Brought to you by Business Training Library
The #1 Provider of Training Solutions for Growing Companies!

In this issue:

1. From the President
2. Twenty-Five Ways to Promote Your Training Programs
3. What Are Your Pickles? A Creative Training Tip From Convergence Marketing
4. Course Review: The Three-Dimensional Interview: Evaluating for Capability, Commitment and Chemistry



1. From the President

Ten years ago I met with several leaders in the training industry to discuss a plan for delivering affordable training solutions to smaller companies. Out of those meetings, Business Training Library was formed - with fifteen of the leading training producers becoming partners in our new venture. At that time, we began offering small organizations memberships in a lending library that contained nearly 450 video training programs.

Many things have changed at Business Training Library over the past ten years…

What hasn’t changed is perhaps more important, however. Today we remain dedicated to the same mission that has guided us from our humble beginning ten years ago. No matter the technology or delivery methodology, our goal has always been the same… to provide small and mid-sized organizations throughout the U.S. with affordable access to the best training resources available in the marketplace.

As we reflect on the past ten years, there are many people to thank. First, our success is due in large part to the hard work and talents of our dedicated staff, whom I believe are the best in the business. Delivering world-class training solutions and pricing them affordably for smaller companies can be tricky business, but our incredible staff steps up to that challenge every day on behalf of our clients.

We also rely on the support of our business partners, who recognized that individually they couldn’t cost-effectively serve the needs of smaller organizations. Our partnerships with more than 50 of the leading training providers allow us to collectively offer organizations with fewer than 2,500 employees the most competitive and cost-effective training solutions possible. Their continued support of our efforts has been instrumental in our success.

Finally, as we reflect on the past ten years, we also are thankful for the support and loyalty of our distinguished list of clients nationwide. These small and mid-sized organizations listened to our presentations, sampled our services, and ultimately decided to select us as their training solution provider. We are extremely grateful for your support and pledge to continue to do our best every day to exceed your expectations.

As we go forward, we will continue to face new challenges together. But I believe we will continue to meet those challenges by following the same guiding principles that have led to our successes over the past decade… by remaining true to our mission to provide affordable training solutions for small and mid-sized organizations nationwide, and by relying on the support and talents of our employees, partners and clients.

Looking forward to another decade like the past –

Dean Pichee
President



2. Twenty-Five Ways to Promote Your Training Programs

Provided by MindLeaders, one of our e-Learning Producer Partners
 
Here are 25 ways you can promote your training program to employees and help it get noticed by upper management for the positive contribution it makes to the company. How many of these do you take advantage of?

1. Advisory Groups — Invite a small group of learners to assist in promoting utilization and to lend their feedback on the training program. Similarly, invite a group of experts from different organizational units who serve as a resource for the training department. They can assist in identifying training needs, designing programs, and suggesting improvements.

2. Announcements — These don’t need to be more than a paragraph or two to inform and remind users about available courses. Announcements fill the gaps between newsletters.

3. Awards — Establish your own training department awards for your users. Awards can be based on training successes. Present certificates, trophies, and plaques, publish the names of award winners. Recognize a user who has improved their work unit as a result of training. Success stories can be the basis of selection. Award programs help demonstrate how training makes a difference.

4. Brown-Bag Lunches — Lunchtime programs are a great informal way to build interest and participation. Have your learners bring their lunches and simply supply soft drinks or other beverages. Feature guest speakers, success stories, certifications, or new features of your program as the focus of each event.

5. Bulletin Boards — Place flyers, brochures, and announcements on company bulletin boards. They are highly visible. Don’t let them get stale.

6. Contests — Sweepstakes, lotteries, giveaways, … anything that encourages people to participate (even if their motivation is to win a prize) can help generate visibility and increase the number of people actively using training. Offer incentives or special recognition to the training staff for performance improvement or simply for courses completed. Once people get in the training habit, they are likely to continue using it.

7. Course Material Pack — Combine all information about your course offerings into one packet or email that can be easily distributed to new users.

8. Direct Marketing — Email selected information to individual departments, HR, IT, etc. For example, let your IT people know that Oracle 10g training is now available. Make sure your announcement will catch the eye of your intended audience. New opportunities in information technology make direct marketing more effective. Use all the technology your company has to offer to get the message out: email, Intranet web sites, company bulletin boards, etc.

9. Email Address — Ask your email administrator to create a special email group address for your "Training Staff." It simplifies contact from your users.

10. Grand Opening — Create a special event for the unveiling of new programs, services or facilities. Hold an Open House. Invite MindLeaders to attend, as well as the highest-ranking company officers. Consider making this an annual event.

11. Increase Your Visibility — Volunteer for special committee work, task forces; help organize company events. When users know you, they will be more likely to come to you with suggestions and for guidance.

12. Logo — A logo can create an immediate, identifiable association with the training department. A logo identifies you to your target markets and conveys the message you wish to promote. In most instances a variation on the company logo would be most appropriate. Include a tag line with your logo for more effect. Place this one-line message about your training philosophy on the bottom of letters, memos and brochures. Use available space to continuously present a consistent training message.

13. Mailing List — Create and keep an up-to-date database on everyone who attends training as well as managers, supervisors and sponsors. Send periodic reminders, updates, and announcements.

14. Management Reports — Send out semi-annual or annual reports with training department accomplishments, objectives, comparisons to industry standards, and results. Combine this with “state of the department” message to your target markets. In addition, pan regular meetings with managers. This is the best way to learn about day-to-day issues, problems and opportunities.

15. Manager Planning Guide — Provide managers with tools to plan their employees’ training program: curriculum sequence, course descriptions, calendars, pre- and post-course briefing questions, follow-up, and coaching recommendations. All of this will make the managers’ job of reinforcing training easier.

16. Newsletters — Create your own monthly or quarterly vehicle to showcase training. Use it to inform users, list recent successes, introduce new ideas, and communicate improvements made as a result of user feedback. If there’s a company or division newsletter, consider writing articles for it or even a column of training advice, solutions to common problems, or “How To” instructions for some procedures.

17. Phone Hold Message — Make hold time informative. Create a message about new training programs, updates, or a special event. Change the message once every week or two.

18. Signage — Place visible signage outside and around your training facility. Let people know that an important activity is occurring at that location.

19. Speeches — Offer to speak at as many different meetings, conferences, and briefings as possible. Offer to facilitate team sessions. Speak on how training can help with current problems and initiatives.
 
20. Suggestion Box — Place a suggestion box in the training facility for participants who wish to make comments on improvements to any aspect of the training experience. This can provide excellent material for testimonials.

21. Testimonials — Collect endorsements and testimonials from course evaluation forms and from positive comments made by participants. Short quotes can be used in flyers, brochures, and catalogs. A testimonial from a satisfied customer is one of the best ways to get the word out about your department's positive contribution to the organization and its employees.

22. User Survey — Find out from users what they think of your department and programs. Publish the results and actions you’ve taken in response to the suggestions.

23. Volunteers — Other company employees may be interested in joining the training department in the future and may volunteer today for some training department work as a means of getting noticed. Volunteers can also be a great source of speakers for training brown bag luncheons, either as success stories or as experts on a topic. 

24. Web Page — Try out your skills as a Web Page creator. Produce a training page and publish it on your company intranet.

25. Welcome Wagon — Try to meet as many new employees as soon as possible, especially during orientation programs. Try to meet those new employees who may not come into contact with training for some time. A welcoming letter with some training materials can create an instant ally. Volunteers can also be a great source of speakers for training brown bag luncheons, either as success stories or as experts on a topic.

3. What Are Your Pickles? A Creative Training Tip From Convergence Marketing

From time to time we like to share creative training techniques and best practices from small and mid-sized companies. Here's a letter from Dawn Black, Call Center Manager at Convergence Marketing. Dawn created a unique and interactive training campaign around the course, "Give 'Em the Pickle" from our Lending Library Customer Service Catalog.

"The pickle training went great!!!!! My team is still talking about it. They are going around saying "That is very pickle like," so I do think the training had the impact I was seeking. We made a few flip charts. I drew a pickle jar on one and asked each class, "What are our pickles?" We filled the pickle jar with their thoughts. I did serve pickles during each training class and the team thought it was hilarious. I did this as symbolism for the variety of pickles we can give. We had sweet pickles, kosher dill, and bread and butter. I wasn’t real sure how the morning class would take to it, but they ate them!! We began a "Give Em the Pickle" contest yesterday. It will run through the end of the year. I purchased some Give Em the Pickle items from www.giveempickle.com. One of the items was "I got caught giving a pickle" cards and we will use these to track the number of pickles each person is receiving for the contest. I also bought pickle sticky pads and hand out cards for their desks as a reminder."

Thanks to Dawn for sharing her "pickle" strategy! Do you have a training success story to share? Let us know! 



4. Course Review: The Three-Dimensional Interview: Evaluating for Capability, Commitment and Chemistry

A Lending Library new release from VisionPoint

Course Group
Human Resources

Course Code
39098

Media
Video or DVD

Course Overview
Take the guesswork out of evaluating candidates and selecting the right person for the job. With practical, step-by-step instruction, this program reveals how to use a consistent, structured interview process to evaluate for three critical dimensions—capability, commitment and chemistry. Using this approach, interviewers will gain a complete picture of a candidate’s potential and their "fit" with the job requirements and the organization’s culture.

The Three Dimensions:

1. Capability – The knowledge and skills to do the job
   
2. Commitment – The attitude and motivation to do the job effectively
   
3. Chemistry – The personality, values and work styles that best "fit" the organizational culture

Target Audience
Recruiters, human resources professionals, and any supervisors or managers that are involved in the interview process.

Expected Duration
28 minutes

John's Rating
 5 Stars (Out of 5)

John's Review
On the quest for the perfect hire, all organizations will face the obvious challenge of finding an employee that 'fits'. 'The Three-Dimensional Interview' shows with the utmost simplicity that, not only do job skills and knowledge serve as indicators of a promising candidate, but it is the culture of a company that cannot be ignored throughout the interviewing process. VisionPoint, one of our Lending Library producer partners, creates an amazingly thorough, yet simplistic approach in developing a structured interview that will prove to be effective. It's entertaining, easy to follow, and straight to the point. Great supplemental materials!

John Fowler is the Recruiter Director at Business Training Library. John enjoys attending concerts, billiards, bowling, and is an avid baseball fan! (Go Cardinals!!)



Business Training Library - 285 Chesterfield Business Parkway - Chesterfield, MO 63005
888.432.3077 - Fax: 636.534.1001 - http://www.bizlibrary.com