The Key to IT and Business Transformation: More and Better Training

[MichaelDortch]

"The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work."
— Émile Zola

Remember the very first time you were plunked down in front of a desk with a PC on top of it? Remember all of that great training that got you fully prepared to maximize your contributions to your soon-to-be "workplace of the future?"

Me, neither. What I remember far more clearly is repeatedly having to find someone who'd worked there longer than I had and asking them how to do what needed doing, because it needed doing right now, if not yesterday. There was no time for training, and even if there had been, there was no one to do it and no budgetary authorization to acquire it. After all, training time is time that could and should be spent working instead, right?

Wrong. Completely, absolutely wrong. This attitude was wrong when PCs were new, and it's wrong now, regardless of the technological tools placed in front of you or anybody else in your workplace. And not only is it wrong to eschew training, a lot of the workplace training that does take place is focused on the wrong things.

These days, if someone wants or needs to know how to use a piece of software or hardware, multiple worthy self-help options abound, many of them both self-paced and free of charge. So tactical, tool-specific training may or may not be of significant value to a team or an enterprise. Your mileage may vary.

Based on conversations I've had with several IT and business leaders, there are three business-critical areas where training really delivers significant and sustained value:
+ the strategic goals of the enterprise;
+ the key processes that enable pursuit of those goals; and
+ the roles of those being trained in executing those processes successfully and moving the enterprise closer to its goals.

Put another way, everyone in the enterprise needs to know how they can best help to translate the enterprise's mission statement into meaningful actions and actual benefits. And tailored training is a great way to give people the information they need and want to maximize their contributions to those efforts.

Training focused on goals, processes, and roles can even complement more granularly focused training in ways that reduce resource-sapping user problems and accelerate their resolution. Users who understand and buy into their roles in making key processes work for the good of the enterprise are less likely to break or to try to circumvent such processes. They're also more likely to be more committed to getting their tasks done right the first time.

If you're involved in development, delivery or acquisition of training at your enterprise, make sure to strike a balance between tactical and strategic training. And if you're a training recipient, make sure what you're taught includes more than tactical, tool-specific instruction. (And if you're deploying or considering ServiceNow, check out the great training options available from ServiceNow's Education Services team and Authorized Training Provider partners!) Start now to maximize the value of your training efforts, to you, your colleagues, and your entire enterprise.

One more thing: If you haven't yet, register for Knowledge14 and take advantage of discounted "early-bird" pricing. Or submit an idea for a Knowledge14 session today. If your session's approved, you'll get a complimentary full conference pass. However you do it, though, make sure you're at Knowledge14. The on-site training options and opportunities for connecting with ServiceNow customers, partners, executives and staff are definitely worth the trip.