Learning Reinforcement

Business professionals are busy people and tend to have short attention spans. Most need reinforcement before they will experiment with new skills and perform in a way that is aligned with an evolving business. The increased productivity demands of the construction industry make it difficult for employees to practice new skills while working to solve the problems they encounter on projects everyday. Even though we provide them with well-designed training programs, people return to their jobs to face a new pile of paperwork, e-mail messages, and employee challenges to resolve.

With all of these distractions, even the best new ideas will fade.

In order to have a lasting impact on individual and team performance, learning must be continually reinforced. FMI extends the learning process beyond the classroom to help your employees implement the new concepts and techniques they learned during the training sessions.

Methods of reinforcement:

a) Action planning: The best action plans or learning contracts include early commitment by the participants, realistic goal setting, review and discussion of the plans, supervisor involvement, and planned follow-up procedures.

b) Implementation workshops: FMI works with the managers of the participants so that they are supported and reinforced immediately upon completing a classroom learning experience. Building superior performance is much less challenging when employees can discuss obstacles with encouraging managers and are communicating openly about new skills and knowledge.

c) Performance Tools: FMI creates customized summary sheets that contain points and concepts emphasized by the instructor during the training session. These reinforcement tools are mailed or emailed weekly for six to eight weeks to promote retention and further thinking about the topic.

d) Reunions: Alumni reconvene for bi-annual or annual meetings centered around implementing learned skills and knowledge, as well as building upon previous learning with more complex ideas. Discussing successes, failures, and process evolution helps employees recall information and regain momentum.

e) Coaching: Effective coaching involves assigning a coach within the organization to monitor and coach each participant for three to six months following a course to promote on-the-job reinforcement.

f) Bridge Calls: Schedule a series of conference calls or webinars to discuss how participants are using what they learned in training back on the job. Dialogue with others will help build confidence, which can be compromised when a new skill feels awkward.