The challenge of E-Learning: Revealing the instructor’s excitement

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One of the challenges of E-learning is to make it as dynamic and engaging as a live learning experience. This is a constant challenge for us at www.TrainingExcellence.org as we develop new online courses. Most people still prefer to learn in a live setting because a good instructor can ignite a passion for the subject in his or her students. The instructor’s enthusiasm for the subject is infectious, almost like a virus. Great course materials alone aren’t enough in an online course. The instructor’s personality, passion, and dedication for teaching must reveal themselves, a tall order when the course is taking place on a computer screen.

I was talking to a customer (who also happens to be a good friend), and he told me about his recent experience with taking an online course with www.TrainingExcellence.org. He told me that the course material was outstanding…but the audio track lacked excitement and passion. My friend continued, “I’ve heard you speak in a live setting countless times, and you always make me sit up in my seat. This excitement just doesn’t come through as well during the online course. In fact, it sounds almost like you’re reading off a script.” Okay, I’ll admit. I am reading off a script when we record the audio for an online course. But I agree it can’t sound like I’m reading off a script. It’s got to sound live, no matter how scripted the narrative is behind the scenes.

So, that is our new challenge at www.TrainingExcellence.org: Make the instructor’s passion for the subject matter abundantly obvious to the student. Let the excitement and enthusiasm show through. In other words, come as close as possible to a live learning experience, but retain the convenience and efficiency of an E-Learning course. We’re up to the challenge.

The Effectiveness of Online Training by Peter Peterka

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Online training is known by numerous names and acronyms—computer-based training (CBT), web-based training (WBT), cyber-training, distance learning, e-learning, etc. By whatever name, online training is a method of delivering training through an electronic medium without the immediate presence of a human instructor. By taking advantage of technology, online training can be more cost effective by delivering more knowledge in a more flexible and efficient manner.

There are distinct advantages to online training that may apply to your organization. With an online training course you have the ability to consolidate education and training across geographical and time constraints. Courses can be delivered to people in different offices without the expense of travel and with less interruption of work schedules. For individuals with busy schedules, online training courses offer the flexibility of being available when the people are able to take the training.

This flexibility is the strongest facet of online training and the flexibility extends beyond scheduling. For many people, an online training course supplies material in a more palatable manner then instructor-led courses. This certainly isn’t true for everyone, but the power of online training to help many people makes it an important tool for your training program. Online training is self-paced and includes interactive tutorials, questionnaires, case studies, self-assessment, and other features that easily assimilate to individual learning styles. Because people have more control over their training experience, online training offers the opportunity to learn in a non-stressful environment.

An online training course combines the advantages of uniformity in training and self-paced training. The basic course is the same for each trainee (while still offering you the chance to tailor instruction more easily) but can be delivered to different people at different times. While a human instructor is only available a limited time, online training materials don’t “go home” and trainees can review the subject matter as needed or desired. Support can be supplied via e-mail or phone.

Online training most likely will not require any additional equipment at your location. Training is delivered through existing computers and an Internet connection. Most online courses will run through any Internet browser on any operating system. You will need to dedicate newer and powerful computers to the training is the course has graphics, sound or video. Don’t make the mistake of using old castoff computers as your training computers. That will just make your trainees frustrated.

Still, being in an electronic format alone does not ensure that training is effective. How do you make the online training course effective for your people? To be effective, an online training course must be interactive without being messy. Bells and whistles are not always a benefit if they overburden the user. The course material and its interface should be streamlined. So, while you can incorporate video and audio instructions, interactive simulations, testing modules, and the like, the question you should be constantly asking is: “does this add to the substance of the course?” Does the way information is being portrayed supplement the learning object of a particular topic. If it does not add to the real content of the course and increase the knowledge of your trainees, then all of the flash and pizzazz will end up being more distracting than helpful. Likewise, always be sure that the learning interface, navigation graphics, and control buttons are easily understood and useable.

The self-paced flexibility of online training can also be a negative as well as a positive. Flexible should not mean unstructured. Yes, people can take the training when it fits their own schedule, but that schedule should still be a structured, set time, not just starting and ending when they feel like it. Thus, you probably want to have the online training course only available on computers inside a dedicated training room. Assign specific times for trainees to come for training in an environment where they can train undistracted. Really, your online training environment should be similar to an instructor-led training environment—a room conducive to learning and concentration where trainees can get the most out of their time.

When designed and carried out systematically and in an organized manner online training can be highly effective. Either as an addition to or a replacement for the face-to-face classroom environment, online training can be a strong part of your organization’s training environment.

Peter Peterka is a Six Sigma Master Black Belt for Six Sigma us and has implemented Six Sigma in a variety of organizations. For additional information for Six Sigma Online Training please contact Peter Peterka at http://www.6sigma.us/

Internal Auditing Principle #1: The customer of the audit is the one being audited

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When it comes to auditing a quality management system (QMS), the customer of the audit is the one being audited. That’s right; the poor bastards you’re auditing are your customers. Internal auditing is a service you perform to help make your organization more successful and identify problems before they spiral out of control. The quality of your product depends on how well the audit is planned, the type of training provided to auditors, the level of engagement of top management and the way auditors behave during the audit, among other factors. You must conduct the audit with the same level of professionalism and diplomacy as if you were being paid by an outside party.
Little things that indicate the auditors have forgotten who the customer is include:

  • Treating the audit as a “Gotcha!” exercise. Auditors should never express satisfaction or glee when nonconformities are found. Focus on the facts and keep things as impersonal as possible. Failures revealed by the audit are opportunities for the future.
  • Failing to adjust the audit plan to meet the needs of the auditee. Unexpected events can occur during an audit: accidents happen, lines shut down, rush orders must be processed. The audit plan should be flexible enough to handle changes on the fly.
  • Holding surprises until the very end. The auditee should be apprised of audit results throughout the entire process. Don’t make the mistake of holding a “bombshell” until the closing meeting for maximum impact. Auditor should communicate their concern, along with all supporting evidence, when they think they might have found a problem.
  • Focusing on insignificant details at the expense of critical issues. Auditing is a detailed activity, but don’t forget to examine the effectiveness of the overall system. When faced with an issue, auditors should ask themselves, “What effect does this really have on the organization and its customers?” The answer will usually indicate if the issue is one worth delving into in great detail.

Defining the Problem

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A few years ago, we had a mysterious scratching sound in our attic. My 5-year-old daughter was terrified, and everybody’s sleep was being interrupted on a nightly basis.

“We need to do something about the noise in our attic,” I told my daughter.

“No!” she cried. “Don’t go into the attic. It’s too scary.”

I talked to my daughter, and it was obvious that the vagueness and seeming enormity of the problem terrified her. She didn’t understand the problem, thus it was overwhelming. In my daughter’s mind, the sound in the attic could be bats, snakes, ghosts, vampires, or big hairy monsters. I took my daughter’s hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

“I’m a little scared, too,” I told her. “But if we can learn more about the problem, I bet we can solve it.”

My daughter seemed dubious, but she agreed to help me investigate the situation. We went into the attic with a flashlight, stabbing the beam of light into the dark and dusky corners. It didn’t take long for us to figure out the nature of our problem. We saw tiny eyes and furry little faces staring at us.

“They’re just squirrels,” my daughter giggled. “They snuck into the attic.”

“I guess the scratching doesn’t scare you anymore,” I said.

“No,” she said, “it’s not scary. We know what the problem is. It’s not scratching sounds; it’s squirrels.”

My daughter had made a profound discovery about problem-solving. She knew how to define a problem. Armed with that knowledge, she was prepared to help solve it.

We have to define exactly what the problem is. Big hairy problems are scary and unsolvable. We also have to move beyond the immediate symptoms of the problem and explore the deeper details. It’s OK to start with a big hairy problem, but we have to quickly sharpen our focus. Only then can we really understand what we’re facing and begin solving it.

The Practice of Leadership

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People speak of leadership as if it’s an innate characteristic that someone is born with. While it’s possible that some individuals embody natural leadership attributes, it is much more common that leadership is learned through hard work and practice. You’ve got to roll up your sleeves and give it a go. That’s what leaders have done throughout history, and of course they make lots of mistakes along the way. The ‘mistakes’ part is key. You will definitely make mistakes as a leader especially early in your learning process. When studying the notable leaders of history, you rarely hear about the mistakes they make, only the triumphs. But of course they made plenty of mistakes. You will, too. That’s just part of becoming a leader.

At TrainingExcellence.org, we have deconstructed the concept of leadership into 4 elements:

  • Character–demonstrating the inner qualities that facilitate true leadership
  • Clarity–possessing a clear vision for the future
  • Communication–passing along that vision in an understandable way
  • Credibility–being worthy of trust

Each one of these elements can be practiced and developed. By defining a framework for leadership, we have taken something big and insurmountable and turned it into a set of skills that anybody can develop. And that’s truly what leadership is. The more people who practice it, the better. The E-Learning Course by TrainingExcellence.org, “Building your Leadership Potential,” provides a simple and effective path for becoming a leader in every aspect of your life. Leadership is one of the most significant journeys you can take, and I’m excited that you’re embarking on it.