Manufacturing moves into eLearning

We at Edutech KM have always said that manufacturers can do more than offer their employees manuals based on NZQA Unit Standards and tell them to get on with it. That focus is based on two assumptions:

1. Employees want to extend their skills so they are better at their job.
2. Skilled employees will naturally improve quality and this will pass on to the manufacturer in lowered costs of production.

Consequently NZQA Unit Standards have become prescriptive and absolute, and concentrate only on the skills and knowledge the trainee must have to operate at the level they are currently working at.

I would still agree that both the above assumptions are true. However, the research and articles I have been reading show that this is only half the story. Employees are not skill machines that can be easily replaced by more accurate automated equipment; employees are the brains that hold a vast amount of observational knowledge that could be keyed into the quality improvement cycle. By focusing only on how skilled they are we miss their world knowledge; we miss the feedback loop.

The other rich mine of improvement that manufacturers often miss is their resellers. Providing them with material/product specs does not mean they will:

• Sell the pertinent benefits to potential customers
• Ensure the final users actually understand how to use or apply the product
• Act as you mine of observational knowledge - why are there failures?

Even providing off-site training seminars is not enough because of reseller turn-over, limited training time and budget.

There is a big divide between the people in your company who convince the reseller buyers to add the product to their reseller range and the staff who resell your products. An ideal way to bridge that gap is to directly train the actual people who on-sell to the users. Most resellers, however, are unlikely to want to train their staff in how to sell the benefits of your product alone. They may have only a few staff and even fewer opportunities to send them on external training.

I would suggest that eLearning is the way to get over the gap. Well constructed learning on a CD or DVD or online can enthuse learners in a way that a pamphlet or instruction booklet cannot. Now my mind is racing with new possibilities after reading this article about how Madico, Inc., based in Woburn, Massachusetts got around the problem. Actually, they got further than 'around it', they elevated it into an opportunity that will make them stand out above the crowd.

I urge you to take a look at: Madico University: A Case Study of eLearning in a Manufacturer's Extended Enterprise.  Then if you're enthused or intrigued, let us know how we can help you create the same success. You do not have to be a large company like Madico to take advantage of good quality eLearning.

And about the benefits of a feedback loop: when employees and resellers are able to see themselves in the bigger picture they will come to understand their impact on everyone's success. It is often missed out of prescriptive training programs but can easily and cost-effectively become a fundamental part of your quality control/improvement plan. Just ask us.
Heather Sylvawood
Edutech KM Ltd

Lessons from Canada Geese, Part 1

This morning as I took the dog for her usual morning walk, the sun was washing the clouds with pinks and oranges above an aquamarine shimmering sea. My ears registered the plaintive honks of Canada geese and I looked up to see several pairs and small family groups flapping above me. I knew that each of these pairs would eventually join up with the main group until, later in Autumn, the sky would be full of their plaintive cries as they called their farewells and left for the warmth of a northern summer.

Then, as they left our shores, the more senior or experienced geese would take their turns at heading the vee-formation, each taking a rest and passing over that important role to another equally experienced goose. The less experienced would be flanked by buddies and guided by the honks of the geese who had made the journey before.

I was struck by the similarities between their preparations for flight and an organisation’s journey toward success. When a new recruit is brought into the organisation they struggle to find their place, to work out the rules and to keep up. What they need to know most is:
1. What is safe practice that won’t ‘get me into trouble’?
2. What does everyone else do when …?
3. How can I find out about this task/option?

Like the young geese on their first flight north, new recruits do need to be guided, but they also need to learn to grow into a leadership role. They need to practise with a buddy sharing the lead role, then when they are confident they join the larger group and find their place in the formation, and finally they can move up the group and take their place sharing leadership.

Induction training from the organisation’s perspective is often more to do with:
1. Health and safety rules and regulations (so the organisation doesn’t get into trouble)
2. The history of the organisation (seen as ‘passing on the culture’)
3. Who’s who in the organisation?
4. How to set yourself up in ‘our’ system

Do you see the difference?
The individual wants to do right and fit in but the organisation tends to offer information that exacerbates the divide between the new individual and the organisation. The only area of commonality is “What is safe practice that won’t ‘get them into trouble’?“

If your organisation has an intranet, or even an information kiosk, where new employees can refer to basic information about site rules and regulations, and a list of ‘who to go to when’ you empower the new employee. Chances are that a large part of the information they received during induction training went out of their minds the minute they were told it.

The first few days on the job are often so filled with personal tensions and doubts about whether they can succeed, that there’s little room for retaining much of the information in an induction programme. Providing an easily searchable reference site, so they can access the answers without appearing ignorant, in the long run is a more user-friendly tool. Induction manuals get lost, but access to an intranet or information kiosk is always there.