Posts in Training Administration

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10 things killed by technology [in the training industry]…

New ideas, innovation, creativity, and of course, technology, will always attract a suspicious eye from those who are simply content with the way ‘things’ are already being done, whether that’s at work or at home. Modernisation’s supporters however, are, more often than not, perfectly capable of drowning out these apprehensive cries, and today technology is continuing to re-shape the way the world moves forward every single day.

Though while we bask in the glory of all things tech, it is suitable sometimes to spare a thought for those who are slowly seeing their traditions eroded by constant development and improvement, and fittingly The Telegraph’s technology section recently ran an online tribute piece entitled, 50 things killed by technology.

From owning an encyclopaedia to getting photos developed, and from checking a map to having pen friends (I’m sure the investigative skills of the journalist responsible for the piece would not have been too far stretched), the list detailed all those once-normal routines that have been bashed into shape by persistent desire to ‘make things better’. Ringing the cinema to check film times, owning an encyclopaedia and dialling 1471 were also included in the list.

The training industry has no place to hide when it comes to technology, and, not to be outdone by The Telegraph (and seeing as we develop technology for the training and course provision industry), we thought it appropriate to come up with a slightly smaller list linked to the training world – because as anyone in training business is well aware, IT has the power to totally transform the way work is carried out every single day.
 
10 things killed by technology [in the training industry]…
 
1.    Telephone booking
2.    Committing to a time and venue (even if at the last minute an alternative option makes more sense)
3.    Manually producing invoice after invoice after invoi…
4.    Weekly phone calls to ask ‘are you ready to book another course?’
5.    Adding new course details onto website when details are released
6.    Guessing who has opened your marketing emails and when
7.    Tired box ticking at the end of a training course
8.    Huddling together in one classroom for two days
9.    Errors on personalised reports
10.  Personal certificates, produced individually for each delegate
 
All of the above are a result of advances in technology that enabled training businesses to automate the way they operate on a day-to-day basis, and in many instances have led to cuts in administrative tasks and staffing costs. Just as the sat-nav has removed the stress, hassle and manpower needed to identify the best route through London on a busy day, the technology that we are developing for the training industry has meant fewer errors, stronger delivery of service, and a far slicker process for delegates.
 
Earlier this year accessplanit produced a whitepaper report entitled: Training and the Digital Age; Ten Ways You Can Automate – click here to download your copy. If you would like to try a demo with accessplanit to find out the impact that our software could have on your training company or course provision business, get in touch with the team today by calling 0845 5430229 or emailing
enquiries@accessplanit.com.

Tagged with: Course Booking Software, Training Administration Software


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As recruitment goes social, how can training get web-savvy?

We’re pleased to report a recent new hire here at accessplanit – a brilliant new software developer who’ll be joining our team in the coming weeks.  What’s interesting about this particular new recruit is that we found him via social networking site Twitter.

Obviously recruitment through online methods is not a new revelation, recruiters and job hunters have been using websites and online job boards for years. However, social media is increasingly playing a role in how companies recruit their staff. So, as recruitment teams tap social networking for increased exposure and success, shouldn’t other industries follow suit and embrace all that online systems have to offer?

When you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Social networking platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are ideal channels as they’re a more personable and immediate ways to connect with a mass audience. With Twitter, you have a ready-made, actively engaged pool of people at your fingertips. Presumably, if someone has chosen to follow your organisation or brand, they already have a healthy interest in what you have to say. They also have their own online circles through which to spread your message.

Social networking channels can also promote a more approachable, human side to an organisation. Regular tweets and updates from a brand or company can really reveal a personality behind the business face and give prospective employees a sense of the working culture. Once technology was seen as impersonal and to be avoided where possible, today it’s not only so convenient and effective, it also has lost the impersonal tag and become wholly accepted in society. In the corporate world, an avid online follower may have a clearer idea of the company’s ethos and therefore a stronger sense of whether they’d fit well with the organisation.  

Access is immediate and wide reaching with online platforms, so you can connect with people wherever they are and engage in a relatively informal two-way dialogue. This element of instant interaction also makes social networks a positive and speedy recruitment tool, not to mention a responsive tool for trainers who need to get in touch with delegates to update them on a last minute venue change or ‘don’t forget to bring’-type note.

As our recent hire shows, people are keen to engage with organisations online and will subsequently base large, life-changing decisions on this initial interaction. 

We are huge advocates of harnessing the power and flexibility of online systems. We feel many organisations limit themselves by not fully embracing all that these systems have to offer. Take the training industry for example - many organisations could massively increase their scope of communication through training management systems. By using an online management system, they could save time and money by streamlining the processes of selling, administering and managing training courses and events.  

Try out the accessplanit Training Administration Software by ordering a demo with one of the team, just take a look at the impact it could have on your business. Call the team on 0845 000 or email enquiries@accessplanit.com

Tagged with: Training Administration Software, Training Management Software


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Posted in: Course Booking Software, Training Administration 1 Comments

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Trainers could learn from struggling Gap's IT-focused strategy

I wrote, a couple of weeks ago, about some of the misconceptions associated with technology that still linger with intent around the training industry, and one of the key points that many struggle to come to grips with is around cost. And, I think, perhaps, this is just as much our fault as the provider of the technology, as you the training provider.

When we market technology we always bang on about the cost savings, ‘you can streamline admin teams and save huge amounts’, is a firm favourite. However, much less is mentioned about the cost of setting up and getting going with new technology, and this really was pushed to the fore, for me anyway, when I read about Gap’s latest initiative in the hugely competitive retail market.

Sales at Gap have fallen year-on-year for the past six years, and while it would be easy for the Gap management team to heap blame onto the recession (which I’m sure they have done), clearly some changes need to be made – both in terms of saving cash and identifying some new revenue streams too. And, it would seem that technology is to play a starring role in Gap’s revival.

The Financial Times reported that Gap is to jump on-board the smartphone roller-coaster and market brand and product with videos to anyone who walks into the store, so long as they have the appropriate phone. Cutting edge technology is not always, it would seem, used by the wealthy companies with money to burn, it is also the solution (or hopefully the solution) for businesses that are out of ideas and are fed up of mediocre results doing things the same old way all the time.

This resonates in the training world. Why should training software that can literally revolutionise the way you operate and pull you (kicking and screaming, sometimes) into 2011, be the exclusive right of the financial elite? It’s not, and it never will be.
Gap has shown that a company on its knees can still be innovative and cutting edge with technology.

How will your business stand out from the crowd?

Get in touch with accessplanit today and find out how our software can revolutionise the way your training business operates. Click here to read more about the software and to get contact details for the accessplanit team.

Tagged with: Course Booking Software, Training Administration Software


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Posted in: Course Booking Software, Training Administration, Training Management Software 0 Comments

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Blended approach to IT should satisfy the training purists

The technological age has once again been accused of tradition bashing (this time handwriting, after The Times reported longhand is to make way for typing in Indiana schools), and while there may be stronger consequences for children not learning to write effectively, than for training managers not to have an online booking form, this is one struggle that I can relate to.
In the article, End of the line for pens as schools embrace digital age, champions of handwriting are wheeled out to support the necessity of this ancient form of communication, and while the arguments are pleasant enough they hold little meaning in modern day society. By no means should handwriting be outlawed, reading and writing should remain necessary parts of a child’s learning, but technology too should be understood and recognised as one of very few vehicles that actually has the ability to take society forward.

I occasionally come up against opposition, our training management software has the power to automate so many different aspects of the training process – from marketing and sales to delivering the programme. Resistance appears in many guises, from ‘face-to-face is the only effective way to deliver training’ to ‘if I don’t explain each training programme over the phone to potential delegates, I won’t sell any places’. Similarly in The Times report, Anthony Daniels, a commentator for The Wall Street Journal, described typewriting as “a further hollowing of the human personality, a further colonisation of the human mind by the virtual at the expense of the real”.

Knee-jerk reactions to technology are common. Our software doesn’t have to mean the end of traditional communication for training providers, just like learning a vital skill like typing will not outlaw handwriting. The digital age is here, and if it can make businesses and the lives that run those businesses easier, more productive, and more profitable, while still maintaining a hold on traditional values, it can’t be a bad move, can it?

Tagged with: Course Booking Software, Training Administration Software