Siftables - A shift in the way we do things?

Siftables are the latest rage - gamers, technology enthusiasts, learning professionals, researchers, everybody is trying to explore its potential. From the limited information that we have about Siftables on the Internet, I could think of the following uses off the cuff:

- teaching-aid during workshops (demo flow charts, processes, phases, cause-effect relationships) am tired of flip charts, videos, and flash cards :)

- demo tools during boardroom meetings (can say bye bye to laptops/LCD projectors - but yes may be cumbersome for a larger group)

- work as calculators and memory-aids in old-age homes (the display size being bigger than a calculator but need to check the ease of use among older people)

- designers can use this to ideate, mock-up sequences, demo and share possible combinations of their design (has the potential of being used as a prototyping tool)

Check out some interesting news posts and video about Mediamesh another piece of display technology. Watch the Siftables and Mediamesh video

Design Thinking!

I am a great fan of Ideo. I love the way they have institutionalized design. What can be more charming than the ability to summon creativity at will! I learned early in life at my art Fine Arts academy that creativity is not an art, it is a craft. Although I was always fascinated at how our Aquilla Sir could transform his thoughts on paper ever so effortlessly, I grew up to realize that it's the thinking behind the creation that really makes a difference.

This was further reinforced in my journalism school. Our prof Mr Adarsh Varma (one of the founding journos at Pioneer and stone drunk even at 12 noon) reiterated for the umpteenth time that "editors are not born, they are made!" You only need to cultivate an eye for detail to make the cut. This stayed with me as I ran around as a reporter trying to cover stories and then trying to have them published without being hacked into a quarter of the original. That's when one veteran shared with me his pearls of wisdom - it's not how good you write or what facts you present, it's about the structure you follow to make the story relevant for your reader.

When I joined a corporate in 98 as a tentative editor in an unexciting domain of computer-based training, I did not think I would survive the mundane system. More so as editing meant thumbing through 1000 pages of MSTP and then trying to convince a bunch of computer-crazy youngsters that uncheck and deselect are grammatically incorrect! Slowly, this turned out to be my biggest challenge ever - trying to convince a group of young GNIITians (hired as instructional designers but aspiring to become programmers) that they too could write. And, break their beliefs that writers are either born or are English majors! The next challenge was to teach them to design courses. I could see them flinch when asked to design the experience of baking a cake. They would invariably begin with throwing in flour, butter, eggs and sugar together. Slowly, they started "thinking" design.

Today, many years later I sense deja vu when a client asks me to cut down research and analysis and get down to design. "Why don't you cut the crap and get a creative chap to just design the solution?" Strangely, this does not frustrate me any longer. I jump at this opportunity to share my belief about design thinking. This philosophy holds true as we groom future IDs and designers at Kern.

This reinforces what David Kelly has to say - move away from thinking of yourself as designers to design thinkers. Design is a systematic scientific process. You can follow a methodology or a defined process and rest assured that you can arrive at a design solution. And, if you look at the creative success of Ideo and their huge portfolio of award winning work, you certainly want to believe that a solid methodology can yield the most creative of ideas. At Kern, we too have seen the success of our structured approach towards solving many complex design problems.

Workshop 2.0: Insights and Ideas for Future

Our first workshop on Training 2.0 ended on a great note on January 31. Vaishnavi has captured it well. The participants were happy about that the workshop met their expectations. Don't forget to hear what they have to say about the workshop.

The workshop also threw up some interesting insights about Web 2.0.

- Most of the participants have been using Web 2.0 tools without actually being aware that these are Web 2.0 tools.

- The most common perception about Web 2.0 tools are that these are just networking tools. You can use these to stay connected. Not many were aware of the potential of these tools in training.

- Individual classroom trainers were most excited about the prospect of using these tools to deliver training. While there was initial hesitance or insecurity about sharing "content" freely, they seemed to warm up to the idea of using Podcasts, videocasts, blogs, and forums to reach out to a larger audience!

- Virtual world has a perception that you can "kill hours" on it during leisure. The case studies of 'training in virtual world' really set people thinking and they started throwing ideas...

We have started receiving requests for future workshops from HR Managers in Mumbai, engineering institutes, and other individual trainers. Vaishnavi is also thinking of updating the content of the workshop and throw in interesting activities for participants where they have hands-on experience designing learning using some of the Web 2.0 tools.

Workshop 2.0: Session on Virtual World!

Our workshop participants are crazy about games. Considering their profiles during registrations, we are pleasantly surprised that they are avid gamers. Lots of games mindgames.com, Age of Empires, Cricket 2008, racing games, shooter games, snooker, chess, Quake... so it wasn't surprising that most of them were familiar with the Virtual World.

Well, we are now on the session on how we can use Virtual Games for Training or learning. The session's resumed after a sumptuous lunch of Subs, sandwiches, chips and coke. We have all settled in well for an engaging workshop ahead. We could not have asked for a more engaging session what with having a glimpse into the fascinating virtual world of CISCO, Princeton University, Stanford, Harvard Law school etc. Participants seem quite enthused by the "endless possibilities" that these virtual world "simulations" have for the learners today.

Vaishnavi has just demonstrated a "heart murmur simulator" and asks participants how they can use this for learning at their workplace? Our participant from Taj Deccan says that he could create a simulation to show how to check-in and use it for training. There is another interesting video that shows creation through collaboration by architects on Second Life. We have moved on to details about Virtual World such as avatars, currency, trading, etc.

So, the next obvious questions are "why do people own land on Virtual World?" "how can they make money on virtual world?' After all these are answered, participants move on to explore the learning possibilities that virtual world hold for trainers. "We can bring in all training modes under one roof, let's say podcasts, videos, lectures, everything that we do in real time." "Virtual world can help us overcome the constraints of time, space, and geography."

"So how much land does Second Life have?" Well, this question from one of the participants got everybody thinking.. So, Second life session is on in full swing with participants glued to this fascinating virtual world that can possibly fulfill all your dreams!

The participants then moved to exploring the virtual world themselves. Although most of them were new to Second Life, they were completely engrossed with their Avatars. They got down to exploring the spaces in this world, chatting up with other SL avatars, changing appearances, trying to shop, checking out music, fashion, having coffee... well they were having fun on SL.

"It's fun! It's creative... you have complete control over your actions... there is no hindrance to exploring things... space to create your own thing... interact with others in your chosen space ..." These are some of the reactions that our participants had after exploring Second Life!

Obviously, they were abuzz with ideas about how they can use this for training and learning. One of them suggested using this space to discuss case studies, another had an idea that he could create an empty room and ask his learners to do-up the room as per their hotel norms. So lots of ideas coming by...and we hope they have lot more by the time they reach their workplace!

More of our workshop pictures here.

Workshop 2.0: Training 2.0 in progress

Our first workshop "Training 2.0: Training's New Avatar" is off to a great start today. We have 7 participants toady and the workshop started off to a great start over cups of steaming tea, coffee on a pleasant Saturday morning!!

We have an interesting mix of participants: hoteliers, individual trainers, and participants from IT world. This is bringing in great discussions among the group. There are some who are new to Web 2.0, some are just about familiar with Web 2.0, and some who have not quite accepted the change that web 2.0 has brought in.

We're just about half day into the session and I would love to jot down some interesting findings from the workshop so far that has overshot the session duration.

a) Learner 2.0 may be more confident over the net, more social over the net, but he is an introvert in real world, he is unsocial in the real world.

b) One of the participant is unsure of the credibility of information on the net; he is unsure of what content to trust. He would want some kind of accreditation or a standard body certifying content on the web. He would like to see this seal of approval before he uses information from a source.

c) Common consensus among learners: The fact that the learner is more independent now has triggered the "web 2.0 revolution".

d) Participants are eagerly sharing their experiences with Blogs, their perception of blogs and text messages.. "I blog about things that I strongly disagree...if I cant get my views on TV, I can blog about it and reach out to people."

More follows...

Are Web 2.0 tools designed to support learning?

Whether it is Web 1.0 or Web 2.0 tools, we need to understand and evaluate the affordances of the tools and their abilities to support and deliver learning effectively. Today, I came across a case study that evaluates the pedagogical affordances of web 2.0 technologies.

The case study makes some interesting points about the pedagogical affordances of web 2.0 technologies. To put it across in layman’s perspective, the case study analyses the abilities of web 2.0 tools to deliver training.

1) Very few of the current crop of Web 2.0 technologies started life designed as educational tools. (Which is very true. Web 2.0 technologies are designed for collaboration, sharing, content creation etc. They are not designed exclusively to deliver training.)

2) The specific design and functionality of a particular tool or technology does not define its pedagogical usefulness. Rather there are other important ingredients required including the imagination and creativity of the individual user as they conceptualize problems or issues in their own environment that the particular tool might facilitate or help solve. (I agree. As a consequence of point 1, most web 2.0 tools cannot by themselves deliver training. To help integrate into the formal structure of training delivery, trainers and learners have to tweak and modify them with the features and functions to support training-related tasks.)

3) Categories of ‘affordances’ associated with Web 2.0 or social software: • Connectivity • Collaborative information discovery and sharing • Content creation • Knowledge and information aggregation • Content modification

However, what is interesting is that these affordances need not necessarily lend themselves into “training or learning” affordances. Let’s map the affordances of Web 2.0 tools to evaluate their applicability in a training framework.

What are the typical learning/training needs and how can Web 2.0 tools support these needs?

1. Learners should be able to relate concepts to real life application. To facilitate this, Web 2.0 tools must support streaming media and dynamic content in order to show application of concepts through cases, scenarios, and examples. Trainer can post video clips visuals or presentations, learners can reflect on these and post their comments. Examples: YouTube, discussion forums, blogs.

2. Learners want to practice what they have learned and preferably in a real-life or realistic situation. Therefore, Web 2.0 tools must have features that support free movement of learners within an environment that is close to real. The environment should show consequences, offer alternative paths to explore, make decisions, deconstruct, move, and respond to stimuli. Trainers can design a dynamic environment that simulates real life. In this environment, learners are exposed to situations or offered options where they can practice in a fail-safe mode. Examples: Virtual world, simulations

3. Learners today need to work in groups during the learning process. The Web 2.0 technologies must support multiuser activities such that multiple learners can interact in a dynamic learning environment. The learning environment can facilitate interaction among many learners and allow them to interact, share, and create. Examples: Virtual worlds, blogs, and wikis.

4. For learning to be effective, it needs to facilitate interaction among learners, trainers, and experts in a synchronous mode. To make this happen, Web 2.0 tools need to support instant exchange of messages and feedback among multiple users. They should provide a platform where learners can post comments and trainers/experts can view them and respond. Examples: Virtual world, web-conferencing tools like WebEx, Twitter

5. Learners want to have the freedom to take notes, make handwritten annotations on visuals, video, comment on specific audio files etc. The Web 2.0 tools should enable learners to scribble notes, make annotation on the video or the image, and rip information bytes from the videos, podcast or audio files. Both trainers and learners should be able to display annotation (feedback) from each other instantly or selectively depending on the training need. Examples: Web-meeting and conferencing tools, web learning applications

You can view a list of Top 100 Tools for Learning compiled by Jane Hart of Center of Learning and Performance Technologies.

Therefore, to conclude, Web 2.0 tools are designed to facilitate collaboration, sharing of information, content creation, easy updation, and democratization of the web world. Trainers, learners and instructional designers can capitalize on these facilities to design and deliver effective learning solutions.

Designing Training Delivered Using Web 2.0 Tools

This is the first in the series on learning, training, and designing instructions in the Web 2.0 environment.

I remember having a discussion with Vaishnavi about how instructional design for Web 2.0-based learning should be different from that of traditional learning (classroom training and eLearning).

The fact remains that learning is about learners and not about tools or technology. Also, web 2.0 is not about a tool or technology, it is about the philosophy where technology empowers learners to do much more than just view and read off the web. While I believe that the basic premise for designing instructions will remain the same, the instructional strategies used will depend a lot on the learning environment, the changing profile of learners, and the new age Internet tools that also act as learning tools.

Understanding learners will always be (and has always been) the most critical aspect of designing training. This involves identifying their learning needs and providing solutions that address their needs. In web 2.0 scenario, the scope for instructional designers has vastly increased because the learner behavior is changing. Today, learners are in the “rip, mix, and publish” era; they are more empowered than before. They are not content with passive viewing of information; they want to contribute actively to their learning process. So, how does this change the way they learn?

The biggest change is the shift from uni-directional, top-down, centralized and structured learning to “informal learning”. Informal learning is learner-driven. It is an on-going process, it may or may not follow a structured path, it may or may not have a beginning and an ending, it may or may not be monitored and guided, and it may be conscious or unconscious. How do these dynamics impact the role of an instructional designer?*

1) Instructional designer has to keep in mind the changing behavior and profile of the learner. The learner wants more control over his learning today. Therefore, learning design has to facilitate learner control, cater for the learner 2.0.

2) ID has a lot of freedom to explore the various delivery methods while designing a learning solution. Therefore, ID needs to be aware of the potential of the tools and technology available in web 2.0.

3) While the basic principles of ID hold good as a guiding principle, IDs need to explore and innovate other development methodologies to design and deliver learning. The design process needs to be more dynamic and innovative to be able to exploit the advantages that each of these tools offer.

* Will update this post with more research and examples soon.

Wishing for a Google Writer!

Everyday when I check blog feeds on my Google Reader, I wonder when Google Reader will not just be a 'reader' but become Google Reader cum Writer! Especially, when I have more than 50 blog feeds to read and reflect, the last thing I want to do is go to 50 individual blogs just to share my comments with them.

The idea of Google Reader is great. You have all on one page. But that was great to begin with, now we demand more!

If I can view them all on one page, why can't I write or comment on them as well as I scan across? It is painful to go to individual blogs to comment on them and keep coming back to the Reader. The need to write becomes a necessity in the Web 2.0 world when you are actually trying to collaborate, share, and exchange ideas with fellow bloggers!

What sets apart a great performer from a good one?

(Inspired by Rash’s article on Innovation at Kern)

I often get into discussions with my colleagues about what makes a good performer great. What are the characteristics that set apart one from the other? And, here I’m only referring to the intrinsic qualities and characteristics. I know there are loads of other external factors; but when working in a small high-performing innovation-driven company, the intrinsic factors play a critical role.

To begin with, I believe passion is the single most important thing that drives a great performer. Working without passion is working like a robot – mechanically. So what’s wrong with that? Nothing yet everything! Nothing because if you work like a robot, you deliver what is expected of you – you work optimally. And why everything because you “only” deliver as “expected” you are not motivated to exceed expectations. Since you are not passionate about your work, if any other variable goes wrong in your system, you collapse. If conditions change, you need to be re-programmed to change your orientation – essentially you depend heavily on instructions or external help to make things happen. You are not self-driven.

So why is this a problem? Well, from a philosophical standpoint this is a problem because you are not in charge of your life – you let life control you. From a practical standpoint, if you are not self-motivated, you do not grow. You stagnate. You grow only if a godfather or a guru takes charge of your life. But again, in absence of self-motivation, it’s your godfather or guru who grows by growing you - not you!

Another hallmark of a great performer is the urge to know the big picture. You have a choice. Either you are content just laying bricks as directed or you are curious to know the layout much before you lay the bricks. In case of the former, you do not care whether you are laying bricks for the bedroom, bathroom, apartment, amphitheatre, bridge or a stadium. You just stick to what you are told – lay bricks as per the blue print.

There is nothing wrong with this. You lay bricks day in and day out and master it. You do it for 2 years, 5 years, 10 years… what next? You become a great bricklayer and its perfectly fine if you are happy doing it. But in the bigger scheme of things, you are just a good performer. You cannot become a great performer because your focus is too narrow. You do not have bigger understanding of things. After 3-5 years of bricklaying, you must know what are blueprints, how are they designed, how does bricklaying change with change in the master blueprint. You need to be curious about how your brick laying makes a difference to the final outcome of the project. Only if you know the big picture, will you be motivated to think, dream, innovate, and ultimately be a great performer.

ICICI's Internet Banking - All Pain No Gain

I know there is lot venom spewed about ICICI Bank's services, and I too have sympathized on occasions about the painful process of Internet security. But I realized the degree of pain only after I went through the process myself. I seriously wonder if I would be half as pained if my account was hacked into. :)

1. Suddenly, we receive a mandate that we need to pay taxes only online - no checks accepted (seems like the Internet banking guys have formed a cartel. Have held guns to our heads and want us to file taxes only online.) So here you have a paradoxical situation - we want to pay taxes but can't unless you have your e-banking enabled. So you pay taxes, pay a penalty because payment is delayed while you wait to enable your e-banking account, finally pay online, and pay fees for paying online by using e-banking. Wish we could create such compelling business models for our business!!

2. Now is the trick part. Only one director cannot authorize the online payment. This is because some 400 years back when we opened our a/c with ICICI bank and had small revenues, we had authorized 2 directors to authenticate payouts more than 50K. Now, 400 years later, almost every payout exceeds 50K but we still need to authenticate each and every payout. Well, you'd ask why can’t we change the authentication process? Glad you did not ask, I could punish you by asking an ICICI agent to explain the procedure that begins with submission of residence proof, employment proof (doesn't matter if you are the owner!), PAN, driving license, DOB certificate, you kids' birth certificate, your wife's credit card statement, your maid's salary slip... and all things imaginable! Doesn't matter if you are an old customer, doesn't matter if you have been transacting with them for donkeys years, doesn't matter if they have all conceivable information about you.

3. Now that we are conned into using the e-banking facility, we need to have a password as well. Please note that because ICICI is a "safe" bank, they want us to change the passwords every 15 days. These passwords have to be completely new, should be alphanumeric, and at least 8 digit long. Well, only Shakuntala Devi can remember such passwords!! Naturally, I lost steam after changing my password after the fourth fortnight and gave up! Consequently, my e-banking rights were withdrawn.

4. Ok! Finally, I have to go back to enable my e-bank accounts. After going through the agony of a 30-minute painful verification process over telephone with a robot-like call center executive, I was told that my email id has been verified and I can apply for my e-banking password online. I was told that I'd receive an email confirmation in 2 days. Thankfully, after a week and with serious follows by our office manager, I was told that my email is authenticated.

5. Then begins the most frustrating part. I go to the bank website and select Corporate banking. Then, I go to the option called "reset password". I go through the steps as directed. But nothing happens! Why? Because, Internet security is important, they trust paper communication. So, I need to fax them a signed request to reset the password. Having done that, I receive an email the next day confirming that my password is reset.

(Btw, see the image above, I have to enter a Passcode but there is no information about what this is!)

6. What do you expect when you receive a message that your password is reset? Like all gullible fools I understand that I have a new password now so I can conduct my online transaction. But hold on... that's not to be. The sinister message reads:

Please note that since you have got the transaction access so to get the requested password activated please fax a request for activation mentioning your Corporate ID, user Id, Account No. and the request ID to the fax no (022) 67574557 or email the scanned copy to corporatecare@icicibank.com. Request needs to be signed by the user.

I seriously wonder who designed the authentication process! If you have sent me a password, obviously I don't want it to hatch eggs or file them away as FDs. I intend to use it. So, why fax you another written request for this? Anyways, the entire exercise started pre-Diwali and thanks to ICICI's safe banking habits, I'm still struggling to log on to my Internet banking account!

Designing Learning for N-Gen Learners

One of the recent posts on Work Literacy titled Presentation Literacies for the 21st Century (don’t be misled by the title :)) has an interesting article Why Professor Johnny Can't Read. This article focuses on the gap between our generation of “read and write” traditional learners and the new age “scan and share” digital learners. This article set me thinking about how to design and deliver learning differently for the N-Gen learners.

1. Capturing learner’s needs: Currently, understanding learner’s needs through contextual inquiry is a key step in our development process. This step is equally relevant to understand the behavior and learning pattern of N-Gen learners. The outcome of this step will effectively determine the design and mode of delivery of learning. What is critical here is to ensure that the researchers conducting contextual inquiry are well-versed with the nuances and idiosyncrasies of the digital world. Else, chances are that they would fail to observer key behavior patterns.

2. Mode of delivery: Any delivery mode that is non-inclusive may not be an effective way of delivering learning for this segment. We need a mode that ensures limitless access to outside information, collaboration, or facilitates social interaction. However, these modes should be integrated in the learning modules and not plugged in as special features. For example, an eLearning module deployed on an LMS with built-in chat and discussion board does not qualify as a collaborative learning environment. However, an online game that has the option of inviting others to join in or a web-based module that motivates learners to have online discussion or an informal learning environment that challenges learners to work in groups are good candidates for collaborative modes of learning. What is critical here is to integrate collaboration and sharing well within the design and delivery. (There is an interesting research on Informal Learning in Digital Era (Lence Miloseva and Miika Lehtonen)

3. Instructional Designers: Just as researchers need to have a fair knowledge of the digital world, instructional designers too must belong to this era to appreciate learners’ needs better. Since there is a huge shift in the way traditional instructions are designed, instructional designers need to be well-equipped to handle and appreciate the current needs of learners. It is one thing to be aware of the new age learning environment and another to belong to this environment. Therefore, IDs should make an effort to belong to this environment to relate to learners’ needs and behavior better.

4. Learning Design: Since N-Gen learners are highly active in the virtual world than in the real world, self-paced, unidirectional learning may no longer be effective for this breed of information foragers. IDs need to remember that N-Gen learners enjoy the challenge of finding information, linking them, sharing them, analyzing them and flaunting them. They have very little patience with linear unidirectional learning. What is critical is to ensure that the learning environment facilitates all this yet meet its objective of effective learning.

Online Learning Games - Top 20

Larry Ferlazzo has compiled a list of 20 best online learning games. I'm still viewing them and plan to blog about those that I find most interesting. The National Geographic games are fun. They have amazing graphics and lively voice over. Considering the profile of learners these are designed for, they seem fairly effective!

Is Small Beautiful?

Sometimes I wonder, is small really beautiful? In my everyday interactions with individuals, companies, government departments etc, I increasingly realize that the system around us does not see value in supporting small enterprises.

Recently, Kern formed a joint-venture with HumanCentric, a US-based user research and product design company. We wanted to send a press release to the national dailies and magazines to announce this. Alas! Not a single PR agency (big or small) really came forward to take this up. They kept pushing us "additional services" instead. "Why don't you hold a press conference?""Why don't you commission a story?""Why don't you engage us for the year?" And, all this without making any attempts to either understand our needs or our business.

Similarly, we have been hunting for a decent caterer to supply office lunch. Same sob story! Nobody wants to supply food for 10-15 people. "Sorry, not viable for us!" Well, what about being a little more enterprising and figuring out the needs in other offices in the same complex? "No Sir! Rule says, we provide for minimum 15 people."

The story of how banks trouble SMEs is legendary! "Sorry ma'am no salary accounts for less than 25..." "No relationship officer for small companies." "Why don't you send your person to get a DD done?" But you had promised us that you would provide check pickup and draft creation facilities? "Sorry Sir, no person here right now" and so on. But when it comes to pushing unwanted services - yes they are ever so ready to push their credit cards and insurances to our people. And, all the while making tall claims about enhanced customer experience.

Another sad story is our government's policies and social infrastructure. Land that is available for lease to companies is not meant for SME mortals. They are 100s of acres of land that only the Wipros and Infys of the world can afford. Every time there is a power failure for 3 odd hours, SMEs lose business. Although we have an UPS that provides 8-hr power backup, we still run out of stem during marathon power cuts. Buying a generator for a seasonal power crisis is like domesticating an elephant for the once a year elephant festival!

Ah, not to forget the apathy of cell phone and Internet service providers and hardware providers - read Ripul's blog - toward SMEs.

So, is there any truth in the belief that providing service to an SME is wasting too much effort for too little?

Let me give some reasons why the belief could be faulty:

1) No small business stays "small". Companies begin small but they never remain small. So there is smartness in growing with these companies as they grow.

- When we started in 2004, it hurt to pay Rs 600 per month towards Internet charges, and today we gladly pay Rs 10,000.

- In 2004, we struggled hard to find an affordable 600 sft space. Today, we are in a 1350 sft space and already looking out for a bigger space.

2) No service goes waste. Most SMEs trust word-of-mouth references. Be it the need for a networking guy, a food supplier, a courier vendor, a trainer, an editor, a hardware provider or a financial adviser. Stories of bad services spread very fast. Alternatively, stories of good services are lapped up even faster! We had a great architect whom we recommend to one and all. We have a great Chartered Accountant who has been with us from our pre-formation days. Every time, we need advice, bounce ideas, or support, we know whom to call! It's simple logic for all. "When our clients grow, we grow."

3) Every penny that comes in adds to your revenue end of the year. In 2004, Rs 2000 for a project generated as much excitement as Rs 2,00,000 does today! When we started our business, we adopted a "foot in the door" policy. We did not worry whether the work brought in small revenue or big. We worried whether our work would give us an entry through the door for more work to follow!

So, when banks, caterers, vendors, service providers create a fuss about catering to small businesses, I feel sad at their lack of foresight!

Journalists! Wake up!

Yatin shared an interesting blog today Pen Pricks.

This blog makes entertaining read considering the Nazi spy story most of us read in the morning newspaper the other day! Whoa, it is fun seeing how they pulled the rug from under our watchdog's feet!

Check out the fun here (read the July 2008 entry): NAZI-GATE -- HONOURING THE REAL PRICKS IN THE MEDIA

Partner or Perish

That's the survival mantra for most companies big and small today. Let's pool our strengths to prosper. Ten years back my boss used to say "why slog alone trying to re-invent the wheel when you can stand on the shoulder of a giant." And this wisdom works wonders today as well. More so for small companies that do not have deep pockets.

Companies like us have niche services, great people, precious clients, and survive comfortably. But to expand our services, expand into newer geographies and expand our client base we need not run looking for VCs. A good partnership can be like a good life partner who can propel each other to greater heights. Some points to remember about partnerships:

Before you get into one!

1. If you want a partnership in the same region, look for companies that offer complementary skills. This strengthens both without worrying about the dark clouds of competition. Helps pool marketing resources, pool network, and basically emerge stronger.

2. For partnerships across geographies, look for companies that have similar philosophies and work culture. Also, watch out for their history of growth, types of clients, and skill level of people. The key here is to work together for a while and load test each other's idiosyncrasies!

3. For partnerships with support companies, check out the team size, team skills, and their commitment levels. If you have to depend on the support team for client deliveries, it is critical for them to appreciate quality and deadline as much and you do.

After you are one!

4. Set clear communication channels between the partnering companies. There is nothing worse than a relationship going sour due to miscommunication or no communication. Talk, talk , and talk. Believe me, I've learned the hard way! Eliminate all barriers in communication, remove complex channels, pick up phones or take a flight, but never let the threads of communication to fray ever.

5. Mutual respect - There is no place for egos in a partnership. And believe me most entrepreneurs are so used to making their own decisions that they have a tough time listening to another entrepreneur about how to run his business. But, leave your ballooning egos behind. Remember, its not just your business, its our business now. Respect each others' skills, expertise, opinions, and ideas. Honor each others' clients and client commitments. Share responsibilities.

6. Be it joint ventures, partnerships, or collaborations - all relationships need to be nurtured. They cannot mature overnight, so give it time, patience, thought, and attention. Offer as much support as you can. Understand the quirks, appreciate the differences, and celebrate the togetherness. Yes, I may sound like a marriage counselor :) but I believe all relationships (more for a company-company relationship) need to be handled with care and sensitivity!

In the fast and furious era of change where your business vision gets redefined every 4 months, it is impossible to grow in an island. So, all you entrepreneurs, Partner or Perish!

Subsidies are like steroids - they may look attractive in the short run but they cripple you in the long run!

These days fuel price hike is making headlines. There are debates about how much to increase, whether to increase the price of diesel and LPG as well and how will this impact the price of consumables.

This situation was bound to happen. And, every time this issue arises, it sends political parties in a frenzy of activity that only a Bofors or a Tehelka can! The faulty economic policies have ensured that our economy depend on the crutches of subsidies and licences. Subsidies are like steroids; they can give you a sudden burst of energy in the short term but they are certain to cripple you in the long run. Politicians in India have always been more interested in the short term benefits, getting voters, wooing populations with sops and subsidies, artificially protecting the economy from competition and consequently incapacitating the people and the economy in the long run.

Let's consider farm subsidies. Farm subsidies have ensured that our farmers remain poor and unproductive always. The subsidized seeds, fertilizers, manure are so inferior in quality that the resulting farm produce is also of poor quality and quantity. These poor subsidies lead to poor yields which, in turn, lead to poverty. This leaves the farmers with no choice but to depend on subsidies for the next season as well. Thus we have ensured that our farmers are always trapped in the vicious circle of poverty with farm subsidies. Many farmers want to buy good quality seeds, fertilizers etc but the infrastructure around them prohibits that. They can get bank loans only for the poor quality government-approved subsidized products. This leaves the farmers with no choice but to borrow money at “very” high interests from moneylenders. The interest rates are so high that they are anyways bonded for life just paying back the interest! So does the subsidy favour them at all? It has instead crippled our farmers.

Similar is the case with our (public distribution system) PDS. Ask any sensible person and he will tell you that the PDS is a farce. Who reaps the benefits? Middlemen, traders, all, but those below the poverty line! So whom does the subsidy favor?

Take the case of LPG. It is highly subsidized. It enjoys a subsidy of around Rs 110 per cylinder. If there were no subsidies, the cost would be aorund Rs 415 per cylinder. So who are the LPG consumers? They are the better-off households and commercial users such as hotels, tiffin centers, laundries, abattoirs etc. The rural and semi-urban consumers still rely on kerosene, firewood, and coal for their regular fuel needs.

What has subsidy on LPG managed to do? It has made people ignore its worth and encouraged them to use LPG indiscriminately. Why else would people boil huge quantities of water both for dirinking and bathing on their gas stoves? If the price of LPG was at par with the global rates, at least the usage would be more discrete. There would be a demand for alternative fuels like bio gas, solar energy etc. Sadly, our policy makers have always had populist policies. Their over enthusiasm to protect the weak has only made the weak weaker. There has never been any foresight about how we can empower the weak to take on world competition. Also there's no foresight about how to prolong the life of our natural resources.

Now, we face the same crisis with petrol and diesel. Today, the global oil prices have forced governments to hike rates, and the repercussions are felt by all! From airlines to trucks, the hike in oil prices will spiral off a hike in the rates of all commodities and services. This situation could have been well avoided because the subsidy did not benefit the BPL, it benefited the huge car-driving middle class, who could anyways afford the “real” market rates. Nowhere in the world is there a difference in petrol and diesel prices. So what does that translate to? Diesel cars are much cheaper and they clog our roads! Do you see whom the subsidy has actually favoured? There is a brilliant article by Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar in Swaminomics which will give you goose bumps when you find out that every year the country looses a staggering Rs 200,000 crore just on just oil subsidies! Can you see where your hard earned money goes?

East Smiling, West Frowning!

I read an interesting article in the editorial page of TOI yesterday about how the "Western mind is confused at Asia’s rise". I don't want to sound xenophobic or racist but it's a fact that for very long US and Europe have maintained an economic domination that has been consciously monopolistic. Whether it is domination through trade or through the UN, the West has prospered without empowering the Eastern and African nations. This article struck me because very recently we experienced this while attending an international professional conference.

The face of the world is changing and it is changing fast. One of the facts of this changing world is the emergence of Asia as the new superpower. And as expected, the Western countries are having a tough time coming to terms with this fact.

They would still like to believe Asia as a low cost, low skills, dumping ground where they can get their "manual and not-so intellectual" work done. However, the reality is giving them sleepless nights. Not only is the economy of the East growing fast, the markets are moving here. The brains that left for the West are either coming back or staying rooted to their roots. The biggest sets of consumers are emerging in these geographies. So, if they have to market their stuff, it's no longer enough to have a “Made in US” stamp on it. They have to ensure that the products are designed specifically for the Asian markets. Therefore, effectively, companies are allocating huge R&D budgets to woo the Eastern consumers. This sets off a competition among the Western companies to know the Asian markets well enough to market their products.

The smart companies in the West see virtue in joining hands with the Asian companies. They believe in pooling resources, expertise, familiarity, and capitalizing on the boom. They are willing to shed their inhibitions, whether it is their stiff upper-lip or their cynical nature, and even go to the extent of learning Mandarin, Hindi, or Korean. Asian companies too have to stop being amazed at anything "foreign" and start appreciating their own skills and expertise. Individually, Asians need to be more confident of their achievements, without constantly seeking approvals and appreciation outside. Collectively, Asians need to work more professionally, respect competition, shed herd mentality, and flex muscles only if backed by the brains. And more importantly, Asians should NOT bend over backwards seeing the green dollar! Remember folks, the big bucks are moving East!

Five Easy Ways Instructional Designers Can Hone Their Skills

Asim’s article really got me thinking into what should instructional designers do to make themselves valuable in the industry. Especially in the face of such a paradox – so many eLearning professionals yet NOT one fit our bill!

It was only yesterday I was ruing the fact that there seems to be a vacuum of good instructional designers in the industry. This thought is echoed by most good eLearning companies who practice meaningful eLearning and not the giant eLearning production houses.

While there are many experienced eLearning professionals, there are very few who can fit into a company that practices innovative eLearning. These professionals come with a disadvantage. They have experience working on canned eLearning projects or working on templatized, assembly line work. The moment they are put on projects where they have to think independently or think creatively, they are clueless.

Most eLearning companies today have writers who can “execute” but very few instructional designers who can “think.” The way forward for these “writers” is to graduate to “thinking instructional designers.” Changing the stream may help those who want to retain the pay packet that they earned earlier. Technical writing is much more paying than instructional design, but so is a BPO job!

However, for those who are serious about pursuing eLearning as a career and are passionate about tackling the design challenges, they need to hone their instructional design skills. A quick five things that eLearning professionals can do to hone their skills:

1) Start by questioning every idea, every strategy, and every step in the eLearning process. You should be crystal clear about the relevance of every activity in the development process. Do not execute tasks blindly or dumbly (if that’s a word!).

2) Do not run behind a crash course in instructional design. Rather spend a couple of years in a good eLearning company learning the trade. You may get paid lower but treat it as an investment into your eLearning education. The more you learn, the more you’ll grow. The more you grow, the more you’ll earn! Focus on learning (and not on earning) at all stages in your career. You’ll realize yourself that if you learn more, you’ll automatically earn more!

3) Develop that passion for eLearning. It’s not a mechanical chore; it is a designer’s job. You need to pour your heart into it. At every step, think of creative ways to put your theoretical knowledge of instructional design into practice.

4) Be a voracious reader and viewer – books, internet, blogs, magazines, movies, infotainment channels on television – everything that you can lay your hands and eyes on. You’ll be surprised at the varied ideas that you can gain from these sources. The other day Archana (our instructional designer, an avid reader, gamer, and movie-buff) came up with the idea of “Black Beast” (remember KANK?) for one of our courses on Fraud management! It can be bizarre but if it works for the learners, it’s effective!

5) Good instructional designers must have a world view. While they should strive to be a “master” of instructional design, they ought to be the “Jack of all information”. Believe me, your clients, bosses, peers, and vendors will look at you with respect!

Can Technology Companies Deliver eLearning?

In the last one week, I received calls from at least four companies looking for instructional design (ID) support, ID training, or simply instructional designers. There is nothing strange about these queries, except that these companies are eLearning companies who do not have instructional designers in their team.

Can you imagine this scenario – eLearning companies with NO instructional designers? This is like a construction company with NO architects! Today, many technology and software companies are moving into the eLearning market. These companies have sound technical skills but no instructional design skills. They can construct a course, provide features and functionalities, and add jazz if needed. However, they ignore the most important component – learning.

Consequently, the courseware developed is a rehashed version of either a book or web content. It is cheap, fast, but completely “unlearnable”. It is like the houses built with unqualified or no architects – the houses have no light, no ventilation, just pillars and walls!

The poor quality of learning is camouflaged by technology supplements such as features and unwanted functionality. These companies are doing a disservice to eLearning. They are driving down the quality of eLearning. Today, the market is flooded with dumb-blonde courseware. They have pretty graphics, good videos, nice audios, but no concern for learners, their needs, wants, and motivations. Ultimately, learning takes a back seat.

Chaos prevails in a course that is “constructed” but not “designed.” The learner has no clue about the purpose of the course. The content in the course is either a dump of information or a screen decorated with graphics with no clue about whether the visual information helps the learner learn concepts better. The interactivities often look like the Bollywood movie song-and-dance sequences, meant for cigarette breaks and not designed for reinforcement or retention!

In the absence of an instructional designer, the biggest casualty is learning. The quality of such courseware is poor as they do not conform to prevalent eLearning standards. Due to the poor quality of eLearning, organizations are increasingly losing faith in eLearning as an effective learning solution. Corporations do not take eLearning as a serious alternative to corporate training. They still rely on the age old classroom mode as a reliable means of training.

Recently, I reviewed a course from one such company. The first thought that struck me was am I reading someone’s classroom notes? There were fancy buttons on the interface, nice photographs, and lots of audio! Yes, I noticed all this because I was bored of the content, it drawled on and one with “no brainer” MCQs sprinkled in between.

Such courses make eLearning very uninspiring. While technology can supplement eLearning, it cannot be the sole factor driving it. You can have state-of-the-art classrooms but the students will not learn if you have a bad teacher and a badly designed curriculum.

Understand Training Needs First, Propose Solutions Later!

We do not prescribe “e-learning”! We provide learning solutions! And this is what all learning companies must do. Help the client find a solution by understanding the problem. Many a times, clients realize that “elearning” is not the “only” solution. Clients may also realize that “training” is also not the solution. That’s perfectly fine because only then is the solution most effective.

Today, most corporate is bitten by the “train-the-shit-out-of-people” syndrome. While this helps the corporate use its training budget, this also ensures that they have scared the learners enough to keep them away from “genuine” training programs. Most often, organizations believe that training is the solution to all HR, skills, productivity, performance, personnel problems, or even cultural problems. They either fail or do not want to analyze the training needs of the people.

I sincerely believe that before recommending a solution, a learning company must undertake “Training Needs Analysis” (TNA). Companies who provide learning solutions should encourage clients to first analyze the need for training and then opt for the right training approach.

Sometime back I met a client who is in the medical transcription business. It’s a good business to be in! But as with all business, they had trouble finding the right kind of people. And, if at all they found the right kind of people, they had problem getting them to deliver the kind of quality they wanted. And, if they managed to get them to deliver good quality, they had problem retaining those people. This is because this work required consistent quality day-in day-out with limited scope for variation in the nature of work.

This client, let me call them Medic, concluded that they wanted an LMS. Therefore, they started talking to elearning companies who could collate their training material on the LMS. Since they were very sure of their internal process and quality training, they were not willing to reconsider an introspection of their training process. All they wanted was to ensure that each employee had access to all training material at all times.

We decided to take the bull by the horn. Since we have the unique combination of usability and elearning, we sent them a proposal to analyze the training need of the employees. In our initial discussions with Medic, we could see several problems.

Problems

1. They could not afford to release a resource for training beyond a particular training duration. If they could not afford this, how can they expect employees to take time out to train themselves?
2. They had employees of average intelligence. Medic conducted small quiz and test sessions to reinforce memory. Medic assumed was that since employees were trained, they had the skills. However, most these employees (with average intelligence) had actually not learned in the initial training sessions. Remembering thousands of medical terms by rote was no mean achievement. They had a 500-page book with 1000s of medical terms and terminology that they were trying to memorize!! The initial training aimed at helping employees memorize the book; not the best of ways to train someone.

In view of the above problems, we submitted a proposal to Medic. An extract from the proposal follows. This proposal outlines the initial stages of TNA.

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Proposal to Medic

Analyze the need of the learners: The first challenge is to understand the learners: their needs, their desires, and their approach to work and learning. Work and learning becomes so habitual to the people who do it that they often have difficulty articulating exactly what they do and why they do it.

Methods Proposed

Gathering data through Contextual Observation and Inquiry: This method uncovers who the learners really are and how they work and learn on a day-to-day basis. We conduct one-on-one field interviews with learners in their workplace. We observe people as they work and inquire into actions as they unfold to understand their motivations, strategies, and learning styles. The interviewer and learner, through discussion, develop a shared interpretation of the work and learning.

Contextual Observation and Inquiry is a specific type of field data gathering method from learners. It is usually done with one observer and one subject at a time. Subjects are observed and then interviewed in their context, when doing their tasks, with as little interference from the interviewer as possible. In contextual inquiry, it is actually much easier, because the main part of the interview consists of watching users do their work and interacting with colleagues, which doesn't steal much time from the users.

Shadowing: This is another method of gathering data. It is specifically designed to collect data from learners who are learning offsite. In this technique, the interviewer shadows the subject during and after office hours where the learner is expected to learn. In shadowing, the interviewer actually observes the learner while they try to learn without much interaction.

Process

The various stages of the process are as follows:

1. Identification of learner groups

2. Identification of subjects according to demographics

3. Scheduling and preparing for the observation

4. Observation, inquiry, and shadowing

5. Assimilation of data

6. Analysis of data

7. Presentation of understanding

Benefits to Medic

Contextual Observation and Inquiry results would help Medic understand the problems and subsequently design the training such that the training ensures better quality of learning. This had major benefits:

1. Costs: Save training costs

2. Quality: Fewer errors in the delivered material

3. Satisfaction: Higher employee satisfaction

Timeline

1. Preparation and Contextual Inquiry – One week

2. Report Preparation – One week

Problem Findings

1. A Word document that explains the observations, problems with explanation, and design directions. This document will have problems rated on learning severity.

2. A PowerPoint presentation that explains the problems faced by the learners in learning and instructional issues.

Output

The findings would be submitted in the form of a Word document providing a brief outline of the possible solutions. Apropos Contextual Observation and Inquiry, Kern would work together with Medic to analyze good solutions for further implementation.

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