June 26th, 2011
Posted in Working Life
The collective skills, knowledge, and experience that people have to build, create, manufacture, and repair things are slipping away as the workforce ages and begins leaving the workplace. Like ancient civilizations, we are in danger of forgetting the very capabilities that helped create our society.
So, is there still a place for a successful niche manufacturer, who makes a high quality, high value product?
This BBC documentary, Made in Britain, aired on June, 20, 2011, highlights Brompton Bicycles and their quest to be a quality niche manufacturer. That’s one company but there needs to be many more. The tour of the production floor is fascinating!
A Brompton bike is not inexpensive. But, it’s very unique. It’s handmade. It’s a niche product. And, it is an aspirational product. Only 30,000 bikes are sold every year, all from a plant in London, England. In a day where the average department store bike’s lifespan is measured in months (most are junked with an average of only 300 miles on them – their tires still showing molding marks), a well-made product, like a Brompton, will last for decades.
Cheap at twice the price.
June 23rd, 2011
Posted in Budgets, Cost Savings, Managing On-the-Job Training
“Mystery Equals Margin.”
That was the gist of a consulting blog I read the other day. The blogger wrote that the consultant’s role was to make their solutions sound as mysterious and difficult to implement as possible, in order to extract the maximum amount of money from the client. That statement shocked me, as it may shock you. Probably the reason why consultants have a bad name.
In our world, the harsh reality is that most organizations are stretched to the limit. Money is tight. Employees are doing the best they can. Leaders are looking for ‘quick-wins’, ‘cheap and cheerful’ solutions that will add great value, but cost as little as possible. It’s not an easy balance. Especially if margin-seeking consultants are lurking around.
At Digital Mentor Group, we don’t believe in mystery equaling margin. We’re working hard to de-professionalize the training process. Take the mystery out of it, not add to it. Take costs out of training, add to our client’s bottom line, not add margin to ours. Isn’t that the role of a consultant?
Tags: blogs, budgets, Competence, consultant role, cost of training, margin, proficiency, profit, resources
March 4th, 2011
Posted in Adult Learning, General Skills Training Discussions, Managing On-the-Job Training
“According to the January survey of employers by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, 34 per cent of corporations now regard “shortage of skilled labour” as their main business constraint – and, tellingly, another 13 per cent regard their biggest problem as “shortage of un/semi-skilled labour.” That means almost one in seven companies can’t find enough uneducated, non-experienced people.”
This quote was taken from an article by Doug Saunders of the Globe and Mail, published on Saturday, February 19th, 2011, that made for some fascinating reading. While this article focused on Canada, the situation exists, to one degree or another, in many countries, including the US, China, and the EU. Skilled and semi-skilled and unskilled labour positions are going begging while millions are looking for work.
There is a lack of skilled, semi-skilled, and unskilled workers available to do the work we need done.
It’s not my intention to debate the causes of this mis-match between the labour market and the jobs available. I would say that, if 47% of companies are not finding the people they need, perhaps it’s time for companies to take more ownership and control over employment training. It’s time for companies to bring in employees with potential and build the labour force they need internally. They would be creating a customized workforce that can operate in the company’s environment, using the company’s tools and equipment, and producing the company’s products or services.
Imagine a skilled workforce that was customized to the needs of the employer and the customer. Using a training process that built task competence, ensured learning transfer, and measured performance, a company would be able to increase its productive capacity, its flexibility, and its competitiveness. It would take some investment, but that investment would be returned many times over as capable workers perform their tasks to the standards required.
Tags: business constrainats, Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Globe and Mail, On the Job Training, on-the-jobn training, shortages, skilled labor, skilled labour, unemployment
February 17th, 2011
Posted in General Skills Training Discussions, Managing On-the-Job Training, Working Life
I was fortunate to attend Dan Pink’s keynote address at Communitech, in Waterloo on Wednesday, February 16, 2010. In his riveting presentation, he spoke of three key themes, drawn from his new book “DRiVE”. You can reach Dan’s website by clicking HERE.
He highlighted that the true motivators for any employee are AUTONOMY, MASTERY, and PURPOSE. Each of these have positive and far-reaching impact for employees and employers. That got me thinking about how developing employee competence is truly a way to improve employee motivation.
So, let’s look at the three motivators:
Autonomy
The vast majority of employees crave control over their jobs. They want to be able to make decisions and take action. As an example, online shoe retailer ZAPPOS customer service employees have tremendous latitude to make decisions when working with customers. For work to be motivating, employees need to know that they have control over the work that they do, and power over the decisions they make.
Mastery
Employees not only want to feel confident in their jobs, but be competent as well. Competence comes first. Task competence, the skills, knowledge, and experience the employee has or develops, lead to mastery in job performance, job safety, product or service quality, and, if necessary, regulatory compliance.
Purpose
Employees also want to have a purpose, a reason for being and doing. Employers can help provide some purpose when they help the employee answer the questions they have about the ‘how’ and ‘why’ things are important. Employers can provide the reasons and the background that underlie the processes employees are responsible for performing.
If you want more information on Daniel Pink, check out his website.
If you want information on Digital Mentor Group, you can read case studies or download our short paper on 7 steps you can use to improve OJT.
Tags: autonomy, Dan Pink, experience, knowledge, mastery, OJT, purpose, Skills, Training
February 11th, 2011
Posted in General Skills Training Discussions, Instructional Design, Managing On-the-Job Training
Studies have shown that it can often take between 12 and 18 months before a new employee can be considered fully competent. That means it takes that long for the new employee to generate value (profit) equal or greater than the compensation being paid. Every day the employee draws a salary or an hourly rate without achieving competence, costs the company money. If it can cost almost 2 years’ salary before the new employee is earning his or her keep, it’s no wonder companies are reluctant to add to their head count.
Here are three things you can put into place to reduce the amount of time it takes for new employees to reach competence.
One – Get the supervisor really involved in the ‘on-boarding’ process by having him or her not only welcome the new employee, but also work with the team.
Two – Make sure they are trained to do the job by a competent job skills trainer who is aware not only about what has to be done, but how the task must be performed, and why it’s important that the task is performed that way.
Three- Evaluate the new employee’s performance twice; once early in the training process, and again, at the end of the training process. If the task is critical, consider evaluating the employee’s performance on a regular basis after training is ended. That way, you can determine if the training ‘stuck’ and the employee is performing the task to standard.
Digital Mentor Group strengthens the sustainability of people and organizations.
January 28th, 2011
Posted in General Skills Training Discussions, Instructional Design, Managing On-the-Job Training, Working Life
I was working with a group of learners who attended one of our Train the Trainer workshops a few days ago. As the workshop tracked through to the schedule end, a participant asked me if we were going to have a graduation ceremony. Before I could answer the question, one of the other participants answered it for me.
“I don’t look at the end of the course as the finishing point”, he said. “I see it as the beginning. We aren’t graduating; that’s what people do when school ends. We aren’t ending anything. We are starting our careers as production trainers.”
I had a long hard think about that one. For years, I’ve handed out certificates that were titled “Recognition of Achievement” at the end of my workshops. Lots of trainers do that. But, this participant highlighted something that I’d not thought of.
Becoming a production trainer marks a new beginning… a commencement. New trainers beginning to use new skills and knowledge. Taking on new roles. Working with others to help them develop the competencies necessary to fulfill their roles as full, contributing employees.
So, the next time you train for a new task or skill, think of it as an opportunity to begin a new part of your career. Think of it as a Commencement and the beginning of a new part of your life,
December 3rd, 2010
Posted in General Skills Training Discussions, Managing On-the-Job Training
I ran out of business cards this week. I mean I really ran out. The boxes of cards I had printed were now empty. It was time to go to the printer and order another run of cards. Or was it?
After all, we had a new look, new website and blog, and a revised logo. Why not new cards? And, while we were at it, why not develop a new slogan? After all, we had been using the old one for almost 10 years.
If a new card was going to be in the offing, why not try a fresh new design, rather than doing another reprint of the old card?
So, that’s what we did. The new card has the logo and company name on one side. On the reverse, a burgundy red background, with contact information on it.
Our new slogan… “Strengthening the sustainability of people and organizations.”
Sustainability can be many things. At Digital Mentor Group, we think of sustainability as one of the most significant tools organizations can use to maintain and grow the skills, knowledge, and experience of employees. Those employees collectively help to sustain the financial success of the organization they work for.
We are pleased about our new look, the website, and the blog. Those are all great things. But, when the rubber hits the road, it’s what we do that counts the most.
If we can help organizations sustain themselves by helping them capture informal knowledge and find innovative ways to distribute that knowledge to employees, we’ve done our job.
That is something to be proud of.
November 8th, 2010
Posted in Uncategorized
I had the privilege last week to observe a task demonstration, conducted during a Train the Trainer workshop I was facilitating.
The employee was doing a practice delivery on a production line that had been stopped for a lunch break. That is nothing out of the ordinary. What was out of the ordinary was his approach to the work he was doing. I had seen others perform similar work and they did it well enough. Not this fellow. His gentle approach to the task, the care he ascribed to the raw materials, the concern he had for his learner, all combined to create a model of behavior that his ‘student’ was able to reproduce and all the workshop participants could readily see.
It’s funny what strikes you, sometimes.
Late Friday afternoon, just before the Commencement ceremony, was one of the most fulfilling moments in my career. It was an honor for me to facilitate the workshop.
October 21st, 2010
Posted in Uncategorized
A crisis is brewing in Canada. While there is a great deal of emphasis on technology; John Reid’s CATA and Barry Gander’s work with Innovation Canada come to mind, there is an elephant in the room. All the best technology in the world will matter little if there are few technicians with the skills, knowledge, and experience necessary to use the technology available. While the emphasis may be on skilled trades, there are a large number of semi-skilled positions that many are not qualified to assume either.
In my work designing job skills learning systems for manufacturing and processing environments, it is falling to the private sector to take on the responsibility of training and supporting technical workers. With fewer people, women and men, choosing technical careers, manufacturing and processing employers have to grow their own skilled and semi-skilled employees. Many are ill-equipped for the task. Often, short-term focus means that on-the-job training has a low level of effectiveness. Relying on ‘buddy system’ methods, where the nearly blind are training the sightless, has added to this issue.
The broader issue is infrastructure and sustainability, as I see it. Small and medium-sized businesses are in danger of failing because they won’t be able to find skilled and semi-skilled tradespeople. They are becoming unsustainable. Many of them lack the ability or willingness to train new employees because they lack the resources and methods they need.
The ability to mill a bearing or build a mold are skills that should be sought after and rewarded. In Canada and the United States, technical education needs to be fostered and production skills seen as a viable profession. This attitude would provide high school students who want to follow that employment track renewed motivation and focus.
Digital Mentor Group strengthens the sustainability of people and organizations.
October 7th, 2010
Posted in General Skills Training Discussions, Instructional Design
One of the most effective ways we’ve found to develop Standard Work Instructions is to ask the people who are closest to the work… the employees who work on the line, serve the customers, or process the documents. They are the ones who have an intimate knowledge of how things work. They often have developed new ways of doing things or modified existing methods to make the process better, faster, cheaper, easier, smarter, or safer. The knowledge they have is rarely written down. It takes years of exposure to the job to develop the skills, knowledge, experience, and behaviors required to perform the job. As Malcolm Gladwell discovered, that kind of informal knowledge can take upwards 0f 10,000 hours to develop.
That got me thinking. Why not open up instructional design to people who already have the skills, knowledge, experience, and behaviors? Ask them what they do on the job.Get them to demonstrate their expertise.
That’s what we recommend to our clients. Develop a process to help define a process. Find a way to capture your organization’s informal knowledge that involves the people who are doing actually doing the work.
Turn that informal knowledge into comprehensive work instructions, take a few pictures of the process, and distribute the documents in a format that works for you.
At Digital Mentor Group, we create simple, straight-forward work instructions for the people who need to know; your employees.
