Instructional Learning Statement

The purpose of this learning statement is to communicate the details of my work experience in Instructional Training and Development, and to formally request experiential learning credit for COMS 4510 based on the knowledge and competencies I have acquired from those experiences. With more than 12 years experience working in official training capacities, I feel my proficiencies meet the requirements of this course.

McBee Systems, Inc. was a printing company based in Athens, Ohio. The call center located within the Athens facility had approximately 150 sales and customer service representatives. In addition, field salespersons were located across the United States in more than 50 district offices. From 2000-2005, it was my responsibility to
train those employees, develop their sales and service skills, evaluate data to identity trends, and survey employees and customers in an effort to enhance training and development initiatives.

A typical new-hire class for the call center was made up of 10-15 trainees and lasted for a period of six 40-hour weeks. Field sales representatives would be flown to Athens each quarter in groups of 15-25. The length of this training was approximately six hours per day for five days.

Through some trial and error, I quickly learned the importance of the peripheral aspects of training and how they influence class dynamics. I developed a checklist that served as an aid in planning and coordinating training. Having an increased level of preparedness and taking a proactive approach to various foreseeable and preventable hiccups, I was able to concentrate more on my content and delivery.
The executive team always encouraged me to participate in train-the-trainer courses and to research information that would grow my understanding of adult learning and proven instructional techniques. One of the professional development courses in which I participated was with Langevin Learning Services, (“The World’s Largest Train-the Trainer Company”). As a facilitator, I demonstrated the ability to effectively manage the group; I was prepared and had a plan, communicated the guidelines and expectations in a clear manner, and yet I was flexible enough to adapt when necessary. My personality and approach naturally allowed for humor in the classroom and fostered an interactive, open atmosphere, however Langevin’s and other developmental workshops provided significant enrichment opportunities for me. I learned about the fundamentals of and the differences between teaching children (pedagogy) and teaching adults (andragogy).
Combined with this was instruction about adult learning styles, how to recognize a trainee’s particular style, and how to engage and accommodate auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners. I was able to participate in numerous self-assessment exercises and learned that at times I was more of a visual learner, but other times I preferred a more hands-on approach. I believed that most people would benefit from having all three of the major learning styles incorporated into their training. As a result, I adapted the facilitator’s manual so that each section of the training contained a built-in lesson that supported each learning style. In addition, in an effort to better accommodate the adult learner, I adapted portions of the manual to include quizzes, problem-solving activities, exercises that could be completed independently, and role-playing
challenges. The theory that adult learners needed to understand why they were learning a new task or skill was thought provoking for me and sparked an idea.
I designed and piloted a training called The Ripple Effect of Errors. This gave trainees the opportunity to study actual error reports, choose a case study from the report, investigate the error(s) and determine the cause, follow and document the remake through the production and shipping processes, record any credits issued, determine the total cost to the company, view feedback from the customer, and then present his or her findings to the class. Once out of training, members of the first class that participated in The Ripple Effect of Errors had such low error rates, (the lowest in the company), that the corporate office requested implementation of the training for all call center representatives. The impact of the training was substantial; in fact, I was flown to our parent company, NEBS (New England Business Services), in Groton, MA to facilitate the training
there. Trainings, workshops, and conferences were all great resources for getting new ideas for icebreakers and group activities. I always added fresh ideas to my collection. When training a six-week class, I preferred to use icebreakers that allowed the group share information about themselves and become more acquainted, as they had to spend a substantial amount of time together – in close quarters – and needed to feel comfortable in each other’s company. For shorter trainings such as a system update or a new product launch, the employees were already familiar with one another so I typically had a quick game prepared for the group. My favorite was a simulated jeopardy game that awarded promotional items for prizes. The fun atmosphere seemed to get staff engaged in the training and it also helped with morale as they filtered back into the call center.

In late 2000, McBee established a Customer Service department separate from the sales center. I had inherited many materials for new-hire training; however, the customer service training manual and all associated materials had to be created from scratch. I was charged with the task.