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Head First
June 08, 2009
By Margery Weinstein
The glassy stare, the vague nod, the eye contact that steadily drifts out the window during an hour of class. You know these telltale signs of incomprehension and disengagement well. True, mandatory compliance training, professional soft skill honing, and business negotiation practice aren't the most titillating subject matters. But that's no reason your learners' brains shouldn't compute the material. Understanding why certain lessons get absorbed while others slosh soundlessly down the neural drain is as important as the content of your courses. Some companies understand this well enough to deliver programs that avoid switching their learners' gray matter into sleeping mode. As a result, the courses they deliver are internalized and successfull implemented.
Accelerated Learning
At American Fidelity Assurance Company, the process of better understanding how and when learners' brains get activated began seven years ago when its Corporate Training department participated in an "Accelerated Learning" (AL) workshop. The program, which focused on bringing to light how employees learn best, resulted in a new training philosophy at the company, says Assistant Vice President, Training Bev Wood. "A key principle of our treatment of AL is that training should be learner centered," Wood explains. "The facilitator sets the stage and moves the learning process along, but the majority of the learning comes from participants." Along with that best practice, American Fidelity discovered the importance of incorporating a variety of learning methods in the environment. The company's trainers are challenged to include activities in each course that reach all employees, whether their learning style is visual, auditory, kinesthetic, or intellectual. "Toys are common in our classrooms," says Wood, "along with music and visual detail from floor to ceiling."
American Fidelity's orientation programs were reworked to conform to AL principles. "In the past, [employees] were treated to a PowerPoint that overviewed company purpose, values, and organizational structure," Wood explains. "The new orientation has the new hires construct the organizational chart using a floor-size model. Participants have commented that this activity helps them see where they fit in the structure, as well as the relationships our business units have with one another." American Fidelity's company values lesson also takes a novel approach. New hires dress as company superheroes (representing core values) and act out a skit that explains how the company's values support its customers.
For its technical training, American Fidelity decided to go beyond its old format of employees listening to an instructor and then working individually on activities. Wood explains: "Exercises are done in pairs requiring interaction, and a visual review of what was learned begins day two with participants drawing [an illustration of] a concept they will use. Zoo animals such as Ellie the Excel Elephant take the edge off introductory classes while encouraging participants to feed Ellie peanuts (ask questions)."
Ongoing Learning
Edward Jones, which also describes its training approach as learner-centric, treats its training programs as more than one-time-only occurrences, says Bindu Gangadharan, department leader, responsible for strategic learning services and financial advisor training curriculum. "Instead of making training an event, we make it an ongoing process. We have series of events with coaching and feedback to help associates learn."
Another strategy at Edward Jones that it says helps learning be absorbed is small class sizes. Typical classes at the firm include no more than approximately 12 learners. The intimate class structure often is aided by the presence of a subject matter expert. Lessons are made concrete with help from a visiting veteran financial advisor who runs an Edward Jones branch office, and the Socratic teaching method, which relies on an interactive, question-and-answer format rather than a one-way communication from teacher to student. Gangadharan says the firm's learning protocol also makes use of "analogies, storytelling, and real-life examples, so it's not just abstract concepts, processes, and systems. And we use humor, too."
The latest improvements to Edward Jones' training strategy focuses on using technology as a "learning enabler," says Gangadharan. Not only is the firm finding ways to add technology to traditional classroom courses, but it also is looking for ways to make the technology already in use by learners more engaging. "In the last two or three years, we've begun using simulations that often include voice-over capability," Gangadharan says. For example, Edward Jones uses online simulations that put new financial advisors through role-play exercises. The learning program includes scenarios based on role plays between branch associates and clients who then pose challenging questions or situations for the learner to get hands-on practice.
The firm doesn't wait until assessments roll in to determine whether a class is doing the trick for learners. Gangadharan says the firm distributes surveys that ask participants how difficult they found individual lessons within a course and whether they think they're learning anything. If necessary, instructors then can alter the lesson plan. Individual classes also are observed by Edward Jones learning professionals to ensure they're teaching lessons that will stick. "We see how the learning is taking place," Gangadharan says, "and can make adjustments."
AlliedBarton Security Services also stays in touch with learners and instructors so training strategy can be changed as needed. Its system is flexible, so those delivering the training have the authority to tinker with it to make it more effective. Its nationwide network of more than 125 professional trainers is tasked with leading the training function for their business unit, says Vice President, Learning and Development Rich Cordivari. "With support from our corporate training group, they have full autonomy to make decisions in their areas related to employee training."
Training professionals at AlliedBarton corporate headquarters keep tabs on changes to the curriculum that will enhance learning absorption. "We keep in close touch with our training community and spend a good deal of time 'testing the temperature' to make sure we're meeting the needs in their market," Cordivari says. "We also take the opportunity to coach and assist our implementation partners in the field to help them make the best use of our tools and maximize every opportunity they have to develop our employees."
Face-to-Face Focus
At Quintiles, learning is thought better absorbed when presented in a way that appeals to the individual, says Chief Learning Officer Tim Bray. Having a global, multigenerational, combined learning audience is a challenge for any trainer. "You have to be able to take into account local cultural attributes while still considering generational differences in learning methods and media," he says. "Some of our people prefer things such as podcasts, vodcasts, and Webinars on a just-in-time basis rather than more traditional methods."
A recent staff survey at Quintiles indicates that many learners still prefer classroom instruction for certain types of training, particularly when it comes to softer skills that require practice, says Bray. "It allows them to disconnect from their normal working environment and forces them to focus on their own learning," he points out. In addition to putting time and concentration aside for training, Quintiles, like Edward Jones, uses real-life case studies to facilitate the absorption of learning content. But in Quintiles' case, these exercises tend to be "hands-on."
It also helps to have an environment in which employees are motivated to learn, says Bray. "The ideal environment for learning is created when employees realize they are challenged, engaged, and will benefit from the new skills/knowledge learned," he says. Webinars, he notes, are a good example of active, multifaceted learning. "They use a variety of methods to involve audiences (instant messages for asking questions, contributing via chat to generate a white board for future reference, quick surveys for obtaining "status quo", etc.)," says Bray. He advises other learning professionals also to consider the importance of making learners active participants. "Generally, employees, especially the younger generation," he says, "do not just like 'to be told' the facts. They want to discuss, think critically, and challenge back."
Corporate Culture and Learning
For PAETEC, the material used in courses is critical, but just as critical—if not even more so—is the culture that supports its delivery. "How the brain retains and responds is very sensitive to the corporate culture surrounding training," says Senior Director of Training David McGeough. "Do you have a true, top-down belief and endorsement in the value of training? If you don't have that, we've seen a direct impact on how receptive people are to training and what the retention is."
To ensure the culture is what it needs to be to buoy learning, PAETEC executives stay connected to their employee base. Every Friday, the company's CEO does a company-wide video conference call. "In each of those calls, with information I provide him, he'll reference something pertaining to training, how it affects employees, and why it's valuable," says McGeough. "That creates the culture around 'here's why you should take part and pay attention.'"
At EMD Serono, the tendency is to make learning palatable to multitasking brains, say Director, Talent Management and Development Christina Bertsch and Director, Commercial Leadership Michael Laffin. The company offers employees technology training workshops that are 60 to 90 minutes long, and provide targeted training on key topics such as using multimedia graphics in PowerPoint. EMD Serono also provides three-hour professional development workshops on soft skill topics such as "Delegating Without Authority," says Bertsch. "We understand that employees don't have a lot of time, so these offerings allow them to get in, learn something they can apply immediately, and get out without losing a significant portion of their day."
Like PAETEC, the learning culture at EMD Serono is participatory. "We try to create an atmosphere where it is safe to participate," says Laffin, "where there are opportunities for everyone to be heard, and where there is ample time to practice and gain feedback."
Quick Tips
• Make your training learner-centric by using a Socratic question-and-answer format, for example.
• Stimulate learners through visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and intellectual means. Don't be afraid to use learning toys and a little music, too.
• Incorporate hands-on or electronic simulations to engage learners' brains, making the abstract concrete.
• Use of subject matter experts, who actually have done whatever you're teaching employees, is a good way to illustrate points that you (however talented) as a trainer can only describe.
• Conduct brief surveys after each lesson within a class, so instructors can change "course" (no pun intended) if need be.
• Whether you take the approach of encouraging learners to focus by placing them in physical classrooms away from their computers, or delivering multidimensional classes to them, be sure to take the modern multitasking-oriented brain into consideration when crafting coursework.
• Help learners focus by providing short bursts of learning or longer, in-depth classes on a topic they're motivated to learn.
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