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Keep Ahead of the Learning Curve, Part 2
11 May, 2011 By: Robert GreenYou've got your training plan in hand, and now you need to show management why funding that training is a smart financial decision.
In the previous issue of the CAD Manager's Newsletter, I challenged you to come up with a learning plan to keep yourself technically current — and more valuable to your company. If you haven't thought about your learning plan yet, you may want to take a look at that column before proceeding.
In this issue, I'll show you how to prioritize your list of learning objectives in a way that'll get your boss's attention and convince him or her to approve your training plan. Here goes.
Getting Started
In order to get the training process rolling, you have to identify your company's training needs, then try to align your learning objectives with those needs. In my example case, I related the story of "Lois," who needs to bring Revit into her company, but must become more knowledgeable about the software to do so. In evaluating Lois's company's needs, we determined that the following Revit-based objectives were critical:
- Being able to send/receive Revit-based files to/from various clients
- Having a plan for eventually using Revit on in-house projects
- Having to control the expenses associated with Revit implementation.
To meet these needs, I recommended that Lois pursue the following training objectives:
- Acquire specific skills to send/receive Revit files to/from customers.
- Acquire more general Revit skills that would be key for the company's future usage of the software.
- Study how other companies have implemented Revit to learn what works — as well as what doesn't.
- Study how to best train company users so adoption of Revit will go as smoothly as possible.
The payoff for the company is that Lois will be able to meet its Revit needs, while the payoff for Lois is her greatly expanded knowledge of Revit — and her enhanced value as an employee.
Selling the Training
Now Lois finds herself in the position of having to demonstrate that her learning plan is worthwhile for the company financially. Oh sure, her plan seems reasonable and sounds beneficial, but how can she prove it? Furthermore, how can she make getting training a priority?
The short answers to these questions are:
To justify costs: You must compare the cost of training with the cost of operating under the status quo. I frequently sum this up by explaining, "It is cheaper to train someone to solve our problem than to keep having the problem," or by asking the rhetorical question, "Why is it that we can't afford to train, but we can afford to keep messing up?"
To get priority: You must show that training should be completed promptly, so the company can reap the financial rewards of the training as quickly as possible. To get management's attention, you might use phrases like, "The sooner I know what I'm doing, the sooner I can solve the problem."
Training only makes sense if the time you spend on it pays you back financially. Remember, time equals money!
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