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CHAPTER SERVICES ADDRESS
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May
2007 |
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Beyond foundational competencies, there are nine specialized knowledge/skill areas in which individuals need to extend their organizational contribution. This month we focus on a subset of the very large topic of managing the learning function; the art of casting your initiatives strategically. Speaking
the Language of Your Business The following
situation we recently experienced serves as a great example
and demonstrates the necessity for planning your approach. The
training manager at a local company decided that he wanted to
implement an employee training program on performance and motivation.
He went to his CEO and asked her if he could have a monthly
budget of $5,000 to conduct monthly sessions and to purchase
motivational materials to improve morale. The training manager went back to the department complaining that the CEO always blocks his initiatives, which shows her lack of support for training as a valuable partner. After talking with the training manager in greater detail, it was apparent how disconnected the CEO and training manager were. It was as if they weren’t speaking the same language. In reality the CEO was not disinterested in her employees, but rather she had a keen interest in the impact of this decision on the business. The CEO might have considered the initiative if the training manager had presented it in a different context. To be thought
of as a strategic partner, learning professionals must speak
strategically. If you are not speaking the language of your
business, it makes it hard for your fellow executives to think
of you as part of the team. You must know, at a minimum; the
key drivers of your business, your customers, and your senior
leader’s priorities and objectives. In addition, be prepared
at all times and show analytical problem solving. Here are a few techniques to review: Preparation
Discussion
After the Meeting
Techniques section adapted from Pamela Babcock, “Throwing the Switch,” HR Magazine, December 2003 Krista is president and founder of FlashPoint, a consulting firm providing a range of leadership development, human resources, and performance improvement solutions to clients throughout the Midwest.
Speaker: Sharon Boller, Bottom-Line Performance, Inc. During the session, you will:
Download the agenda for this meeting!
Don't forget to mark your calendar for 2007! May 18th June 22nd July 27th August
24th September
28th October
26th To order online, click here. You can also contact Mark Records at (317) 841-8202. Guaranteed
Business Results from Training In the fall of 2006, a survey taken by over 50 members of CIASTD indicated that measuring and evaluating training was a topic many of us wanted to know more about. At the April 27 meeting, we got our wish. Tim Mooney of The Advantage Way provided participants with an overview of the Success Case Method in his presentation titled “Guaranteed Business Results from Training.” Through discussions, role-plays, and assessments, participants gained insight into the current state of training efforts and how to prepare for discussions with senior management regarding the relevance of training to the business. The first step in making training relevant to business results is to consider where the training ranks in terms of importance to the business and impact to the business. The ideal scenario would have training rank high on both of these scales. However, many learning interventions fail to achieve the desired impact – mainly because they are treated as events as opposed to a process. The full process includes preparation and readiness to learn, the learning intervention, and post-training application environment support. Most training fails to have impact in the preparation and post-training phases, however, the majority of our time and resources are spent in the learning intervention phase. The exercises we participated in helped focus on all three parts of the process. This meeting built upon the information provided by Tony Bingham at the March meeting, and prepared us for the September meeting. Dr. Robert Brinkerhoff is bringing us the Success Case Method as a way of measuring and evaluating training. To get more information on Tony’s presentation from March or Tim’s April presentation, please visit our website at www.ciastd.org. Whether you are planning a career move in the next six months, into a new leadership position within your current organization or in a new organization, or it is your responsibility to on-board new leaders into your organization, you will want to invest the time into reading Michael Watkins’ book The First 90 Days. Watkins’ purpose is to provide a tool for accelerated transition so that leaders can reach a breakeven point quickly, and begin providing value in their position earlier in the cycle. Watkins offers some practical advice and some excellent evaluation tools to help new leaders at all levels accelerate faster. One of the first steps in accelerating transition is clearly defining the situation in which you are entering, so that your action plan addresses the immediate needs. For instance, if you are entering a turnaround situation, you may have to make quick decisions with little information. In a sustaining success situation, you can sit back and learn why fences were built before you decide to take them down. Once you have determined the situation you are entering, you can begin using the specific tools and techniques that Watkins provides throughout the book, such as:
Watkins does a good job of including a variety of scenarios throughout the book at varying levels of leadership and addressing the variety of situations that can lead to a new leadership role. While some of the scenarios are not relevant to every situation, the reader can learn something from most of them. For those individuals whose responsibility it is to onboard new leaders, The First 90 Days provides several opportunities to put processes in place that will help leaders transition faster into your organization. Next Month’s
Book Review: Never Eat Alone By Keith Ferrazzi
Each month we are highlighting a training tip. If you have one that you would like to share, please submit to lpmayer@comcast.net by the second week of the month. Psychological
Judo for Difficult Participants The Heckler – Appoint this participant as the class “devil’s advocate.” Insist that s/he criticizes whenever s/he feels you are leading the class astray. Demand negative remarks. The Know-All – Agree with and amplify “know-it-all” contributions. Ask for expert judgment when none is forthcoming. Get him/her up front to teach short module. Refer constantly to their expertise in subject matter taught. The Complainer – Ask the complainer to write down his/her objections to the material, to help the class maintain sense of realism. Add to list whenever possible! The Whisperers – State that time is short and ask those who don’t understand not to interrupt but to ask their neighbor! The
Silent Ones – State that some people are shy and dare
not participate. This does not mean they have not understood. Encourage
shy ones not to participate.
Wouldn’t you like to get published? The CIASTD Facilitator could be just the vehicle you are looking for. We are on the lookout for articles that further learning in the areas of training and development. While we may not be able to publish every article we receive, we believe that each issue of the Facilitator could be enriched by the addition of a few articles. And it’s always nice to be published! Submit articles by emailing them to lpmayer@comcast.net. We prefer files in Microsoft Word format.
In each issue of The Facilitator, we will list members that have joined or re-joined CIASTD since the previous issue. Since the last issue of The Facilitator, we have signed 8 new members. To see a list of the new members, click here.If you are a member of CIASTD, and would like access to the complete membership list, it is available on our web site at www.ciastd.org. Cliff Madison If you are a member of CIASTD, and would like access to the complete membership list, it is available on our web site at www.ciastd.org. |
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During
the course of this year, I am dedicating many of the monthly
President’s Pen articles to the focus areas within ASTD’s
competency model
