If you’re like most trainers, you have a bookcase or two full of off-the-shelf training materials. These days, the wide array of choices creates a buyer’s paradise. Need a quick solution when a department head asks you for “training” on teamwork? No problem. But not all off-the-shelf training is created equal. At the end of the day, what you really want is a product that delivers the right solution to a specific performance problem in the most cost-effective manner possible. The following questions can help you determine if you are making a wise choice:

1. Has a need for training been verified?
   Make sure that a need for instruction really exists. Are there people who cannot do what they need to do, and if so, is this a problem that cannot be solved through any other means (such as job aids, improved documentation, or even just feedback)?
   
   
2. Are there objectives describing the outcomes accomplished by the product?
   A well-designed product will tell you what learners will be able to do after completing the training. Without a clearly stated description of what the product is supposed to accomplish, you have no basis for evaluating the instructional activities, the media used, or even the product’s overall usefulness.
   
   
3. Is the product’s target population clearly defined?
   A one-size-fits-all product is likely to fit no one closely enough to be of much value. Make sure the product you’re considering is accompanied by a description of the specific audience(s) for which it is intended.
   
   
4. Do the objectives and the target population match your need?
   Unless both the target population and the objectives match what you need, you won’t get the performance you require from the product.
   
   
5. Has the product been subjected to validation (tryout) testing?
   Even though it can be very expensive and time-consuming to complete extensive validation studies, products should have been tested to ensure they provide the outcomes they promise. Ask how the product was tried out, and by whom. You want to hear that the product was tested and revised during the development phase, and that the materials were revised on the basis of one or more field tryouts.
   
   
6. Are skill checks provided to determine whether the objectives have been accomplished?
   If the product was developed to accomplish specific objectives (which it should be), you should reasonably expect to find out whether the objectives have been accomplished. Your answer to this question will tell you whether the product has been designed to accomplish specific outcomes, or merely to provide some interesting instructional activities. Make sure that the skill checks match the objectives.
   
   
7. Is adequate practice provided?
   Probably the most common failing of instruction—anywhere—is that it doesn’t provide enough practice or the right kind of practice—practice that mirrors exactly what learners will be expected to do on the job.
   
   
8. Is the training lean?
   In other words, is non-relevant content or busywork kept to a minimum? As you review the materials, ask yourself whether you can easily tell which objectives each activity is intended to help accomplish. Learners know when they are being asked to do things that are irrelevant to their needs. You don’t want to waste people’s time or lower your credibility. 
   
   
9. Is the delivery system appropriate for your target population?
   Does the amount of reading material match your audience’s abilities? Do learners have access to required media? If the delivery system isn’t a good fit with your target population, you should think twice.

Note: Reprinted with permission of CEP, The Center for Effective Performance. For more information, contact Linde Miscio at lmiscio@cepworldwide.com.

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by Carol Haig, CPT, and Roger Addison, CPT, EdD

Roger Kaufman, CPT, PhD, and one of ISPI’s best-known contributors, adds his Organizational Elements Model (OEM) to the TrendSpotters Open Toolkit this month. Roger is professor emeritus, Florida State University, director of Roger Kaufman & Associates, and Distinguished Research Professor at the Sonora Institute of Technology and may be reached at rkaufman@nettally.com. He consults with public and private organizations in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, and Europe and is probably best known to ISPI colleagues for his work in strategic planning and needs assessment with his focus on the Mega, or societal, level. Roger is a past president of ISPI and has received the Society’s coveted awards for Distinguished Professional Achievement and Member for Life.

Genesis of This Model
The OEM grew out of a workshop Roger was conducting with California county educators in San Francisco some years ago. During discussion, he realized that participants did not know how measurable objectives added value to both the client and society. In response, Roger created the basic criteria for Mega—societal value added—which became the cornerstone of the OEM, and presented it to the group. Roger followed the workshop with an article (Kaufman, R.A., Corrigan, R.E., & Johnson, D.W. [1969]. Towards educational responsiveness to society’s needs: A tentative utility model. Journal of Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, 3, 151-157) that laid the foundation for both the OEM and the measurable criteria for Mega thinking and planning. ISPI Past President Dale Brethower tidily captures the essence of Mega: “If you are not adding value to society, you are subtracting it.”

Model Description
TrendSpotters has featured numbers of discussions involving the three levels of organizational results variously termed worker, work, workplace, or job, process, organization. In Mega, the levels are individual and small group, organizational, and external clients and society. The additional levels in the OEM for resources and starting requirements and process, activities, and methods show, in Roger’s work with Mega, that an individual organization has the ability to make an impact far beyond its own doors.

The OEM is subtitled The Five Levels of Results, the Levels of Planning, and a Brief Description. It focuses on adding measurable value for external clients and society using the organization as the vehicle. By aligning resources and inputs with processes and activities and those, in turn, with programs, projects, and activities, organizations can deliver extraordinary benefits to the communities they serve. To read Roger’s article Defining and Delivering Measurable Value: A Mega Thinking and Planning Primer, and others in PIQ’s Special Issue focused on Using Societal Value Added as the Practical Alternative to Conventional Failure, click here.

The OEM reminds us that in an organization, an action in one area, regardless of how properly systematic our approach, will fail utterly unless we integrate our plans with all the other entities that will be affected, including society.

Success Story
Mariano Bernardez worked with Refinor, an energy company in Argentina, just after it was privatized. Refinor was losing money and had a traditional culture of wealthy management and poor workers. Using the OEM as a guide, Mariano implemented a modified version of the General Electric Company’s Workouts. He gathered all the stakeholders—the communities, company executives, workers, parents, teachers, and children—and asked them to describe the kind of world they wanted to live in defined in terms of Mega. From the information gathered, Refinor developed a new mission: to add value to Argentina, to the community, to its members, and ultimately to Refinor’s customers. The company implemented new societal-based objectives and experienced a turnaround in one year.

Advice to Users of the OEM
Roger advises new OEM users to put aside all existing paradigms about practicing performance improvement from the bottom up and from the inside out. Instead, embrace an approach that begins outside the organization with the larger society and then moves into the organization, focusing on external ends rather than means. Various ISPI models can help us to look at the ends (results) first and work backward to add Mega to the alignment.

Be aware that in some countries such as South Africa and Botswana with their huge AIDS problems, companies regularly include societal requirements in their mission statements, organizational goals, and strategic planning but rarely do it with rigorous criteria, leaving the real objectives unclear. They must measurably address the AIDS epidemic and its life-taking consequences in their countries because if they do not, there will be no workers for their companies, unbelievable poverty, and loss of life that could spread beyond their borders.

Links to the Performance Technology Landscape
The OEM supports these principles of Performance Technology:

Application Exercise
To get started with the OEM, consider your organization and your own work ethic. Then complete the table below:

Table 1. The Basic Questions Every Organization Must Ask and Answer.

To review past contributions to the TrendSpotters Open Toolkit, click here.

If you have an HPT model or tool that supports you in your performance improvement activities, contact Carol Haig, CPT, at carolhaig@earthlink.net or http://home.mindspring.com/%7Ecarolhaig, or Roger Addison, CPT, EdD, at roger@ispi.org.

by Peter J. Dean, PhD

Only by being aware of ethical considerations and setting up ethical standards can business leaders help others in their sphere of influence and positively affect their performance and productivity. Failing to act in an ethical manner by engaging in inconsistent application of policies, demonstrating a lack of concern for the rights or safety of the individual, failing to comply with the law, or misinterpreting a situation to suppliers or clients can negatively influence employee’s motivations and behavior.

Setting up standards of ethical behavior is, therefore, essential to organizational health and vitality but is not always easy to achieve. There are three “enemies” of ethical behavior that can exist in the workplace and damage positive outcomes:

1. Acting Purely in One’s Own Self-Interest
All of us often think and act in our own self-interest. However, in a business environment if we make decisions solely on the basis of self-interest, it can potentially encourage opportunistic behavior. This can be unhealthy for the organization and, in the extreme, result in illegal activities. Business leaders must realize that considering the interests of others is crucial for positive organizational dynamics. Consciously combating unethical modes of thinking helps create an atmosphere in which the feelings and rights of all are represented and respected, leading to a more open, healthy, vigorous work environment.

2. Believing in the Lack of Universal Standards
Some business people defend the absence of universal standards by which to judge an action’s morality. They argue that it is mandatory that international firms follow local rules, even if those rules are viewed as less than ethically acceptable to the parent organization. The argument to counter reliance on local customs is that there are certain universal principles that transcend local practices and that for the overall good of the organization such principles must be incorporated into corporate policies and culture.

3. Failing to Challenge Unethical Authority
Failing to challenge unethical behavior or failing to take action to uphold an ethical standard creates an atmosphere of caution and isolation and can ultimately cost the company dearly. One does not have to look further than Enron, Worldcom, Tyco, Andersen, Adelphia, and the over 400 CEOs in corporate America currently under indictment. Research has shown that if a good person is put in an unethical environment, the environment will dominate over the individual. If the organizational system lacks a sense of responsible behavior in its culture or if the individual does not feel free to speak up, then personal decisions on the job will begin to deteriorate into satisfying egoistic needs or taking the easy way out.

Operating from the premise that creating and maintaining an ethical environment ought to be within the mission of an effective organization (as well as being a good business practice), business leaders should be able to address ethical concerns in a straightforward manner without the fear of banishment or punishing sanctions. All leaders should be able to suggest—without the fear of reprisal—the need to examine the ethical elements of the different functions, policies, and levels of the organization to assume an environment that encourages exemplary performance.

If you would like to read more on this topic, you can purchase Peter Dean’s latest book, Leadership for Everyone: How to Apply the Seven Essential Skills to Become a Great Motivator, Influencer, and Leader (McGraw-Hill, 2005).

Peter J. Dean, PhD, former editor of ISPI’s Performance Improvement Quarterly, holds the O. Alfred Granum Chair in Management at The American College, where he is an award-winning associate professor of management and leadership. The author of numerous papers and the recipient of several awards for teaching excellence from Wharton and Penn State, among others, Dean is an active consultant who has worked with such companies as Rockwell International, DuPont, Motorola, Sprint, and Johnson & Johnson. He may be reached at PeterDean5000@aol.com.

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The Certified Performance Technologist (CPT) Certification Workshop excels as the best use of your professional development dollar. The workshop fee includes two days of on-site activities and a certificate of completion. The certificate can be submitted with a completed application (within three years) as proof of pre-payment for the certification fee. Not only is the workshop a bargain, it is packed with information about the certification process, the criteria for each of the 10 Standards of Performance Technology, and provides an opportunity to use a self-assessment guide, examine application examples, and develop a plan of action.

Ready for Details? 
The workshop is sponsored by ISPI and hosted by Momentum Business Group. Facilitated by Judy Hale, CPT, PhD, on October 12 and 13, the workshop will be located in the Mid America Nazarene University Business Center in Olathe, Kansas (SW edge of Kansas City metro). 

Registration information may be obtained by contacting Marilyn Spatz, local coordinator, at mspatz@everestkc.net or by clicking here.

Columbus Day is a holiday celebrated during October across many countries in the Americas, commemorating the date that Christopher Columbus arrived in the “New World” in 1492. Similar holidays surrounding the event are celebrated in many countries in Latin America, Discovery Day in the Bahamas, Hispanic Day in Spain, Day of Indigenous Resistance in Venezuela, and The Oppression of Indigenous Peoples Day in Berkeley, California.

Regardless of your opinion about Columbus, you have to admit that he was an innovator. Not only did he think outside the box, he thought outside the end of the map and the world known to Europe at the time.

His innovative mindset went beyond exploration. Before setting sail in 1492, Columbus was known for frustrating the scholars of Queen Isabella’s court with problems to be solved. One of his most famous was the challenge to balance an egg on its narrowest end without any external support. After weeks of experimentation and trials, the scholars reported that the feat could not be accomplished. Columbus walked over to the table and rapped the end of the egg on the table, creating a flat spot and allowing the egg to balance.

The scholars howled with indignation, claiming that he had broken the rules. Columbus reminded them that the only rule was that of no external support. Any additional limitations to solving the problem had been self-imposed by the scholars.

The Europe of 1490 believed the world to be flat. Sailing too far would cause you to fall off the end of the earth or be consumed by dragons that lay in wait. Columbus considered such beliefs to be an imposed assumption without any substantiation. This allowed him to consider the possibility that the world might be round, and by sailing west you could end up in the Far East.

Unencumbered thoughts are the building blocks of creativity and innovation. When we create self-imposed rules and assumptions (you cannot alter the egg and the world is flat), we limit the bounds of our creativity. Innovation suffers.

1492 Europe was not being intentionally difficult. They honestly thought they had reached the limits of western exploration. Columbus suspended disbelief, threw off imposed assumptions, and boldly asked, “What if…?”

What self-imposed limitations are preventing you from implementing Human Performance Technology (HPT) in your organization? I have experienced a number of “Here there be dragons” warnings from others that turned out to be false. Here are just a few:

• Management is not open to performance improvement solutions other than training.
• You have to have permission before implementing HPT in an organization.
• Management will never understand or buy into HPT.
• If your first project does not go perfectly, you will not get a second chance.

When you hear these warnings, are you testing them to see if they are true, or simply accepting the limitation? The new world of HPT may be just over the horizon, if only you dare to test the limitations and set sail.

Our current “New World” needs innovators. Have we reached the bounds of HPT thought? Unlikely. We are simply waiting for somebody to further challenge the assumptions we are currently imposing on our vision of HPT. We need a next generation of thinkers to pick up the map carefully charted by those who have gone before and think beyond the edges of the known world.

We encourage you to be an HPT innovator and explorer. What will you discover?

Beginning next month, the International Society for Performance Improvement has an incredibly informative line-up of ProSeries Workshops scheduled for November 14-15 and 16-17, 2006, in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as for February 20-21 and 22-23, 2007, in Phoenix, Arizona.

NEW! Sharon Shrock and William Coscarelli’s Constructing and Critiquing Level Two Evaluation and Certification Systems will provide you with the basic tools to critique currently existing tests in your organization as well as turnkey skills for creating defensible Level Two assessments or certification tests.

Geary Rummler’s Introduction to Serious Performance Consulting will take you beyond job-level performance improvement for individual workers to an exploration of the process and organizational levels of performance improvement where HPT practitioners really can make a lasting contribution to their organizations.

NEW! Margo Murray’s Managing Mentoring Processes for Measured Results will provide guidelines and practice in the front-end strategies—needs/readiness assessment—and back end—evaluation and continuous improvement—to create sustainable mentoring processes.

Judith Hale’s Results through Effective Implementation will investigate what it takes to implement an initiative beyond the rollout so that new behaviors, technology, standards, and values are adopted by the organization to produce the promised results.

NEW! Carl Binder’s Building Fluent Performance for Results will present a systematic, research-based methodology for designing and implementing activities to improve the impact of classroom and on-the-job training, supervision, coaching, and self-study programs.

A pre- and post-workshop conference call is included in the registration fee to provide participants with an opportunity to ask questions beforehand or clarify material upon returning to the office.

Upcoming Schedule

• Atlanta, Georgia, November 14-15, 2006: Judith Hale and Geary Rummler
• Atlanta, Georgia, November 16-17, 2006: Sharon Shrock & William Coscarelli and Margo Murray
• Phoenix, Arizona, February 20-21, 2007: Margo Murray and Geary Rummler
• Phoenix, Arizona, February 22-23, 2007: Carl Binder and Sharon Shrock & William Coscarelli

For more information or to register, visit www.ispi.org/ProSeries or call 301-587-8570.

The 2007 ISPI/IFTDO International Performance Improvement Conference has been under way since April 2005, and you probably did not even know it! You are most likely thinking of the conference as that one in the San Francisco Marriott Hotel in San Francisco, California, on April 28 to May 3, 2007. For the band of nine volunteers who make up the conference program committee, the conference has been an all-consuming effort for the last 18 months.

For us, the journey began when then President-elect Claire Carey recruited us to plan the conference in April 2005. Since then, with the support of ISPI headquarter staff, Donna Vaught and now Kim Akoto, we waded through past conference data, talked to previous conference committees, and made our plans. What plans we have made? In addition to over 200 educational sessions, eight master series presentations, two keynote presenters, more than 30 Bagel Barrel presentations, and the bookstore, we have added three ideas that are totally new—Ambassadors, the Community Center, and a conference Blog. First, the Ambassadors are a group of over 100 ISPIers who are helping by reviewing session proposals, staffing our Community Center, and supporting our Blog. Second, the “Community Center—a world bizarre of performance ideas and people” will be a meeting place for people to network, trade ideas, take trips into the city, and hang out. Third, the Conference Blog (weB LOG) will be an online place to go to share ideas, information, and experiences about the conference. It has been hard work involving hundreds of hours already. It has been a labor of love by a band of colleagues who have become fast friends. We are keen to make this Annual Conference something you will remember.

You are about to learn a whole lot more about the 2007 Annual Conference in the next few months. If you cannot wait, point your web browser to www.ispi.org/ac2007. Stay tuned for more details.

Your 2007 Conference Committee
Jodi Crawford is vice president instructional designer for Bank of America with more than 10 years of experience in the human performance field and is our resident Russian language expert. She is also leading the proposal evaluation process, which has 12 track chairs and involves over 40 volunteer reviewers.

Jeanne Farrington, EdD, CPT, is president of Farrington & Jensen Consulting and is currently ISPI’s President-elect. While slightly disappointed that “Forever in Blue Jeans” did not make it as our conference theme (Levi Strauss was started in SF), she has been a good sport about it. She led the effort to find our Masters Series presenters and has been serving as our resident Society sage.

Ruhe Hao, CPT, is senior vice president: quality and productivity engineer executive at Bank of America with a PhD in Instructional Development and is fluent in Chinese. Ruhe developed our Track Chair support materials, so the process of evaluating more than 200 educational session proposals goes smoothly.

Luise Schneider is a consultant with Performance Design International GmbH in Bonn, Germany, and is fluent in German, English, and Gilmore Girls (as in the TV comedy). Luise has been driving the planning for the Community Center.

Richard Molloy is a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Coast Guard serving as chief of the Training Performance Improvement (TPI) Branch at Training Center Petaluma, California, among other things leading an effort to improve development using an impact-based evaluation system. Rich is our man on the ground in the San Francisco Bay area and is helping us to bring some of the rich diverse world culture of the area into our conference.

Dawn Papaila is a consultant and co-founder of Learning Gurus, Inc., a company that matches workplace learning and performance professionals with the companies that need them. Dawn is designing and project managing ISPI’s first conference “Blog”.

Fred Stewart, CPT, is a lieutenant with the U.S. Navy, attached to the Pentagon, supporting their performance systems, and is fluent in French. Fred has been our “go-to guy” for communications, Ambassador (volunteer) recruiting, and our Bagel Barrel session.

Monique Müeller, CPT, is the managing director of la Volta Consulting based in Zurich, and is conversant in English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian and is learning Arabic for fun. As conference co-chair, she has done nearly everything and has helped to ensure we are fully engaged with our Society members beyond the North American borders.

Paul Cook, CPT, is an associate with W.L. Gore and Associates, Inc., focused on performance technology. As the other conference co-chair, he been involved in almost every aspect of the conference planning and development and is learning to dance from Monique.

Take a moment to eavesdrop on a recent conversation between a performance consultant and a CEO. After the obligatory introductions, the CEO asks the consultant, “What do you do?” and the consultant replies, “I’m a performance consultant.” The CEO asks, “What’s a performance consultant?” and the PC replies, “You know, I work to help you and your organization improve performance.”  To which the CEO says, “Doesn’t everybody? And by the way, what’s that CPT on your business card?”

The PC explains what a CPT is and does, and now the CEO looks even more confused because another new term has been introduced. The CEO asks, “What is this Human Performance Technology? Do you make androids out of my people?”

You get the gist of the conversation. As CPTs and HPT professionals, we have a difficult time explaining to other people who we are and what we do, and how it will benefit them. That is because we still have not branded ourselves or our profession properly.

Everyone talks about branding, but does everyone really know what branding is? Simply put, branding is the value and promise you communicate to your customers, clients, and prospects. It is the association they make in their minds about the promise you make and deliver upon. If someone says, “I’m a trainer,” the listener has a pretty good idea of what that person does. If someone says, “I’m in human resources,” you also know pretty much what that person does.  But, when you say, “I’m a performance consultant,” does anyone really know what you do? The answer is no, because performance consulting is not as well branded as training or human resources (or sales, marketing, management consulting, etc.).

Promising, Adding, and Delivering Value
The brand must promise, add, and deliver value to a client. I have had people out of the field ask me why do you put “human” in the title of the field, and what type of technology do you use? When you keep hearing these questions repeatedly, you know you have a communication and clarification problem. How are we different than organizational behavior, organizational development, and organizational effectiveness? No matter what we say, why do most performance consultants still resort to training (could it be because training is easier to sell than performance consulting)? Given these constraints, how do we best brand our field?

The first thing we do is ask our clients what they want. In my own client surveys, I learn they want a few things. The first is results that are measurable and sustainable. The second is a positive impact from any changes that will occur. And the third is to get from point A to point B as quickly and effectively as possible. Given this information, I developed my own brand promise for HPT and performance consulting. Basically, it states that we use scientifically proven methods and techniques to help clients achieve measurable and sustainable improvement results.

If we break this brand statement down, it provides a promise: measurable and sustainable improvement results. It adds value because performance will be improved and maintained over time. And it delivers on the value because I help the clients achieve their objectives, and through sustainability, I help them maintain the newly acquired higher levels of performance.

Branding and Positioning ISPI, HPT, and the CPT
ISPI is embarking on a marketing research project to more effectively position the organization and communicate its brand. This project will result in a marketing positioning statement, a brand value statement, and a vehicle for continually communicating the benefits of ISPI, HPT, and working with a CPT. The goal is to make sure the public is as comfortable with terms like performance improvement, performance consulting, performance technology, and performance management as it is with training or human resources. Another objective is to educate the public so they become as familiar with the CPT designation as they are with SPHR and PHR in human resources, and CPA in accounting.

The best way to do this is to ensure that everyone in ISPI is on the same page and singing the same song. We have to communicate the same brand message to everyone we come in contact with. If we call ourselves OD consultants because that better fits a given situation, or project management consultants for the same reasons, then we are diluting the brand and the branding efforts. We must remain performance consultants and continue to communicate who we are, what we do, and the value we add to the lives of people, organizations, and society.

Delivering the Brand Promise
Here are a few things we can do to deliver on the brand promise. It requires we remain TRUE to ourselves. First, identify our Target market—who are the people and companies we want to service, work with, and impact? Then, determine what measurable and sustainable Results we will help them achieve. Next, identify what makes us Unique—different from the HR and OD people. Finally, Execute the brand promise and deliver a product that adds value. As long as we are TRUE to ourselves, we will begin to do a better job of branding HPT.

Note: If you would like more information about ISPI’s Marketing Communications Committee, please contact Ken Steinman at ksteinman@comcast.net.

Richard Gerson is President of Gerson Goodson, Inc., a performance consulting and coaching firm that helps clients align their people, performance, and results to be more effective in accomplishing their objectives. Dr. Gerson is the author of 21 books and over 400 articles. He may be reached at richard.gerson@richgerson.com.

In 2000, the headlines read, “Tech Billionaire to Create Free Online University.” A couple of accounting problems and a technology bubble burst turned that billionaire—Michael Saylor from Microstrategy—into a millionaire, and his big philanthropic dream remained a dream. That was before MP3 players, iTunes, and definitely before podcasting. Now, Saylor’s dream may be inching closer to reality as the University of California, Berkeley has placed the complete lectures from dozens of courses on iTunes  and made them free to the general public. In addition, Berkeley is giving away recordings of many other special lectures, such as John Edwards on poverty, Dan Rather on media, and even former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Hass reading poetry.

Facilitators guide a meeting by developing steps for managing the structure and sequence of discussion topics. At the same time, the facilitator draws attention to inappropriate behavior and at times intervenes to ensure positive interpersonal dynamics during the discussion. By managing the structure of the conversation and how people relate to one another, the facilitator frees meeting participants to focus on the agenda content.

To develop the meeting process, the facilitator always starts by understanding the purpose for each agenda topic. The purpose should speak to “why” we are having this discussion and what the expected outcomes look like. Once the facilitator understands the purpose, he or she can then figure out what steps are needed to achieve the purpose. The steps the facilitator uses will structure when and what is discussed. For example, “first we’ll brainstorm, then develop some criteria for selecting the best, most relevant ideas.”

For each agenda item, the process concerns two things:

• The steps and tools that will be required to logically move the conversation forward to achieve its purpose
• The rules or norms that the facilitator must referee as dictated by the participants

The number of process steps for an agenda item could vary between 1 to 10 steps with each step taking up to 60 minutes or more to complete. The most important elements of a good process are that:

• Everyone participating understands and agrees to the agenda items and their respective purpose
• It is timed well, meaning that all participants will have sufficient time to voice their opinion
• It flows in a logical, progressive order (i.e., the process starts from identifying problems then determining solutions—not the other way around)
• The facilitator is clear what is on- and off-topic and has been empowered to referee this
• The group understands and trusts the process to achieve results

Based on the above critical elements, once the facilitator has developed process steps for each agenda item, he or she may choose to present this process to the participants to test for agreement. This is most effective with groups who have some knowledge of what process is, less so with groups who are just being exposed to facilitation.

Once presented, it is a good idea to ratify the process with the group to ensure each step is understood and accepted by all members. For groups who are familiar with facilitation, the facilitator could not only seek ratification but also solicit modifications to the suggested process.

After having completed the above, the facilitator’s role is to now ensure that meeting members stay on-topic and follow the developed process. Should the group or group members at any point appear resistant to the facilitator’s lead, it is worthwhile to revisit the purpose and process to determine their respective applicability in helping the group achieve its needs. This may necessitate modifications to the meeting agenda and allotted timelines, which again need to be ratified by the whole group to ensure buy-in and continued commitment to the agenda item(s).

Note: Published with permission of Facilitation First. For more information, visit www.facilitationfirst.com/ or call 416.465.9494.

ISPI is an organization of creative, innovative, and hard-working members, who often complete impressive projects that are seldom recognized for their excellence! Recently, ISPI Awards of Excellence criteria and application were streamlined so they align with the familiar Standards of Performance Technology.

Now, CPTers can consider completing the Awards of Excellence application for the projects submitted in their CPT application. In fact, any time a project is completed with outstanding results, that added value, used systemic and systematic approaches, and was based on collaboration and partnership, the project is a potential for an Award of Excellence. Read through the criteria, application process, and judging criteria to determine if your project represents the high standards of excellence and “place your hat in the ring.”

ISPI’s Board of Directors would like to thank Eileen Banchoff, Ed Schneider, and their committee for their thoughtful and careful effort to align the Awards of Excellence criteria to the Standards of Performance Technology. Since the standards are key to ISPI’s professional practice, this alignment strengthens ISPI members and conveys unity throughout the profession.

To learn more about the newly-aligned Awards of Excellence criteria, click here. The deadline for award submissions is October 20, 2006.

ISPI would like to thank the following individuals for their hard work and contribution to the recent redesign of ISPI’s Awards of Excellence criteria:

You do good work every day with great results. Submit your accomplishments and research to one of ISPI’s prestigious journals and get the recognition you deserve, and share your findings and ideas with your peers.

Performance Improvement (PI) journal publishes articles about all types of interventions and all phases of the Human Performance Technology (HPT) process, as well as hands-on HPT experiences, including:

• Models
• Interventions
• “How-to” guides
• Ready-to-use job aids
• Research articles

PI also publishes updates on trends, reviews, and field viewpoints. The common theme of articles is performance improvement practice or technique that is supported by research or germane theory.

To submit an article, download and read the Author Guidelines, then email your article as an attachment to the Editor, Holly Burkett, at pijeditor@ispi.org. PI is a benefit of ISPI membership, but if you are not a member you can still subscribe. If you are interested in joining ISPI, please click here.

Performance Improvement Quarterly (PIQ) is a peer-reviewed journal that publishes original research, theory, and literature reviews relevant to improving the performance of individuals, groups, and organizations. As a scholarly forum for the HPT field, the journal seeks to integrate and expand the methods, processes, and findings across multiple disciplines as they relate to solving problems and realizing opportunities in human performance. HPT work focuses on valued, measured results; considers the larger system context of people’s performance; and provides valid and reliable measures of effectiveness. The journal values both methodological rigor and variety, and publishes scholarship related to:

• Process improvement
• Organizational design and alignment
• Analysis, evaluation, and measurement
• Performance management
• Instructional systems
• Management of organizational performance

To submit an article, download and read the Author Guidelines, then email your article as an attachment to the ISPI Publications Office at pubs@ispi.org. A subscription to PIQ costs only $40 for ISPI members, so be sure to take advantage of this valuable resource. If you are not a member, but interested in joining ISPI, please click here.

As you know from reading this online newsletter every month, PerformanceXpress (PX) publishes exciting feature articles highlighting current developments and ideas in the field of performance improvement, as well as regular columns written by dedicated professionals spotting trends, presenting HPT case studies, and delving into behavioral science. And, that is just the beginning. What contributions and ideas do you have to add to PX? “I wish I had thought of that” articles, practical application articles, articles about the application of HPT, or success stories? Read the Newsletter Submission Guidelines and send us your work today!

Are you working to improve workplace performance? Then ISPI membership is your key to professional development through education, certification, networking, and professional affinity programs.

If you are already a member, we thank you for your support. If you have been considering membership or are about to renew, there is no better time to join ISPI. To apply for membership or renew, visit www.ispi.org, or simply click here.

ISPI is looking for Human Performance Technology (HPT) articles (approximately 500 words and not previously published) for PerformanceXpress that bridge the gap from research to practice (please, no product or service promotion is permitted). Below are a few examples of the article formats that can be used:

• Short “I wish I had thought of that” Articles
• Practical Application Articles
• The Application of HPT
• Success Stories

In addition to the article, please include a short bio (2-3 lines) and a contact e-mail address. All submissions should be sent to april@ispi.org. Each article will be reviewed by one of ISPI’s on-staff HPT experts, and the author will be contacted if it is accepted for publication. If you have any further questions, please contact april@ispi.org.

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Feel free to forward ISPI’s PerformanceXpress newsletter to your colleagues or anyone you think may benefit from the information. If you are reading someone else’s PerformanceXpress, send your complete contact information to april@ispi.org, and you will be added to the PerformanceXpress emailing list.

PerformanceXpress is an ISPI member benefit designed to build community, stimulate discussion, and keep you informed of the Society’s activities and events. This newsletter is published monthly and will be emailed to you at the beginning of each month.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact April Davis, ISPI’s Associate Executive Director, at april@ispi.org.

ISPI Executive
1400 Spring Street, Suite 260
Silver Spring, MD 20910 USA
Phone: 301.587.8570
Fax: 301.587.8573
info@ispi.org
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