|
Back to the Performance Improvement Journal Home PageApril, 2004 Editor’s Notes: Partnering for Performance |
| www.ispi.org | Contact ISPI | Policies |
|
Executive Summaries
|
| Behavioral, Cognitive, or Brain-Based Training? by Paul G. Whitmore, PhD Neither the behavioral nor the cognitive training approach is ideal for every kind of skill. But there is a new approach that comes from biology rather than psychology, based on recent findings on how the brain works. The biological approach deals with cognitions but does away with the complex “multiple-memory” theory of the cognitive approach. It also does away with the view of the brain as an information-processing organ. Instead, the brain creates and adjusts local and global maps to generate new activities. Interactive experiences are the only means for adjusting and creating maps for generating new performances. The purpose of training is to design and deliver effective interactive experiences. Brain-based learning design combines the simplicity of behavioral technology with the inclusiveness of cognitive technology. It is simple, it makes good sense, and it is good science. Superior Productivity in Health Care Organizations: How to Get It, How to Keep It by Paul Fogel, MBA A logical program for developing superior productivity requires four components: (1) specific, simple, and realistic labor productivity standards developed through performance measurement and productivity analysis; (2) effective monitoring protocols and reporting that executives and managers can easily understand and follow, which reflect true underlying trends against which to measure performance and tie directly to the organization’s objectives; (3) accountability and authority explicitly drawn at each management level (i.e., governing rules); and (4) a system of incentives for superior performance and consequences for poor management. Taking into account the organization’s culture and strategic goals, management rules and operating procedures replace politics and testimonials. To achieve lasting prosperity, not financial turmoil from month to month, organizations must encourage a high level of autonomy and establish accountability for results so that managers have both the authority and the incentive to pursue what is good for the organization. Politics in Organizational Change and the Human Performance Technologist by Matthew Alexander and Jodane Christoffersen This article addresses the application of power as political behavior within the human performance technology (HPT) professional’s context of organizational change. The effective use of politics and power within an organization is a key driver to the success of organizational change where politics is evident at the individual, team, community of practice, and organizational levels. Included is a graphic representation of the complex systemic nature of politics as it relates to communication and communities of practice for the HPT professional. Guidelines for developing a power base and the use of healthy politics to increase success in organizational change projects are documented throughout the article. The New Spectrum of Support: Reclassifying Human Performance Technology by Thomas B. Cavanagh As the field of human performance technology (HPT) has evolved, much has been written about performance support systems. Many descriptions have been offered regarding what makes a successful performance-centered design, and practitioners have adopted various terms to describe their efforts to design and implement performance support systems. However, as HPT continues to mature, a broader classification system is necessary to effectively “compare apples to apples.” Only by placing various types of performance support technologies into context with each other can we adequately examine where we have been and where we are and map a course to take us where we want to go. This article offers an evolutionary classification system for HPT that encompasses all aspects of performance technology. This spectrum of support describes the comprehensive range of technological performance interventions, from disconnected compensatory offerings to integrated anticipatory support. Measuring Performance Improvement: A Knowledge Management Perspective by Stacey Alan Teruya, EdD Knowledge Management (KM) proponents and practitioners must consider performance improvement and measurement in any undertaking, such that the value of its implementation is clear and convincing to stakeholders and sponsors. Examples of these efforts range from the restructuring of a small workgroup to achieve better work performance, to the creation and optimization of an enterprise wide electronic information resource (often called an e-portal). Neither of these initiatives can be said to be trivial, as each must consider organizational structures, policies, processes, and practices complicated by both human and business factors. Moreover, two distinct, simultaneous measurements are necessary: (a) internal metrics that evaluate the KM implementers’ performance at different stages, and (b) external ones that assess the results of carrying out Knowledge Management in the organization. Evaluation: The Link Between Learning and Performance by Roger Chevalier, PhD, CPT Evaluation is a powerful stage of both the instructional design and the human performance technology models. Unfortunately, it is not often done at a level that will measure the impact of training or other performance improvement interventions. Properly done, systematic evaluation can provide the information needed for continuous improvement. Once the evaluation process has begun, more opportunities for added evaluation may be discovered to further understand the patterns of performance identified in the initial evaluation. This article presents the distinction between formative and summative evaluation, describes Kirkpatrick’s levels of evaluation with additional levels of evaluation by developed Phillips and Kaufman, provides case studies of three evaluations, and offers a summary of various lessons learned about evaluation. |
