Chief Learning Officer - January 2009 - (Page 49) (reaction) data was collected routinely, there was limited data on behavioral changes or business impact. To address these issues, NLL began to explore followthrough management systems. Just as learning management systems have made it possible to track courses, enrollment and attendance for thousands of employees and programs, follow-through management systems make it possible to track learning transfer and application for thousands of participants, programs, coaches and managers. With the adoption of the six disciplines as a common learning language, NLL selected Fort Hill Co.’s Friday5s system as a follow-through management system that integrates disciplines three through six. NLL decided to pilot Friday5s with selected key leadership development courses. Once NLL reviewed the data, it determined that Friday5s created desirable followthrough metrics and the team decided to implement the tool on a broader scale. Now, courses at KP are developed with follow-through in mind. During a core course, participants create goals for learning transfer by linking key concepts from the program to their priority job responsibilities and developmental needs. The system sends a copy of participants’ goals to their managers and coaches and encourages them to provide feedback. Over a designated period of about 10 weeks, participants are reminded biweekly by e-mail to update their progress by recording specific actions taken (Level 3) and outcomes achieved (Level 4). They are able to view each other’s reports to create a community of learners and seek feedback from coaches or managers on their progress. Donna Lynne, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Colorado region, said, “The tool gives me the opportunity (as a manager) to review my nominee’s goals [for key executive leadership development courses throughout KP]. Once I review their goals, I either make suggestions or offer encouragement.” Other KP executives expressed concerns that employees may resent working with a Web-based tool that requires biweekly updates on their learning goals; one worried that it might feel “Big Brother-esque.” Through extensive interviews, however, the L&D team discovered the opposite. In fact, one KP participant and project manager said, “Receiving the e-mail reminding you to update your progress encourages you to work towards successful completion of your goals. I am not sure I would have achieved this level of success without the biweekly reminders.” Another KP manager said, “I like seeing everyone else’s goals, and I especially enjoy finding other people working on applying the same skill sets. I knew I could call other participants for assistance.” Broad Application Following a successful pilot in 2007, NLL decided to adopt the same delivery and assessment system on a broad scale for core leadership courses. With participation up 500 percent compared to 2007, KP’s main challenge moved from understanding how to use the system to integrating follow-through effectively and obtaining measurable results. The first challenge for KP’s rapid implementation was educating a diverse group of widely dispersed employees on how to use the tool. To assist people in the KAISER continued on page 55 Chief Learning Officer • January 2009 • www.clomedia.com 49 http://www.clomedia.com
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