Creating a great learning experience for busy adults in the workplace can be challenging. This is especially true when there is a high degree of change for all employees that is more than technology-based; with new system capability resulting in changes to business process, role definitions, and most significantly, expectations for a superior customer interaction or product commercialization.
Good learning programs facilitate behavioural change
Developing learning that drives the desired behavioural change takes planning and knowledge of not only adult learning and people change principles but also understanding the organization, its goals, and its people.
To appreciate the biggest challenges for end users and stakeholders, start with understanding the overall challenge for the organization – this means discerning and aligning around the specific outcomes and objectives of the implementation. In order to be successful, organizations need to understand clearly what they are trying to achieve and how they will measure it. From there, understand the tools required, and how best to transform the organization to achieve the desired goals.
No matter what the learning program is for, there is one thing that should always be kept in mind – Training needs to be relevant to the learner
Adults learn best when there is a need for the information or skill and will learn this new information best when it is presented in small portions. Adults get even more out of the learning experience when they can apply what they have learned through action and then apply the information and skills immediately in a realistic way. Creating an emotional connection to the content will further encourage learning. All these factors should be considered when planning and developing the learning content.
The benefits described above can only be achieved if the right policies, processes, people, skills and tools are put in place to support the initiative. If this is clearly understood, then it will be apparent that a considerable challenge for end users and stakeholders is being ready in terms of time in their already busy schedules to make the change, in developing and buying into the goals of the change, then developing the requisite capabilities to deliver what they need to in the future state.
When planning a learning program for a MS Dynamics or any other ERP implementation, you should start with the end in mind
This is why a robust and strategic change management approach is crucial to the planning of the learning program and the overall success of the transformation. Learning is the key to achieving the desired behavioural change and should be present in many forms such as classroom or self-directed learning but there must also be interaction, community, and mentorship in order to learn, grow and thrive. It is a high performing organization that ensures they are planning effective learning by supporting the whole change that their employees are experiencing.