If these types of users are not attending training how can you capitalize on the valiant moment when you are called in for help?  You can capitalize on what we call a “learning moment.” 

Learning moments can be defined as teachable moments where a user can acquire new information, or a new skill.  Learning moments are spontaneous and immediate.  They usually occur when technology is brand new or the technology has changed such as an upgrade from Office 2003 to Office 2010.  

You may be familiar with the Buddhist saying” When the student is ready the teacher will appear.”  When the user is ready, it is time for you to be ready with your knowledge arsenal. 

It is always best to start with the basics:  answer their immediate question and solve the issue. Sometimes though, you have given them enough empowerment that the user may want to learn more and here is your opportunity to shine.  With Office 2010 it is so easy to “throw in” a few more quick time saving options!

LiveNote – Having a light bulb moment and there is no pen or paper in sight?  Simply press the Windows key +N and a miniature OneNote window opens. Enter the note and click the X in the upper right-hand corner to close it.   Where did it go?  Open OneNote and find your clever idea under Unfiled notes.

Word 2010 – With the introduction of dual monitors or larger monitors, it is the “have to have” technology now.  I’ve noticed that when viewing a document in Word with a large monitor the zoom is set to 100% and Word automatically displays two pages.  To view the document as “one page” set the zoom to 120%. 

Office 2010 –  Copying and pasting within documents and between applications has always been my best friend. (Don’t you sometimes wish you could copy and paste certain elements of your life?)  However, in Office 2003 sometimes my best friends failed me with producing  unexpected results of how the text “should” display.  Now, with the introduction of paste preview, I can resume my long lasting relationship with copy/paste.  Paste preview allows you to see what the paste will look like before you actually apply the paste.  When pasting, simply right click and hover your mouse over the paste options to view how the pasted text will display.

Office Search Command – Lastly, with the introduction of the ribbon some of us early adopters have implemented the hunting and pecking method of trying to find certain functions within Office 2010.  You can supplement the learning moment with the Office Search Command Add-in and it is a fabulous tool to empower those in need during that learning moment.  The Office Search Command can be downloaded from http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/confirmation.aspx?id=28559  and more information about the add-in is available on the website. 

The Office 2010 Search Command allows the user to search for functions using their own words.  The ribbon will then display the functions that closely resembles the search terms. 

Click on the Search Command menu option. 

The ribbon will display the following options:

Enter the search term in the search field such as “section breaks” and watch the ribbon transform!

There are so many more tips and I encourage all those in a support or training function to be armed with a bag of tricks.  The learner may not be ready when exposed to learning before they actually need it, but once the user is ready to use it, the learning becomes easy.  Why not be prepared with some quick tips and tricks to make the learning moment an enjoyable moment!

1. From Acrobat, click the View menu and select Compare Documents to open the Compare Document dialog box.
2. Select the comparison documents and choose a Document Description option.
3. To limit the pages that are compared, set the page numbers in the corresponding fields.
4. To limit the comparison to just the text, no graphics, select the Compare text only checkbox.
5. Click the OK button to run the comparison.

A document labeled [Compare New] opens with the Compare panel displayed down the left margin.

A Color Legend is displayed in the top right corner denoting the different highlight colors used. Hover over a highlighted area or over a comment balloon in the document to view the comment regarding the change. A one-inch gray box in the upper left corner of the document indicates a page has been removed, while a one-inch blue box indicates the page has been inserted.

From the Navigation Pane, a colored icon just below the thumbnail indicates if changes were found on the page. A purple arrow indicates the page was changed and a green arrow indicates the page was moved. No icon indicates no changes were found on that page. At the bottom of the Compare panel is a thumbnail of the comparison page. Click the thumbnail to open the comparison document in a new window.

From the Compare panel, click the Options button and select Show Side By Side to display the [Compare New] and [Compare Old] windows side-by-side in the document window and enable synchronized scrolling.

Hopefully this new feature makes it easier to work with and identify the differences between PDF documents. This capability just may save you some grief and your eyesight!

One of my favorite get organized gurus is David Allen, the author of “Getting Things Done.®” I follow his tips and teachings at http://www.gtdtimes.com. One of the areas where his techniques have made a difference for me, is in keeping up with a deluge of emails that somehow find their way to my Outlook mailbox.

On average, I receive about 1,500 email messages a week. Although I keep Outlook open most of the day, I don’t typically read my messages as they come in. My focus is often on the meeting I am in, the person I am talking with or the task at hand. I delay reading my mail until I can focus just on that task. Then I move as quickly as I can to work though the messages. I act on every email in one of the follow ways:

Delete – I love to delete emails. Many of the messages I get are informational – ones in which I am CC’d. A quick scan of the message, <Ctrl>+D and it’s gone. About once a week, I sort my inbox by conversation and delete groups of messages at a time.

Do – when action is required and I can complete the action in under 2 minutes – I get it done. That could mean that I need to reply to the email or it could mean that I need to file the email.  For me filing happens in one of two places, Outlook folders or FileSite project related folders.

Delegate – when I need someone else to take action on the email, I’ll forward the email on to them, or I’ll reply to the email asking someone to take action. I track this by adding myself as a bcc: and then filing that message in my “Waiting For” Outlook folder.  I check this folder twice during the week to follow up on those things for which I am waiting for answers.

Defer – when the time required to act on the message will take over 2 minutes, I schedule the time to do the work on my calendar. I will often either drag and drop the entire email to the calendar or cut and paste the text of the message into the calendar. If I keep the email, I will flag or file it so that I can easily find it and reply back when the work is complete.

These simple techniques make the work of processing a day’s worth of email messages a much easier task and will help me achieve my organizational goal for 2012 of  keeping my inbox clean. Wish me luck!

But why release an authoring tool for a yet to be completed web specification?

Well, Flash is dead.  Of course, that’s just my opinion but one that many others share.   In fact, you can probably count me as jumping on the “Flash is dead” train rather late.  This wasn’t easy for me to admit at first.  I fell in love with and have been a huge evangelist for Flash from the very beginning.  Sure, Flash is going to be around for a bit longer, limping along, gasping for breath until it goes the way of the floppy disk but make no mistake; Flash is dead.  It just doesn’t know it yet.   Once HTML5 is more finalized (or some other, as yet-to-be created technology comes in to play) there will just be no need for Flash.

I had a brief discussion with a co-worker a few weeks back and was asked why can’t Adobe just “fix” Flash to have it work on mobile devices like it should (i.e. not suck battery life like a starving energy vampire and provide adequate security).  The answer is simple.  Flash was written before the mobile revolution and therefor absolutely no thought was given to power constraints.  Flash output was always meant to be served up through a desktop computer that was plugged in to the wall providing a never ending supply of juice to enable whatever snazzy application or animation you cooked up.  Because of its very core API, no amount of rewiring can “fix” what Flash is – or does.

We all know about the Adobe/Apple scuffle regarding Flash when Steve Jobs basically had to dump a big bucket of reality on Adobe’s head.  In fact, we can probably thank this very public and embarrassing (for Adobe) back and forth for bringing us Edge, or at least getting it earlier rather than much later.  Adobe’s steadfast refusal to accept admit what Flash is, and more importantly what it isn’t, pretty much left them with a black-eye and looking behind-the-times.  With the release of Edge, Adobe may just get that namesake back in terms of web motion, application and interaction design – an edge.

If you’re not familiar with Windows 7 Snap, it’s a feature of the Aero desktop and it allows you to position any two open windows side by side. Simply drag the title bar of the first window to one side of the screen. As soon as the mouse pointer reaches the side of the screen, the window is automatically resized to fill half of the screen. Drag the other window to the opposite side of the screen. Both windows are side by side on the windows desktop. It can be any open window, such as, your email, OneNote or a web page.

I know what you are about to ask. And yes, you can still use Snap with dual monitors and extended displays. Instead of using click and drag which will simply move your window to the other monitor screen, you’ll use keyboard shortcuts. Press the Windows key + Right Arrow or Left Arrow.

If you are using Windows 7 and not taking advantage of Snap – you should start.  If you are getting ready to roll out Windows 7, Snap is one of those new features that users love when it is demonstrated in focus groups. The complexity of the document collaboration process has made it necessary for onscreen comparisons routine. Snap can at least make the windows staging process smoother.

1) Listening to Learners
The best ask for and act on feedback provided by the user community. Without a doubt, seeking and asking on feedback boosts user adoption of technology, ranging from firm-wide surveys that solicit input on training durations and learning preferences, to smaller role-specific focus groups that further define technology decisions and training topics.

2) Planned Communication
From the initial firm-wide announcement of the firm’s decision to move to Office 2010 to the ending communication to celebrate the success, the most successful firms invested in and followed the who, what, when, where and why of good communication. Creative in their approaches, the best of the best included a project theme and logo that allowed for branding of all project related communication. They also used a variety of communication vehicles to keep the firm informed including email, technology commercials, posters, rollout specific portal pages, testimonials (both written and video), executive briefings and WOW sessions.

3) Supported by Upper Management
There is no surprise that the best projects had full support of firm management. The projects were not viewed as IT projects, but critical initiatives planned by, supported by and driven by those at the top.

4) Targeted Learning Opportunities
With shorter classroom durations and the potential of lawyers not attending classroom training at all, these firms saw the risk and got creative in providing a variety of learning opportunities. They all focused on the “learning” and not on the “training.” Before migration, they provided users access to Office 2010 in the form of the Microsoft home use program, virtual environments, learning kiosks and targeted lab opportunities. They used E-learning content that focused on the new features in Windows 7 and the new user interface in Office is a jump start to learning. One-on-One coaching was offered to partners in lieu of classroom training. Hands on training opportunities were offered to all learner audiences. Many broke down the training into shorter pieces allowing for greater participation and less time away from the desk.

5) Intentional Floor Support and Coaching
Longer floor support durations with more people on the floor to encourage learning to continue and to bring learning closer to the work flow was a key factor to greater user adoption. One-on-one coaching continued with partners and many firms extended this offering to associates as well. During targeted floor support, each user received on average five visits over a five day period of time. Each visit would focus on five to seven topics that were vital to that user’s success in adopting the new technology. Daily floor support huddles provided the vehicle for feedback to the training team and a way to document frequently asked questions that could be shared with both the help desk and the user community.

How many of these factors are you using or planning to use in your next technology rollout? For more information on tools that support these factors, be sure to ask your Traveling Coaches Account Executive about our Windows 7/Office 2010 Rollout Materials. To share your success story with us, please contact me at clemaire@travelingcoaches.com.

Added Bonus! An Office 2010 and Windows 7 Word Search
Games are a great way to increase learning and build awareness around new terminology and concepts. Here’s a freebie Word search on Office 2010 and Windows 7 vocabulary. Coaches Connection – Word Search Puzzle

FIRST INSIGHT: KEEP THE BELIEF ALIVE

My daughter teaches the third grade, which is about the time kids become aware. She always gets the tough questions like, “If there’s no Santa, then does that mean the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy aren’t real either?” ACK! Turns out CFOs are a lot like third-graders…

“There are two separate camps…those who believe training is a good investment, and those who don’t…those in the first camp don’t need data because they already believe, while those in the latter camp would not change their beliefs even if presented with objective data.”¹ – Michael Echols, author of ROI on the Human Capital Investment

Users need to believe too. Facts and figures won’t sway a non-believer, but positive learning experiences will. Adopting a whole-istic approach to your training initiatives that includes needs analysis and a strong communication plan keeps beliefs alive while encouraging non-believers to switch camps.

SECOND INSIGHT: KNOW YOUR USERS

Christmas shopping is a love-hate relationship for me. I love to shop, but want to give the ultimate gift. Turns out talent management is much the same.

“Talent management is about making sure you have the right people in the right jobs in the right place.”² – Rob Lauber, VP of Yum! Brands

Transfer that same thought to training: we need the right content at the right time delivered in the right format to achieve the right outcome. How do we do develop the ultimate training program? The first step is to know our users and the business objectives of the firm. Focus groups, skill assessments and a myriad of other user analysis tools are critical components to building a successful program.

THIRD INSIGHT: EARN USER LOYALTY

After browsing the stores, surfing the web and pouring over the Sunday paper ads, my kids have recently posted their Christmas lists on the fridge. I relate this to my next golden insight.

“There’s too much information to choose from…former Google CEO Eric Schmidt said, ‘Every two days we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003.’”³ – Jay Cross, CEO of Internet Time Group

As learning developers, we need to identify the importance, relevance and value of information as it pertains to our users. No pressure, right?

Remember in Miracle on 34th Street, if Macy’s didn’t have what the customer needed, they’d pull out a binder with the ads from the other stores and direct the customer to the right place. The outcome: customer satisfaction and loyalty. Our training departments need to be like Macy’s, keeping our own electronic scrapbook of ideas and research, ready to go the extra mile and earn the loyalty of our users.

FOURTH INSIGHT: MAKE TIME TO NOODLE

Got sugar plum fairies dancing in your head? Jay Cross also commented:

“I do the best synthesis while asleep. I plant an idea or just have concepts floating around in my head; overnight the boys in the back room come up with a new way of looking at things. Among the streams that feed this phase of sense-making are: social networks…blogs…mind maps…journals…”⁴ – Jay Cross, CEO of Internet Time Group

In a recent conversation with our own Char LeMaire:

“Part of my job is to provide vision and new ideas for our products and services. Creative thought is difficult to summon on demand. Regularly scheduled quiet time for reflection, reading, and connecting with others through social media is critical for the creative process. When I allow my mind to wonder, I can refocus my energies on creative thought. I often use plane time for this. So if I have my eyes closed and my earbuds in, don’t disturb…I’m working.” – Charlene LeMaire, CLO of Traveling Coaches

Carving out research and ideation time is critical to the success of a training program. Fresh ideas and solutions don’t just happen—they’re a mesh of knowledge, experience and ingenuity.

FIFTH INSIGHT: YOU HAVE TO GIVE TO GET

Social Learning is like Christmas cards—you have to give to get or you’ll get wiped off the mailing list next year. With Social Learning you have to actively participate and share in discussions to gain anything from it.

“I give to the web, and it gives back.”⁵ – Jay Cross, CEO of Internet Time Group

Call it Karma, call it blessings, call it what-goes-around-comes-around…social learning is about sharing and paying it forward. Having a framework within which your users can learn from each other will promote and strengthen learning within your organization and bring people together. Wikis, blogs, ranking and comment capabilities in your LMS, intranet bulletin boards, mentoring programs, Yammer, a private firm YouTube channel, Facebook page or LinkedIn group, are just some of the ways users can connect.

From all of us at Traveling Coaches, may the development fairies dance in your head, your learning gifts be perfect, and your users continue to believe in the value of training this holiday season.

1 Michael Echols, “It’s About Culture” Chief Learning Officer, October, 2011

2 Tamar Elkeles, “Building Capabilities” Chief Learning Officer, October, 2011

3 Jay Cross, “Making Sense of the World” Chief Learning Officer, October, 2011

4 Jay Cross, “Making Sense of the World” Chief Learning Officer, October, 2011

5 Jay Cross, “Making Sense of the World” Chief Learning Officer, October, 2011

It seems like email has been around as long as computers and for many of us that might as well be true.  Why has email been able to avoid the same cycle as many other technologies (or at least enjoy an extremely long cycle)?  The answer is simple: it has always worked.  Conversation tracking, a sort of document storage with the use of attachments, calendaring and task management also grew out of email in an almost organic way.

I guess it’s not fair to talk about the ying of email without talking about the yang.  Expensive software licenses, servers and a small army of IT support personnel are required to maintain the email of a firm.  Additional software is often purchased to limit the amount of spam received and automatically archive older messages.  All of this adds additional administrative overhead when it comes to security and email policies.  Oh well, all necessary evils right?

Even considering the administrative and monetary costs, if email ultimately works why are some declaring it to be on the decline?  There are varying answers that all lead to the same conclusion: when it comes to technology, we are all more sophisticated now.  Social media is more mature today providing many of the features only found in email just a few short years ago.  Calendaring, document sharing, task management, search and filtering have all found their way into the social media landscape.  The ability to chat (video or otherwise), message, schedule meetings, etc. is leaving more and more organizations to ask: Why do we need email – at least internally?  Why deal with all the spam of email when it’s not necessary?  Why worry about managing the cost of software, servers and support when everything seems to be moving to the cloud?

Of course we’re not ready to put email to pasture just yet.  There are still kinks to work out and questions to answer but the rumblings among peers are getting louder.   When you want to email a link to this blog to a friend or coworker, will they have moved on to a more current method of communication?

Let me start by saying, if you aren’t talking to your users about what they need –either from a support perspective or learning needs evaluation–you really must make an effort to do so.  The users I spent the last two weeks with were incredibly grateful for the opportunity to talk about how they work and how they learn.  The most appreciative group was the lawyers and we’d asked them to spend an hour and a half of their day with us.  Many came in and told us they only had about 30 minutes for us, but every one of them stayed after the end of the session to share more thoughts.

What can you learn?  Every firm is different, but I’ll share some of my experiences from this two week run of focus group sessions.  A trend that surprised me was the lawyers requesting hands-on training.   We don’t always hear that, but it was important for these lawyers.  Another trend is the rise of the PDF in the document workflow.  Many lawyers are starting to receive client document edits in PDF format with bubble comments or some other form of PDF document editing.   Track Changes continue to make document collaboration a challenge.  Most users were receiving documents with Word Track Changes and most had developed a workflow to deal with those documents that allowed them to use the internal comparison tool as much as possible.

So I challenge you to talk to a few users about how they like to learn and how their work has changed in the last year or two.  And look for more lessons from the road as I travel around and learn new things about how users work.

The difficulty in self-evaluations is accuracy. An honest evaluation requires us to separate our heart from our brains and our emotions from our logic. Doing this as a group and including all the members of our L+D team—training, curriculum, HR, IT, Leadership—increases accountability. Bringing in a focus group of users also provides us with more accurate feedback from which to glean an honest evaluation. Just like creating a learning plan for our users, we as learning developers need to know where we are and where we want to be in order to develop a successful plan for the future.

Journaling is regularly used as a path to self-discovery and accountability. As you reflect on your successes, failures, strengths and pain points in the realm of L+D, put pen to paper to answer the following questions:

1.     What is my learning strategy and how does it align with the firm’s business strategies?

• How is the learning strategy implemented?
• What key performance indicators (KPIs) are used to measure results?
• What actionable information do the KPIs provide?

2.    How do L+D assist in identifying the needed skills in the incoming workforce?

• Is my new hire program hitting the mark?
• What additional on-boarding programs are involved?

3.     How does leadership demonstrate their support to the L+D function? (recognition, ownership, communication, teamwork, funding, tools, technology)

4.     What KPIs are used to determine L+D’s impact on business performance?

• What metrics are used?
• How often are they reported?
• How do you evaluate the needs of each practice area, position and individual user?

5.    What process do you follow to develop and deliver learning solutions where and when your users need it?

• What metrics do you use to assess their effectiveness?

6.    In the past 12 months, what steps have you taken towards personal professional development and how have you developed your L+D staff?

Being honest with ourselves is one hurdle to overcome, but getting honest feedback from others is another. The fear of repercussion and offense is real. No matter how excellent a rapport we may have with our L+D team and users, it does not negate the emotions-factor. Using a survey tool to gather information anonymously or bringing in an impartial outside third-party vendor to gather information is critical to the evaluation process.

Last, the conveyance of and reaction to feedback is a stressful moment for both the deliverer and the recipient. In either capacity, how we handle this moment will set the stage for all future evaluations. Realize that this is our personal moment for growth, knowledge and enlightenment. Great ideas hatch from the ability to identify a problem and deliver a solution. Use this time for reflection and innovation to not only increase your professional development, but to develop a strong learning program for your firm and users.