When Learning Fails: 6 (+1) mistakes and how to avoid them

When Learning Fails
Six Classic Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Tom Gram
CSTD National Conference
November 1, 2012

Is Training Succeeding or Failing?

 $60 billion annual
expenditure (US)
 10-20% successful on the
job transfer
 5% trainees self report
applying skills at work after
6 months
 Rapid decline after initial
training
 5-10% return on investment


What Defines a Successful Learning
Initiative?

Audience Measure

Participants Experience, Engagement,
motivation, relevance, KSA
Training Manager KSA, Cost, Effectiveness

Line Managers KSA used on the job, unit
performance improvement,
sustainment support
Executives Business results, ROI


What Defines Successful Informal
Learning Initiatives?

Activities: Results:
 Sharing knowledge  Speed
 Accessing knowledge  Innovation
through personal  Productivity
networks
 Quality
 Creating new and
emergent knowledge
 Creating greater
collective knowledge


In My Experience So Far…

A. All training initiatives have been successful
B. The majority of training initiatives have been
successful
C. About an equal number have been successful
as unsuccessful
D. The majority of training initiatives have not
been successful
E. All training initiatives have failed to achieve
their goals


How Does Your Organization React to
Failed Training Initiatives?
A. Failure, What Failure? We don’t know if we are
failing or succeeding
B. Claim success and move on
C. Career limiting consequences for those
involved
D. Review, analyze causes and learn from
mistakes


6 Classic Mistakes (and a bonus mistake)


The Front-end Fail

No link to business or Mis-identified
performance need knowledge and skills

 Does the initiative  Are knowledge and skills
support a business goal? derived from
 Does the initiative performance gaps
address a performance  Are the knowledge and
problem or opportunity? skills pre-defined topics?


Managing “Requests”: The Annual Training Plan

Organizational strategy
Org performance trends
Org Development needs
Business Goals

Requests for training
Employee development needs
Training Training campaigns
Plans

Performance Needs
Learning Projects

Business goals and their Learning
Implications

Business Goals Learning Implications

 Gain market share
 Enterprise systems Business
goal
 New product roll-outs Business
goal
 Compliance and Regulation
 Quality/productivity Business
goal
 Channel development
 Employee engagement

Performance Needs
Learning Projects


Target competencies that differentiate
your organization

Know your business critical
processes, knowledge and
competencies

Identify pivotal processes,
jobs, and roles. Target learning
initiatives squarely at
developing the skills and
behaviours that make your
organization stand out


The Solution Slip-Up

Instructor-Led
Informal
Learning Social
e-learning
Learning
Action
Live Virtual Learning

Cognitive
Performance Apprenticeship
Support Communities
of Practice
Games & Projects and
Simulation Assignment s
Coaching
Knowledge
Management


Solution Selection Factors

 Nature of the work
 Authentic work tasks
 Audience preferences and characteristics
 Work setting
 Location
 Cost


Formal or Informal Learning?

Task Variety

Routine Technician Craft Knowledge
Work Work Work Work
Task
Standardization

1,000 hrs. 10,000 hrs.

Explicit Knowledge Tacit Knowledge

Formal Learning Informal learning


Long Term Impact Requires Informal
Learning
T

Expert
T

T

T

Novice T

Time
T Formal training
event


The Design Disaster

 Information Glut
 Too little guidance
 The misunderstood learning objective
 Not enough relevant practice
 Strategies not matched to learning type
 Bound by formal strategies
 Event based mentality


Design Backwards

Content Practice Business
Behaviour
Activities Goal

Make content and
subject matter your
last decision, not
your first
Custom learning programs too often
start with “content” or subject
matter–a sure fire way to produce
bloated, dull and low value programs


Getting Learning Objectives Right

Authentic tasks

Objectives

Assessment Practice

Content


Information Presentation Strategies

Match information presentation strategy to learning
objectives or learning type from taxonomies

Knowledge/Skill Category Information Presentation
Concepts Examples and non- examples
Procedures Demonstrations
Processes Visualizations
Principles Use principles to solve
problems
Behaviour Behaviour Modeling


Common Practice Problems

No Wrong Partial
Practice Practice Practice

Effective Practice must Learners must
Learning target the skills be able to
requires defined in the practice with
practice with learning guidance to
feedback objectives competency and
confidence

GK’s Challenge Driven Learning

Layer Purpose

Business challenge Business context and goals

Scenario Presentation of authentic
problem or task
Learning Support Concepts, principles,
processes, behavior
required to resolve scenario
Procedural support Tools, aids, process guides


The Technology Transgression

 LMS can drive activity and
volume
 E-learning only as cost
reduction strategy
 Gratuitous media
 Ignoring usability
 Ignoring existing
infrastructure
 Technology = eLearning
 Social media
 Quit in frustration


Innovate With Technology

Be creative in how you use
technology to support
learning. It offers more than
what comes out of the box.

Use technology as a
tool to innovate
rather than
institutionalize
processes that
don’t create value


Project Pressures and Requirements

Scope
 Complexity
 Speed
 Low cost
Quality  Quality and effectiveness

Cost Time

Faster, better, cheaper


The Project Management Mis-step

Project Management Cycle Learning Design Cycle


Getting Faster, Better and Cheaper

 Combining analysis and design stages
 Adopting rapid prototyping and agile development
methods
 Separate practice and information
 Use technology in the design process
 Adopt informal learning strategies
 Adopt “lean” principles


Barriers to transfer of learning

1. Lack of reinforcement on the job
2. Interference form work environment
3. Non-supportive organizational culture
4. Non-relevant or impractical training content
5. Discomfort with change and associated effort
6. Poorly designed and delivered training
7. Peer pressure to resist changes


GK’s Design for Transfer

Prepare Participate Perform

Trainee

Training
System

Manager


The Consulting Crash

 Do you have a client?
 Contracting and
partnering
 Managing resistance
 Building credibility
and trust
 Developing
commitment


What’s your top cause for learning failures

A. The Front end fail
B. The Solution slip-ups
C. The Design disasters
D. The Technology transgression
E. The Project management missteps
F. The Transfer tragedy
G. The Consulting crash


9 Step Prescription for an Epic Learning
Fail
1. Be sure your program is not 5. Hmm, lets use tablets!
connected to any business or 6. Leave project management to
performance need chance
2. Choose “topics” from the 7. Focus on teaching skills.
current fashion rather than Boldly assume they will
actual job requirements naturally be used on the job.
3. Choose a solution that suits 8. Provide no mechanisms to
you rather than your learners refine, reinforce and sustain
4. Load the training full of skills over time. Not your job!
information and assume 9. Develop all programs in a
practice will take care of itself client vacuum


“An expert is a person who
has made all the mistakes
which can be made in a very
narrow field”

Niels Bohr


Questions/Comments?

tom.gram@globalknowledge.com

@tomgram1

performancexdesign.wordpress.com

ca.linkedin.com/in/tomgram


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