer an einem Standort haben und Teilnehmer am selben Ort/im selben Land, aber in verschiedenen Räumen sind –  dann ist das auch virtuelles Training.

Inwiefern unterscheidet sich virtuelles Training von E-Learning oder Webinaren?

Diese Begriffe werden oft von der Marketingabteilung eines Trainingsanbieters definiert, aber normalerweise stimmen die meisten Fachleute für Lernen & Entwicklung folgendem zu:

  • E-Learning wird vom Lernenden geleitet und es gibt keinen Live-Trainer.  Das Lernen erfolgt im Selbststudium durch die Interaktion mit einem computergestützten Lernprogramm. Ein einfaches Beispiel ist Duolingo als App für das Sprachenlernen. SkillSoft ist ein Beispiel für E-Learning zur Entwicklung Ihrer Soft Skills.
  • Ein Webinar wird von einem Sprecher geleitet und hat wahrscheinlich etwa 50 Zuhörer – obwohl einige Webinare Hunderte im Publikum haben. Das Webinar wird über Video oder eine Videokonferenzplattform online durchgeführt und der Referent spricht die meiste Zeit. Am Ende hat er oder sie die Möglichkeit, Fragen zu beantworten, und wenn sie einen Moderator beauftragen, können interaktive Momente gestalten werden, z.B. um Input über eine Umfrage während des Webinars zu erlangen.
  • Virtuelles Training ist ein Trainer plus Teilnehmer. Im Idealfall ist das Training interaktiv, engagiert und an die Bedürfnisse der Teilnehmer angepasst.

Was bietet Ihnen das virtuelle Training, was ein Webinar nicht bietet?

Einfach ausgedrückt, geht es beim virtuellen Training um Lernen durch Interaktion, Engagement und Personalisierung – es ist aktives Lernen. Dazu gehört das Lernen vom Trainer, das Lernen aus persönlichen Erfahrungen und das Lernen voneinander z.B. über Diskussionen und Erfahrungsaustausch. Webinare sind vergleichbar mit Vorträgen oder Online-Präsentationen – das Lernen ist passiv und basiert ausschließlich auf dem Sprecher und den Inhalten, die er teilt.

Wie viele Teilnehmer können Sie virtuell zur gleichen Zeit trainieren?

Überraschenderweise gehen viele Personen davon aus, dass ‚virtuell‘ auch mehr Teilnehmer bedeutet.  Dies basiert oft auf Erfahrungen in Webinaren mit mehr als 50 Personen. In einem Präsenztraining würden wir nie versuchen, 50 Teilnehmer im selben Raum zu schulen.  Typischerweise empfehlen wir 8-12 Teilnehmer, wobei 14 ein Maximum ist.  Jahrelange Erfahrung hat uns gezeigt, dass eine ideale Zahl für interaktives virtuelles Training etwa 6-8 Personen sind. Mit einer kleinen Gruppe wie dieser können Sie sicherstellen, dass Menschen die Möglichkeit haben, auf eine intimere Art und Weise miteinander zu interagieren, indem Sie Optionen wie ‚Breakout-Rooms‘ nutzen, die in den funktionelleren Plattformen wie WebEx Training Center oder Adobe Connect zu finden sind. Diese Pausenräume bieten die gleichen Vorteile wie die Integration von Kleingruppenaktivitäten in einen Schulungsraum. Diese Interaktion ist wirklich wichtig, denn ein Großteil des Wertes des Trainings, ob virtuell oder persönlich, ist die Interaktion, die die Teilnehmer miteinander haben. Sie lernen nicht nur vom Trainer, sondern auch voneinander!

Was ist ein Produzent und warum brauchen wir einen?

Ein Produzent sorgt für einen reibungslosen Ablauf des virtuellen Trainings und unterstützt den virtuellen Trainer dabei, ein interaktives, personalisiertes und vor allem reibungsloses Trainingserlebnis zu bieten. Dies ermöglicht es dem Trainer, bis zu 50% größere Trainingsgruppen zu verwalten, z.B. 8-12 Teilnehmer. Zu ihren Aufgaben gehören:

  • technische Unterstützung der Teilnehmer vor, während und nach dem Training
  • Einrichtung von Breakout-Räumen, Umfragen etc.
  • Monitoring von Engagement und Beiträgen in Chats und Break-Out-Räumen
  • Aktivitäten gestalten
  • Zeitkontrollen mit dem Trainer und den Teilnehmern

For more information

Bei Target Training bieten wir alle unsere Lösungen auch in einem virtuellen Format an. Dazu gehören internes Business English mit unserem Virtual InCorporate Trainer, Präsentieren in einem virtuellem Umfeld und Leiten von virtuellen Teams. Wenn Sie mehr über unsere virtuellen Lösungen erfahren möchten, Zeit und Geld sparen und Ihren Schulungsumfang erweitern möchten, dann kontaktieren Sie uns einfach.

Virtuelles Training vs. Präsenztraining: Wie sieht es im Vergleich aus?

/in , , /von

James Culver ist Partner der Target Training Gmbh und verfügt über 25 Jahre Erfahrung in der Entwicklung maßgeschneiderter Trainingslösungen. Er war in seinen beruflichen Stationen ein HR Training Manager, ein Major der US Army National Guard und ein Dozent an der International School of Management. Er ist auch ein talentierter Perkussionist und Geschichtenerzähler. Im letzten Teil dieser Serie von Blog-Posts über die Durchführung von virutellem Training beantwortete er die folgenden Fragen…

New Call-to-action

Sie verfügen über 25 Jahre Erfahrung in der Durchführung von Schulungen. Seit wann bieten Sie virtuelles Training an?

James Seit den 90er Jahren. In den Vereinigten Staaten haben wir sehr früh mit der virtuellen Vortragsweise im Community College-System begonnen. Wir hatten oft  kleine Gruppen von Studenten an abgelegeneren Standorten, die dennoch die Vorteile von Kursen nutzen wollten, die wir auf dem Hauptcampus anbieten würden, also begannen wir, virtuelle Schulungen anzubieten. Als ich anfing, mit virtuellem Training zu arbeiten, war es extrem teuer, einen Teil dieser Arbeit zu erledigen. Unser System war im Grunde genommen eine Kameraeinrichtung und der Professor oder der Trainer sprach nur mit der Kamera. Es gab nur sehr wenig Interaktion mit den anderen Standorten und es war wie eine Art TV- Schule.

Wie sehen Sie den Vergleich von virtuellem Training zu fact-to-face Training?

James Es gibt wahrscheinlich zwei Dinge, über die man nachdenken sollte. Eines ist der Inhalt, den man vorträgt und das andere ist der Kontext. Mit Kontext meine ich alles, was den Inhalt umgibt. Wie die Dinge gemacht werden, wer mit wem interagiert und wie sie interagieren – das Gros der Kommunikation. Was den Inhalt betrifft, so sind das behandelte Thema und die geteilten Informationen auf virtueller und persönlicher Ebene gut zu vergleichen. Tatsächlich sind die virtuellen Plattformen, die wir bei Target Training einsetzen, maßgeschneidert für die Bereitstellung vieler Inhalte auf interessante Weise. Es ist sehr einfach, Videos, Aufnahmen, Whiteboards usw. hinzuzufügen. Wenn wir zum Beispiel Inhalte haben, die auf einem Slide vorbereitet und den Leuten zur Verfügung gestellt werden, können sie diese kommentieren, Fragen stellen usw. Das ist auf einer virtuellen Plattform wirklich sehr einfach..

Was meistens schwieriger ist, ist alles, was damit zu tun hat, im selben Raum wie jemand anderes zu sein: Gesichtsausdruck ändern, Körpersprache ändern. Wir sehen oder bekommen das oft nicht in einer virtuellen Umgebung mit, selbst mit den marktführenden Systemen. Die Herausforderung als Trainer besteht darin, einen großen Teil der Informationen zu verlieren, die wir von den Teilnehmern eines klassischen Präsenztrainings erhalten würden. Das ist eine harte Nuss. Als Trainer im Präsenztraining habe ich ein Gefühl dafür, wie es läuft, weil ich im Raum bin. Es ist viel schwieriger, ein Gefühl dafür zu haben, wie es läuft, wenn man sich in einer virtuellen Umgebung befindet. Und du brauchst dieses „Gefühl“, damit du dich anpassen und den Teilnehmern die bestmögliche Lernerfahrung bieten kannst..

Welche Workaround-Strategien gibt es dafür?

James Es gibt Workaround-Strategien und durch externe und interne Schulungen und On-the-job-Erfahrungen nutzen unsere Trainer diese. Eine Strategie ist, dass man viele offene und geschlossene „Check-Fragen“ stellen muss. Fragen wie „Bist du bei mir“, „Ist das klar?“, „Was sind also die Kernpunkte, die du daraus ableitest“, „Was sind deine bisherigen Fragen?“ Erfahrene virtuelle Trainer werden diese Art von Fragen alle 2 bis 3 Minuten stellen.  Im Wesentlichen hat ein Trainer ein Zeitlimit von 2 bis 3 Minuten für seinen Input, bevor er eine Check-Frage stellen sollte. Die Check-Fragen sollten sowohl offen für die Gruppe als auch für eine Einzelperson bestimmt sein.

Welche Schulungsthemen eignen sich am besten für die virtuelle Vortragsweise und welche nicht?

James Die Themen, die sich am besten für die virtuelle Vortragsweise eignen, sind diejenigen, die stärker auf Inhalte ausgerichtet sind – zum Beispiel klassische Präsentationsfähigkeiten oder virtuell ausgeführte Präsentationen.  Diese Art von Trainingslösungen konzentrieren sich auf Input, Tipps, Do’s und Don’ts, Best Practice Sharing und dann Praxis – Feedback – Praxis – Feedback etc..

Another theme that works very well for us when delivered virtually is virtual team training, whether it be working in virtual teams or leading virtual teams. By their very nature, virtual teams are dispersed so the virtual delivery format fits naturally. Plus, you are training them using the tools they need to master themselves. And of course, another benefit is if the training is for a specific virtual team the shared training experience strengthens the team itself.

Ein weiteres Thema, das für uns virtuell sehr gut funktioniert, ist das virtuelle Teamtraining, sei es in virtuellen Teams oder bei der Leitung virtueller Teams. Virtuelle Teams sind naturgemäß so verteilt, dass das virtuelle Übertragungsformat auf natürliche Weise passt. Außerdem trainieren Sie sie mit den Werkzeugen, die sie später selbst beherrschen sollten. Und natürlich ist ein weiterer Vorteil: Das Training für ein bestimmtes virtuelles Team, stärkt die gemeinsame Trainingserfahrung des Teams.

Die Arten von Trainingslösungen, die virtuell eine größere Herausforderung darstellen, sind diejenigen, bei denen wir versuchen, uns selbst oder andere zu verändern. Themen wie Durchsetzungsfähigkeit oder effektiveres Arbeiten müssen sorgfältig durchdacht und entwickelt werden, wenn sie mehr als ein Informationsdepot sein sollen. Hier ist der Coaching-Aspekt weitaus wichtiger.

Schließlich, und vielleicht überraschenderweise, kann das Management- und Führungstraining wirklich gut funktionieren, wenn es virtuell durchgeführt wird. Unsere Lösung Hochleistung zu erzielen ist ein gutes Beispiel dafür. Das Geheimnis dabei ist, das kleine Lernen zu betonen, zusätzliche Ressourcen außerhalb der Sitzung bereitzustellen, z.B. umgedrehter Unterricht (flipped classroom) mit relevanten Videos und Artikeln, und auch Möglichkeiten für Einzelgespräche zu bieten.

5 Dinge, die Sie tun können, um virtuelles Training zu einem Erfolg zu machen.

/in , /von

E-Learning gibt es seit 1960 und auch der „virtuelle Besprechungsraum“ ist keine neue Idee. Viele Unternehmen haben bereits Erfahrung mit dem Lernen über Online-Plattformen oder mobiles Lernen und verfügen bereits über eine Art Werkzeug, um sich zu treffen und virtuell zusammenzuarbeiten. Der Sprung vom virtuellen Meeting zum virtuellen Training scheint einfach zu sein – und das ist es, wenn man sorgfältig darüber nachdenkt, was nötig ist, um das virtuelle Training erfolgreich zu machen. Hier sind ein paar Dinge, die wir in 7 Jahren virtueller Trainingseinheiten gelernt haben.

Arbeiten Sie mit einem Trainer zusammen, der in der Lage ist, in einer virtuellen Umgebung zu gestalten, zu implementieren und sicher zu debriefen.

Kunden kommen mit ihrer Erfahrung aus dem Präsenztraining zu uns. Sie wissen, was sie in einem eintägigen Seminar erreichen können und wollen diese Erfahrung in eine virtuelle Trainingsumgebung übertragen. Allerdings ist nicht alles direkt übertragbar. In einer persönlichen Sitzung beobachtet, reagiert und passt sich ein Trainer spontan an. Sie überwachen ständig, was funktioniert und was nicht, was die Leute verstehen und was nicht etc. In gewisser Weise „spürt“ der Trainer, wie das Training abläuft. Mit der virtuellen Bereitstellung haben Trainer weniger Möglichkeiten, dies zu tun.  Eine häufige Antwort für den Trainer ist, sich viel mehr auf den Inhalt zu konzentrieren als auf die Trainingsdynamik. Dies kann das Training in eine Vorlesung verwandeln.

Virtuelles Training erfordert Trainer mit neuen Fähigkeiten, Qualifikationen und Erfahrungen. Sie benötigen einen erfahrenen Trainer, der in der Lage ist, in einer virtuellen Umgebung zu gestalten, zu implementieren und sicher zu debriefen.

Zeit für Interaktionen schaffen

Wie bereits oben erwähnt, ist es in einem Präsenzseminar einfach und natürlich, dass Interaktionen stattfinden – entweder mit dem Trainer oder zwischen den Teilnehmern.  Wenn Sie ein Training virtuell durchführen, wird dies viel schwieriger. Gehen Sie nicht davon aus, dass die Interaktion leicht erfolgen wird. Für Gruppen ist es viel schwieriger, sich tatsächlich zu treffen und in einer virtuellen Umgebung ein Gefühl füreinander zu bekommen. Ein erfahrener und qualifizierter Trainer findet Abhilfe: Interaktionen werden geplant, Aktivitäten werden sorgfältig entworfen und mehr Zeit für Gruppen- und Paaraktivitäten aufgewendet.

Die Trainingsgruppen klein halten

Der Schwierigkeitsgrad der Aktivierung und Förderung von Interaktion bedeutet, dass kleinere Gruppen (nicht größere Gruppen) in einer virtuellen Umgebung ein Muss sind. Unsere Erfahrung ist, wenn Sie über den Wissenstransfer hinausgehen wollen, um Fähigkeiten aufzubauen und Verhaltensweisen zu ändern, ist eine Gruppe von 6 Personen ideal. Je mehr Teilnehmer Sie über 6 hinaus haben, desto schwieriger wird die Interaktion, und desto wahrscheinlicher ist es, dass jemand mental abschaltet und/oder mit Multi-Tasking beginnt – und desto mehr Zeit benötigt der Trainer, um die technische Umgebung zu überwachen und zu kontrollieren und sich nicht auf die Personen selbst zu konzentrieren.

Für Gruppen über 8 Personen sollten Sie einen fähigen und erfahrenen „Producer“ beauftragen. Ein Producer unterstützt den Trainer bei der Verwaltung der virtuellen Umgebung, der Überwachung von Interaktionen, der Einrichtung von Breakout-Räumen und der Aufrechterhaltung von Geschwindigkeit, Fluss und Interaktion usw.  Ein erfahrener technischer Producer kann es dem Trainer leicht ermöglichen, mit mehr als 12 Teilnehmern zu arbeiten.

Halten Sie mehrere Sitzungen von max. 2,5 Stunden statt einer langen Sitzung

Ein ganztägiges Präsenzseminar lässt sich nicht in ein ganztägiges virtuelles Seminar übersetzen. In einer virtuellen Umgebung können sich die Menschen nicht so lange konzentrieren. Unsere Erfahrung zeigt, dass 2 – 2 ½ Stunden die maximale Dauer für eine einzelne Sitzung ist. Das bedeutet, dass Sie über drei zweistündige virtuelle Sitzungen nachdenken sollten, die einem Tag Präsenztraining entsprechen. Sie können eine ähnliche Menge an Training in der gleichen Zeit abdecken, aber wenn Sie das Training virtuell durchführen, müssen Sie den Ansatz neu gestalten, aufteilen und aufschlüsseln.

Planen Sie sorgfältig, wenn Sie mit mehreren Zeitzonen arbeiten

Ein Vorteil des virtuellen Trainings ist, dass jeder überall teilnehmen kann. Wir empfehlen Ihnen, sich davon nicht mitreißen zu lassen. Es kann Sie Geld sparen, aber Sie verlieren die volle Wirksamkeit des Trainings. Nach unserer Erfahrung ist es eine große Herausforderung für die Teilnehmer und den Trainer, wenn einige um sechs Uhr morgens, einige während der Mittagspause und einige um sechs Uhr abends dabei sind. Die Achtung der Konzentrationsspanne und des Umfelds der Menschen wird sich am Ende auszahlen.

 

Für weitere Informationen

Wenn Sie neu in der virtuellen Vortragsweise sind, Ihr virtuelles Vortragen hochfahren möchten oder daran interessiert sind, Ihr virtuelles Training interaktiver und wertvoller zu gestalten, dann finden Sie einen erfahrenen Partner oder einen Berater. Wir könnten die Richtigen für Sie sein, wer weiß. Wenn Sie daran denken, mit einem virtuellen Training zu beginnen, dann Fragen Sie Angebot an. Seien Sie sich darüber im Klaren, was Sie erreichen wollen, und bitten Sie die Anbieter, Ihnen mitzuteilen, was Sie benötigen, damit es funktioniert.

The Secret L&D manager: 4 questions for screening potential training providers

/in /von

This month’s Secret L&D manager is German, and works for a global telecommunications organization. He’s been working in training and development for over 20 years for a variety of organizations including automotive, financial services and higher education. He’s lived in multiple countries and is interested in balancing classic approaches with virtual learning and MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses). We asked him, “What questions do you ask potential training providers when they first approach you?”

This eBook is also available in German – follow the link below.

eBook: The definitive checklist for qualifying training providers

I get contacted by training providers on a regular basis, and to be honest how much time I give them depends a lot on what else is going on.  However I’m always interested in new ideas which I think can add value to our associates here and do try to make time to ask questions and learn.  I tend to get straight into things and want to take control of the conversation. I’ll ask questions like …

Tell me the two or three topics that you as a training provider are specialized in?

I’m not interested in working with training providers who say they can do everything. So what are the 2 or 3 things that you are good at? I want details. I want to see experience and innovative ideas. I want them to be able to talk me through activities and the “why” behind the activity.

If I feel they know about training and are not trying to promise the earth, my second question needs to be about their trainers. Knowing more about who their trainers are is hugely important to me and I need to know they’ll fit my training population. I ask something like ….

Who are your trainers? How do you find them? How do you select them? What is their background?

I was a trainer myself, and still do some internal training.  I know the impact and potential of the training is realized (or limited by) by the person in the room – by the trainer.  I want specifics and real examples from a potential training provider. I’m not interested in general broad-brush descriptions. I want to know who they would use to deliver a specific solution and to know why that person, what’s their experience, style etc.

I’d then ask …

Why do you think you’re different from all the other trainers and training providers that offer similar things?

Seriously, explain to me why what’s special or different about what you’re proposing? Otherwise, why should I change?  If they stop and think about the answer, that’s fine. If they babble, then I’m not interested. For me a training provider needs to know themselves why they are different or special.

My last question would be something like …

Before we spend any more time on this can you explain your pricing model?

I want to know what they charge for a one-day, off-the-shelf training program. The kind of thing that’s really a commodity product.  I want to know pricing for a customization and preparation, and I want to know if travel and expenses are included or not.

I want to find an example. I’ll pick something simple, so I know if their rates are competitive and if this actually makes sense to me and our situation. If you deliver a standard 2-day presentation skills training for me, what will the cost be for 10 people? And if it’s much more expensive than what I already have, or if I have no real reason to believe that they will be genuinely considerably better than my current solution, then that’s time saved for both sides. I also want a clear answer here.

I think these are my top four questions. These are pretty much what I need as a basis.  If I’m interested, then I’d like to meet them in person and see where we go from there.

Who is the Secret L&D manager?

The Secret L&D manager is actually many L&D managers.  They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with peers. Also from the Secret L&D manager:

 

 

Making sure managers understand the importance of their role in developing our staff

/in , /von

This month’s Secret L&D manager is Australian, based in Germany and works for an American corporation which produces machine vision systems and software.  He has worked in training and development for over 18 years – as an L&D manager, an in-house trainer and as an external training provider.

New Call-to-actionWhat are your challenges as an L&D manager?

One of the things that’s burning at the moment is helping the managers I work with see the role they play in developing people.  This is not a question of lack of willingness on their side – just a lack of awareness of the role they can and should play. For example, most of the time if they know that Dieter needs to improve his presentation skills, they send him on one of the 2-day presentation courses we run. When Dieter gets back, they expect that they can tick a box and say, “Well, Dieter can present now.” This is a start, but it isn’t good enough. It is not enough for them to assume that the training department or the training provider is going to solve everything alone. I need to help them see their role in developing their staff’s skills.

How do you see the manager’s role in developing their staff?

If we look at the 70-20-10 model, just 10% of the change will come from the training itself. 20% is when Dieter is learning from his colleagues, sharing ideas and giving each other tips and feedback. BUT, the other 70% will come from just getting up there and doing it (best of course, if supplemented with feedback and guidance where required). If the manager wants somebody to get better at a skill, they need to make sure there is plenty of opportunity for that person to actually use that skill, give them support and guidance and let them use what they are learning. This is clearly in the manager’s hands.  I want our managers to be realistic in their expectations and see the role that they play in the developmental process. We work together.

How do you see your role in this?

I have a number of roles. I work to identify current and future training needs. I then organize practical training with training providers who are going to deliver what we need and challenge the participants to really improve.  I also need to help our managers understand their role in developing our staff and encourage them to see training as a collaborative effort between them, the employee, us in L&D, and the training providers.  And of course, the person getting the training needs to take some responsibility and ownership for their own development – and I can offer advice and support here too, both before and after the “formal” training. Our experts need to be present in the training and they need to actively look to use what they have learned and practiced after the training too. And again, this is where their manager plays an important role.

Who is the secret L&D manager?

The “secret L&D manager” is actually a group of L&D managers. They are real people who would prefer not to mention their name or company – but do want to write anonymously so they can openly and directly share their ideas and experience with peers.

You can meet more of our secret L&D managers here …

And if you’d like to share your thoughts and experiences without sharing your name or company then please get in touch.