In my view, Instruction and Information (I&I) make up the content of a Performance Support system, besides the hardware and software and operating systems. The content is why the hardware and software and operating systems exist in the first place, and it is the Performance Requirements that create the need for the Instruction and Information.

The hardware and software and operating systems can be shared across the people of the entire Enterprise, if done right. But it’s the I&I – the Instruction and Information – that needs to be different, appropriate to the need, driven by the Performance Requirements of the individual. And hopefully it’s organized for the convenience of the users, the Performers. And is effective in its impact. And is efficient in making that impact.

Sometimes the Performer Needs I&I ASAP In the Moment of Need

What’s the interest rate right now at our bank, might be needed right now – to calculate the ROI projection for several business investment opportunities – so that the comparison of 10 investment opportunities – when only 3 can be funded – are reviewed by the executive team. Oh yeah, and how do we calculate ROI here, over what time horizon?

Knowing how to check that in the meeting with the executives on your smartphone – at the moment of need – so you could suggest any upward or downward impact to the slides prepared yesterday – might be reassuring that you do your homework.

Sometimes the Performer Needs I&I Before the Moment of Need

Knowing that the enterprise likes to plan all ROI projections over both a 3 and 6 year “horizon” needes to be known before the presentation to the executives.

Sometimes the Performer Needs I&I Long Before the Moment of Need

Having the long developed skills from years of experience – enabling you to think on your feet that you need to, and how to dig into the Enterprise Finance system of revenue and cost allocations to look for impact to tracking actual to plan ROI – so that a truer picture can emerge over time of the correctness of an investment decision – Lessons Learned if you will – might have required several sets of Formal Education, and perhaps several sets of Training, besides years of doing your job.

And if you tried Learning all of that in the Moment of Need – might make you look foolish for undertaking such a huge task while wasting the time of your executives. Unless they would never expect you to already know that – and it was essential that you all took the time out right now and did it. Imagine starting from scratch at that.

Begin Learning with the Performance End in Mind

Think of Performance first – rather than Learning – even if your function is simply focused on that – Learning stuff – for first understanding the many variables of that Performance – especially the terminal goals and processes/practices of any follow on I&I – and that that might help you to avoid investing in “means to no ends” kinds of content – of which the world has enough. And then improve your content’s effectiveness and efficiency – by increasing its accessibility/timeliness/ease – for use in the Flow and/or before the Flow … the Moment of Need.

# # #