Hyperviews: Fall 1998 Education column

	BEYOND COMPETENCY Using Online Resources to Maintain User Knowledge B Y S H E L L Y K I N G Silicon Valley Chapter
Use It or Lose It	Traditionally for training content developers, the first priority has been to bring a user from a zero or low level of knowledge to a level of competency. Whether we develop user guides, materials for classroom training, or computer-based training systems, the goal is always the same: to train users. Many times, we become too comfortable using one of these traditional training methods to train users. We offer training so all is well. The users learned what they need to learn so now they are competent. Our job is done. It's Miller time. In this same universe, I remember absolutely everything from my college French classes and have no need for subtitles while watching a Gerard Depardieu film. The sky is also a lovely shade of pink. In case you're wondering, this is not the case. The fact is that recent studies show our retention of a 40 hour class after two weeks is less that 15%. Ouch! Knowledge is a "use it or lose it" commodity. Though traditional methods of training may be effective at first, continued training in the work environment is essential to helping users maintain the level of knowledge they have acquired. Because my background is in software, this article is slanted toward training for software, but the information is still applicable to many areas.
Rethinking Training	I break down the way I think of training into three areas: Competency training. Takes a user from a zero level of knowledge to a level of competency. Perpetual training. Maintains a user’s level of competency. Resolution training. Trains a user by answering a specific question. Competency training is training with which we are all familiar, both as developers and students. This is what we traditionally think of as product training. The delivery of this kind of training can be a classroom environment, computer-based training, or simply tutorials in a user’s guide. Through Competency training, a user learns what she needs to know to be productive with the software. Now, how do I help the user maintain that level of knowledge? This is where perpetual and resolution training come into the picture. While Competency training provides a broad, general knowledge, perpetual and resolution training "drill down" to specific, modular units of information, helping users extend and maintain their level of knowledge in the areas where they need it most. I'm not proposing creating a whole new training development group just to create perpetual and resolution training content. Chances are, you probably already have some form of perpetual and resolution training in place. You provide a manual or online help to help users continue their training. Also, there's your Customer Support group that helps users resolve problems over the phone or through e-mail and faxes. But are you considering these mechanisms as training? Reevaluate your existing information resources. Don't think of them as support (reactive) systems, but training (proactive) systems.
Why Online Works	Perpetual and resolution training work best if they are incorporated into a user's daily activity. "Learning by doing" is a very effective model, especially if a user is learning while doing his own job tasks instead of using "canned" examples. Because of these considerations, developing perpetual and resolution training for online use is ideal. Online resources enable us to: Deliver new training modules quickly and cheaply. Have you developed a new training module? Send it to your registered users electronically (e-mail, Web site). When was the last time you did that with a printed manual or an instructor? Put the training on the user's desktop. A user never has to leave her own workspace to continue her training. Heard of armchair travelers? Think deskchair training. Provide a dynamic learning environment. Online resources give us the flexibility to create some "really cool stuff." With the evolution of the Web, we now have graphics, color templates, animations and other tools available and cheap. It's much easier and less expensive to create an engaging training module than in past years. If it's fun, they will use it. Put the learning pace and decisions in the hands of the user. Online training modules that are small and focused let a user dive in and out of training when they need it.
Perpetual Training: "But I Took the Class."	For any type of training, there has to be the motivation to learn. When a user is at a zero level of knowledge, it's obvious to them that they need to learn. But to maintain that knowledge, they may need help in discovering the need for perpetual training. Use assessments and measurements that will show your users where their lack of knowledge is based. Then provide the information the user needs to fill the gaps in his knowledge. But what about the information that fills those gaps? How do we develop it? Consider the following ideas: Provide your users with small online training modules that are: Short (no more than 5-10 minutes) Standalone so that the user doesn’t have to complete lessons 1-3 when he just wants to complete lesson 4. Taking this approach may take more effort to set up, but it reduces the time required to develop and maintain the tutorials. Based on advanced topics. Chances are the user will retain the "easy stuff" from his Competency training, but he will need help remembering the details of more advanced topics. Think "task-based." Train your users by helping them build skills to complete tasks, instead of just providing them information on a subject. Revisit the structure of your online information system: Break out your procedures into separate modules. Don’t bury the steps in higher level, conceptual information. Consider the purpose of all the components of your information system. Create a "tree" of information. Take your groupings of topics to a more precise level. Though your Technical Writing 101 professor may disapprove, your users will thank you for a third even a fourth level in your Contents. For example, take a look at this tree of information from the Quicken online help: For you WinHelp authors, go nuts with A-Links. OK, maybe not "nuts" but don't let them intimidate you. Use as many as you can and reference them as sparingly as possible. Put a lot of thought into how modules of information really relate to each other. For example, with the HTML editor I'm using to compose this article, the following two topics (among a plethora of others) were under the index entry *file: Opening a File* and *Managing Links in Your Project. Managing links on a project level seems a bit of a stretch from the index entry file. There’s nothing more frustrating for a user under the gun than clicking on an index entry or a Related Topics* button and seeing another 20 topics listed. Drill down. Be specific. Consider levels of information.
Resolution Training: "Houston, We Have a Problem."	Resolution training provides knowledge to help users resolve immediate questions. Usually Customer Support groups handle this kind of training. A user calls your support line to ask how to complete a task. The motivation is there. The user knows what he wants to do, but doesn't know how. Work with your support staff to find the areas that most need resolution training. Remember, you're looking to provide resolutions to specific problems. Here are some ideas for implementing resolution training: Make information accessible by providing a searchable, online resource so a user can find the information he needs when he needs it. Precision is crucial. Gather communal knowledge and make it searchable. Communal knowledge is the "talking around the water cooler" information we pick up, virtually by osmosis, from other users. Newsgroups and e-mail distribution lists are examples of capturing this kind of knowledge. You can also set up a "success stories" page on your Web site. Show examples of what other users have done. Learning by example can be a powerful compliment to step-by-step training. Why not put your training or support staff online? Have you ever seen ads for an online chat with an athlete, entertainer, or subject expert? (For an example, check out the page on ESPN’s web site at http://espnet.sportzone.com/. Their NFL researcher has a live online chat with fans every Friday at 4 p.m. Eastern time.) Why not provide the same service with your trainers? Send an announcement that a trainer will be online for a couple of hours for one day a week to answer questions live. With collaboration tools such as Microsoft’s NetMeeting® and Acuity’s ichat® readily available, it's a great way to keep the interaction between trainer and student going. Be sure to post the questions and answers for future reference.
Check It Out	Check out some of these sites for interesting ideas on how to continue a user's training: Blue Sky software has a good example of a searchable resource for resolution training. Take a look at their Support Tech Source page (http://www.blue-sky.com/WebHelp/TechSrc/start.htm). This page uses an HTML Help file to provide troubleshooting information for problems and quick answers for some very specific questions. Though this page does not have a specific search feature, the Index and Contents provide good substitutes. Macromedia’s Web site http://www.macromedia.com contains a good example of communal knowledge. They provide a page that shows you what other users have done. It's a good place to spark the question, "How did they do that?" which will provide that essential motivation to learn more. Check out Sun’s DukeDollars on their Developer pages. Users earn DukeDollars by sharing their information with other users. See http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/DukeDollars/dukedollars.shtml. (Note: You will have to register with Sun to access this page, but it’s free.) If you set up an environment like this for your students, you can sit back and let them provide the magic. Be sure to check into these environments yourself. You’ll probably learn something.
Other Ideas	If you've found the ideas I've expressed in this article interesting, I recommend the following publications: Human Factors for Technical Communicators by Marlana Cole. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 1996. Computers as Theater by Brenda Laurel. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc. 1993.
	Shelly King is the Senior Technical Writer and "Creator of Cool Stuff" at OnDemand, Inc. based in Menlo Park, CA. OnDemand (http://www.ondemandinc.com) provides Internet-based Workforce Readiness software that manages, delivers, and tracks online training and information. You can contact Shelly at sking@ondemandinc.com.