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In this issue:

1. Grooming Your Organization's Talent for Future Success
2. Building Bridges: Lessons in Working with Business Units
3. Training Media Review Gives Lectora High Marks
4. Course Review: Succession Planning Management



1. Grooming Your Organization’s Talent for Future Success

Brought to you in partnership with one of our e-Learning Producer Partners, SkillSoft.

There has been much debate and conversation in the workforce about the generation gap, and the loss of the baby boomers in the workplace, to be replaced by the often less experienced generations X and Y. While most small and mid-sized companies rely on a network of senior executives as the lifeblood of their organization’s management – what happens when one of these key executives retires, is offered another opportunity, or leaves the company unexpectedly?

A recent study by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management says that over one third of the U.S. workforce is eligible for retirement. Faced with this reality, how do we replace these valued and experienced employees with qualified and confident leaders to continue guiding our organizations? The answer for many proactive and innovative organizations has been a strategic succession plan for key positions. Succession planning ensures that capable and confident people fill your key positions in a variety of job roles for many years to come. As Robert M. Fulmer, Ph.D., of Pepperdine’s Graziadio School of Business & Management said in his recent article, “Choose Tomorrow’s Leaders Today,” It’s not just succession to the top – it’s getting the right person in place for every job. Some of tomorrow’s key jobs may not even exist now. If a firm plans to double in size in five years, they will need more talented managers.”

Do you know which methods of learning can best help an employee get the development they need to be a successor? There are five methods of internal staff development that organizations commonly use to help successors achieve their learning objectives. Knowing when to use the following methods of internal staff development will help to ensure that successors are ready when you need them.

1. On-the-job training - The first method of internal staff development is on-the-job training. With this method, an employee begins working in the actual work environment and receives training in specific job tasks as the tasks arise. This training provides the basic knowledge or skill required to correctly perform a single task. On-the-job training is particularly effective at demonstrating tasks, such as manual or procedural skills, that involve telling, showing, doing, and evaluating activities.
   
   
2. Job rotations - The second method is job rotations. This method allows an employee to experience a wide variety of lateral job positions by rotating or trading jobs with other employees. The employee already has basic knowledge or skills and only needs situational experience in a variety of job positions to obtain an increased ability to solve problems or learn more about the company. Job rotation is often necessary for promotion to a position that supervises those lateral job positions.
   
   Job rotations are a good method for providing feedback and appraisals for each function that an employee does since there is opportunity for job performance evaluation over a period of time. This method requires that there is sufficient time for an employee to carry out each job rotation. There also has to be enough company flexibility to allow the employee to trade jobs with others. This method works well when there are several employees under development at the same time.
   
   
3. Mentoring - A third method of internal staff development is mentoring. Mentoring is the pairing of an employee with a more senior person, or mentor, in the organization for general workplace advice, information, counseling, and career advice. The format for learning is usually a meeting where the mentor listens to the employee's ideas or provides leadership advice on how to handle problems or gives career direction. The relationship usually lasts for a long period of time.
   
   Mentoring works best when the employee respects the mentor. Compatibility is a must. A mentor can only handle a few employees at one time due to the time required for providing advice. The mentor should be outside the employee's direct line of authority so the employee can feel free to discuss work issues. A mentor should also be two levels above the employee for best effect. If the employee is changing careers, the mentor may come from the new career path.
   
   
4. Training sessions - The fourth method of internal staff development is training sessions. Training sessions include courses, certificate or degree programs, and seminars. They are useful when a large number of trainees make it difficult or cost inefficient to use other forms of training. Completion of training sessions tests provide formal evidence of successfully learning the information. These sessions are useful for covering basic information or information that needs a standardized delivery to all employees.
   
   
5. Action learning - The last method is action learning. Action learning is real-time group learning while solving a problem in the organization. This is also known as experiential learning. This is a very effective learning method because the learner gets to do a real task or solve a real problem and then reflect on how it was done, even if done incorrectly. A facilitator is available to provide additional information or resources required by the individual or group. An organization may then implement the solution to the problem.
   
   Action learning requires that a small group of four to ten people meet to participate in the training so that each employee can learn from each other. Action learning may be difficult to coordinate if employees have to travel far to participate in the group or if there are fewer than four employees needing training.

Knowing that a variety of methods are available to you is just one aspect of developing your staff. To achieve the best results, you also have to know which method is right in a given situation. Consider the following example.

Mark, a quality assurance manager at Chunderwalla, needed some advice. He had a solid foundation in basic managerial skills but he was having problems with several employees. Mark made an appointment with Rhonda, the director of personnel. After discussing the problem with Mark, Rhonda, suggested that he ask Jeff, the director of information support, to be his mentor. How did Rhonda know mentoring was the right method for this particular staff development problem?

On-the-job training - On-the-job training for Mark didn't lend itself well to helping him know how to deal with the employees. Mark knew enough about basic management and leadership. What he needed was advice on what to do in various cases.

Job rotation - Job rotation would certainly help Mark get experience with problem employees, but Mark didn't need to learn a new job just to be able to solve problems.

Training sessions - Formal training sessions have already given Mark a basic knowledge of management and leadership. Another training course wouldn't be able to show him what to do because each situation is different.

Action learning - Action learning could help Mark recall how he had dealt with problem employees in the past. However, Mark needed continuing advice for the present and the future—something action learning couldn't provide.

Mentoring - Mentoring from a more experienced person, such as Jeff, is what Mark needs to learn how to deal with problem employees. Jeff is likely to have encountered similar problems and would be able to offer good advice that Mark could respect.

Employee development can be achieved using a variety of methods including: on-the-job training, job rotation, training sessions, action learning, and mentoring. To choose the best method for a particular situation, you need to correctly identify the development problem and apply a solution based on the employee's current level of skill and experience.

Start a succession planning initiative at your organization today! Review our e-learning course, Succession Planning Management, below. Preview this and other succession planning training courses.



2. Building Bridges: Lessons in Working with Business Units

In Chief Learning Officer’s recent article “Building Bridges: Lessons in Working with Business Units,” Dr. Page-Rivera describes the various methods organizations use to disseminate learning and training to their business units. An organization’s business units are the learning and development department’s internal customers, and the relationship is based on a partnership to meet overall business objectives. The three primary models for structuring learning within an organization that Page-Rivera describes are:

1. Centralized Learning
2. Decentralized Learning
3. Hub-and-Spoke Learning

Learn about each of the primary models for structuring learning, and how to bridge the gap with your business unit partners.

Read the article online - “Building Bridges: Lessons in Working with Business Units.”



3. Training Media Review Gives Lectora High Marks

In a recent release, Training Media Review (TMR), an independent reviewer of corporate learning products and services, rated Lectora as a top authoring tool from among 23 authoring tools.

Lectora 2006 is an extremely full-featured instructional authoring tool that allows users to develop and publish instructional (and other) content to multiple formats, including HTML, CD, and single file executable. Content can be authored to conform to learning standards such as SCORM or AICC. I didn’t test standards capabilities in this review.

The best way to review an authoring tool is to create real content with it. Clients and others have asked me to deliver our instructional design workshops online, and I seized this opportunity to get that underway. I built a short self-paced module that I will add to later by designing better multiple-choice questions using Lectora.

Let me explain from the get-go that I’m a pretty harsh reviewer of authoring tools, especially instructional authoring tools. I strongly believe that instructional designers must first determine what learners should be able to DO as a result of the instruction and only then build instruction that allows people to practice doing those things. That means the instructional need comes first, and tools are chosen because they help you fulfill that need. Picking a tool first too often means that you need to develop what the tool allows you to develop, not the other way around. That’s a recipe for inadequate instruction.

TMR has posted the complete review online. Read the Lectora review. Interested in learning more about Lectora? Start your free Lectora Demo.



4. Course Review: Succession Planning Management

Course Code
LEAD0304


Media
e-Learning

Course Overview
So, you have a succession plan and you've identified some problems. What do you do now? By taking this course, you will learn how to establish a leadership and talent development program that will ensure your succession plan achieves its goals. You will also learn how to overcome some common challenges that management teams face when trying to find the right people for a position. Since succession planning is an ongoing process, you will also learn how to evaluate your succession program to ensure that it meets your organization's present and future needs.


Target Audience
Managers, executives, succession planners (consultants), and HR specialists concerned with insuring information and business continuity via succession planning.


Expected Duration
2.5 Hours


Becky's Rating

5 Stars (Out of 5)

Becky's Review
Succession Planning Management is an excellent course for Top Executives, Managers, HR Generalists, & even recruiters. This course will assist one with understanding why succession plans are important to the company, as well as your employees. Employees love to be promoted from within and organizations are able to keep their costs down by promoting current employees; therefore it is a Win-Win for everyone. Throughout this course it will help you figure out the right succession plan for your organization to reach their goals, as well as your employees to reach their personal career goals.

Becky Claggett is a Training Consultant for the e-learning division at Business Training Library.

Interested in previewing Succession Planning Management? Start a free demo of this leadership training course today!

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