learning leaders forum

Careers: Job Listings - March 6, 2010

Please note I find these positions as part of my daily research and send them as a courtesy to my colleagues. I don't have a relationship with the company offering the position so please go to them directly for positions in which you are interested in applying.

 

Click here for a complete list of open Training Manager Positions

 

Why Workforce Learning and Performance is Important

I walked into Starbucks the other day, looked to the menu, and didn’t see anything that looked good. So I ask the person behind the counter “What was a cool and hip drink everyone is drinking these days that I might like”. I didn’t get an immediate response so I thought perhaps the person looked at me and thought “There is no drink in the world that could make this guy cool and hip “ I didn’t like that idea to well so I thought perhaps they looked at me and said “Wow, this guy is already so cool and hip I couldn’t even begin to think of a drink that would improve upon that“

 

Finally it occurred to me the question was a bit obtuse so I rephrased the question to "I'm really not sure what I want but I would like something a little bit different than I normally have.  What would you recommend?"

Some Inspiration in a Tough Year

I remember when our sons were growing up, we would spend hours at swim meets. Of the many sports that our sons participated in, swimming was by a large margin the most difficult for us as parents. The day would start at about 6:00 in the morning on a perfectly good Saturday. It was a spring sport so the weather was always unpredictable. Often we would see steam wafting off the bodies of the young swimmers as they got out of the water to practice their racing dives from the blocks. You knew that it was cold. So there we would be, 6:00 on a perfectly good spring Saturday morning watching with only the heartache the parent can feel as he watches his child shivering uncontrollably in a cloud of steam that reminded me of the last picture I saw of polar bears looking for fish. But that was only the beginning.

The Rise of the Corporate Learning Content Rock star

The job description read, “Leverage your knowledge and experience to develop learning content in written, audio, video, and other formats that will be available to workers on an enterprise wide basis through deployment on the corporate information infrastructure. This will include wiki’s, forums, and blogs, as well as both informal and formal training assets.” I heard Steven Spielberg applied for this position and was turned down. So who is this job description addressed to? To answ er that question, we should probably get some perspective.

The Life and Times of Virtual Brenda

When you work in an industry long enough, you get the feeling you’ve gained great wisdom and have seen pretty much every situation there is to see. Well, as you might guess, I felt like I had reached that pinnacle. At least until I received a call from one of our customers who ask me if I could stop by and discuss a project they were evaluating.
 
When I arrived, we sat down in a conference room and began to review an e-learning curriculum that had been developed and expanded over the last several years. The training was well done and designed around a local talent who played the role of Brenda in the training courses. Brenda was the sage person of wisdom who put the training in context and provided a consistent presence across the fairly large curriculum. So, the training was very good, Brenda was professional and provided the insight and continuity that were critically needed, and it seemed all was well. I began to wonder why I was sitting there.

The Evolution of the LMS

The origins of the learning management system (LMS) are unclear. Some accounts portray the development of the first LMS as a tool needed to quantify and report learning in support of a Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award application. Another account involves a large government agency developing the first LMS to handle a large volume of learning development and delivery.

My guess is that many individuals and organizations have made significant contributions to early learning management technology. From these simple beginnings, the LMS has evolved into an enterprisewide presence that many consider essential to corporate success.

There is More to Training Than Just Developing Courses

We have found the hour that a learner spends in training is only a fraction of the total time and resource that must be committed to support that hour. This is especially true in the age of learner directed training. The activities that must support that hour of training are numerous.

Here are some examples:

The New Role of e-Learning?

Our business world is changing and the role of training is changing as well. We see employees, partners, and customers becoming increasing responsible for their own development and more comfortable with technology. The pace of business is increasing with less tolerance for wasted time or resources. New products and processes are being introduced faster than ever and the business world has become increasingly competitive with no room for mistakes or false starts.