T&D in Western Ohio

Square Pegs, Round Holes, and Learning Organizations

2010-04-04T12:24:00.003-04:00

Ok, it sounds simple. Learn how to plan. Focus on efficiency. Follow through on your actions. Develop the habit to specify the steps of your projects and anticipate your future needs. Enhance your own objectivity. Who wouldn’t want to learn to be thorough, efficient, and effective? Who wouldn’t like to use time more efficiently or learn to manage his or her priorities perfectly?

There’s just a little glitch... those competencies, while admirable and useful, will drain the life blood of some of us. Simply put – some of us are not wired that way. Some of us crave the very flexibility and spontaneity that make careful planning (and follow through with the planning!) a real challenge.

I’m talking about personality.

Personality can be defined as a set of observable and fairly consistent behaviors. Personality changes little after about age 30, and impacts our “energy” for developing competencies. For instance, if your personality is flexible and spontaneous you probably have low energy for planning, organizing, and following through on your plans. That doesn’t mean you can’t learn to plan your days or organize yourself better – but it does mean that it won’t be easy. You’ll need to want it really badly, and you’ll probably need some coaching.

Recently, personality researchers such as Bob McCrae and Paul Costa from the National Institute of Aging in Baltimore have agreed on five “clusters” that encompass most personality traits. This “set of clusters” is called the “Five Factor Model” (FFM). The five clusters are:

Need for stability or negative emotionality (N) – our level of resilience when experiencing and/or reacting to stress
Extraversion (E) – our tolerance for sensory bombardment, the level of social interaction that we crave
Originality or openness to experience (O) – our focus on innovation versus efficiency, our interest in the “new and untested” versus the “tried and true.”
Accommodation or agreeableness (A) – the way that we react to conflicts or disagreements, our tendency to “stand our ground,” “seek middle ground,” or submit to others’ wishes.
Consolidation or conscientiousness (C) – our level of spontaneity and flexibility versus our tendency towards discipline and a focus on predefined goals.

Of these, the set of personality traits that most impact our ability to plan and follow through on our plans is Consolidation. Some of us have “single processor minds” that go straight towards a pre-established goal. People whose Consolidation is high are typically efficient, disciplined, and focused.

So – why can’t you just hire people like that? That would solve the problem, wouldn’t it? Yes, it would... but then you’ll have a work environment devoid of flexibility, spontaneity, and spur of the moment changes of direction. Can you imagine a step-by-step Improv? Or a carefully planned conflict facilitation? Oops.

Learning organizations require the presence of a multiplicity of personalities, including the flexible and spontaneous free spirits, the organized and disciplined planners, and everyone else in between. It is vital, however, that we all "learn to speak" the personality language. After all, not all personalities learn the same way, have the energy for the same things, or even hope to succeed in the same competencies.

HR Leaders are in the people business. It is virtually impossible to do what we do and not understand people. If you really want to understand people, start learning about personalities.... and never mind whether you plan your learning step-by-step or just swing it!

Top Ten Must Haves For Men In Business

2010-03-30T22:30:00.002-04:00

1 One Suit: Navy or gray, solid or pin strip
Every Man needs at least one matching suit, preferably in a dark, neutral color (charcoal grey, light grey or navy). The same rule applies for Men and Women,dark neutral colors should be the foundation for your wardrobe in business.

2 One blazer or sport jacket (navy or gray).
You will need a sport jacket for those Business Casual days when a two or three piece suit is not appropriate.

3 A basic crisp white business dress shirt.
This represents the most Formal Business Attire, and can be worn as Business Casual without a tie as well. A blue shirt can also be added to the business wardrobe to change out, but the crisp white shirt speaks the most Formal.

4 Three ties that match or offset at least one color or shade in the suit you’re wearing and that compliments your coloring.
Just as women would, if you don’t know what colors look best on you, find a color consultant to work with you about the color of ties you should be wearing. The tie is the mirror to a man’s soul. People will notice your tie before they will the jacket or suit. Reds and blues are power colors, but there are many variations of reds and blues. Know which colors compliment you the most.

5 A pair of lace up, well polished shoes and a pair of dress loafers.
Lace up shoes should be worn with the most Formal Business Attire. Dress loafers will be worn with your Business Casual Attire and with your Casual. As a guideline, jeans are usually not acceptable; therefore, gym shoes are not a must-have for business. Although there are exceptions, but before wearing them, one should know what that dress code is.

6 Navy and black Khaki’s.
Navy and black khaki’s can easily be paired with the navy or gray blazer that you have selected. Again, for your Business Casual.

7 A basic watch.
A basic watch with a black leather band or dress metal band, non-digital. Remember in business attire, less is more when it comes to accessories, just as it is for women. The best watch band for Formal Business Attire is actually the plain black leather band.

8 A professional laptop bag or briefcase.
Over the shoulder messenger-style bags are a cool and sophisticated option. Make sure that your laptop bag or briefcase is quality leather.

9 A basic leather belt that matches your shoes.

10 Dress socks that coordinate with your suit.

The Under Cover Boss, The Captain, and The Leader

2010-03-28T23:18:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite shows this season is "Under Cover Boss." In today's episode, the CEO of an Amusement Park Complex visited his parks across the country and tried a variety of jobs for size... he became a server, a cleaner, and a greeter. He was trained by employees with whom he would never otherwise have come in contact. He learned about their heartaches and determination. He was humbled by those from whom he learned.

The show often brings tears to my eyes. I guess for once I see a show in which CEOs get it. They get what moves their organizations forward. They get that without people in the trenches their organizations would collapse. The get that they are responsible for people... not just balance sheets and deals and stock values.

So often in the HR world we become cynical. We talk about Theory Y and how people really want to do well - and yet we spend our days polishing new regulations and policies and procedures that make absolutely sure no one will do something wrong on the company dime. We have endless meetings with our legal counsel. We make sure we know exactly what we should include in that applicant contract so that we are forever protected should we per chance want to do something we probably shouldn't be doing in the first place.

Worst of all, we assume our people are disposable. We use terms such as restructuring and reengineering and reoptimizing. We hide behind business words and protest that we have a responsibility towards our stock holders. We rationalize it. We make it work.

But in all this rationalization we forget for whom we are responsible. We forget that as leaders we are the captains of our ships.

Captains don't leave the ship with a golden parachute while their people drown. Captains don't throw half the people overboard so that the ship won't sink. Captains drown with their people or bring them safely to the harbor. Captains take responsibility for the power they were given and the privileges of such power.

What sort of captain are you?

Four Meetings

2010-03-21T22:07:00.000-04:00

For the past half hour, Jane and Mary, respectively the customer service and the sales manager at organization ABC, have tried to solve a problem related to one of ABC's major customers.

“The customer feedback form is incomplete,” Mary says. “My sales reps cannot gather enough background information when visiting their customers. ABC had a major problem and this was not expressed in the form. I understand that you are doing the best you can, Jane.”

“Well, I understand your concern, Mary,” Jane answers calmly, “and you know that I value your opinion. Here is my perspective, though: My employees already have a hard time completing that form.”

An observer who happened to stop by in the meeting room would fail to see anything wrong. Jane and Mary’s discussion is polite and professional. Both individuals take great pains in following the rules of courtesy, using words such as “understand,” "value," and “perspective.”

In reality, however, Jane and Mary are unlikely to solve their problem. Eventually they will just adjourn, check the meeting off their list, and move on.

Heifetz, Grashow, and Linsky in “The Practice of Adaptive Leadership” suggest that a typical office discussion involves four separate meetings.

The first meeting occurs before the meeting as Jane and Mary exchange ideas with their supporters. It may surprise the outside observer to learn that customer service forms are not a very important topic of discussion in that first meeting. Instead, Jane may feel unrecognized and undervalued by Mary and by the company CEO. Mary, on the other hand, may feel that Jane does not support her sales efforts.

The second meeting takes place in Jane’s and Mary’s heads. For instance, here is a sample of Jane’s internal meeting: “Mary is always recognized as the ‘company savior’ and no one realizes the hard work my staff does.” Mary’s meeting, on the other hand, involves Mary’s quota difficulties, the current economic crisis, the pressures suffered by Mary’s department, and Jane's inability to understand her business needs.

The third meeting – a long, tedious, and inefficient conversation about customer service forms – involves two very polite and political (even if untruthful) versions of Jane and Mary.

The fourth meeting will take place after the meeting, when Jane and Mary return to their supporters and continue chatting about issues unrelated to the customer service forms.

We have all been there. We talk to our supporters because we need to vent. We fail to tell the truth to those whom we oppose because it is politically risky and personally scary to do so. We spend time discussing issues that do not really matter because bringing up what does matter is unthinkable. We fail to resolve problems because we cannot possibly bring them up.

Why does this happen? Why can’t people just be “honest”? Four possible answers occur to me.

Some people simply detest conflict. The need to vent and “get things off one’s chest” is real – but such venting is far more comfortable behind closed doors, involving only a trusted confidant.

Speaking up is politically dangerous. Others who spoke up in the past have suffered dire consequences. Thus, the perceived benefits of “speaking up” are trumped by very real risks.
Relationship building is not encouraged. Some people are simply not comfortable enough with one another to speak their minds.
There is no clear process that invites and supports real conversations.

Leaders must come up with such a process. Further, leaders must learn to recognize signs of mistrust and discomfort with real conversations. Some of these signs include:

Excessive politeness and use of “canned” commentaries such as “I understand your position,” “I hear that you are upset,” and “I have a different perspective.”
Impromptu meetings are quickly disbanded when outsiders arrive.
Meetings include long conversations about seemingly unimportant (albeit innocuous) topics.

Don’t get me wrong. Politeness is important. I’m not advocating that basic rules of courtesy be ignored in the workplace. When people are real, however, they may speak more informally and filter their words less. Ask yourself – how do you tell a trusted friend that you disagree with him/her? Do you say “trusted friend, I fully recognize that you have a different perspective from mine and I value that”? Or do you just say “sorry dude, but that really won’t work…”?

Heifetz et al.’s “four meetings” are not only inefficient – they are dangerous. When team members fail to discuss what truly bothers them, they cannot possibly reach synergy. Further, conversations behind closed doors are likely to breed mistrust, fuel gossip, and create organizational factions.

I'm Leaving for Pasárgada - I'm the King's Friend

2010-03-18T22:16:00.001-04:00

Manoel Bandeira, a renowned Brazilian poet (1986-1968) wrote a well-known poem called "I'm leaving for Pasárgada". In Pasárgada, Bandeira explains, "I'm the king's friend." In Pasárgada I will ride my bike and bathe in the sea, and lay by the river side. In Pasárgada life is an adventure.

As I get ready once again to leave the familiar and move to a new place (my family and I are moving to Des Moines, IA in the Summer) I think of Pasárgada. I think of a place where once again I do not know the king or the queen. I remember my arrival in the United States some seventeen years ago.

When I arrived in Ohio as a newly wed, I had no idea I had just arrived from Pasárgada. Do you need a job? Your sister knows someone at company X and I hear they're hiring over there. I call company X, find the connection, secure the interview. The interviewer smiles and asks me if I know so and so Mello e Souza (my full name is Cristina de Mello e Souza Wildermuth). I don't, but it doesn't matter - the connection has been established. "Must be your cousin," the interviewer suggests. Then he asks where I had gone to school. I tell him I studied at the Santo Inácio high school and PUC University. He knows both institutions, of course. He even has friends from Santo Inácio and thinks PUC is an excellent school.

I didn't necessarily feel priviledged in those days. My family was not rich. I had my share of crappy jobs and crappy bosses. I worked hard for what I had. What I didn't understand then is that one's network is invaluable. One's network opens doors. One's network is like a set of trump cards.

Then I moved to the U.S. - and the trump changed. The Mello e Souza name was not only unknown, it was hard to pronounce and sounded foreign. Colégio Santo Inácio? What in the world is that?

Losing my network made me realize that no one - and I mean no one - can win it all alone. We get support from family, friends, and loved ones. We get help from our school name, from our Alma Mater, from the Church group. We get help from our mom's friends and from dad's cousin George. We get help from our look, our accent, our place of birth. We connect.

Losing my network also made me stronger. I had to learn to rebuild. I found new connections and new pathways to relationships.

Now, as I move once again, I'm ready. Life will be an adventure in my new Pasárgada.

New eLearning Approach - SpacedEd - Has Great Potential for mLearning

2010-03-17T11:48:00.002-04:00

This morning I published a short article on an exciting new eLearning technology - Spaced Education - on the blog for the Electronic Learning Forum (eLF) sponsored by the Greater Cincinnati chapter of ASTD.

Spaced Education, or SpacedEd for short, is based on both new and old studies that show the effectiveness of test-like learning that is delivered and reinforced in small chunks over time, hence the name - Spaced Education. The idea is that you learn exclusively by answering questions - sort of an online Socratic method. When you submit your answers you get immediate feedback on whether they were right or wrong and you get an explanation of the correct answers. There is no penalty for being wrong - in fact, it's key to learning things that you didn't know!. You are asked only a couple of questions at a time every couple of days and the entire course is spaced out over a couple of weeks.

If you're interested, you can read the entire article here and I invite you to join us for a free webinar on this and other mobile learning subjects this Friday morning, March 19, 7:30-8:30 am. For more information on the eLF webinar, please contact Gary Wise.

Treasures

2010-02-26T23:48:00.002-05:00

We sat on the floor and peeked under the bed. We found a bag of doll clothes first and then a box of rag dolls. We spent some time dressing them up, trying new combinations of purple and pink and funky patterns. Then, curious, we looked under the bed again.

The large box was ugly on the outside and partially torn. Inside, we found beautiful porcelain dolls of various sizes. The Mexican señorita had large brown eyes and lustrous lashes. Then there was a redheaded cowgirl, a heavily made up beauty from Puerto Rico, a Brazilian cangaceira (a typical character from the Northeast), and a collection of Disney miniatures. We laughed as we uncovered a very old Russian doll I got when I was 6 years old. By now her porcelain skin was almost entirely white and her cheeks an unatural red. "I used to think this was the most beautiful doll in the world," I told her.

"Not very pretty now," I laughed. She giggled and agreed.

Last we opened a smaller box loaded with stuffed toys. I pressed the hand of the very purple Barney who knew her name and sang "You are special." We laughed some more.

I don't know how long we played. It was magical and unforgettable for both of us. Then I kissed her goodnight.

We work on our schedules and make sure we have achievable and measurable goals - racing after raises and promotions and making darn sure someone knows what we achieved. We spend hours on the computer. We fight. And as we fight for one more recognition and one more article and one more praise we forget our real treasures - the ones under the bed, the ones inside carboard boxes, the ones colored with joy and memories.

Suddenly, whatever I was going to write about tonight doesn't seem important at all.

The Man in the Glass

2010-02-21T21:51:00.001-05:00

The Man in the Glass

The other day I was chatting with my mother about engagement and rewards. I was explaining that my engagement did not depend on the opinions of others – it depended, instead, on my own pride, commitment and DNA. Engagement is about me and about what I was born to do for a living.

Mom then reminded me of an old and favorite poem called “The Man in the Glass.” She found it for me on the Internet. The first part of the poem goes like this:

When you get what you want in your struggle for self
And the world makes you king for a day,
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself
And see what that man has to say.

For it isn’t your father or mother or wife
Whose judgment upon you must pass.
The fellow whose verdict counts most in you life
Is the one staring back from the glass.

My mother is right. The Man in the Glass has everything to do with engagement. Those who are engaged do not excel in their work because of external rewards – bonuses, gift cards, or “employee of the month” certificates. They do not go above and beyond because someone out there will give them a medal. Instead, they do it because of their own sense of purpose.

Don’t get me wrong – recognition is likely to help. Recognition gives us a sense of being valued and valuable. Recognition calms fear and uncertainty. Recognition tells us there is someone who cares that we worked so hard or for so long. In order to improve engagement, however, recognition has to mean care. It has to involve true appreciation. Otherwise it’s not recognition – it’s just compensation.

Even the best kind of recognition, however, will not be as strong or as powerful as our own recognition. That person in the glass does more for our engagement than anyone else.

And perhaps… that is the message we need to send our colleagues. Stop expecting others to engage you. Stop waiting for others to cheer you up.

Instead, start focusing on that person in the glass.

TOP TEN MUST HAVES FOR WOMEN IN BUSINESS

2010-02-17T09:39:00.004-05:00

1 A black jacket with matching pant and skirt.

Every woman needs at least one matching suit, preferably in a dark, neutral color (black, charcoal grey, light grey). Neutral colors should be the foundation for your wardrobe in business. This way, you can pair the jacket, pant and skirt with separates that are already in your closet for those business casual days.

2 A white shirt.

A white shirt with a collar represents the most Formal Business Attire.

3 A neutral underpinning.

A cream shell and/or with complimentary color. When I say complimentary color, remember that color used in Business should be reserved for shirts and underpinnings.

4 Closed-toe heels (Black).

With your neutral foundations, black heels will work with everything (grey suit, grey or black pants and your basic black suit). Peep toes may be in fashion, but not appropriate for corporate business. If your business is in the arts or fashion industry then they would be appropriate.

5 A grey and/or navy blazer with coordinating pants.

You want to have more than one jacket in your closet to mix and match with other pants and skirts in your closet.

6 A classic black dress that you can easily pair a jacket with.

It makes life easy, especially if you’re going to dinner and you choose to remove the jacket.

7 A structured handbag that projects organization.

There are many choices in handbags. Brightly colored and large handbags can be beautiful, but for Business Attire, a smaller basic black structured handbag will give you that professional and organized look.

8 Stud earrings.

Jewelry in business -- less is always more. Again, for the most Formal Business Attire, simple stud earrings with a strand of pearls goes a long way. You want people to remember you for your professionalism, confidence and authority, not your large hoop earrings and bangles hanging from your wrist. It becomes distracting. If you’re wearing a watch, shy away from digital and large fashion watches. Again, less is more.

9 Smaller leather belts (or none).

If you are wearing pants or a skirt that requires a belt, try to keep it to small leather belts, not the large trendy fashion belts or belts with metal and bangles hanging from them.

10 Make-up (natural in appearance and conservative).

It’s easy to think of your makeup as contouring and not so much as color. Eyes should be natural with neutral contouring, light contouring for the cheeks as well as on the lips. Think neutral. If you’re not sure what to do with your makeup, set up a makeover with a local color consultant or at one of the many makeup counters, making sure they know you want a natural business look.

These are the basics that every working woman needs in their closet. Keep in mind that business dress has become more casual, but you should always dress one step above the rest. The old saying “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have” is still new to remember. If you want to “Outclass The Competition” and be noticed for your ability and not your wardrobe, this Top Ten List is the way to go. Does Fashion have anything to do with Business Attire? Absolutely! Even the most conservative Business attire has fashion and you always want to look like you know what year it is. For those business casual days, you’ll add sweaters and jackets with colors that compliment you.

What bothers you the most about Women’s Business Attire today and what do you like the most? I look forward to your discussions.

January Chapter Mtg Notes 3

2010-01-22T17:33:00.001-05:00

What exciting programs will you implement in 2010? Exciting trends?

January Chapter Mtg Notes 2

2010-01-22T17:19:00.003-05:00

What things would you change or do differently? What flopped?

January Chapter Mtg Notes 1

2010-01-22T17:11:00.001-05:00

As trainers, what worked successfully for you in 2009?

Blogging: An excellent Value for Business -- presentation on Wednesday evening, 12/16

2009-12-07T12:33:00.003-05:00

The Southwestern Ohio Society for Technical Communication invites WOCASTD members to join us for our December meeting. This meeting focuses on the factors and content--of supreme importance to technical communicators--that create a great blog, such as:

Understanding Your Goals
Defining Your Audience
Generating Readers
ROI of Blogging
Blog Etiquette

Our speaker is Michelle Lentz

Michelle maintains four weblogs, including an award-winning blog on wine (http://www.wine-girl.net) and is, by her own admission, over-connected in social media. Michelle is also a contributing technology writer to Brian Solis's Bub.blicio.us social economy blog. You can find Michelle online at

Blog: http://www.wine-girl.net

Blog: http://bub.blicio.us

LinkedIn: http://www.l inkedin.com/in/writetech

SlideShare: http://www.s lideshare.net/writetech

Michelle launched her company, Write Technology, in 2003. She specializes in social media, instructional design, and social learning. Through Write Technology, Michelle offers customized, instructionally sound courses on everything in social media, including blogging, Twitter, Creative Commons, and personal branding.

For several years, Michelle was director of training at Trivantis (Lectora). She has presented at national training and development conferences since 2000, as well as at countless local events. She recently served as vice president of technology for the Greater Cincinnati ASTD and is on the National Planning Committee for the ASTD TechKnowledge 2010 conference in Las Vegas.

Date: Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Agenda:

Networking: 5:30 - 6:00 p.m.
Dinner: 6:00 p.m.
Program: 6:45 p.m.

Menu: A variety of sandwiches, salads, and beverages

Cost::

Members: $15
Non-members: $25 (in advance via PayPal only)
Students: $12
Program only: $5 for members and students; $15 for non-members

Click here for instructions about Pay Pal payments.
No shows will be billed.

Registration Deadline: Monday, December 14, 2009, by noon. To register, send an email to program@stc-swo.org.

Please include your name, email address, membership status (member, non-member, or student), and how you will pay (cash, check, or Pay Pal).

Non-members must pay in advance via Pay Pal. All no shows will be billed.

Location:

Indiana Wesleyan Cincinnati Education and Conference Center

Directions:

From I-75 Take the Union Centre Boulevard exit (#19).
Turn west (right if south-bound on I-75; left and across the overpass, if north-bound)
Go to Mulhauser Road (first stop light).
Turn left (south) onto Mulhauser
Go to Schulze Drive (first left).
IWU is straight ahead, on the right, next to the new Hampton Inn.

How to be a star employee on social media

2009-11-11T10:13:00.004-05:00

This is excellent advice for everyone whether employed or looking.

Check it out @ CubeRules.com

Happy Halloween Everyone

2009-10-23T12:48:00.003-04:00

What To Wear On Halloween

...with a festive spirit / click on link above

Tell a story from Center for Creative Leadership

2009-09-16T09:51:00.002-04:00

Our member survey results confirm that leadership development is a high-priority topic. Here is recommended reading that advocates a simple and effective approach to presentations...

http://www.ccl.org/leadership/enewsletter/2009/SEPfacing.aspx

Article on "Edupunks" in Fast Company mag

2009-08-15T09:32:00.003-04:00

Even though I was working in higher ed, this term "edupunk" slipped by me. Here's an excellent article of value for all of us in the learning profession...

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/138/who-needs-harvard.html

Reading recommendation from The MASIE Center

2009-07-05T15:50:00.002-04:00

I have been a longtime fan of this learning lab & think tank under the leadership of Elliott Masie. This past week they published the Learning Leaders Fieldbook. It contains excellent, concise information for folks in our profession who feel a need to refresh. Below is the web link, enjoy!

http://www.masie.com/fieldbook

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-18T11:54:00.003-04:00

Enjoy this upcoming weekend, whether you are a father or you have a father. Check out this link. It starts with an opportunity to reflect on good ol' Dad... http://www.teamworkandleadership.com/

ODN - Greater Dayton Summer 2009 Event

2009-06-02T11:40:00.002-04:00

Connecting with the Community: Dayton's Future
Friday, June 5, 7:30 - 9:30 a.m.
Hosted by Sinclair Learning Center at the Miami Valley Research Park
1900 Founders Drive in Kettering
RSVP & inquiries to Terri Eastman / terri.eastman@sbcglobal.net

recommend reading 1

2009-05-07T11:05:00.006-04:00

I'm a fan of sharing new info, so here's the first of my occasional posts with recommended reading. Feel free to comment with more good resources.

1. Article in the May '09 edition of Chief Learning Officer magazine
www.clomedia.com
A Second Look at Second Life (pp 21-27)
Personal note: I was clearly wrong on this Web 2.0 tool.
It has virtual legs in the training profession.

2. Posted on the National ASTD LinkedIn group
Emotional Intelligence Resource List
Hi Everyone,
I have created a free resource list on emotional intelligence at http://www.squidoo.com/emotional-intelligence-1
Have a look, use it if its helpful and some of your recomendations if you like.
Cheers,
Shaun Killian
Director at Australian Leadership Development Centre

April chapter mtg notes

2009-04-20T16:39:00.003-04:00

Thanks to everyone who participated in our April 16, 2009 session “Engaging Employees Under 30.” With a 50/50 split in the audience of GenY/Millennials and Xer/Boomers, the shared insight was a win-win for everyone. Special thank you to our panel:

Patricia Clark, retired guidance counselor and career education teacher
Erin Cullin, lead trainer for Red Robin Gourmet Burgers
Kelly Kennedy, Wright State University psychology student
Amanda Minehart, Service Quality Manager at Wright-Patt Credit Union

To summarize the meeting, we each wrote one burning question about connecting with and/or engaging younger employees (under age 30) currently in the workforce. Below are the questions presented to our panel:

> How do we get younger employees to understand their changing role?
> How do you help GenY/Millennials accept that you have information and knowledge to share?
> How important is maintaining the self-esteem of the under-30 learner compared to the over-30 learner?
> Is it true GenY/Millennials can concentrate better with an iPod on?
> Regarding your career, what significant worries keep you awake at night?
> What are you going to do to facilitate change with your teaching/management style when adapting to working with a younger culture?
> What are your biggest fears of my generation (20s-30s) coming into the workforce?
> What do you feel you do differently than your parents or grandparents that allows you to effectively multi-task?
> What is the difference between a leader and a manager you respect?
> What is the toughest aspect of training for you?
> What is the worst characteristic of a boss that you have the hardest time dealing with?
> What makes you bored and impatient with training or user/instruction guides?
> What skills would you recommend students emphasize when creating a resume?
> What would you say is the average attention span of the under-30 workforce?
> Why do Millennials/GenYs always text?
> Why do you feel that it is so important to stick with the “old ways of business” instead of opening up to new ideas?
> With the baby boomer generation reaching a retirement age, a lot of management positions will be opening to a younger generation. How do you think the industry, as a whole, will shift with this influx of younger supervisors? (Creativity vs. “this is how we’ve always…”)

February mtg follow-up

2009-03-13T12:29:00.005-04:00

Our first chapter webinar experience was great, thanks to both Brian Butcher and Michael West for leading the LinkedIn and Facebook segments of the meeting.

Our March 19 dinner program will be an official launch of our Special Interest Groups. The three SIGs we will be kicking off are: Coaching, facilitated by Matt Becker / Leadership Development, facilitated by Jackie Smith / eLearning, facilitated by Verne Morland.
Our April 16 luncheon will consist of a Generation Y panel discussing learning and performance initiatives. We are discussing future programs this year geared toward how to develop a webinar and create a podcast.
The WOC-ASTD website also serves as our newsletter and is updated on a regular basis. Please use our blog to post your thoughts and suggestions as well as to continue conversations surrounding our monthly program topics. (posted by Brenda Kraner)

If you were not able to join our meeting on February 19, here's a summary on the LinkedIn network. (posted by Brian Butcher)

Roughly 15 million members are in this social network. Now there are almost 8,700 members in the ASTD Group. ASTD is one example of a large number of interest groups in LinkedIn. This one is quite active.
During just the last seven days, over 100 new members signed up in the ASTD Group. During the past three months, roughly 500 discussions have been posted by members of the ASTD Group. As an example of content, a search on the discussion keyword "webcast" found 20 hits. Currently the news article most read is entitled "Get Out of the Training Business" from the CLO magazine, February 2009 edition.
Coincidentally Verne Morland posted a link to this article on our WOC blog a short time ago. Various search options are available on the home

page of LinkedIn -- Search for People, Jobs, Companies, Answers, Inbox and Groups.

Like other social networks, LinkedIn can be a valuable job searching resource. A related presentation is available on Slideshare under this link...

http://www.slideshare.net/mgrey/leveraging-linked-in-for-the-job-search?from=email&type=share_slideshow&subtype=slideshow

Get Out of the Training Business

2009-02-10T11:27:00.003-05:00

The admonition above is the title of a provocative article by Jay Cross published this month in the online version of Chief Learning Officer magazine. (Click the link to read the article.) His basic argument is that the industrial age is over and as a result:

"Training is obsolete because it deals with a past that won't be repeated. Learning will be redefined as problem-solving, achieving fit with one's environment and having the connections to deal with novel situations."

That may not be news to most of us, but what I find interesting is how clearly he lays out the ramifications.

"Next week, we will close the training department. We are shifting our focus from training to performance. Any remaining training staff will become mentors, coaches and facilitators who work on improving core business processes, strengthening relationships with customers and cutting costs

"I'm changing my title from VP of training to VP of core capabilities. My assistants will become the director of sales readiness and the director of competitive advantage, respectively. The measure of our contributions will be results, not training measures. We're scrapping the LMS posthaste. Wherever possible, we're replacing proprietary software with open source."

The article is only two pages, but Cross packs a lot of provocative material into it. I encourage you to read it and to post your comments here on our blog.

Exciting New Technologies Explained in Plain English

2009-02-10T11:18:00.003-05:00

I just came across a series of short video clips that explain a number of practical tools that will be of interest to members of our chapter. The site is called The CommonCraft Show (click link to visit) and the topics include: social media and networking, podcasting, twitter, blogs, wikis, and RSS feeds. Here is a link directly to the 4-minute explanation of how to set up an RSS feed so that you can be automatically notified when new postings are made to this blog.

How are you using Facebook or LinkedIn?

2009-02-06T11:02:00.005-05:00

Sunny greetings -

In preparation for our chapter webinar meeting on February 21, please let us know how you are using the Facebook and/or LinkedIn social networks.

Just below this post is the "how to" leave your comment.

Many thanks for your input.

How to Use Our Chapter Blog

2009-02-06T10:53:00.003-05:00

This is a friendly reminder about our chapter blog for member communications. We will publish new information to you on a more continual, topic-by-topic basis compared to a newsletter. More importantly, the blog allows you, our chapter members, to respond to the articles we post with comments, questions and suggestions. Helpful "how to" information is below.

Viewing the Blog: You can view our blog by coming to this web page. We suggest that you add this to your bookmarks or list of favorite sites. You can also find our blog by going to our website (wocastd.org) by selecting the "Blog" link under the "Member Area" menu. When you arrive on our blog page, you will see the most recent article at the top of the page and as you scroll down you will previously posted articles.

Submitting Your Comments: At the bottom of each article (including this one!) is a link to the "Comments" area. To post a comment, simply click on the "Comments" link and type in your thoughts. Please note that beneath the comment input area you will see three options for attributing your comment: 1) Sign-in using Blogger/Google, 2) Nickname, and 3) Anonymous. Unless you happen to have a Blogger/Google account, we recommend that you click the radio button next to "Nickname" and enter your full name. This will simply attach your name at the end of your comment. Naturally, if you prefer to remain anonymous you may click that option.

Keeping Track of New Blog Postings: There are two ways to keep up with new posts on our blog: 1) you can visit the blog periodically with your web browser to see what's new or 2) you can subscribe to the blog and get new postings "pushed" to your PC. We recommend the latter since it is easier and you only have to look at the blog when there is really something new to see. When you subscribe to the blog, your computer will periodically check online for updates to subscribed feeds, even when your browser (e.g., Internet Explorer) is not running.

To Subscribe to the Blog: At the bottom of this blog page you will see a link labeled "Subscribe to: Posts (Atom). Click on this link and follow the instructions. This will cause you to be added as a subscriber to our "feed." From that point on, whenever you open Internet Explorer (IE) and there is a new posting on our blog, the Feeds button on your IE toolbar will change color, letting you know that a new posting or comment is available. Click the Feeds button, and then click the feed you want to see, in this case "TD in Western Ohio." (You can unsubscribe from our blog at any time by clicking on Favorites >> Feeds and deleting the entry labeled "T&D In Western Ohio.")

Windows Vista Users: If you have a Vista PC, you can set up a "Feeds" gadget on your desktop that will automatically monitor feeds from our blog (and any others you may be interested in) and display new postings.

60 Ideas in 60 Minutes

2009-01-26T23:50:00.006-05:00

At our chapter meeting on Friday morning, January 23, Cindy Schisler facilitated an exercise designed to generate lots of useful training tips. Here are the ideas we shared.

1. Getting people back from break on time - Each team has a set of questions and your team cannot start working on the questions until all team members have returned from break. Prizes are awarded for teams who answer the questions first and correctly. This technique encourages everyone to return from break on time. After all, no one wants to be responsible for holding their group back from winning prizes.

2. Keeping the group on track – establish a “parking lot” in the beginning of the session for issues that arise but cannot be addressed at that time. The “parking lot” holds thoughts that are important but don’t fit the agenda for the day. If time allows, the group can revisit the issues in the “parking lot.” This prevents digressing and lets the person know their thought has not been lost.

3. Icebreaker - Each participant is handed a panel from a comic strip (cutting comic strips from the paper works well). Everyone is asked to move around the room to find all the people needed to complete their comic strip. This technique can be used for creating partners, triads, or small groups.

4. Spice up the webinar experience – Create a webinar team, complete with a facilitator, web technician, and speaker. The speaker and facilitator interact much like a radio talk show…bantering back and forth. Be sure to articulate the skills, knowledge, and attitude you would like participants to gain from the webinar. Clearly identify what’s in it for them to participate (the WIIFT factor).

5. When conducting mandatory workshops – have every person make it a personal goal to leave the session with another goal other than that the class was mandatory.

6. Memory tip – the first and last things are what people remember the most. Make your opening memorable. In closing a session, ask everyone to share their biggest, most positive take away of the day. This concludes the session on a positive note and refreshes the memories of those in the class.

7. SimpleTruths.com – visit simpletruths.com for short pieces of motivation, themes, etc. to add variety to a course.

8. Student attention – keep participants’ attention but using humor, video clips, cartoons, YouTube clips, etc.

9. Action back on the job – Provide participants with “commitment cards” that ask each person to identify what they will do differently back in the workplace as a result of the training program. Each person writes their commitment on two cards (one for themselves and one for the trainer). They share their commitment with the class and give one card to the trainer. The trainer then follows up with each participant to discuss how they are doing toward attaining their commitment.

10. Generating buy-in from participants - Get input from the groups participating in the session beforehand. Find out what they believe would be helpful for them to know about a specific topic. Open the session by showing how you have built what they wanted to learn into the session. Asking for feedback before the session gets a certain level of buy-in before they walk in the room. Sharing how you have incorporated the feedback builds greater buy-in after they’re in the room.

11. More buy-in – anytime a participant can associate something with who they are, you increase your odds for buy-in. If a participant sees some of his or her ideas incorporated in a program, they will be more inclined to buy into the concept.

12. Training pilots – when possible, pilot a session and ask for honest feedback from participants.

13. Authenticity is critical – identify why the training will benefit them. Clarifying your expectations of participants is critical.

14. Training teams – create training teams within various areas throughout the organization. Ask people in different departments to help put together the training program. You can create groups based on functional area, level of management, etc.

15. Customer training – take training beyond employees to client base, as a customer benefit. Educating the clients makes it easier for the workforce to do their job.

16. Dividing the audience – purposely mix participants up in a training class. Divide people into groups using playing cards. Create four different groups: hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades by shuffling cards and passing them out.

17. Use music – to energize participants. Select funny and appropriate songs such as, “Welcome to the Jungle” as participants arrive.

18. A just-in-time team building activity – have regularly scheduled small group huddles to share information and communicate during the workday. This process has been known as informal learning. Refer to the white paper “Learning at the moment of Need” by Bob Mosher.

19. Reduce loneliness in online learning – help people feel as though they are part of a group in a self-paced, self-study online learning environment, give participants the sense that others have taken and are taking the course. After participants have completed a course, ask them to respond to a questionnaire that gives them the opportunity to share their experiences during the process, i.e. what they learned, how it has benefited them, etc. Provide a way for new participants to view feedback from previous participants before they begin their online learning course.

20. Employee on-boarding – create a training manager and manager/supervisor partnership in rolling out a new employee on-boarding process.

21. Create opportunities with your organization – to address the projected 3 to 5 year job and career rotation, create internal job opportunities for promotion and movement within the same organization.

22. Learning styles – continue to look for creative ways to reach various learning styles, i.e. blended learning approaches and strategies.

23. Use video – show participants in a training course a clip from a movie. Ask them to respond/react to the scenario incorporating the principles shared in the class. Ask participants to send their responses via email, using their phone or laptop. Open up your email and project it for the entire class to review and critique, on-the-spot.

24. Podcasts – create podcasts as an approach to blended learning.

25. Stock photos – a resource for legally showing photos and using other media in a learning platform is: http://www.istockphoto.com/

26. Reduce stress – use your organization’s healthcare provider in offering various opportunities for reducing stress in the workplace.

27. Involving top managers – if it is not possible to have top level line managers present parts of training programs, consider having them create a podcast or create a dvd of them commenting on the value associated with key elements contained in the learning program.

28. Marketing – a marketing idea is to visit organizations and offer them free attendance at a workshop. This gives potential clients an opportunity to see the quality of services a vendor can provide.

29. Survey your audience - gain a greater understanding of your participants and their needs prior to their participation in a program by utilizing survey software such as http://www.zoomerang.com/ and http://www.surveymonkey.com/.

30. Visit Clancy Cross’s blog – http://www.clancycross.wordpress.com/, for short writing pieces based around inspirational themes. They can offer a springboard for discussion in a learning environment.

31. Take people off-site to do workshops – use a Pixar short to set the mood for the workshop.

32. Engage your participants beforehand - moving them from spectators into participants by asking them to complete pre-work before class (readings, exercises, etc.). Since people have minimal training time available, asking them to complete pre-work can cut down on training time.

33. Executive sponsorship – add credibility to your programs by having someone from the top show how your learning efforts tie to the organization’s strategic plan, speaks volumes.

34. Lunch and learns with plant tours – stagger sessions throughout the day, rather than offering them at one specific time.

35. The “Bad Apple” Effect – the reality of a bad apple ruining the dynamics of a classroom was discussed. The NPR radio show “This American Life” has a “bad apple” podcast that contains statistics concerning the impact of negative attitude on a group. The episode was aired on December 19th and it's titled, "Ruining It for the Rest of Us." – see http://thisamericanlife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?sched=1275. To hear the episode or any part of it, click the link above and then on the web page click the link on the left labeled "Full episode". [The bad apple research is in the prologue at the beginning of the program, but listen to the entire show - especially the hilarious comedy routine by Mike Birbiglia in Act 2.]
.

Special Interest Groups, anyone?

2008-08-25T21:37:00.002-04:00

What area of training and development is most important or interesting to you? WOCASTD can only focus on a limited number of topics each year, and we may not have the opportunity to include your particular interest -- training design, assessment, coaching, e-learning, leadership, ROI, etc.

The chapter board is thinking about helping to connect members so that they can meet to discuss particular topics in depth, perhaps over breakfast or lunch a few times a year. Someone(s) could assume responsibility for finding a venue and sending out an e-mail invitation. Those who are interested could show up to network, pick each others' brains -- whatever!

What do you think of the idea? Let us know, and we can start planning for the concept for next year. What topic areas would most interest you?

Other good thoughts -- don't be shy. We want to know how to add value to your membership!

Shake, Rattle and Roll! -- June 12 Special Meeting

2008-05-19T09:00:00.005-04:00

The WOCASTD leadership wants to know where you want to go! Come join us as we SHAKE up the chapter, RATTLE traditional ASTD formats, and ROLL out big changes for the upcoming year. We need your input.

There will be door prizes and incredible giveaways, including National and local memberships. Come prepared to network, have fun, and shape the future of our chapter.

Location, Time, and Fees
The meeting will take place at the Dayton Marriott Hotel, 1414 South Patterson Blvd., Dayton, Ohio on Thursday, June 12th from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. The cost which includes heavy hors d’oeuvres and a drink (after that, a cash bar) is $15 for both members and non-members. (The event is partially sponsored by the chapter.)

To register for the meeting click here: http://www.wocastd.org/registration
To see who else is coming click here: http://www.wocastd.org/registration/whoiscoming.php

For questions concerning the event,contact Cindy Schisler at (937) 775-1134 or cindy.schisler@wright.edu.

Please make your reservation by the Tuesday before the meeting to help us better plan our event.

Think Mini!

2008-05-05T10:40:00.003-04:00

Do you have a great training program that is just too long for your busy managers or external customers to attend? Then "Think Mini!" Join Cris Wildermuth, President of The Effectiveness Group, as she describes how mini workshops can be as effective and content rich as longer programs, and solve the time-crunch dilemma as well.

*************************************
Date: Thursday, May 15, 2008
Time:
- 5:30 pm Networking
- 6:00 pm Dinner
- 6:30 pm Program
Location: The Kettering Center for Performance Excellence, 140 E. Monument Ave., Dayton

Non-members: $20.00
Members: $15.00
Students: $10.00
Presentation Only:
- Members and students: Free
- Non-members: $ 5.00

Parking is behind the Wright State Kettering Center Building.

We hope to see you there!

To register for the meeting, click here: http://wocastd.org/registration/

To see who else is coming, click here: http://wocastd.org/registration/whoiscoming.php

April Breakfast Meeting: Managing Talent in Your Organization, Panera Bread, April 17, 7:30 - 9:00

2008-04-07T15:43:00.006-04:00

Breakfast Meeting: Thursday, April 17th

Managing Talent in Your Organization

Networking and learning opportunity! Informal and interactive facilitated group conversation for discovering how talent management impacts your role as a learning professional.
· Discussion - How you are managing your top performers?
· Learn strategies for retaining your top performers!
***********************************************
Location: Panera Bread Company, 1203 Brown Street (near University of Dayton campus)
Time: 7:30 to 8:00: Network and buy your own breakfast
8:00 to 9:00: Program
There is no charge for this program! Members, students, guests - all are welcome! Please make your reservation by the Tuesday before the meeting to help us better plan our event.
***********************************************
To register for the meeting click here: http://www.wocastd.org/registration
To see who else is coming click here: http://www.wocastd.org/registration/whoiscoming.php
We look forward to seeing you, and invite your suggestions and comments.

Synchronous Learning -- What Can You Share???

2008-03-28T09:53:00.002-04:00

With all the new learning techniques and tools on the market, we rely on the "early adaptors" among us to lead the way and to provide the rest of us with useful information and guidance as we either "stick a toe in" or "take the plunge" in new areas.

One topic that is of interest to several of our members is that of synchronous learning. If you have any knowledge or experience with synchronous learning, please give us the benefit of your wisdom regarding:

Tools: Which features have you found most useful? What were the factors you considered in your purchasing decision?
Certification: Have you pursued a certification in design? delivery? What moved you in that direction?
Training: Have you established a "train the trainer" program to get internal trainers up-to-speed on using synchronous learning?

Don't be shy! Let us know what you think.

Teach Less, Learn More: Accelerating Learning

2008-02-29T17:44:00.012-05:00

Don't miss our March 2008 meeting! Lou Russell will be on hand to offer her exciting program: TEACH LESS, LEARN MORE: ACCELERATING LEARNING.

Lou comes highly recommended, and this program will help all of us facilitate programs that maximize learning and encourage on-going application and future learning. If you want to help others to learn, teach more in less time, and give more effective presentations, sign up today!

Date: Thursday, March 20, 2008
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Place: Berry Room, Nutter Center, WSU
Price: $69 / chapter members*
$89 / non-members*

*Includes a full, catered breakfast starting at 8:00.

About Lou Russell:

Lou Russell is the president and CEO of Russell Martin & Associates - see her website. She is the author of The Accelerated Learning Fieldbook among other publications. She is also a frequent contributor to Computer World, Cutter Executive Reports and Network World.

A popular and dynamic speaker, Lou has conducted energizing workshops at national and international conferences

Invite your colleagues to join you. We look forward to seeing you on March 20!

Networking: The Key is Relationships

2008-02-22T14:03:00.006-05:00

As a follow-up to her excellent presentation on effective networking at the February meeting of WOCASTD (and as a public service for those of you who couldn’t be there!), Julie Bauke, Congruity Career Consulting, sent along these thoughts:

Networking is the Building of Mutually Beneficial Relationships for Personal, Professional and Business Success.

Sure, it’s a mouthful..... But doesn’t this definition make it seem less scary, and more doable?

Effective networking is ALL about building relationships. Networking is NOT:

Handing out and collecting business cards
“Working” a room
A “drive-by” exercise that leaves your conversation partners feeling used.

Build quality, authentic relationships with people that you connect with, who can be of value to you as you work toward your goals -- AND to whom you can also provide value as they work toward theirs.

The good news is that you already have a network, but probably don’t spend much time thinking about it or managing it.

Take a close look at your goals. Don’t have any? Well, then start there!

Once you have established goals for your personal or professional life:

Evaluate your current network. Do you have the contacts that will provide the information, connections, support and resources you need to get where you are trying to go? If not, how can you fill in the gaps? What kinds of new contacts do you need?

Share your goals with people who are in your current network. You may be surprised how helpful people will be once they know what your aspirations are.

Look to give first. If you follow the golden rule of networking -- give first, take second -- you may be surprised by how eagerly people reciprocate.

If you develop goals, build authentic relationships that align with those goals, and look for opportunities to give first, you’ll be amazed at the REAL power of networking!

What do you think about Julie’s take on effective networking? It is certainly a much more intentional approach than I have used in the past. What are your thoughts?

The 10 "M"s of Engagement

2008-02-06T21:19:00.001-05:00

Our chapter's own Cris Wildermuth and her husband, Mel, recently wrote an article which was included in the January ASTD magazine, T&D. You can find a copy of the article here.

Cris describes the article this way, "Lately researchers and human resource professionals have become increasingly interested in Employee Engagement. Engagement, which is defined by experts as a strong psychological connection between the person and her work, is the ultimate win-win phenomenon. Engaged employees are not only happier, more passion, more excited about their day-to-day activities -- they are also more productive, less likely to leave the organization, and more committed. This article describes engagement and connects it to 10 "M's" -- these are organizational, job, and individual factors that lead to engagement.

After reading the article, what do you as a training, HR, workplace performance or OD person think about your role in promoting employee engagement in your organization or the organizations with which you consult? Do you have additional ideas about what creates employee engagement? Please share your thoughts with us.

All About Our New Chapter Blog

2008-01-30T17:23:00.000-05:00

Our Chapter now has a blog (short for "weB LOG")! This is an exciting new form of member communications that allows us to publish new information to you on a more continual, topic-by-topic basis than we could with our newsletter. More importantly, the blog allows you, our chapter members, to respond to the articles we post with your comments, questions, and suggestions.

Viewing the Blog: You can view our blog by coming to this web page. We suggest that you add this to your bookmarks or list of favorite sites. You can also find our blog by going to our website (wocastd.org) and clicking on the link or blog image on our homepage or by selecting the "Blog" link in the "Member Area" menu. When you arrive on our blog page, you will see the most recent article at the top of the page and as you scroll down you will previously posted articles.

Submitting Your Comments: At the bottom of each article (including this one!) is a link to the "Comments" area. To post a comment, simply click on the "Comments" link and type in your thoughts. Please note that beneath the comment input area you will see three options for attributing your comment: 1) Sign-in using Blogger/Google, 2) Nickname, and 3) Anonymous. Unless you happen to have a Blogger/Google account, we recommend that you click the radio button next to "Nickname" and enter your full name. This will simply attach your name at the end of your comment. Naturally, if you prefer to remain anonymous you may click that option.

Keeping Track of New Blog Postings: There are two ways to keep up with new posts on our blog: 1) you can visit the blog periodically with your web browser to see what's new or 2) you can subscribe to the blog and get new postings "pushed" to your PC. We recommend the latter since it is easier and you only have to look at the blog when there is really something new to see. When you subscribe to the blog, your computer will periodically check online for updates to subscribed feeds, even when your browser (e.g., Internet Explorer) is not running.

To Subscribe to the Blog: At the bottom of this blog page you will see a link labeled "Subscribe to: Posts (Atom). Click on this link and follow the instructions. This will cause you to be added as a subscriber to our "feed." From that point on, whenever you open Internet Explorer (IE) and there is a new posting on our blog, the Feeds button on your IE toolbar will change color, letting you know that a new posting or comment is available. Click the Feeds button, and then click the feed you want to see, in this case "TD in Western Ohio." (You can unsubscribe from our blog at any time by clicking on Favorites >> Feeds and deleting the entry labeled "T&D In Western Ohio.")

Windows Vista Users: If you have a Vista PC, you can set up a "Feeds" gadget on your desktop that will automatically monitor feeds from our blog (and any others you may be interested in) and display new postings. The image below shows how the Feeds gadget looks with the current posting on our blog, "Ideas on e-Learning from January Meeting."

Example of the Feed Gadget on Windows Vista

We are trying to cultivate a dynamic, new communications environment for our chapter, so please let us know if you have any ideas that you would like to see posted on our blog. If you'd like you can write a short posting yourself and send it via email to Celine O'Neill, our VP for Marketing and Communications. If you don't want to write the posting yourself, but you have some ideas or questions that you would like to see discussed on the blog, send those to Celine, too.

Submitted by D. Verne Morland, managing partner, ROI Learning Services.

Ideas on e-Learning from January Meeting

2008-01-20T16:53:00.000-05:00

Here are some of the ideas that emerged from our Café Conversation on e-Learning at Panera Bread last Thursday. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions about these notes, please click the comment link below and share your thoughts on this blog.

Definitions:

e-Learning has two principal forms: synchronous which uses electronic media to help learners learn at the same time and asynchronous which uses electronic media to enable learners to learn independently at their own pace.
Blended learning is a new term for courses that are delivered using more than one delivery method. While not completely original, this term is helpful in that it encourages course designers to think about how they can "deconstruct" a course into smaller components, say knowledge transfer and role playing, and then use the best delivery method for each one.

Key success factors for effective e-Learning include:

Interactivity
A focus on the essential information
Avoidance of distracting elements (both content and graphics - no fluff)
Encourage users to proceed at their own pace
e-Learning offers consistency in both content and delivery that classroom courses often lack.

During our discussion we identified the types of learning activities that would be good for e-Learning delivery and those that would not work as well. Here's what we came up with.

Good for e-Learning:

Knowledge transfer
Role playing (for virtual types of work activity)

Bad for e-Learning:

Settings where not everyone has access to a PC (e.g. factory floors)
Need for practice with real people or real equipment (although some advanced e-Learning courses with sophisticated multimedia can simulate both human and machine interactions)

One other important consideration is that the new generation of employees coming into the workplace today are very familiar with PCs and so they will expect that much of their training can be delivered by computer and the Internet.

Finally, we discussed the disappointing fact that most e-Learning initiatives in companies today seem to be driven by a desire to lower costs, reduce training time, or both. While these goals are fine as far as they go, it would be nice to hear some top manager say, "I really want my people to learn something!"

Your thoughts? (Please click the "Comments" link below to share your thoughts with others in our chapter. Thanks!)

Submitted by: D. Verne Morland, Managing Partner, ROI Learning Services

T&D in Western Ohio

Square Pegs, Round Holes, and Learning Organizations

Top Ten Must Haves For Men In Business

The Under Cover Boss, The Captain, and The Leader

Four Meetings

I'm Leaving for Pasárgada - I'm the King's Friend

New eLearning Approach - SpacedEd - Has Great Potential for mLearning

Treasures

The Man in the Glass

TOP TEN MUST HAVES FOR WOMEN IN BUSINESS

January Chapter Mtg Notes 3

January Chapter Mtg Notes 2

January Chapter Mtg Notes 1

recommended reading 2

Blogging: An excellent Value for Business -- presentation on Wednesday evening, 12/16

How to be a star employee on social media

Happy Halloween Everyone

Tell a story from Center for Creative Leadership

Article on "Edupunks" in Fast Company mag

Reading recommendation from The MASIE Center

Happy Father's Day

ODN - Greater Dayton Summer 2009 Event

recommend reading 1

April chapter mtg notes

February mtg follow-up

Get Out of the Training Business

Exciting New Technologies Explained in Plain English

How are you using Facebook or LinkedIn?

How to Use Our Chapter Blog

60 Ideas in 60 Minutes

Special Interest Groups, anyone?

Shake, Rattle and Roll! -- June 12 Special Meeting

Think Mini!

April Breakfast Meeting: Managing Talent in Your Organization, Panera Bread, April 17, 7:30 - 9:00

Synchronous Learning -- What Can You Share???

Teach Less, Learn More: Accelerating Learning

Networking: The Key is Relationships

The 10 "M"s of Engagement

All About Our New Chapter Blog

Ideas on e-Learning from January Meeting