30 in 30

Yesterday I delivered my 30th session to a local/virtual Chapter of my professional home – ISPI: International Society for Performance Improvement. See the ISPI International web site here: www.ispi.org – and see my list of presentation/workshop titles and the chapters I’ve presented at below.

I was at the 2nd meeting of a new chapter: ISPI CFC – Central Florida Chapter (serving the Orlando area). Thanks to everyone at ISPI CFC – and my best wishes for your start-up efforts. As someone who recently co-founded an ISPI chapter – I know that there is a long row to hoe – with lots of details to plan and manage.

I’ve been a member of NSPI and ISPI Chapters (the name changed in the early 1990s from NSPI to ISPI when the National organization became the International organization) since September 1979 – when I joined MSIT – the Michigan Society for Instructional Technology.

FYI – Back in the day “IT” stood for Instructional Technology – and today’s IT was “MIS” – Management Information Systems. Times change, labels change – and often that change is a smoke screen – to hide the fact that stuff happening under the old name wasn’t doing what it needed to do – due to poor practices and invalid methods. That name – while somewhat/marginally important – isn’t  really THAT important.

The ends versus the means often get mixed up. Back in the day – the ends – was known by some as: Measured Results – a phrase I still like and use. Also: regarding the means – the phrase was for many “Research-based” – which has generally been replaced by EBP – Evidence Based Practice.

Training became Learning in the early to mid 1990s – thanks to Senge and The Fifth Discipline – and the misunderstanding by many of what a Learning Organization really is/was – and so the  misappropriation of that term replaced the guilty – the Training organization – that too often wasn’t really training anybody to perform or to improve – they were too often presenting stuff. They would have been better labeled as “lame information sharing” that won’t and didn’t move any needle on the Scorecard up – except the Investment costs – but I digress.

NSPI and ISPI have given me a lot – focused me on better instruction – including avoiding instruction when that’s not at the root of a performance opportunity and/or problem (often the flip sides of the same coin).

ISPI – back in the days when it was NSPI – taught me to beware of the bogus MBTI claims – and also the Learning Styles claims – and many other things since to be wary of since joining in 1979. And ISPI – the members – not the organization – taught me about the many other variables affecting the ability for humans to be exemplar performers – and as Rummler so famously said: Put a Good Performer ina Bad System and The System Wins EVERYTIME. The people of ISPI taught me about performance – and taught me that when I do the analysis – I should be on the lookout for those others factors – being the most likely culprits – at the root of the problem/opportunity.

They also taught me (although not everyone talked about this – or even does to this day) to take my clients along on the project journey so that together we would build a “shared understanding” of what’s what – and to collaborate with them about “what to do about it.” A true collaboration, a true ownership of both the analysis data – and the design to remedy it.

I hope to be able to continue giving back to my Professional Home in this manner – presenting to other ISPI chapters to help them start-up, operate and thrive. I am available for F2F sessions (you pay the expenses and I’ll donate my time) – as well as for webinars. BTW – I dislike 60 minute webinars and prefer 90 minutes (or 120) so that there can be more than a 1-way “rushed exchange” (read: no exchange of any meaningful impact).

I like to include participants trying out what “I blathered on about” and then having a little Q&A. I seldom cover simple stuff that you can master by reading about it in a non-interactive PDF – because, “why bother” with that!?!

Oh – for those who are curious about ,e having this list and dates, etc. I have this list – as back in the day (as well as today) we kept track of all of our time – on all projects – be they client projects or marketing projects, infrastructure development or skills development efforts, etc. And sometime in the mid-1990s I got a version on my computer that I could easily keep up to date – for my Professional Bio.

We kept track of all of our the past investments in all of our efforts – so that we could predict and plan better for our future investments.

It’s a Measured Results kind of thing.

Here’s the 30 in 30…

Guy W. Wallace’s 30 Presentations to NSPI/ISPI Chapters in 30 Years – Since 1982 

2010-Today

1. Curriculum Architecture Design - ISPI Central Florida Chapter – January  19, 2012
2. Curriculum Architecture Design - ISPI Armed Forces Chapter – Webinar – December  7, 2011
3. Project Planning & Management – ISPI Chicago – Virtual Cracker Barrel – October 26, 2011
4. Enterprise Process Performance Architecture – ISPI Armed Forces Chapter Webinar – February 15, 2011
5. Performance-based Curriculum Architecture Design - ISPI Hampton Roads - October 28, 2010
6. Modeling Mastery Performance and Systematically Deriving the Enablers Workshop - ISPI Kansas City - October 21, 2010
7. Modeling Mastery Performance and Systematically Deriving the Enablers Workshop - ISPI Tampa – May 26, 2010

2000-2009

8. Employee Performance-based Qualification/Certification Systems and Performance Tests
   ISPI Carolinas Chapter – Durham – March, 2008
9. Modeling Mastery Performance & Systematically Deriving the Enablers
   Carolinas ISPI Chapter – Cary NC – September 2006
10. Modeling Mastery Performance and Systematically Deriving the Enablers
    ISPI Winter Workshop – New Mexico  (March 2004)
11. Aligning to the Voice of the Customer at 3 Levels
    Michigan ISPI Awards Banquet Keynote  (October 2003)
12. Performance Modeling – Cracker-barrel Session
    ISPI Chicago Chapter Meeting  (September 2002)
13. ISPI’s Certified Performance Technologist Professional Certification
    ISPI Boston Chapter Meeting  (June 2002)
14. ISPI’s Certified Performance Technologist Professional Certification
    ISPI Chicago Chapter Meeting  (June 2002)
15. Push-Pull Performance-based Knowledge Management Systems
    Chicago ISPI Chapter  (March 2001)
16. Curriculum Architecture Design
    ISPI Golden Circle Chapter   (February 2001)
17. Performance Modeling lean-ISD Workshop
    ISPI Golden Circle Chapter   (February 2001)
18. Curriculum Architecture Design
    Carolinas ISPI Chapter   (August 2000)
19. Performance Modeling
    Kansas City ISPI Chapter  (July 2000)
20. Performance Modeling
    Montreal ISPI Chapter  (May 2000)

1990-1999

21. Curriculum Architecture Design
    Heartland Chapter ISPI — Columbus, Ohio  (November 1999)
22. The PACT Process for Performance Modeling—An Analysis Methodology
    Western Michigan ISPI  (September 1999)
23. Performance Modeling
    Michigan ISPI  (January 1998)
24. Accelerated T&D Analysis and Design
    Chicago ISPI Cracker-barrel  (September 1996)
25. Performance-based Curriculum Architecture Design
    Michigan Chapter of ISPI  (January 1996)
26. Performance-based Curriculum Architecture Design
    Kansas City Chapter of ISPI  (October 1995)
27. Building Models and Matrices Using a Team Approach
    Texas ISPI (NSPI) Chapter  (April 1990)

1982-1989

28. Project Management Techniques
    CISPI (CNSPI) Cracker-barrel  (July 1986)
29. Developing a Performance-based Curriculum Architecture Using a Group Process
    CISPI (CNSPI) Cracker-barrel  (July 1984)
30. Group Process for Job Modeling – with Ray Svenson at the Houston Chapter of NSPI (November 1982)

Going Forward

I am still paying it forward. I have to as I promised the late Geary Rummler in particular, back in 1999, that as I could never repay him for all that he had done for me personally, that all that I could do would be to pay it forward. And do unto others….

And that is why I still spend so much time, energy and yes money – in my support of ISPI.

That’s why when I vote in the election that just started – I will look to candidates that are both contributing at a high level – but that are also giving it back by paying it forward – and not looking at the potential position as an elected leader to advance their own business or self-interests.

For THAT is not the ISPI way.

Not in my book. Not in my experience.

That’s a change I don’t wish to see.

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