Take a look at the learning devices used to impart training – whether product training, process training or application training. These devices involve the learner intellectually, emotionally and physically. Each device has a unique objective.

Scenarios: A scenario situates the learner as listener or observer of an unfolding story wherein the story deals with a possible situation involving decision or action.

Role Play: This is similar to a scenario but involves the learner in actively making a set of decisions based on a situation.

Reflection: A reflection prompts the learner to think and leads him or her to self-awareness about his behavior and thought.

Practice Test: It tests a learner’s knowledge or application of it.

Reckoner: Provides an overview of key ideas, concepts, etc, in a concise way, either textually, visually or both.

Screenshots of some of our custom courses

Testimonials: Exposes the learner to the view point of a real or imaginary character.

Branching Narrative: It is similar to a scenario but involves a basic storyline that branches off into independent scenarios which might eventually be tied together as a moral.

Information: Information is presented in a direct manner.

Job Aid: It assists in on-the-job transfer of learning through a Just-Enough snapshot of key learning.

What did you think of this information? Do share your thoughts with me on the same.

If you are into e-learning, making custom-designed e-learning programs for global consumption can bring your organization a large bouquet of benefits, both in terms of speed with which it reaches the market and the cost of making them, besides also retaining and translating your training objectives into global training.

If you are experienced in this field, you know that if training is to be beneficial to the learner, you need to localize your training modules. Obviously, this means much more than getting a good translator on the job. There are other more important factors that come into play when you consider taking your e-learning packages worldwide. These are:

• Is English enough? Perhaps not: It is widely known that most of the developed workforces of the world necessarily speak and work in English. But just because they know English well enough to use it as a working language, does that mean that they understand it best?  Studies have pointed to the fact that learning in one’s first language is understood best and is most effective. So, if English is one’s second or third language, the learner is bound to face immense difficulty in understanding and retaining what he is exposed to. This therefore not just reduces understanding of the subject but could also lead to misinterpretation of the same.

• The learner’s culture gives him a vision of life: For a learner, his culture is his pair of eyes through which he sees the world. A part of this is one’s language and the values his society gives important to. Such factors have an impact on learning styles. For this reason, it is necessary that an e-learning module be adapted to one’s culture and country. If this is impractical, an option is to design Web-based modules especially targeted to multicultural audiences which could radically improve efficiency of training.

• Adapting to the learner’s market and culture: Which country are you writing for? Get a handle on that and identify common cultural pointers between countries that speak the same language. If a particular country has some unique needs, find an expert in that country who can give you the best inputs on this.

• Use country-specific text or neutralize it: If you’re writing region-specific text, take care not to make culturally inappropriate comparisons in writing, or use slang, metaphors or make any other ethnic-related references that could be hurtful.

• Translate and localize e-courses: In order to get the best out of your e-learning courses, you need to plan in advance the design and delivery mode so that content can be suitably created to suit the country in which it is to be taught. If the content that must be localized is identified much in advance, the e-learning course can be easily deployed. The translation and localization can be the most costly aspect to course development if not done right. After the content is neutralized or adapted to suit key markets, the technical and design models can be internationalized and the translation initiated.

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Lean manufacturing refers to a simple way of enhancing one’s business with a suite of tried and tested tools. It certainly does not provide the answer to every business’ woes, and it cannot, since every business has its own problems and own ways of finding customized solutions. However, lean manufacturing works best when it is accompanied by a large amount of common sense and the drive to achieve. Lean manufacturing training is not a recipe for business problems but can point one in the direction of implementing this business philosophy for success.

Having said that, it is important to note that just as everything in life comes with its own limitations, so does lean manufacturing. It would not be right for a company adopting the principles of lean manufacturing to presume that it is a panacea for all its ills and continue to have an uncommitted management team. Even if a business has the right management style and structure, it is still not a candidate for success if it does not provide these people with the business tools to do their job perfectly and bring the company to success. As the head of a business, therefore, you need to have a clear focus and direction of where you are and where you want to be in the next few years.

However, as a business person, you cannot fall prey to every business mantra that is thrown at you, but must adopt and adapt all that you read and learn to your business. Hence, you could come up with a combination of two or more business mantras which could work well for you. By tweaking or fine tuning some aspects of the business philosophies you choose, you could end up with a perfect learning guide that could be the roadmap for your success.

This tweaking is essential, as anyone in business and out of it knows that no two businesses are alike and that all management gurus are individualistic. Hence, if one’s thinking is so individualistic, you can’t expect blanket norms in business—you have to customize.

A business person has to study his market, his place in his market, the effectiveness of his products and services and then apply the principles of lean manufacturing to his unique situation. Only then does lean manufacturing become meaningful to the business user.

A manufacturer’s duty is to produce a product at the right price and the standard of quality, render prompt and thorough customer service. These are areas in which lean manufacturing can be of help to him. A company’s basic aim is to make good money and this can only be achieved by making and marketing good products. This is the bottom line, no matter which business mantra one may adopt.

Thanks for reading my blog. Do share your thoughts on the same.