making competence easy hal christensen christensen/roberts solutions metroset – new york january...

Making Competence Easy

Hal ChristensenChristensen/Roberts Solutions

MetroSet – New YorkJanuary 19, 2006


Why does it take solong and cost so much to get workers up to competence?


The Learn - Retain -

Do Model

1. Has inherent inefficiencies


Link


1. Has inherent inefficiencies2. Masks the high cost of

learning

The Learn - Retain -

Do Model


The Cost of Competent Performance

Learning CostTraining Cost

With little or no training or support,

the cost of incompetence is

unacceptably high.

Incompetence

Trial & ErrorSearchingAskingFixing Mistakes




With training courses, the cost of

incompetence is reduced but not

eliminated.

Incompetence

Failed to Learn

Forgot How




With training courses, however,

the cost of lost productive time

spent in training is significant.

Unproductive Time

Time spent in training

Incompetence

Failed to LearnForgot How




The goal is to drive the costs of

incompetence and lost productivity

towards zero.

IncompetenceUnproductive Time


What if we could make it so easy for someone to accomplish a task that competence was immediate—without learning?


1. Make learning a by-product of doing

Make Competence

Easy


o Create a work environment/interface that will prevent or greatly reduce the chance for error.

o Allow learning to occur in the act of doing rather than prior to doing.

o Allow learning to occur implicitly rather than through explicit training.

The Training Wheels Concept


1. Make learning a by-product of doing

2. Iron out barriers to getting the work done

Make Competence

Easy


Input OutputThru-put Results

Feedback

Conditions

The Systemic View of Work


Input Output Results

Feedback

Conditions

The Systemic View of Work


VS


Because of hurdles like these,

Workers in most American factories spend just 20 percent of their time making things. Supervisors spend no more than 20 percent of their time doing things that appear in their job descriptions. Knowledge workers spend just 20 percent of their time adding core value…

Jay Cross and Tony O’Driscoll “Workflow Learning Gets Real,” Training Magazine


Make Competence

Easy1. Make learning a by-

product of doing2. Iron out barriers to

getting the work done

3. Reduce the need forconscious learning


Make Competence

Easy1. Make learning a by-

product of doing2. Iron out barriers to

getting the work done

3. Reduce the need forconscious learning

4. Eliminate unnecessarywork and the need to learn how to do it


Let’s take a peek at what that would look like.


DemosMaking User Competence Easy

Making Competence Easy

Hal ChristensenChristensen/Roberts Solutions

MetroSet – New YorkJanuary 19, 2006

making competence easy hal christensen christensen/roberts solutions metroset – new york january...

Documents

model slide

cost of incompetence

training magazine slide

competence easy slide

systemic view of work

high cost

training incompetence

training wheels concept