Sep 25 2015

Final Friday of the Month: Part 9 – Assessing Your T&D/ Learning/ Knowledge Systems

In this month’s Final Friday Feature – for September 2015 – we will address…

8 O’clock: T&D Marketing and Communications System

8.1 T&D Stakeholder Communications Process

8.2 Individual T&D Planning Process

8.3 T&D Ordering and Registration Process

T&D Marketing and Communications System – This system’s processes organize all of the communications and marketing/selling efforts to provide timely, easily accessible information to all of the customers and stakeholders in the T&D organization’s marketplace.

Preface

This 12-part Blog series addresses the systems and processes of an organizational entity addressing T&D/ Learning/ Knowledge Management.

Original source is my 2001 book… T&D Systems View… which is available as a free PDF, and as a paperback for $20.00 USD plus s&h.

The T&D/ L&D Clockface Model

We are “rockin’ round the clock” – so-to-speak – starting from the 12 O’Clock portion of the model – the most important sub-system in the system you have in place for T&D/ Learning/ Knowledge Management – IMO.

Your models and thoughts may vary. And may need to.

The T&D Clock-Face Model

The 12 clockface positions of the T&D Systems View model each represent a subset of the total system’s Processes of T&D. Not all are of equal consequence, and therefore, imporatnce – and then worthy of improvement efforts. Sometimes you need to live with it as it is and do the best given current realites. But othertimes you need to address the improvement potential inheirant in any poor practices, policies and processes.

The T&D Systems View model’s (sub) Systems are organized into three groupings. Each of the 12 Systems’ Processes – the target of your assessment/analysis and/or design/development of improvement efforts. The 3 groupings are:

– T&D Leadership Systems and Processes

– T&D Core Systems and Processes

– T&D Support Systems and Processes

Another view of these is next…

Here is the “big picture” – ala the Clock-Face View – with System Call-Outs – for your once over…

Back to the model…

8 O’clock: T&D Marketing and Communications System

8.1 T&D Stakeholder Communications Process

8.2 Individual T&D Planning Process

8.3 T&D Ordering and Registration Process

8.1 T&D Stakeholder Communications Process Outputs and Their “Utilities”

The key outputs from the T&D Stakeholder Communications Process include the following:

Key Outputs	Key Utilities
Various “proactive” T&D communications, e.g., brochures, videos, flyers, mailers, posters, Web sites, etc.	These create/establish awareness, knowledge, and insight into the offerings and doings of the T&D system, targeted specifically to each stakeholder group or subgroup.
Various “reactive” T&D communications	Answer specific questions by both individuals and groups.

Is It Broken? Clues and Cues

Your T&D Stakeholder Communications Process may be broken if

Stakeholder groups have had to ask for information that is really viewed as “needed to know” by both of them and by the T&D governance and advisory groups.
Stakeholders complain about the lack of information available.
Frequently asked questions are not being captured, and then the answers proactively “pushed” out to like audiences.
Surveys discover that T&D target audiences and other stakeholder groups do not understand what’s available and how to access it or participate in it.

8.2 Individual T&D Planning Process Outputs and Their “Utilities”

Our approach is to use the outputs of the 5 O’clock: T&D Product and Service Line Design System efforts, including both the T&D Paths and Individual Planning Guides, as the start for this process. The key outputs from the Individual T&D Planning Process include the following:

Key Outputs	Key Utilities
Individual T&D plans	Allow managing actual to plan schedule and cost performance.
Group T&D plans (roll-up)	Allow managing actual to plan schedule and cost performance at the departmental/business unit levels.
Enterprise T&D plans (roll-up)	Allow managing actual to plan schedule and cost performance and places a demand forecast on the entire T&D system.

Is It Broken? Clues and Cues

Your Individual T&D Planning Process may be broken if

There are no individual-to-group-to-enterprise roll-ups of the T&D participation plans. They are all discrete and not linked.
Individual plans are not used and/or no common format exists.
No one has a realistic clue of the future demand for T&D products and services.
T&D seats are under-filled or sites are underutilized for many deployments.

8.3 T&D Ordering and Registration Process Outputs and Their “Utilities”

The key outputs from the T&D Ordering and Registration Process include the following:

Key Outputs	Key Utilities
Orders for T&D	Formalize the requests for T&D and allow tracking various metrics (time to ship, backlogged orders, etc.).

Is It Broken? Clues and Cues

Your T&D Ordering and Registration Process may be broken if

Customers complain that their “orders” are not being filled in a timely manner or are being filled incorrectly.
Expediting orders is usually necessary and taking a lot of people’s time and attention.

Part 9 Summary

The processes of this area of the model are critical in creating awareness of the offerings and a means to conduct the necessary unique planning to bring each individual to their highest level of Performance Competence, consistent with the needs of the Enterprise.

Prior Posts In This 2015 Series

Part 1: 12 O’clock: The T&D Governance & Advisory System – January 2015

Part 2: 1 O’clock: The T&D Strategic Planning System – February 2015

Part 3: 2 O’clock: The T&D Operations Planning & Management System – March 2015

Part 4: 3 O’clock: T&D Cost/Benefits Measurement System – April 2015

Part 5: 4 O’clock: T&D Process Improvement System – May 2015

Part 6: 5 O’clock: T&D Product and Service Line Design System – June 2015

Part 7: Assessing Your T&D/ Learning/ Knowledge Systems

Part 8: Assessing Your T&D/ Learning/ Knowledge Systems

Free Book PDF

Again – for more on this model please see the free 400+ page book: T&D Systems Viewatwww.eppic.biz – which is intended as both an analytic and design tool – here. It is also available as a $20 paperback.

Guy W. Wallace

Guy W. Wallace, has been an external ISD/HPT consultant since 1982, is the president of EPPIC Inc., and is a past president of ISPI – the International Society for Performance Improvement.

He has consulted with 75+ clients on Instruction and Documentation efforts since 1982, including projects with more than 45 F500 firms.