Training & Development – Flipped Training: What Have We Learned So Far?
Since beginning the process of upgrading our firm from Windows 7 and Office 2013 to Windows 10 and Office 2016, I have learned a ton. Working closely with the Project Manager and the Applications Architect, as well as all of our Trainers has proven to be a political, educational, and, well, entertaining experience, to say the least.
I’m going to spare you all the political and (most of the) entertaining parts, and share with you the educational aspects of the Flipped Training model and our process of implementation. My hope is that, if you ever wish to try or use model, our experiences will prove profitable and educational for you, as it has been and continues to be for us.
Lesson #1: Flipped Training is More Than Just a Name
The original idea of our Flipped Training was that our users would attend sessions with questions or issues already in mind, thereby driving the content of these sessions. Our experience, however, has proven otherwise. We’re finding that many of our participants simply call in to these sessions expecting to be taught or instructed. Perhaps we could have, or should have, better explained the concept of Flipped Training to these learners, but there are ways to prepare the Trainers to get the most out of this particular situation, if and when it occurs.
Case in point:
One of the great new features of Office 2016 is the “Recent Items” function in Outlook. Microsoft has brilliantly simplified attaching items to emails by pulling up a list of your recent items from which to choose. This is particularly helpful when working on, say, an Excel spreadsheet, saving it, and then preparing to send it to a recipient. When you’re in Outlook with your new message open, opening the “Attach File” (paperclip) button will now display your most recent work, and your spreadsheet will be at the top of this list. This saves time, effort, and multiple clicks. Now, navigating to the proper folder (multiple clicks) and selecting the desired file (often double-clicking) is now replaced with this simple, two-click process.
To date, we have not had any Flipped Training participants ask, “Hey Mr. Trainer, is there a quicker way to attach my work to outgoing emails? I’m tired of clicking through multiple folders every time I want to send my recent work to a client.” If, therefore, participants don’t come to these sessions with any specific questions to guide the content, our Trainers should have a set of features to demonstrate to prime the pump, so to speak. Demonstrating this new feature in Outlook may, in many cases, invoke a bit more curiosity on the part of the learners and lead to further work- and application-specific questions and discussions.
Ensuring our Trainers have a proper understanding of Flipped Training is necessary here. It is not simply having agenda- or topic-driven classroom sessions first, and then watching training videos or studying tip sheets later. Flipped Training is designed to ensure that all the content from videos and/or tip sheets is captured, applied appropriately, and that learners walk away feeling empowered to apply their new subject knowledge.
Lesson #2: Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen
One of my strengths, I have learned, is that I am a very positive person. As a matter of fact, two different coworkers at two different jobs I have held have called me “Pollyanna.” No joke! Perhaps it is because of my excessive cheerfulness and optimism. I have learned, however, that it is wise for me to temper these traits with a certain degree of realism and forethought.
When we first rolled out our Flipped Training sessions, I was sure they would flow exactly the way they were supposed to flow: learners would show up to sessions with multiple, application-specific questions and our trainers would adroitly walk users through the solutions, astonishing them with the new tools at their disposal. My first dose of reality came during the first session when, much to my surprise, significantly fewer attendees showed up than I expected! I guess I wasn’t expecting standing-room-only, but I was sure there would be more, and that subsequent sessions would be much more heavily attended.
This has not been the case. Since our first session on August 4th, attendance has remained constant and has even waned just a bit over the past 3 weeks. I should have expected this, as we have not had an upgrade rollout in six weeks, but my initial expectations were still somewhat high.
I think we are still learning the best applications of the Flipped Training model, and looking to apply it where it will be most effective. That leads us to the 3rd lesson we have learned:
Lesson #3: Choose Your (Training) Weapon Wisely
One of our Trainers keenly observed that some of our Flipped Training sessions were too general. He suggested that they will work better for elements that are inescapable or unavoidable, like application-specific issues such as those found in the Microsoft Office Suite, our APS systems, or some specific applications used and developed in-house. While there may only be a few learners whose attendance is dictated by necessity in such cases, the sessions would be much more specific and therefore effective.
That said, the Flipped Training may not always the be best weapon in your training arsenal. So, choose wisely!
So, What?
All things considered, I am a fan of the Flipped Training model and will continue to use it whenever and wherever necessary. I will, however, be comprehensive in my needs assessments to ensure it is the most effective and appropriate method of delivery and that we all have a proper understanding of it and the context in which it is to be used. That way, my Pollyanna approach to Training and Development will be appropriately tempered with the realism and levelheadedness necessary for our continued success.
Until next time!
Tom
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