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Back to the Performance Improvement Journal Home PageJanuary 2003 Editor's Notes Commentary: Organizational Alignment: The Evolution of
a Revolution Allow Me to Introduce: Darryl Sink Systems Thinking and Systematic
Methodology: A Semi-Empirical Experience in Support of the ISPI Value
Proposition Using Action Plans to Measure ROI Harvesting the Experts’ “Secret
Sauce” to Close the Performance Gap Reinventing the Training
Business Book Review: Making an Impact: Building a
Top-Performing Organization Executive Summaries |
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Article Summaries
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| Systems Thinking and
Systematic Methodology: A Semi-Empirical Experience in Support of the
ISPI Value Proposition by Abbas Darabi, PhD In the July 2002 issue of Performance Improvement, Wallace and Rummler called for a dialogue in search of a definition for human performance technology (HPT) and whether what the International Society for Performance Improvement has advocated as HPT should be promoted as performance technology (PT). They suggest using performance improvement “concepts, models, methods, tools, and techniques” from other fields to enhance ISPI members’ awareness of those methods and tools and encourage their application. In line with this suggestion and critiquing the current approaches for practicing HPT, this article builds on the “holistic process of inquiry” from the field of management design to apply systems thinking to performance analysis. The components of this model are then used to develop a systematic methodology for this purpose. The article describes the application of these techniques in teaching a graduate course on performance analysis and finds support for the techniques’ effectiveness in enhancing students’ understanding of HPT and performance analysis process. Using Action Plans to
Measure ROI The use of action planning to measure the return on investment (ROI) shows much promise for performance improvement (PI) interventions. Action planning is powerful, flexible, and efficient. With this approach, participants develop an action plan for improving performance during a training program or PI project. The plan is a step-by-step guide to drive application on the job. This article describes how this process is used and presents a case study showing how one organization, a large restaurant chain, built evaluation into the performance improvement process and positioned action planning as an application tool. This project added significant value to the restaurant chain and illustrates how an evaluation can be accomplished with minimum resources. The key to success in this approach is carefully planning the evaluation, building it into the PI process, and using the data to help future participants succeed with the same performance improvement project. Harvesting the Experts’
“Secret Sauce” to Close the Performance Gap Do some of your people consistently and systematically outperform others? Is there financial or strategic value in raising the performance of the many to the level of the few? If the answer is “yes” to these questions, this article will be valuable for you. This article explores the “secret sauce” that makes the difference between “experts” and less-successful personnel. As a result of effectively harvesting and communicating the “secret sauce,” you can reduce planning time by as much as 80%, training time by 50%, and task performance time by 30%-50%. Reinventing the
Training Business The major training companies that develop and distribute technology-based training products are in trouble. These companies are using business models and product architectures that have remained unchanged for almost 30 years and now are out of touch with customers and market realities. Product usage rates hover around 20%, sales are down, and implementations are stalling. For companies to reinvent themselves, there must be a renewed focus on the true customer, not simply the buyer; a movement away from large, generic courseware libraries; more flexible and responsive pricing schemes; products that engage and challenge learners; a real commitment to produce learning outcomes, not just provide access to courses; and a partnership with clients to produce documented business results.
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