Training Industry Quarterly - Fall 2008 - (Page 18) Embracing Change Web 2.0 is a classic example of “disintermediation,” or “removing the middleman.” In the Web 1.0 world, although the “learner” had vastly more access to knowledge than he or she had in the preWeb days, knowledge often was still centrally created and managed. To a great degree, organizations were very slow to understand the disintermediation that was happening with Web 1.0, particularly in our learning organizations. Despite much evangelizing by learning gurus, most organizations had to live with the implications and try to nibble at the margins over the past decade or so to regain some sense of control. Only a rare few of the companies we observed had an idea of the ramifications of Web 1.0 on the traditional learning delivery model. As they watched their learners gradually stray from centralized courseware and reference content to Google as their preferred gateway to information and context, their instinct often was to seize greater control and compliance via a variety of policies, procedures and tools. As learning leaders, we should take care not to be as slow to react to the highly disintermediating effect of Web 2.0, but rather embrace the phenomenon. One might argue that this finally offers us an opportunity for learning to be at the center of this convergence of change in our businesses. In a 2008 Masie Consortium, “Voice of the Learner” study, more than half of the employees sampled expected their preferences for how they learn for work to change in the next two to three years. Overwhelmingly, learners are increasingly turning to peers and colleagues (both virtually and face-to-face) for help with work-related inquiries and problemsolving. With up to 70 million new workers entering the workforce by 2012, Web 2.0 is not just about new technology changing the way we work; it’s a rapid transformation and fundamental shift in the way workers will think about learning. It took 26 years for Pong to have the mindshare that Halo had in one day! Keeping It Real A 2008 Inc. magazine study of the Fortune 500 reported that 48 percent of executives saw social media as “very important” to their business and marketing strategy going forward. In our learning world, this means that CLOs, SMEs and instructors are no longer the focal point of all knowledge. The crowd is now the source of wisdom and information. One client recently found 40,000 of its employees actively engaging in knowledge-sharing in Facebook. This would be great if not for years of Web 1.0 habits of controlling compliance and security. The challenge for us is no longer managing SMEs and delivering to timelines, but facilitating, observing and learning from the work of the crowd. This same client has now embraced its “crowd” and offers a variety of collaborative and 3D social networking environments for this seg- ment of its population. Our job as learning leaders is to harness and channel the power of this new capability to deliver informal learning and align it with the strategic goals of our businesses and formal learning programs currently in place. Here are three business drivers, with examples that offer a great place to get started integrating 2.0 strategies into your learning Globalization As our employee populations become globally dispersed, providing formal instructor-led training or even consistent access to other forms of learning is significantly less feasible. The need for companies to reach and engage this dispersed audience has never been greater. Knowledgeable facilitators, who are subject matter experts in their field, are less able to provide training unless they are willing to become globetrotters. Training schedules are breaking down due to reduced availability of facilitators, ability of participants to travel, and the sheer amount of training required to meet the needs of the business. These factors have driven the need to find alternatives to instructor-led training that provide the same benefits of faceto-face exchange, such as direct interaction with experts, networking and discussions with fellow participants, synchronous work on team assignments, and sharing ideas and leading practices in a group forum. Web 2.0 offers companies the opportunity to provide all of these benefits at low cost across both time and space. IBM, Sun Microsystems and Michelin successfully have used Second Life as an onboarding, employee engagement and rapid assimilation tool for their global workforces. Others have deployed live, interactive virtual or 3D collaboration sessions with SMEs or mentors, online communities for dynamic study and work groups, and blogs and wikis. We are currently working with a client project to deploy an online “Ask an Expert” function for 3,000 technical professionals to enable anytime, learner-directed access to expertise on highly specialized topics — a project that spans 12 countries and six time zones. Another scenario is a large Getting started Here is a starter menu for harnessing the wisdom of crowds using Web 2.0 in your organization: Begin with a blog for one target group, with a compelling topic or question. Find a host or “expert” to stir interest and facilitate. Invite a broader, diverse group of people (maybe last year’s class of “high-potential” learners) to participate; tie it to a mandated activity. Post provocative ideas and ask questions. Link to other Web sites, communities or sources that have common topics. Have the crowd flesh out the content with pictures, video and links. Include a rating tool, polls and assessment surveys to see how the experience expanded or changed learner perspectives. 18 Training Industry Quarterly, Fall 2008 / A Training Industry, Inc. ezine / www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ http://www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ
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