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November/December, 2006
Volume 45 / Number 10
Editor's Notes: How Do Your HPT
Strategies Add Value?
by Holly Burkett, CPT, MA, SPHR
Mothers, Visions, and Validity
by Roger Kaufman, CPT, PhD
Doing what everyone else does in the field of performance improvement can be
injurious to your organization's health-and thus to yours as well. Copying best
practices about visions (as well as other things) from others might be
comfortable and conventional but usually results in poor consequences. The
rationale for not following the leader is provided, along with five ground rules
for defining and delivering worthy results. These guides will put means and ends
into proper perspective and allow you to align what your organization uses,
does, produces, and delivers with measurable value added for all stakeholders.
Repurposing English Language CBT to Japanese Language WBT Using
an International Translation Authoring Program (iTAP)
by Richard M. Cavagnol and Niladri Sekhar De
A Fortune 10 global energy company was upgrading its SAP system to a new
version and had to train thousands of employees located in facilities throughout
Japan on the various SAP modules. Previously, more than 32 hours of SAP
computer-based training, programmed with a commercial authoring tool and stored
and delivered on CD-ROM, had been developed in English for use in the United
States and Europe. The challenge facing the Deloitte development team involved
converting the English-language, CD-ROM-based training to Japanese-language,
web-based training in six months. This was accomplished successfully, using a
custom-built Java-based authoring tool used by bilingual courseware authors.
Productivity and Performance Improvement in Paper Mills:
Procedural Framework of Actual Implementations
by John Fogelholm, DSc (Tech.), PhD, and Frank Bescherer, MSc
It is essential to build up the information required to identify and analyze the
performance objectives of an intervention. Before any improvement intervention
takes place, one should determine the basic productivity data required, the
actual performance to be measured, and the financial impact of the possible
intervention. This article presents a framework for these tasks, using the
example of paper mills. The basic data required for determining the main
features of production productivity are usually found in the organization's
registration systems. The set of improvement targets can be established with the
help of benchmarking or Kaizen. To demonstrate the benefits to a decision maker
in the organization and accurately determine the returns of productivity
improvement activities, the activity-based costing process can be used.
The final profitability impact of productivity increases can be calculated and
reported through gap analysis. Information accuracy and realism in all data
areas have to be favorable to achieve the best possible profitability and the
right stimuli for increasing system performance.
The Impact of Learning Styles on Interactivity in Asynchronous e-Learning
by Katica Roy
The action research described in this article examines the effect, if any, that
learning styles have on interactions in an asynchronous e-learning environment.
Through an examination of pertinent literature this research gathers expert
opinions on the definition of interactivity in e-learning, learning styles and
efforts to accommodate them (especially in e-learning), interactivity devices,
and decision making regarding the diversity and number of interactions in
e-learning. This research also includes a survey of graduate students' views of
learning styles and their impact on e-learning interactions. Three distance
learning experts were also interviewed to help determine best practices when
considering learning styles in the design of asynchronous e-learning
interactions. This report concludes with recommendations for considering
learning styles in the design and development of asynchronous e-learning
activities.
Competence Versus Competency: What Is the Difference?
by Tina Teodorescu, CPT, MA
What exactly is competence and how is it different from competency?
In the past several years I have witnessed multiple people asking how competence
models are different from competency models, intermixing these two terms, and
challenging the idea that competence is indeed a desired end state for
individual performance. This article compares the concepts of competence and
competency through definitions, area of focus, results obtained, and
applications. It ends with a table that offers a side-by-side comparison of what
each type of model offers, to aid consumers as well as users in choosing the
right model to best meet their needs and provide the most value to their
companies and those of their clients.
Making Strategy Happen
by James P. Eicher
Global competition has put pressure on leaders of all organizations to rapidly
and successfully execute medium- and long-term strategy. The penalties for not
delivering are often rapid and
severe-publicly traded shares are drummed down on the world's exchanges, credit
ratings are hammered, and competition is emboldened to exploit any apparent
weakness. Many organizations have had the experience of developing a
well-thought-out strategy only to have the execution fail, often because
midlevel managers and their direct reports were not in the loop. Managers stuck
in the middle between knowing what they have to do and getting
their people to do it often face the greatest challenge of their career. This
article focuses on helping managers to bridge the gaps between thinking
(strategy) and acting (tactics) and to deliberately execute by bringing all
stakeholders from the present into the future.
The Performance Architect's Essential Guide to the Performance Technology
Landscape
by Roger M. Addison, CPT, EdD and Carol Haig, CPT
Executive Summaries
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