How does a successful company with a demanding training schedule and education requirements hold it all together?  CLO magazine responds to this thought with an article entitled "Five Traits of Effective Learning Teams".   The article lists and describes these all-important traits.  They are, summed up, as follows: collaboration, communication, clear purpose, continuous improvement and innovation, and leveraging resources.  Certainly in an unsure and unpredictable economy like this one, we would like to know that every dollar is being used wisely to further our security in the global marketplace.  One way to achieve that stability and effectiveness is to implement an LMS, or Learning Management System, that can be the centralized location of training needs, requirements, and resources.  TrainingForce can provide an economically friendly solution for your training department.  Of the five traits listed in the previously mentioned CLO article, TrainingForce hits on every one.  The user-friendly system allows for collaboration and input from various users and communication templates that can be customized to meet your needs.  Centralizing training information will unify the purpose while allowing you to see areas that need improvement.  Most importantly, TrainingForce will allow you to manage precious resources, like time, energy, money, and people to the most optimal level.  TrainingForce can help you hold it all together.

Each individual is endowed with the capacity for success.  Circumstances and experiences contribute to the development of that potential.  As an employer, you have the obligation and joy of unleashing that potential through training and learning opportunities.  This topic is also discussed in Chief Learning Officer in the May edition.  Certainly an employer would want to take full advantage of what their workforce has to offer.  Implementing an LMS, such as TrainingForce, can reduce the paperwork burden and organizational headache that may come with developing a widespread plan for learning.  TrainingForce is designed to encourage, track, and measure learning needs.  As your workforce is exposed to appropriate and effective learning, their potential for high performance will increase.  TrainingForce is a user-friendly, customizable, flexible program.  Not only does it assist with student and instructor scheduling, but it also allows you to manage rooms, resources, and reminders.  If your learning department is just looking to take off, TrainingForce may be exactly what you need to encourage and enable your employees to reach their full potential. 

If your business has experienced any measurable success, then you have access to talent.  As you seek to grow that success, it is essential to tap in to the talent that got you that far.  If your business has survived any number of years, then you have access to talent.  As you seek to increase your longevity, that in-house talent may prove to be vital. The leaders in the workforce, though not trained as teachers or educators, have a lot to offer in the area of development.  As highlighted on the CLO website, leaders can be formidable in teaching and training-up new leaders.  Though it may require a little guidance, most leaders will be able to impart some valuable knowledge or experiences to their audience.  And the experience will be mutually beneficial.  Leaders may become a little less "god-like" and more attainable to the masses.  On the other hand, the masses may gain essential understanding or insight where it was lacking before.  As for the training department, this option should prove to be budget-friendly and camaraderie-building.

As I stare at the computer screen contemplating my next blog, the question "What makes teaching so difficult?" keeps running through my head.  How difficult can it be to tell or show someone else what you know?  Theoretically, it should be easy.  Use clear, concise language, concrete examples and voila!  Right? Unfortunately, it is not that easy.  Teaching, and learning for that matter, is challenging because of the many variables that come into play.  One of those important variables is the personality that each of us brings to the table.  As an article from the ASTD website indicates, personality, and the understanding thereof, is one of the keys to success in the learning and teaching industry. Many instructors, in both business and education sectors, will begin their courses with a personality assessment of their students.  Understanding who you are working with and affording them the chance to understand who they are in the classroom culture is essential.  Certainly the impact of each individual's personality can contribute to the challenge of teaching but is can also be one of the most rewarding parts. 

The learning management market is flooded with products to help you get your business a step ahead of everyone else's through effective training and knowledge sharing.  So how is the consumer to know which product is of the highest quality and best suited to their needs?  Certainly some research is in order but if you are in the market for any of the following things, then consider TrainingForce:

• a system that is user-friendly
• a system that will assist you in streamlining your existing processes
• a system that can save you time by centralizing information necessary for training success
• a system that can be managed from multiple locations by multiple users
• a system that can track who needs what training, when and where
• a system that is customizable to suit your company's visuals

And not only is the system a great choice, but the staff that support TrainingForce are highly committed and qualified folks.  They provide all the necessary training and installation, support and troubleshooting.  With TrainingForce, where the customers and continuous improvement are the priority, you are sure to increase productivity and sales. 

Is learning and training in the workplace intended to bring value to the employee or the employer?  This may seem like an elementary question.  Shouldn't both recieve benefits from learning and training opportunities?  The answer is yes.  And no.  But more yes. As the employer, one may think that if training opportunities are increased, the employee base will become more efficient producers.  As the employee, one may think that if the training opportunities  increase, their resume becomes more attractive to comparable companies.  The employer may offer training opportunities or even be willing to provide tuition reimbursement but they must first make sure that their work environment is attractive and offers enough incentive so that employees will not take advantage and then run.  Training and educational opportunities are valuable ways to keep employees loyal to their jobs.  To read more about employee loyalty click here. 

As 2009 draws to a close and the bottomline is analyzed, you may find that your company has an unexpected surplus in the budget or you may find, as expected, that the budget is tight and getting tighter.  In either case, this is a great time to consider a learning management system to accomodate your future learning and training needs. TrainingForce is an LMS that provides a powerful, easy to use, and customizable product to meet your training needs.  This product is budget friendly and can be adjusted to suit your company's specific needs.  TrainingForce answers the question: Who needs what training, when and where?  TrainingForce is designed to be user friendly and even provides a website for class registration.  This product allows you access to key reports that will help you make informed decisions while allowing you to manage training at multiple locations.  For more information on TrainingForce go to www.trainingforce.com Why not start the new year off right with a learning management system that literally works for you?

As parents and students prepare for the coming school year and all that goes with it, businesses should consider the benefits of an LMS and all that goes with it.  As parents we want what is best for our students and look to schools to provide not only academic instruction but also character development, cultural enrichment, and exposure to the arts.  As business leaders you may be looking for an LMS that provides all the bells and whistles.  TrainingForce is that LMS.  TrainingForce is a comprehensive learning management system that allows you personalize and enrich as is necessary for your company's needs.  If you are looking for a way to track employee education needs, goals, and experiences, TrainingForce is for you.  If you are looking for a system to organize resource demands, instructor schedules, and class registrations, TrainingForce is for you.  TrainingForce is an affordable solution for your learning managment needs.  So, as the yellow school buses begin their routes, consider investigating an LMS to help you navigate the demands of your business. 

After reading a recent article in Chief Learning Officer about "Short-Shelf-Life Learning", I am convinced that an effective LMS, like TrainingForce, is the solution.  The article chronicles the difficulties of creating, implementing, and executing timely training or learning opportunities for our current volatile economy.  The author correctly attributes the majority of the problem to the delay in execution of any given learning program.  From the discovery stage, where a company or institution recognizes a need for training, to the delivery stage, where that training is actually completed, is, too often too late.  The problem has either grown in scope and depth or has morphed into something else, something the newly designed learning program is not designed to address. Houston, we have a problem.  But I believe the solution is as simple as an effective LMS, like TrainingForce.  With Training Force you are able to design specific learning programs that encompass many needs or quickly roll out a course to address something more pressing.  This system allows you to create a variety of programs using a variety of resources.  Your students, instructors, and other staff members will thrive under the effectiveness of this LMS.  "Short-Shelf-Life Learning" will no longer be an issue. 

In the January edition of Chief Learning Officer, an article entitled "Executing Blended Learning" outlines the steps to creating an effective blended learning environment.  These steps are similar to those necessary to creating an effective lesson plan for the classroom.  In effective lesson planning, you should always begin with learning objectives that are stated in terms of actions, what students should be able to do to demonstrate their new knowledge.  Standards are used to determine how students should demonstrate that knowledge has been acquired.  After this significant preparation, the teaching begins.  Probably the most important part of any lesson is the delivery.  It is essential that, as new information is delivered, the instructor is constantly checking for understanding and modeling appropriate responses.  In the corporate world, it is important to make sure that the trainer is an adequate teacher.  It may not be necessary to develop plans quite as detailed as in the traditional classroom environment but for the most effective use of everyone's time planning is key.