Archive for March, 2010

Versitas Delivers Training for Kaiser Permanente

March 31st, 2010 - by Newsroom

Versitas announced it has delivered custom software training services to leading health care provider Kaiser Permanente. 

Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care organization, based in Oakland, California. They operate in nine states as well as the District of Columbia, and is the largest managed care organization in the United States.

The organization has 8.6 million health plan members and over 167,000 employees. They operate in California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Oregon, Ohio, Virginia and Washington.

For more information about Kaiser Permanente, visit their website at http://www.kp.com/.

About Versitas
Versitas ( www.versitas.com ) is a leading nationwide software training company delivering onsite and web based training to leading companies in 17 major US markets and around the world. 

For additional information, contact debbie.petersen@versitas.com

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Work Like Your Dog

March 31st, 2010 - by Angela

dog-istock_000004380428xsmallLast year I read a book by a friend and former colleague about how to work like your dog.  This past week I spent time with extended family, who have a great, fun-loving dog. Their dog, Ellie, reminded me of that book.  Ellie, is such a wonderful, friendly dog, who really enjoys life.  She started out as a normal crazy puppy that jumped on everything and was a bit out of control.  With some time, training, and natural maturity, she has become a fantastic addition to their family. 

I think that we can all take some lessons from Ellie and the book.  Often, when we first begin our careers, we are so passionate and idealistic that we go a little overboard and are overly excited.  Over time, with some training and learning, we become a fantastic addition to a corporation or our own company. 

The author of the book had several good points. Dogs are persistent and focused.  If you’ve ever seen a dog going after a stick, ball or other toy that has been thrown, they are relentless.  Try hiding a ball behind your back and you’ll see that characteristic even more pronounced.  We should be the same way (but without all the salivation!).  When we are working, we should be giving 100%. 

Dogs are passionate about everything they do.  Even when they sleep, you can see them moving their legs like they are chasing something in their dreams. Sometimes when we are focused on a job our dreams at night also reflect some of the questions and answers that we are thinking about for the next day. We should funnel our dreams and passions for our job into learning and completing our project or task. 

Many people take their dogs to training to help them develop their talents and abilities better. As a trainer, I’ve seen how much difference a day of training can make to help someone work smarter.  They can be more focused on the task and less focused on the technology because they know how to make it work for them.  We should be viewing training in the same way.  Some people look at training as a required, mandatory item to check off their to-do list.  We should look at it as an opportunity to try to get out of it all that we can.

After spending time in the house with my new favorite dog, Ellie, I am reminded of how much fun dogs have every day.  Thankfully, Ellie lives in a house with three young boys so she is kept busy with lots of fun all day.  When I’m doing a training class, or even in a meeting, I like to infuse fun, too. 

Learning happens so much easier when you are having fun.  So, I think it is a good principle to try to incorporate some fun into your workday.  It doesn’t have to be constant joking, but just a fun outlook or break from the intense seriousness that some work environments have. At one of my client’s workplace, they have 15 minutes of fun required each day.  The employer has even provided ping pong and foosball tables.

I really hope that we can all learn to work like our dogs!

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Keep Your Job, Beef up your Skills

March 22nd, 2010 - by Angela

how_to_improve_your_people_skillsThere has been a theme across several blogs and articles I’ve read lately.  I’ve noticed it in some of the news stories, too.  Corporations are keeping their “useful” employees with more benefits and/or increased pay. It costs the corporation less to retain their best people versus hiring and training new ones. 

So, in the context of our current economic situation and all of the layoffs in the past few years, I ask, “How do I make myself more ‘useful’ to my company?”  The articles/blogs suggested improving communication and technology skills.  They said to think about what can enhance the look of your resume, too. 

In my position as a corporate trainer, I make myself useful by keeping up with the latest in software and soft skills training areas.  I invest in training each year (tax-deductible usually, too!) and do quite a bit of reading and playing with new programs to make sure that I am able to do the training that the market is asking for from my industry.

The blogs/articles suggested those same things to stay current and even advance to a new position.  They said to make sure you are up on the technology available to do your job. Read and network with others in your industry to stay up with the current trends.  To make yourself ‘useful’ invest in training, even if your employer does not pay for it.  As a trainer I tell this to others all the time.  I’m glad to see someone else, outside of the training industry, saying the same thing!

Remember that after you gain the new skills that you let your corporation know. Actually, ask them first about training to make sure you are aware of everything that is available to you.  (One blog suggested asking in the HR office, too, since they may know of more programs offered than a boss or co-worker would.) Turn in those certificates or log those training hours with your employer.  Make them aware of what you can do now and how that will help your job and corporation.  Also, make sure and add those items to your resume to keep it up-to-date. 

Even if you employer is not able to pay for the training, it will be worth the investment to keep your job or advance to a better one!

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Versitas Delivers Training for Siemens

March 22nd, 2010 - by Newsroom

Versitas announced it delivered custom software training services to Siemens.  Siemens is a global powerhouse in electronics, electrical engineering, and operates in the industrial, energy and healthcare sectors.

For more than 160 years, Siemens has built a reputation for leading edge innovation and quality of its products, services and solutions. Globally the company has 420,000 employees in over 190 countries. The company reported over $116 billion dollars in sales in 2008.

With its U.S. headquarters in New York City, Siemens reported $21 billion dollars in sales and employees approximately 60,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

For more information about the company, visit their website at www.siemens.com.

About Versitas
Versitas ( www.versitas.com ) is a leading nationwide software training company delivering onsite and web based training to forward thinking companies in 17 major US markets and around the world. 

For additional information, contact debbie.petersen@versitas.com

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Versitas Delivers Training for Destination Maternity

March 15th, 2010 - by Newsroom

Versitas announced it has delivered customized software training services to Destination Maternity at their headquarters in Philadelphia, PA. 

Destination Maternity Corporation is the world’s largest maternity apparel retailer with more than 1,000 locations. Their brands include Destination Maternity, Pea in a Pod, Motherhood Maternity and Oh Baby!

With annual sales of over $500 million dollars, the company is well positioned to remain on top of its market as the industry leader.

For more information about the company, visit their website at http://www.destinationmaternity.com/.

About Versitas
Versitas ( www.versitas.com ) is a leading nationwide software training company delivering onsite and web based training to forward thinking companies in 17 major US markets and around the world. 

For additional information, contact debbie.petersen@versitas.com

 

 

 

 

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So I’ve been trained, now what?

March 15th, 2010 - by Angela

logoSince I started writing this blog last year, whenever I speak with another trainer or someone who works in the training industry I ask them about ideas for blog posts.  Sometimes when I hit a writer’s block, I shoot an email out to one or two of these colleagues for advice.  This week, I was talking with a friend and asked for blog ideas.  Her idea:  what should a student do after training?

I thought about her blog idea.  The after-training part of the process is out of the trainer’s hand. It is the area where we, as trainers, can give recommendations but do not have any control over, as we do in the classroom activities. It is an important part of the training process, though.  

If the training is going to “stick”, then the student needs to do a few things after the actual training session.  The classroom training is definitely the time where most of the initial learning takes place, but after the session, the student can do a few things that will really help the retention of the information.  The corporations that purchase the training can contribute to the retention of the training that they pay for by allowing students to do these after-training activities.

The first of these activities is to review any notes, books, handouts, or learning guides from the training.  Just looking and reading over these items will help you remember things from the training, especially the hints and tips that you might have jotted down.  If I’ve been in a training class on a Friday and go back over my notes on Monday, I usually see something that I had forgotten that I had written down.

Next, it is very important to allot time to practice what you have learned.  In the ideal world, you will have learned things that you will apply immediately on the job.  However, in the real world, you may not be using all of what you learned right away.  In that instance, it is good to practice what you learned so that you’ll remember it when the time comes to use it.  This is where the corporation can help by allowing time for the students to have a bit of time to practice after the training.  One option is to take about 15 minutes once a day to review a specific concept.  The repetition will help you retain what you learned.

Finally, the best way to ensure that the concepts you learn will stay in your memory is to teach someone else what you learned.  If you can teach someone else, then you have shown that you have a mastery of the skills/concepts that were covered in the training class.  And, what a better way to help yourself, someone else, and your corporation than by improving someone’s efficiency or increasing their knowledge.

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Versitas Delivers Training for Broadlane

March 8th, 2010 - by Newsroom

Versitas announced it has provided custom software training services to Broadlane at their global headquarters in Dallas, TX. 

Broadlane is a group purchasing organization (GPO) that negotiates contracts on behalf of its customers, using the combined purchasing power of its client base to negotiate rates on medical/surgical supplies, capital equipment, drugs, information technology, and labor.

Broadlane’s OnRamp portal allows clients to order from an online catalog, view contracts, track pending transactions, and obtain reports. Broadlane serves thousands of hospitals, non-acute health care facilities, and physician practices.

For more information about Broadlane, visit their website at http://www.broadlane.com/.

About Versitas
Versitas ( www.versitas.com ) is a leading nationwide software training company delivering onsite and web based training to forward thinking companies in 17 major US markets and around the world. 

For additional information, contact debbie.petersen@versitas.com

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Engaged Training

March 8th, 2010 - by Angela

6a01156fc46070970b01157026cd4b970cI was reading an article recently by Jeanne Meister discussing trends in corporate learning.  She tracks trends in learning at different private and public corporations and institutions.  I am always trying to find out more information about learning and trends in the corporate sector, which is how I ran across her article.

The article was very insightful and matched what I have seen with the companies that I’ve done training for over the past year.  She narrowed down the learning trends to focus on five main features of learning for the upcoming decade: social, mobile, collaborative, engaging, and fun.

One of the statements that really made me stop and think was, “Employee engagement will continue to be a top issue on the dashboard for HR and Learning executives. The reason is simple: according to a survey conducted by the Corporate Executive Board, (CEB), companies with highly engaged employees demonstrate a 3-year revenue growth of 20.1%, compared to the 8.9% their industry peers will average.” Coming from a training background, I realized that training is one of the keys to keeping employees engaged.  If employees feel abandoned, or left to fend for themselves to learn, they may lose interest and move on to a corporation that provides that learning environment.

In order to attract and retain the top talent that can help a corporation stay competitive, corporations need to promote a culture that engages its employees, encourages them to collaborate and learn from others, and has fun in the process.  I believe that corporate training can be a key to creating that culture.  If corporations do not stay on the cutting edge with their corporate learning programs they may not be economically viable.

One of the other points that Meister made in her article also seemed to hit the nail on the head.  She stated that the group style learning model is slowly fading.  From my experience, I am doing more one-on-one training in the past couple of years versus previous years. Many of my clients have told me that they do not have time to go to a regular class but need the customized, individual training at their desk or home.  

I’m so grateful that Versitas provides the option for me to do all different kinds of training to meet the changing needs of our clients.  We are also pretty good at incorporating another of the five trends into our classes…FUN!

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Downsizing and Training

March 2nd, 2010 - by Angela

downsizing1I know, downsizing and training aren’t usually put together. Most corporations do not invest the extra money in training workers they are letting go. That is why I was surprised to be talking to my clients during a recent morning training session and find out that their whole department will not exist in a couple of months. 

A few of the employees will be relocated to other parts of the corporation. Most will be laid off with a severance package, the length depending on their years of service. Surprisingly, the employees do not have a bad view of their current employer, even though they are being laid off. They even commented on how much they appreciated everything their employer is doing to help them during this transition.

The corporation is investing in getting these displaced workers special training to help them find new jobs. The company believes in helping them succeed, even if they are not employed there anymore. What a great concept! I really like that they are having training sessions for these workers before the department is dissolved in a couple of months.

The training sessions cover Microsoft Office topics like Word, Excel and PowerPoint. During the morning training, we have customized a class to help them fill in the gaps in their knowledge of the software application. In the afternoon we have hour long one-on-one or one-on-two sessions to go over specific questions or target areas in the same software application that we covered in the morning.

This past week the training was on Excel. We had great sessions in the morning and afternoon! All of the students said that they really understood Excel better. They all had great attitudes and really dug in deep to understand all of the formulas, which was of primary concern to many of them.

I am looking forward to my Word sessions with them soon! It is so refreshing to see a corporation who cares about their employees, even during tough economic times like we have experienced the past couple of years.

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Versitas Delivers Training for Sempra Energy

March 1st, 2010 - by Newsroom

Versitas announced it has provided custom software training services to Sempra Energy at their global headquarters in San Diego, CA. 

Sempra Energy is a Fortune 500 energy services company with over 13,500 employees. The Sempra Energy companies develop energy infrastructure, operate utilities, and provide related products and services to more than 29 million consumers worldwide.

In 2008, they produced revenues of nearly $11 billion dollars.

For more information about Farmers Insurance, visit their website at www.sempraenergy.com.

About Versitas
Versitas ( www.versitas.com ) is a leading nationwide software training company delivering onsite and web based training to forward thinking companies in 17 major US markets and around the world. 

For additional information, contact debbie.petersen@versitas.com

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