Say you are working on a new training module or writing a new document and you need constructive feedback on the content. The best resource is a subject matter expert (SME), of course. However - are SMEs the only resource or can peers help with feedback? If you need constructive, detailed subject matter feedback, then go to your SME. But your peers can offer helpful information. Keep in mind that your peers (or other non-SMEs) may have ideas that help, but may not be the feedback you need.

When I’m asked if I like what I do, I share the story about my first experience as a "training consultant." I was working for a large communications company, and my role was to train our clients on the product they purchased. However, the training materials that were provided included generic fill-in-the-blank cards. When I saw what was being used, I was frustrated. We weren’t taking the time to work with our clients so that we could tailor the training content to their needs.

Companies put a LOT of money, time, and hard work into training their employees. New employee onboarding, job role training, compliance training-you get the picture. In many or most cases, that training includes some element of testing. People in learning and development often refer to this testing as "assessment" or "evaluation." We’re going to try to use the word "test" as much as possible in this article, though we’ll fall back on assessment from time to time. The problem is that after putting so much work into planning and creating the training materials, it can be easy to give short-shrift to the test part. And that can be a BIG problem because you don’t really know if your employees are learning what they have to learn if you’re not testing in one way or another. So you may be providing training that’s not effective for some, many, or all of your employees. And that’s why we’re going to focus on tests in this post-testing employees after training. Hope you find some stuff interesting and helpful. Convergence Training makes a number of solutions to help you with your training programs at work. These include a series of learning management systems (LMSs) to help you create, import, deliver, assign, track, and report on training, a large library of e-learning courses that are ready to plug and play in any LMS, and custom training solutions for any company. Contact Convergence Training if you have questions or if you want to see a demo. What You Want Your Workers To Do On the Job, Learning Objectives, and Tests Let’s begin by talking about some things that are closely related: the desired on-the-job performance of your workers, your learning objectives, and your tests. What You Want Employees To Do On the Job This should go without saying, but it’s a fundamental concept and so it’s worth starting here. You provide training because you want people to know things they need to know for the job, or because you want them to be able to do things they need to do on the job. In other words, you want to prepare them to use their knowledge and skills at work. So that’s the first part of the puzzle. Figure out what it is that you want employees to know or be able to do on the job. Learning Objectives After you’ve come up with a list of the things you want your employees to know or be able to do on the job, it’s time to create learning objectives for your training materials. We could write a much longer blog post about learning objectives. In fact, we have-check here and here. And there’s more to say than that, too. Although there’s a lot to say about creating learning objectives, we can boil it down to a few key points, and we have below. Tips for Creating Learning Objectives The basic idea of a learning objective is that it’s a simple, clear statement of what the employee should be able to do when the training is over. Here are some characteristics of a well-written learning objective: It’s something the worker has to do or know on the job It’s written as a performance-either something the employee does to demonstrate knowledge (don’t create learning objectives that include words like "know" or "understand" because that’s not something the employee can "do"), or it’s written as something they do to demonstrate a skill It’s written in a clear, non-ambiguous manner so that it’s easy for anyone to tell when the employee has satisfied the learning objective It may include not only a performance but also conditions-for example, not just "tighten a screw" but "tighten a screw using a wrench" It may include not only a performance but also a standard-for example, not just "detect a defective roll" but "detect defective rolls 100% of the time during an hour of production time" Hopefully that short list of bullet points helped. If you want to know more about learning objectives, check out those links above. Otherwise, we’ll move on to show how your learning objectives and your assessments should be related. Matching Your Learning Objectives and Your Tests This next point may be from the School of Obvious, but once you’ve determined what your employees need to know or do on the job, and then you’ve created learning objectives to match, you need to make sure you create tests that match as well. In other words, create tests that allow you to effectively determine if your employees have met those learning objectives. You’ll do this by creating one or more test items’ for each learning objective. By test item, we mean one part of your test. For now, think of this as a question within the test. There’s more to be said about tests, but if you remember that they should match your learning objectives, you’re already most of the way there. Testing Employees After Training: Knowledge Tests and Task-Based Tests You can test workers in many different ways, but generally they break down into two categories: Knowledge tests Task-based tests Let’s take a look at each. (See Note 3.) Knowledge Tests Knowledge tests are generally used to determine if your employee knows something or can apply that knowledge as opposed to whether or not they can perform a task. Knowledge tests include: True/false questions Multiple-choice questions Multiple-response questions Matching questions Drag and drop questions (some) Fill-in-the-blank questions Short answer questions Essay questions In short, it’s kind of a combination of the stuff you might have done in school and some stuff you might do in basic e-learning courses. Your knowledge tests should include one or more test items for each learning objective. Again, in common terms, this means one or more questions per learning objective. Task-Based Tests A task-based test is a test of your worker’s ability to actually perform a real job task in a real work environment (or a realistic simulation of the work environment). The idea is that your workers will actually perform the task or skill, not simply say, recall, select, or list as they would in the knowledge tests listed above. In some cases, your task-based test will ask your employees to perform the skill in real life. In other cases, your task-based test will ask your employees to perform the skill in some form of simulated environment. For example, airplane pilots are tested in sophisticated flight simulators, and I’ve seen similar simulators for crane operators. In other cases, the simulation may be something a little more simple, like an e-learning course that presents a work-like scenario and then asks the worker a question like "what would you do in this situation?" Your task-based tests will require your workers to perform one or more test item for each learning objective. Or, in more common terms, to complete one or more performance/behavior for each learning objective. You’ll typically have a supervisor evaluate the performance of the employees performing the task-based test. In those cases, you’d create a checklist or some form of rating scale that they can use to record their evaluations. Of course, in the simulation and scenario-based e-learning examples discussed earlier, a computer will record the results for you. When To Use Knowledge Tests and When to Use Task-Based Tests So now that you know you’ve got two big forms or types of assessments, the obvious question is which should you use when? As you might have guessed, you answer this by going back to the learning objective that your making the test for. When we discussed learning objectives above, we said they should always be written in the form of a performance or a behavior. For example, they should include verbs like state, list, match, select, operate, construct, etc. But even though the learning objective is ask for a behavior in the form of a verb, if you look closely, you can see some of the verbs are asking the employees to perform a behavior that demonstrates knowledge (these are the words like state, list, select, and match) and others are asking the employees to perform a behavior that demonstrates a skill or the ability to perform a task (operate, construct, build, etc.). So, in general, you can use a knowledge test or test item (such a a true/false or multiple-choice question) to test workers on their ability to satisfy a learning objective that asks for a performance that demonstrates knowledge (the objectives that ask for things like state, recall, list, match, select). And you can use a task-based test or test item (such as "turn the machine on" or "thread the materials through the machine") to test workers on their ability to satisfy a learning objective that asks for a performance that demonstrates that they have a given skill or can perform a given task. Here’s a list that may help: What You Want Employees to Do Testing Method Example Repeat facts Knowledge State, recall, list, etc. Explain concepts Knowledge Discuss, explain, etc. Apply understanding of a process to perform a job task Task-based Do, build, etc.-something performance-based Perform a procedure Task-based Do, perform, etc.-something performance-based Find and/or analyze information Task-based Find, analyze, apply, etc.-something performance-based Determine proper course of action given specific circumstances Task-based Do the next thing/step given these circumstances (or you might do this as a test assessment-explain the next thing/step) Perform a job task (create, build, construct, assemble) Task-based Build, construct, assemble, etc.-something performance-based Apply a principle Task-based Apply principles from training to react appropriately in given scenarios, etc.-something performance-based. Note: an example of this is a sales person making a sales demo/pitch to a various of "mock" customers during a training exercise Troubleshoot Task-based Diagnose and fix a problem Creating Your Tests Now let’s begin looking at the actual process of creating your tests and the test items within them. When to Create Your Tests MANY experts in instructional design and/or learning and development will tell you the best time to create your tests is right after you’ve created your learning objectives. That’s right-after you’ve created your learning objectives but BEFORE you’ve created your training content/activities. This may seem weird, funny, strange, or counter-intuitive to you. It did to me the first time I heard it. But it’s worth giving it a shot. Here are a few reasons why this makes sense: You just created the learning objectives, so they’re fresh in your mind. Now’s the time to create those tests-while the fire is hot. Remember your goal in creating tests is to make sure your employees can satisfy the learning objectives, so this linkage makes sense. If you create your training materials first and then create your training materials before you create your tests, you run the risk of letting something in the training materials pull your test off-target a bit. So, even if this sounds strange, why not give it a try and see how it works for you? Before You Create Your Tests Before you begin creating your tests, it’s worth your time to create a plan. While planning, consider the following issues: For each learning objective, what kind of test items do you need to create-a knowledge test or a task-based test? How many test items should you create in total? To determine this, know that you’ll need at least one test item for every learning objective. Then, you may decide to create more than one test item for some or all of the objectives. For example, some objectives may be more important than others-if so it’s OK to create more test items so you’re sure the workers can perform them. Or, your worker may have to perform a skill in different situations on the job-if so, it’s OK to create different test items for the performance of the skill in each of the different situations. What would be a passing score? To come up with this, you can use what seems to you the  lowest level of performance acceptable on the job. Or, you can get advice from subject matter experts (SME) who may have an opinion. One thing to keep in mind is that you may have different passing scores for the different learning objectives within your training-maybe some objectives are absolutely critical and require 100% passing, whereas others are less critical and 80% is OK. Evaluating Your Tests You’re not done just because you’ve created your tests. You should evaluate them to make sure they’re what we might call "good," although you’ll soon see that there are different words and measurements for how "good" a test or test item is. (These measures apply to both tests and the test items they contain, so we’re just going to refer to tests below.) Reliable Tests A reliable test measures the same thing in the same way every time. In other words, if you’ve got an employee who can’t meet the learning objectives, your test will tell you that every time. Likewise, if you’ve got an employee who can meet the learning objectives, your test will tell you that every time. In short, when everything else is the same, a reliable test will give the same results every time. A reliable test is a consistent measurement. An unreliable test is not consistent. For a visual analogy, think of a dart board with four darts spread all over the dart board. That’s not reliable because you’re not getting the same consistent results every time. Instead, the same action (throwing a dart or having a worker complete an assessment) gives wildly different results each time. Tips for Creating Reliable Tests Now that you know what a reliable test is, let’s see if we can give you some tips for creating them: Create tests that are at the correct difficulty level-match the test to the necessary job performance Create tests with enough test items so you can get a true understanding of whether or not your employees can satisfy the objective. In a perfect world, you’ll have several test items for each objective (this reduces the chances of something random skewing the results). Create well-crafted, well-thought-out, well-designed, well-written tests that aren’t vague, misleading, ambiguous, poorly written, or easy to guess. Review the items and have others review them for you before trying them for real with your employees. Don’t create tests that are difficult to answer or difficult to answer just because of the user-interface. In other words, don’t get too cute or be so sloppy that your employees can’t figure out how to answer. Create tests with an objective scoring basis. Don’t leave scoring up to the whims of one evaluator, or the different whims of multiple evaporators. Create a checklist or guide for evaluators so they all know what to look for and how to assess worker performance. Valid Tests A valid test is a test that correctly measures your employee’s ability. That’s different than simply giving the same results every time, which is what a reliable assessment does. Let’s look at an example: say you’ve got a team of machine operators, and you give them each a test to see if they can operate the machine. Each machine operator passes your test with a passing score of 100%. That’s very reliable-everyone got the same score. But then when you take those workers out onto the floor and ask them to operate the machine, and they can’t. So, your test  isn’t valid-it’s telling you everyone’s able to operate the machine, but they can’t. To go back to our visual metaphor of darts on a dart board, a valid test of four machine operators who CAN perform their job is like four darts all thrown at the bulls eye, a valid test of four machine operators who CAN’T perform this job is like four darts way off on the edge of the dart board, and a reliable test that’s not valid is like four darts all thrown in a tight grouping at the 2:00 position way over on the edge of the board. (See note 1.) Tips for Creating Valid Tests Now that you know what a valid test is and see why it’s an important concept, here are a few tips for creating valid tests: Make sure your test matches your learning objective. For example, if you want someone to be able to operate a machine, don’t create a test that asks them to explain how to operate a machine. Instead, assess their ability to actually operate it. Or, don’t test their ability to operate the machine but at a speed much slower than what they need to do on the job, or in an environment with fewer distractions. Instead, create a test that evaluates their ability to operate the machine at normal work speed and with normal work distractions. Match the difficulty of the test with the difficulty of the real-world task. This is similar to the point above, but bears repeating. Don’t make the test easier than the real-life task, or else you won’t know if your employees can perform the task on the job. And likewise, don’t make it harder, either-don’t test someone’s ability to run a marathon if they simply have to job 50 yards (that’s an analogy, but you get the point). Ask real-world experts (so-called subject matter experts) for their input in creating the test to match real-world expectations and experiences. Good Test Are Both Reliable and Valid You may have gathered this already, but we wanted to call it out directly. A good test needs to be both reliable and valid. Tests and Consequences One thing to think about is: "What are consequences for my workers if they pass or fail this test?" In some cases, maybe passing means they can go on to the next activity or module. And failing just means they have to take the test again, or they get some feedback from a manager intended to help them pass. In other cases, passing may mean they can be allowed to move on and do their job, and failing may mean they can’t. There are many factors to keep in mind when determining the consequences of a test, but the fundamental one is probably this: "How important is it that the employees satisfy the learning objectives?" If it’s a nice-to-have but not critical, the consequences should be low. If it’s critical-like there’s a life at stake, for example-the consequences should be very high. So, match the importance of the knowledge/skill with the consequences of the test. Be sure to communicate the consequences of the tests to your workers. Let them know what your reasons are for providing each test. Practical Tests Sometimes a test isn’t going to be perfect. Maybe it won’t be perfectly valid-only "pretty much valid," if you will. Or maybe it will test most of the learning objectives well but not all of them. Again, this is a case where you’ve got to look back to the importance of the knowledge and skills in the learning objectives, and then ask yourself if it’s OK to have a less-than-perfect test. In some cases, designing a perfect one isn’t really practical when you look at the time and expense. In other cases, it’s absolutely essential. (See Note 2.) Beta Testing Your Test Before You Use it For Real Once you’ve created your test, it can be tempting to rush it into action by giving it to real employees in a real assessment situation. But you shouldn’t. Before you use it for real, give it a: Final review Beta test with a small number of workers The Final Assessment Review Perform a final review of your test before you try it on any workers for real to try to catch any errors you made during the creation process.  You might do this on your own or with the help of a subject matter expert (SME). Here are some things to look for: The learning objective matches the assessment (you’re using a "knowledge"or "task-based" test correctly, you’re testing the right knowledge or performance, etc.) You’ve got the number of test items correct (at least one for each learning objective, more for the most important objectives, multiple test items if a performance has to be performed in different circumstances) Test items are a true match for the desired workplace performance: same performance, same difficulty, same circumstances, etc. Run a Limited Test With a Small Number of Employees After you’ve reviewed your test, give it a quick beta test with a small number of employees within the target training audience. Consider the following: Perform the beta test in the exact same circumstances that the real test will be held Make sure you’re delivering to a representative selection of the type of employees who will be taking the test Look for confusion or problems from the beta test audience; check their answers for things that everyone gets right or everyone gets wrong, as these outliers may signify a problem If you’re using a checklist or rating scale, look for problems with that, including problems reported by the evaluators (maybe they don’t understanding what it requires to get a check or what the different ratings signify) When to Perform Tests Now that you’ve got a test, you’ve got at least four options of when you’d deliver that test to your workers. They are: Before Training There are at least two reasons to give a test before your training. The first is if you need to make sure your employees can perform any necessary prerequisites that are required for your training. The second is to create a pre-test that might allow workers to "test out" of all or part of your training. In addition, you can compare the results of the test before training with results of the test after training to measure how much you’ve closed your gap. During Training You might provide some form of test during training to provide practice, give an opportunity for feedback to the employee, and let the employee judge where he/she is in terms of satisfying the learning objective. Immediately after Training This is the classic use of a test-at the end of training, to see if the employee can satisfy the objective(s). Some Period of Time After Training It might be worthwhile creating some form of test for later, after the employee has been on the job for a while. That’s because people often forget things after a short period of time. In fact, because people tend to forget things over time, it’s often recommended to provide refresher training-followed with a test. (See note 4.) Evaluating Your Tests Once They’re Implemented Once your test is "out there," you’ll begin acquiring plenty of data about it. You can use this data to evaluate your test and, if necessary, revise it. The kind of information you can use in your evaluation includes: Verbal reactions from your employees Average score on the test Score range for the test Percent of workers who pass and fail Percent of workers who never finish the test (and, hopefully, why) Questions everyone gets right (maybe these are too easy?) Questions everyone or a large number of people get wrong (maybe these are too difficult, not matched to your objective, or are written in a confusing manner?) Verbal feedback from your evaluators using checklists and rating scales You’re never really done creating any training material, and that’s true of your tests as well. You can constantly evaluate and revise when necessary. You should build the evaluation step into your process so it becomes a routine, part-of-the-job kind of thing. If you find something that needs rework, no big deal-just go back and make it better. Conclusion: Testing Workers After Training There you have it, a few ideas about testing and training. Hope you found some of this helpful and are able to put it into practice at work. Let us know if you have thoughts or questions. We plan on following up with some additional posts about testing in the future, so hang on for those as well. Until then, you may find the download below about learning objectives up your alley. Go ahead click-it’s free. Recommended Works about Testing I researched the following works while researching this article, referenced them throughout the article (see the Notes), and highly recommend that you check them out. Develop Valid Assessments, Patti Shank. Infoline: Tips, Tools, and Intelligence for Trainers, ASTD/ATD Press, December 2009. Evaluation Basics, Donald V. McCain. ASTD/ATD Press, 2005. Assessment Results You Can Trust, John Kleeman and Eric Shepherd, QuestionMark White Paper Brain Science: Testing, Testing-Thy Whys and Whens of Assessment, Art Kohn. Learning Solutions Magazine, April 20, 2015. Also, even though I didn’t reference these "testing" blog articles by Connie Malamed while writing this article, I recommend them nonetheless. I’ve read one or more of them in the past and remember they’re helpful, plus I just tend to find her stuff excellent. Actually, now that I have written this, I’m going to make it a point to review these articles and see if there isn’t some helpful information I can fold into this post (I’m sure there is). Notes: 1. I took the dart and dartboard visual analogy from the "Assessment Results You Can Trust" (Kleeman and Sheperd) white paper noted above in the Recommended Works section. It’s worth checking out their article for many reasons, but the have visuals of this dartboard idea and it really brings the concepts to life immediately. Well done, you two. 2. Many resources on tests and test items talk about validity and reliability, but the Develop Valid Assessments book by Shank referenced above also introduced the concepts of "stakes" and "feasibility." I thought they were worth including and discussing, but renamed them consequences and practicality. 3. The Shank book mentioned above introduces the idea of test and performance assessments. I’ve reworked it a bit to be knowledge tests and task-based tests. 4. The "Brain Science: Testing, Testing, Testing-The Whys and Whens of Assessment" article by Kohn mentioned noted above does an especially nice job of explaining this point (which is kind of big in learning and developing circles these days, it seems). The article mentioned is part of a series he’s working on, and it seems like the entire series will be relevant and of interest once he’s completed it, so keep your eyes on that. The post Testing Employees After Training: Best Practices for Workforce Evaluation appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

What would you do if someone told you something entirely new and you wanted to make sense of it, remember it, and use it later? For example, say I started telling you about a game you had never heard of. While you’re trying to figure it out, is it possible you might compare the new game to a game you already know? Have you ever done anything like that when you’re trying to learn something? Even better, would it also help if, while I told you about the new game, I explained how it’s similar to and different than a game you know? For example, if I know you understand soccer, and I’m trying to explain American football to you, would it help if I explained some similarities (it’s played on a rectangular, grassy field; you score by moving a ball down the field to a goal or zone at the other end) and also explained some differences (a soccer ball is round, a football is ovular; in soccer you kick the ball, in football you run with it or pass it; in soccer you score by kicking the ball into a net, in football you score by passing a line at the end of the field, etc.)? In this article, we’re going to see how using metaphors, similes, and analogies to create better training materials can help your workers understand, remember, and later use new information on the job more effectively. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with many libraries of e-learning courses, a series of learning management systems (LMSs) for companies of different sizes and industries, custom training solutions, apps for mobile learning and work performance support on mobile devices, and more. Contact us to ask some questions, learn more, and set up a demo.  We Learn By Connecting New Information with Existing Information People learn and remember new information partly by integrating it with information already stored in their memory. In fact, "connecting" that new information with existing information makes it easier to understand, retain, and later recall and use that information when it’s needed. This is important information for a trainer or instructional designer. Your training materials will be more effective, meaning the learners you provide training to will be more likely to use the skills taught in training while on the job, if you help them connect new information in training to information that they already know. To do this, you should intentionally add elements to your training materials that help the learner make this connection. You can think of this as adding "hooks" to the new information that will "hook onto" the existing information. There are many ways to do this. Three simple, effective, and closely related ones are to include metaphors, similes, and analogies in your training materials. You’ve probably done this from time to time in your own training materials. In this post, we’ll explain just exactly what these are (in case you’ve forgotten from elementary school grammar class) and will give you some tips for using them. If you’re already aware of the value of metaphors and similes, then this will provide a good reminder to use them in your training. We can all use a reminder about best practices from time to time. Or, if you haven’t really thought about this before, you can use this as an opportunity to start doing so. "Learning involves the integration of new content from the instruction into existing schema in long-term memory. Activating prior knowledge in long-term memory that is relevant to the new content will optimize this integration process. Activation of prior knowledge means that existing related knowledge (schemas) in long-term memory is moved into working memory." Dr. Ruth Colvin Clark, Building Expertise: Cognitive Methods for Training and Performance Improvement, p. 55 What, In General, Are Metaphors, Similes, and Analogies? In general terms, metaphors, similes, and analogies are types of comparisons. They each compare something to something else. What’s a Metaphor? According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, a metaphor is "a word or phrase for one thing that is used to refer to another thing in order to show or suggest that they are similar." This website, created to teach school kids what metaphors are, has a lot of great examples that make this easy to understand.  Two examples from the website are: The snow is a white blanket. The hospital was a refrigerator. Looking at these examples, you can probably see what a metaphor is and see how a metaphor is used to make a comparison. Obviously, in the first example, the snow isn’t truly a white blanket. But the layer of snow on the ground does share some characteristics with the white blanket-the color (white), laying flat and smooth on the ground, and covering things. And in the second example, again, the hospital is clearly not truly a refrigerator. But, the hospital does have something in common with a refrigerator-most likely, that it’s cold inside. Notice two things about these metaphors (and metaphors in general). First, they use one thing to tell me something about another thing. In the first example, the white blanket tells me something about the snow (it could have been black or yellow snow, right?). And in the second example, the refrigerator tells me that the hospital is cold (it could have been a hospital in the American south during summer with a broken air-conditioner, right?). And second, they draw their power from the fact that I am already familiar with one of the items in the comparison. In the first metaphor, I am familiar with white blankets. I know they’re white, they can lay float and smooth, and they can cover things. In the second metaphor, I know something about refrigerators-in particular, I know they’re cold. What’s a Simile? A simile, according to Merriam-Webster, is "a phrase that uses the words like or as to describe someone or something by comparing it with someone or something else that is similar." So, again, we’ve got a comparison between two things. In this case, though, the comparison uses the words like or as. Here’s a website with a lot of examples of similes if you want to see some. Let’s look at two examples drawn from that website (both well known): The play was like watching paint dry. The night sky was as black as coal. If we look at our two similes, we see how they help explain things. The first simile tells me that the play was like watching paint dry. This tells me that play was boring and nothing of interest happened. The second similar tells me that the night sky was as black as coal. That tells me it’s very dark. And, as we did with metaphors, let’s notice two key things about similes. First, they use one thing to tell me something about another thing. In our examples, drying paint tells me something about the play and coal tells me something about the night sky. And second, they draw their power from the fact that I am already familiar with one of the items in the comparison. In the first simile, I know that it’s boring to watch paint dry. In the second simile, I know that coal is very black. Tips for Using Similes and Metaphors in Training We now know that (1) because similes and metaphors are comparisons, they can be used to compare new information to existing information, (2) people learn by relating new information to existing information, and (3) as a result, similes and metaphors can be effective in job training. With all that said, let’s look at some tips for using similes and metaphors effectively in training. Make Comparisons to Things People Know As you’ve seen, similes and metaphors draw their power from the fact that the learner knows something about one of the items in the comparison. It stands to reason, then, that if your learners don’t understand either item in a comparison or analogy, it won’t help your training. For example, the simile in "The night sky was as black as coal" draws its power from the fact that you and I know coal is black. But if I made this simile to you and you had never heard of coal and didn’t know it was black, it wouldn’t help you. There are a few things you can do to help make sure your learners understand your similes and metaphors. The first thing is to know some things about your learners. What kind of people are they? What are their experiences? What are their interests? What is their culture? What do they do at work every day? As is always true in training, the more you know about your learners and the more you craft your training to them, the more effective it will be. One easy tip here is to make comparisons to other things at work. Second, you can make similes and metaphors that use information that’s commonly known. Don’t get too esoteric when you’re making these comparisons. For example, I’m a fan of jazz and I studied philosophy in college a bit. Once, while explaining how to use a learning management system (LMS) to a class full of workers, I used a simile that compared the philosophy of using an LMS to 1960’s avant-garde jazz and French existential philosophy. Predictably, this went over like a lead zeppelin (hey, there’s another simile). I learned my lesson and haven’t done the same since. One way to avoid my blunder is to use similes and metaphors that compare new information to information that you know your workers are familiar with. To do this you can also try making comparisons to things that are commonly known in culture-a hit TV show that everyone watches, the big summer blockbuster movie, the big sports event, and so on. But you’ve got to be careful-even if you’re confident that everyone is familiar with something, from time to time you’ll find someone who’s not. One good way to to avoid this trap is to simply ask your learners if they know something before you use a comparison based on it. For example, let’s return to the idea of teaching someone about American football by using similes and metaphors about soccer. It’s not a bad idea to start this by asking "Hey, are your familiar with soccer?" If they say yes, then make your metaphor/simile. If they say no, then shift gears. Make Comparisons That Make Things Simpler Metaphors, similes, and other comparisons work especially well when they simplify things. For example, you could try to tell me about the shape and size of an American football field by listing off the dimension, but that would probably get pretty complicated. Or, you could say something like "It’s shaped like a soccer field but is a little smaller" and that would probably very efficiently communicate what I need to know. The flip-side to this one is that you don’t want to make an especially intricate, complicated, or difficult-to-grasp simile/metaphor. Even if you think it’s witty or brilliant. Make Comparisons When They’re Helpful Although similes and metaphors CAN and DO help training, that doesn’t mean you should use them willy-nilly and sprinkle them everywhere. Remember, your goal is to help workers learn new information, and that these can be especially helpful if the information is complex or difficult and would benefit from simplification. Don’t waste your time (and your learner’s working memory space) by creating similes and metaphors when you’re discussing things people already know. Include Concrete and/or Visual Information If you look at our examples above, you’ll see that our analogies and similes often refer to concrete objects: coal, a refrigerator, a soccer field, drying paint, etc. Similes and analogies work well when you’re comparing new information to something concrete like this. That is often easy in job training (or can be) because you may be referring to things people work with: "form x is like form y," "this press is like that machine," "this product is like that product," etc. You’ll also notice that we included a lot of information that appeals to the senses, especially our sense of sight: snow is white a flat, coal is black, etc. We’re visual creatures-our brains are well-adapted to processing visual information. And studies show that including visual information can dramatically improve training effectiveness. It stands to reason, then, that using metaphors and similes that cause the learner to create a mental image may increase the effectiveness of the training as well. Don’t Use Comparisons That Are Potentially Misleading Sometimes you’ll use a simile or metaphor that you think is very clear, but it may actually confuse your learners. For example, let’s consider one of the two examples of a metaphor that we gave at the top of this article: The hospital was a refrigerator. The intention here is to say that the hospital was cold or chilly. But my learner might think it means the hospital was full of food (that’s true of refrigerators, right?). Or, maybe they’ll be especially poetic, and think that just as a refrigerator stores food in an impersonal way, the hospital stores human bodies in an impersonal way. In each case, the metaphor you used to try to help clarify and simplify could end up creating confusion. So, DO try to use similes and metaphors, but remember to think about them critically and see if they create any potential confusion. Use Visual Metaphors Along those lines, something we haven’t directly talked about yet is making visual metaphors in training materials. In a visual metaphor, you use visuals to make the comparison between two things. For example, consider this image from the Green Liquor Clarifiers e-learning course (this is a course about a topic in paper manufacturing and was created by Convergence Training). The course, and the audio that accompanies the image below, is explaining the different amounts of "drag" on particles of different shapes as they fall and settle through a substance. The visual metaphor used represents the particles as skydivers falling through air. The larger the surface area presented by the particle/skydiver, represented by the width of the arc, the more drag. Create Better Training Visuals Example: Use Visual Metaphors You can use this kind of visual metaphor in many types of training. For example, if you’ve got a white board, you can often draw a visual metaphor on the board. However, this type of visual metaphor is perhaps a particular strength of e-learning courses. For more about visual similes and metaphors, read this interesting article by the well-known learning theorist Chopeta Lyons. Well, What’s an Analogy? If we know what a simile and an analogy are, you may still be wondering what an analogy is. Basically, an analogy is a comparison as well. Going back to our friends at Merriam-Webster, they say an analogy is "a comparison of two things based on their being alike in some way." So you can think of the word analogy as an "umbrella term" that includes both metaphors and similes, since they’re both types of comparisons based on things being alike in some way. In addition, some analogies can be thought of as longer, more extensive comparisons than similes and metaphors. One of our favorite instructional design bloggers, Connie Malamed, has a blog post about using analogies in training. Her article covers similar ground to this one, but has some unique aspects as well. You may want to check it out. Quick Quiz: Did you notice the metaphorical use of the word umbrella in the phrase umbrella term above? What’s an umbrella? Something you can put things under, right-like two people, for example? In the metaphor above, we used the phrase "umbrella term" to suggest you can put the concepts of metaphors and similes under the concept of analogies. So, just as two people can fit under an umbrella, the two concepts of similes and metaphors can fit under the concept of an analogy. Like all good training comparisons, we’ve taken some new information (the relationship between similes/metaphors and analogies) and compared it to some existing information (how two people can fit under an umbrella). Have you ever used the word "bucket" to refer to classifying information-such as "well, that goes in our safety bucket, and that goes in our production bucket?" If so, you’re made a similar type of metaphor. Your Experiences: Using Metaphors, Similes, and Analogies To Create Better Training We’d love to hear from you in the comments section below. What are some similes, metaphors, or analogies you’ve used in training? Did they work or didn’t they? Why did they work? Why didn’t they? Or, what are your own tips for creating effective ones? Obviously, it takes some thinking and some creativity. Who’s got some good ideas to share about how to come up with these? The post Using Metaphors, Similes, and Analogies to Create Better Training appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

If you’re new to safety, you may wonder what OSHA means by the phrase competent person. Or even how one becomes an OSHA competent person. In this article, we’re going to give you the straight skinny. We’ll start by giving you the general definition of the phrase that OSHA provides in 1926.32(f). But that’s not the full story, because some standards make additional requirements about competent persons. And so we’ll provide some links to help you find those standards. And finally, we’ll give you some more links for related OSHA Fact Sheets, e-Tools, Quick Cards, and more. With luck, this will give you any and all information you need about competent persons and the OSHA regulations. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that makes a library of health and safety e-learning training courses, a variety of learning management systems, and custom health and safety training solutions too. Contact us for more information or to set up a demo. Definition: Competent Person (OSHA) In 1926.32(f), competent person is defined as "one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them." As you probably know, 1926 is the set of OSHA regulations for the Construction industry. There is no equivalent definition for the phrase competent persons in 1910.2, the definitions at the beginning of the OSHA General Industry regulations, but OSHA seems to use the 1926 definition universally throughout their materials. Anyone have some thoughts or additional comments on that? I’d be curious. On OSHA’s Safety and Health Topics page dedicated to competent persons, OSHA puts the definition from the regulation into slightly more familiar language: "By way of training and/or experience, a competent person is knowledgeable of applicable standards, is capable of identifying workplace hazards relating to the specific operation, and has the authority to correct them. Some standards add additional specific requirements which must be met by the competent person." Standards With Additional Specific Requirements to Be Met By Competent Person If you notice that definition just above, OSHA mentions that some standards include additional specific requirements a person has to meet as a competent person. OSHA’s been kind enough to provide a list of those for you. Just click the following link for a list of the OSHA standards that use the phrase competent person. Please note the link above also takes you to some additional information OSHA has pulled together about mentions of competent persons in: Preambles to final rules Directives Standard interpretations Full disclosure: We started copying all those links and writing them down in this post, but it was maddeningly boring and we didn’t seem to be providing any value to you that OSHA didn’t already provide in their list. So, we hope you don’t hold it against us that we quit and gave up. Hats off to someone at OSHA for putting a lot of work into that list. Additional OSHA Documents or Resources Referring to Competent Persons OSHA has also provided a list with links to publications, e-tools, and similar resources that include additional information about competent persons as mentioned in specific regulations or work scenarios. We’ve provided those for you here. Scaffold Use in the Construction Industry Guide Suspended Scaffolds e-Tool Steel Erection Inspection e-Tool Residential Fall Protection Program Update Cranes and Derricks Wire Rope Inspection Fact Sheet Fall Prevention Training Guide Reducing Falls During Residential Construction Fact Sheet Job-Made Wooden Ladders Fact Sheet Powered Platforms Fact Sheet Working Safely in Trenches Quick Card Trenching and Excavation Safety Fact Sheet Your Experiences: Are You an OSHA Competent Person? So what about you? What are your experiences? Are you an OSHA competent person? If so, in what work context? Or, if you’re an employer, how difficult is it for you to identify and designated your competent persons? What issues are involved? If you’ve got something to share, the comments section below is waiting for you.   The post What Is an OSHA Competent Person? appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Some people in learning and development are old hands with e-learning authoring tools (also just called authoring tools). In some cases, perhaps, to the point that the authoring tool becomes a bit old hat. No, I doubt that. I just wanted to make an old hand/old hat joke. Because what e-learning authoring tools let you do is pretty amazing, pretty powerful, and pretty darned fun. On the other hand, though, almost every week I meet people in training almost who don’t use e-learning authoring tools and don’t even know what they are. Sure, once you explain what an e-learning authoring tool is, they can tell you that they figured there must be some software application that did something like that. But they’re always pretty interested to know more, too. So, especially for those who are new to e-learning authoring tools, we’ve put together this quick explanation. If we only whet your appetite and leave you with more questions, please use the comments section below. On the other hand, if you’re a authoring tool power user, we invite you to add your insights down below too. Let us know what your favorite ones are, and why, in particular. We’ll follow up this blog post by taking more "deep dive" views at various e-learning authoring tools and by creating an e-learning authoring tool comparison article at some point in the (hopefully near-term) future. Convergence Training is training solutions provider. We make many libraries of e-learning courses for job training and a series of learning management systems (LMSs) for companies of different sizes and in different industries. We also create custom training solutions for our customers and mobile device apps for performance support and other training-related needs. Contact us for more information or to set up a demo. Click to download our free 39-page Effective Manufacturing Training Guide. We’ve promised we’re going to tell you what an e-learning authoring tool is, and we will. But before we get started, we thought you’d like to know about two related resources we have for you: Blog Post Demonstrating How to Use an e-Learning Authoring Tool. This comprehensive post provides a step-by-step example of how to use an e-learning authoring tool to create your own e-learning course. It is full of helpful pictures, too. 30-Minute Webinar Demonstrating How to Use an e-Learning Authoring Tool. This webinar covers much of the same material that the blog post above does, but you can listen to a recorded voice instead of reading and you can see recorded "live action" including mouse clicks and such. OK, now, without any further ado, let’s get to the meat of the matter. What Is an Authoring Tool? Probably the simplest way to think of it is that an authoring tool is a software application that lets you create your own multimedia software titles. You COULD use an authoring tool to create an interactive multimedia element on a website. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen both the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times do just this. But, within training or learning & development, it’s more common to think of authoring tools as something you’d use to create a interactive multimedia training course. Or, to use a common term, an e-learning course/online course. That’s why I like to refer to them as e-learning authoring tools instead of just authoring tools. At least until we all know what we’re talking about. Do You Have To Be A Computer Programmer to Use An Authoring Tool? Nope. The cool thing about authoring tools is that you DON’T have to know how to write computer programming code to create your own course. They’ve kind of "built that into" the background of the authoring tools. All you do is click some buttons and point at some files and the authoring tool and the hidden computer programming behind it do the hard work for you. Or at least that bit of hard work for you. Of course, as we’ll see below, there are a variety of authoring tools on the market. Some are easier to use than others. Some that provide very limited features are also quite simple to use. Others that provide more power and flexibility also start to introduce more complexity for the user. But, in general, they’re all pretty easy to use. What Do You Have to Know To Use an Authoring Tool? There ARE a few things you need to know. Obviously, even if you don’t have to do any computer programming, you do have to learn how to use the authoring tool. But as I said before, most of them are pretty intuitive and easy to learn. In addition, the companies that make them do a pretty good job of helping you use their products. And there are lots of users groups at the company websites or on social media sites like LinkedIn that you can join and begin learning from people just like you. In addition, though, you really should know a few things about instructional design and/or training. That’s really where the hard work comes in-designing an effective learning experience. Check this out to learn more about instructional design and training: Free 39-page Guide to Effective Manufacturing Training And finally, it doesn’t hurt to know a little about graphic design and to be able to create some visuals. This isn’t necessary, and the programs help you a lot with that too, but it’s definitely a plus. Check out these articles for some tips about e-learning visuals: 25 Graphic Design Tips for e-Learning Matching Training Graphics to Training Content And while you’re at it, check out these articles about e-learning audio and/or written text: Tips for Writing Effective Training Materials Tips for Formatting Written Training Materials Can You Begin Creating an e-Learning Authoring Course by Starting With a PowerPoint Presentation? Yes. Many of these authoring tools are designed so you can create a lot of the materials in PowerPoint. Then you just open the PowerPoint presentation in your authoring tool and add interactivity. Check out that blog post we mentioned earlier that demonstrates how to make your own e-learning course to see an example of this. What Format(s) Do e-Learning Authoring Tools Publish To? e-Learning authoring tools allow you to publish the finished product in various different formats. Of course, the most common formats are SCORM, AICC, and Tin Can. These are e-learning standards that allow the e-learning course created with an authoring tool to be imported into a learning management system (LMS) and work correctly (or, in the case of Tin Can, into something like an LMS called a learning record system, or LRS). For example, all of the e-learning courses created by Convergence Training are created using an authoring tool. Of course, we have to do the hard work of creating all the stunning 3D-animation on our own. Here’s some additional information that may be helpful: What is SCORM? What is an LMS? In addition, though, you can export into other formats, including an executable (.EXE) file that you can launch and run from a computer or DVD and Flash, which you can then play from a webpage. For example, here are few things I created in an authoring tool, published in the Flash format, and put on the Convergence Training blog: Interactive Glossary of Terms in the Corrugated Industry Lockout/Tagout Word Game (kind of like the TV show "Wheel of Fortune") Free Hot Work Training Course Free Hierarchy of Controls Training Course Free Hazard Communication (HazCom)/GHS Training Course MSHA/Surface Mine Safety Training Manager’s Part 46 Self-Quiz While we’re chatting about publishing formats, check out this article about HTML5, too, which is becoming important in e-learning. Who Makes e-Learning Authoring Tools? Although we make LMSs and e-learning courses, we don’t make an authoring tool. We’re not trying to sell you something with this article. That said, there are a LOT of e-learning authoring tools out there. To my knowledge, here are some of the industry leaders, with links to webpages where you can learn more. Articulate Studio Articulate Storyline Adobe Captivate Lectora Publisher Lectora Snap iSpring Camtasia Studio Rapitivity Those are some of the big players in the market, but there are more. Here’s an even longer list of authoring tools on the market. Is One Authoring Tool Better Than The Others? No, not really. They each have their own merits. It’s best to figure out what you want to do with an authoring tool, then do some comparison shopping. That said, here’s one ranking, here’s another ranking, and here’s a comparison. How Much Do e-Learning Authoring Tools Cost? Again, this varies from product to product, but we’ve seen some freebies (we didn’t mention Screenr before but it’s worth bringing up here), some for as little as $99, and some that will set you back between $1,000-$1,500. But here’ s a hot tip for ya: Many if not all have free trial downloads that let you check out their product  before you buy. We’ve done that ourselves and benefited from it. Give this a shot if you want to find out what each does and what products fit your needs best. Your Turn: Your Questions or Opinions about Authoring Tools OK, that’s it from us. At least in this post. What about you? Do you have any questions about authoring tools? Or opinions to share? Lay ’em on us in the comments section below.                       The post What Is an e-Learning Authoring Tool? appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Are you thinking about getting your health and safety training program "online?" If so, you’ve come to the right place, because in this article, we’re going to explain what an online health and safety training program is and what it can do. You may find it’s bigger than you’re thinking right now. So with those beginnings, let’s get on topic, huh? Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that creates online training solutions-and more. We’ve got a large library of health and safety e-learning courses, a series of learning management systems (LMSs) to administer all types of training (not just e-learning), apps for mobile devices that can be used for training and performance support, custom training solutions, and more. Contact us for more information. "Online" Health and Safety Training Many people think of e-learning courses when they think of online health and safety training or of online training in general. And e-learning courses are part of the online training package. But it’s only one part. Let’s turn our attention to the different parts of online health and safety training, starting with something called a learning management system. From there we’ll move on to talk about different types of online training, including e-learning, checklist/task-based training, written training materials, and quizzes. What Is a Learning Management System (LMS) and How Can It Be Part of an Online Health and Safety Training Program? The first part of the online learning equation is a software application called a learning management system (LMS). You can use an LMS to administer your health and safety training program. That means doing things like: Assigning training to workers, including "one-and-done" training assignments and recurrent assignments for training that must be completed repeatedly Letting workers see the training assignments they’re responsible for completing Letting workers see their current complete/incomplete status on assigned training Providing workers the ability to enroll in optional training in addition to assigned training Letting workers view and complete some (but not all) assigned training online-including e-learning courses and training of other types as well Letting workers repeat training as a refresher if they wish Updating training materials to create new versions, creating a repository of all versions of training materials, and tracking which workers completed which versions Assessing learner’s understanding of training through online tests/quizzes and also through field-based assessments of job task performances Storing records of completed training Printing certificates for completed training Allowing reporting on completed training (and other training-related reporting) Automatically emailing reports to LMS administrators And more… So in short, an LMS is a software system that completely automates many time-consuming tasks related to training and that makes other training-related tasks much easier and simpler to perform. The basic idea isn’t rocket science and you already use computer systems to save time and make your life easier in many other parts of your work life and your life at home. Why not use computers to save you money and time while administering your safety and health training, too? The image below shows you what an LMS looks like to the average employee who logs in to view/complete his or her assigned health and safety training. And here’s what an LMS looks like to health and safety training managers who use the LMS to administer training. On the screen below, you see all the various training activities loaded into the system or created directly in the system. Note there are computer-based courses (e-learning) as well as other forms of training, including written documents and instructor-led classes. To learn more about LMSs and how they can be used for training, check some of the articles below: What Is a Learning Management System (LMS)? Choosing an LMS: How To Get It Right The First Time Free Downloadable LMS Evaluation Checklist Better Safety Training with an LMS and e-Learning Courses Combining OJT With Your LMS LMSs and Onboarding New Employees Is an LMS Only Good for Online Learning/e-Learning Courses? Quick Answer-Nope Learning Management Systems, Document Control, and Management of Change Processes Types of Training You Can Deliver Online Via an LMS Now that you know what an LMS is and have a general idea of how you can use an LMS as part of an online health and safety training program, let’s turn our attention to the "type" of training you can use with an LMS. The short answer is: all of it. e-Learning courses, instructor-led training, field-based/task-based training incorporating checklists, written training materials, and more. In some cases, such as e-learning, you can use the LMS to do just about everything: assign, deliver, track completion, run reports, etc. In other cases, such as instructor-led training, you can’t deliver the training online via the LMS, but you can still use the LMS to assign, track completion, and run reports. In the sections below, we’ll focus on four types of training you can deliver to your employees online: e-Learning courses Online task-based training incorporating checklists Written training materials Quizzes e-Learning Courses Maybe you know these as e-learning courses, or as CBTs, or by yet another name. But when most people think of online training, this is what they’re thinking of. They’re courses delivered online and focused on specific training topics. e-Learning courses typically have many or all of these features: Visual images, audio narration, and written audio script to provide training in a wide variety of information forms, helping to support the learning needs of as many employees as possible Screen navigation and video play/pause/replay controls to allow your employees to proceed through training at their own preferred training pace Unscored questions to reinforce key points to employees and provide an opportunity for practice and feedback Scored tests to assess the employee’s understanding on a pass/fail basis The ability to review a course at any time, 24/7, as a refresher You’ve probably seen health and safety e-learning courses before, but here’s one example-a still image from an e-learning course about forklift safety that illustrates the "stability triangle." Here’s a short video sample from the same forklift safety e-learning course: Looking for more examples? Check our health and safety training library and our mining safety library. e-Learning courses offer lots of benefits for your training, including: In some cases, e-learning provides more effective training than other training methods. This can be because of e-learning’s ability to deliver sophisticated visuals, for example. e-Learning gives your workers more control and flexibility over things like the pace of training. At times when training delivered in different methods is equally effective, e-learning may be the most cost-effective training solution when training can be delivered equally effectively in various training methods. e-Learning can be easier to use when delivering training to a large workfoce on a "just-in-time" basis. e-Learning makes it easier for workers to access and view training again for periodic refreshers. e-Learning makes it easier to deliver a standard, consistent training message than (for example) instructor-led training. You probably know you can buy e-learning courses from training providers. You can get them "off the shelf" or have them made custom for your training needs. But did you know you can also make your own e-learning courses for health and safety training? It’s true and it’s easy enough. Want to know how? Here are some helpful resources: An article that shows you how to create your own e-learning course A webinar that shows you how to create your own e-learning course Well, that’s a lot about e-learning, but  if you’re still curious, check some of the articles below to learn more about e-learning and health and safety training. Better Safety Training with e-Learning and an LMS Using Visuals for Better Safety Training 25 Graphic Design Tips for Better e-Learning e-Learning or DVD? What’s Better? Online Courses for MSHA Part 46 New Miner Training "Chunking" for Improved Mining Safety Training e-Learning for Standard, Consistent Training Messages Using Visuals for Better Mining Safety Training Online Training for Site-Specific, Task-Based Procedural Training (Job Skill Training) Although e-learning courses can be a great addition to your online health and safety training solution, they’re not the only type of online training you can use within an LMS. For example, many work places have to train workers on the correct and/or safe way to perform certain job skills or procedures. One handy way to do this is with an online "checklist"-type of tool. You can use the checklist to teach a procedure to a worker and/or to later evaluate if the worker is performing the procedure in a proper, safe manner. If you work in manufacturing or industry, you probably are familiar with this type of training even if you don’t do it online. And if you’re part of the "lean manufacturing" world, you probably also know this basic idea from the Training Within Industry Job Instruction (JI) method of teaching job skills. Here’s an example of a "Tasklist" below. It was created directly inside an LMS with tools that come built-into the LMS. It’s a simple safety-based procedural skill-how to operate a fire extinguisher using the PASS method. This can be assigned to a worker online. The worker can view the procedure that he/she has been assigned and all the steps. You can even add images and/or video files illustrating how to perform each step if you wish. You’ll note that there’s a place where an instructor can "check the worker off" for each step in the process. These can be used so that an instructor can take the worker out into the field and have the worker perform each step while the instructor evaluates the worker’s performance. If you want, you can create the Tasklist so it requires dual check-offs from the worker and the instructor, and you can even use the LMS to capture signatures from both. Click here to read more articles about checklists, job training, and learning management systems: Checklists and LMSs Atul Gawande’s Book "The Checklist Manifesto" Free PSM Compliance Checklist Free Employee Silica Exposure Checklist Free Portable Ladder Safety Checklists Free Powered Industrial Trucks Operational and Safety Checklists Free Machine Guarding Checklists Written Materials (Such as SOPs, Policies, and PowerPoints) as Part of Your Online Health and Safety Training Program You can also use written materials as part of your online health and safety training program. For example, below is a PDF about the proper use of respirators. This could be assigned to workers. It would then be their responsibility to read the document. There’s even a place where they can check off, acknowledging that they have read and understood it. Self-Created Online Quizzes as Part of Your Online Health and Safety Training Program Another aspect of "online health and safety training" is the ability to create your own online quizzes, assign them to workers, and have them completed through the LMS online. This allows you to create your own, entirely site-specific quizzes that match the health and safety training requirements at your work. You write the questions, you mark the correct answers, you write the feedback for people who get the answer correct or incorrect, and you set the passing score. Conclusion: Online Health and Safety Training Is More Than Just e-Learning By now we hope you’ve got a better idea of what an online health and safety training solution can do. Maybe one or two things caught you by surprise? Maybe pleasantly? The LMS allows you to automate many of the functions you’re doing manually today. Say goodbye to all the scheduling logistics, the manual creation of training records, storing records in multiple locations, trying to keep track of training that must be taken repeatedly, paper-based tests, and more. You also saw four different ways an LMS can deliver training materials, through e-learning, field-based tasklists, online quizzes, and even written materials (in formats like PDF and PowerPoint). And we only mentioned, but didn’t go into detail, how the LMS can help you administer training that doesn’t occur online, such as instructor-led training. You can notify assigned learners and inform them of the time and location, allow them to download an agenda or pre-class reading material before they arrive, grant them credit for attending, store completion records, run reports, and more. Let us know if you’ve got any questions. You can use the comments field below or just contact us with any questions or to set up a demo. Got another two minutes? Check out our Enterprise LMS Overview video. The post What is Online Health and Safety Training Really, and What Can it Do? appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

OSHA recommends that every workplace set up a Safety and Health Management program. The fact that OSHA says it’s a good idea is a pretty persuasive reason to do it, we think. (Along those lines, you may be interested in this proposed rule for safety and health management programs from OSHA-a hat tip to Troy J. Gonyon for pointing this out to me on LinkedIn.) But in addition, creating a safety and health management program also decreases incident rates, including injuries and illnesses. And that’s good. And health and safety management programs also have a financial benefit, saving companies money. So win/win/win, right? In this article, we’ll explain more fully some of the reasons for having a safety and health management program that we just introduced above. Then we’ll explain the features of a safety and health management system. And we’ll include information and helpful links to other resources that can help you create, implement, and maintain your safety and health management program. By the time you’re done reading this, you’ll have enough information to get moving in a positive direction, or maybe add some additional tweaks to your existing health and safety management program. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that makes a library of health and safety e-learning training courses, a variety of learning management systems, and custom health and safety training solutions too. Contact us for more information or to set up a demo. Note: Much of the information in this article is drawn from OSHA’s Safety and Health Management Systems e-tool, which is a great resource and which itself includes a lot of links to other great safety and health resources. Check it out! What Is a Safety and Health Management Program? According to OSHA: "A safety and health management system is a proactive, collaborative process to find and fix workplace hazards before employees are injured or become ill. The benefits of implementing safety and health management systems include protecting workers, saving money, and making all your hazard-specific programs more effective. " Sounds good, right? Is There a Need for Safety and Health Management Programs? Yes. According to OSHA, almost 50 people are injured on the job EVERY MINUTE of the 40-hour work week. Think about that-that’s a lot! Actually, that’s so much we figured we’d do some math on that. It turns out we’re talking about 36,000 injuries on the job every week, or 1,872,000 injuries on the job each year. If all those injured people had to move together to form a new city, they’d create the fifth biggest city in the United States-just behind Houston and ahead of Philadelphia. The same OSHA document explains that 17 workers day on the job every day. Again, take a look at that number. Each day, 17 people never come home from work. Imagine what this does to their families, friends, and loved ones. Again, we did some additional math with that one. That works out to 85 deaths on the job per week, or 4,420 deaths on the job each year. The town I grew up in had about 10,000 people, so that’s about half of my home town. Or to put that a different way, just under 3,000 people died on 9-11, which means every year more people die at work in America than the number of people who died on 9-11. That’s sobering when you think of it that way. So yeah, there’s a need for safety and health management programs at work. That seems obvious enough. What Are The Benefits of Having a Safety and Health Management Program at Work? By creating a safety and health management program at work, you’ll reap many benefits. Let’s look at some now. Fewer Injuries and Illnesses This one is a no-brainer. Let’s look at a few statistics from OSHA to back to this: "Since OSHA was created 28 years ago, workplace fatalities have been cut in half. Occupational injury and illness rates have been declining for the past five years. In 1997, they dropped to the lowest level since the U.S. began collecting this information." Cutting workplace injuries fatalities in half is pretty impressive. And so are year-after-year declines of injuries and illnesses and lowest-ever-levels since data has been collected. And how about this one? "Our premier partnership, the Voluntary Protection Program continues to pay big dividends. Today [at] more than 500 workplaces, representing 180 industries….injury rates are 50 percent below the average for their industries." Again, 50% is significant and worth noting. Financial Return on Investment (ROI) According to OSHA, studies have shown that every dollar ($1) invested in health and safety has an ROI of $4-6. You’d jump at that if a bank were offering that kind of return for your own money. Why not make the same no-brainer investment in health and safety? And how about this fact from OSHA: "Our premier partnership, the Voluntary Protection Program, continues to pay big dividends. Today more than 500 workplaces, representing 180 industries, save $110 million each year [due to their participation]." $110 million is nothing to sneeze at. You  might note that’s spread amongst 500 workplaces and think maybe that’s not so much, but doing a little math you see that comes out to $220,000 per workplace, which against isn’t sneeze-worthy. Even eliminating one common cause of injuries would make a major difference. Again, let’s look at some facts from OSHA: "Nearly one-third of all serious occupational injuries and illnesses stem from overexertion or repetitive motion. These are disabling, expensive injuries. They cost our economy as much as $20 billion in direct costs and billions more in indirect costs." Twenty billion is a lot of money. For example, there are just short of 320 million people in the United States. That means if we could eliminate occupational injuries resulting from overexertion or repetitive motion, we’d save about $62.50 for every person in the United States. Need some more convincing? OSHA’s Safety Pays website provides some great information. Here’s how OSHA describes it: "OSHA’s "$afety Pays" program can help employers assess the impact of occupational injuries and illnesses on their profitability. This program uses a company’s profit margin, the average costs of an injury or illness, and an indirect cost multiplier to project the amount of sales a company would need to cover those costs. The program is intended as a tool to raise awareness of how occupational injuries and illnesses can impact a company’s profitability…" Components of an Effective Safety and Health Management Program According to OSHA, an effective safety and health management program has four components: Management leadership and employee involvement Analysis of worksite to identify hazards Hazard prevention and control to protect workers from hazards Safety and health training All four of these pieces have to be in place for the system to work. If just one piece of the system is broken or absent, the entire system will suffer as a result. Click here to see an example of a robust safety and health program. Let’s go on to look at each of the four sections in more detail. Safety & Health Management Program Component 1: Management Leadership and Employee Involvement Both management and the rank-and-file employees must be committed to creating and sustaining a safety and health culture if it’s going to work. Neither side can do it on their own, and the system will collapse if one side doesn’t join in. According to OSHA, here are some ways for management to demonstrate its commitment and for workers to be involved: Management should write a company safety and health policy The safety and health policy should be posted in public for all employees to see Employees should be involved in creating policy on safety and health issues Both sides should play an active role in safety activities The company should hold meetings that focus on employee health and safety All members of management and rank-and-file workers should follow all safety and health rules Time, effort, and money should be invested in the safety and health program-it doesn’t happen on its own Let’s look at some additional aspects of manager and employee involvement next. Management Leadership of the Safety and Health Program Without leadership from management, the safety and health program is doomed to fail. Management provides a motivating force and, equally importantly, resources for the program. Management must truly consider the health and safety of workers to be a core value of the company, and this concern for safety and health must be demonstrated in all actions of the company. Management should ask itself if their safety and health system includes: The reasons why the safety and health program was created The goal for the safety and health program The way to reach the goal Here’s an OSHA example of a safety and health policy statement. Here’s an OSHA example of a strategic plan for health and safety. Other ways to effectively lead the safety and health program include: Visible involvement of management in safety and health issues Assigning responsibility for safety and health issues to specific personnel Communicating those assignments clearly Providing adequate authority and resources to people in charge of safety and health Holding people in charge of safety and health accountable for safety and heatlh Creating a method for workers to report hazards Explaining to workers how to report hazards and encouraging them to do so Encouraging workers to report near-misses, injuries, illnesses, and other incidents Never acting to discourage reporting of hazards, near-misses, injuries, illnesses, or other incidents Making Sure Management’s Role in Safety and Health Is Apparent to Workers If workers don’t see management’s involvement in safety and health, and the importance management places on safety and health, things will go south quickly. Here are some ways for management to make sure workers see and believe they’re involved and care: Be seen on the floor in informal safety activities and formal safety inspections, etc. Make yourself accessible to workers on health and safety issues Lead by example, always knowing and following health and safety rules Be involved in and actively participate in the safety and health committee, meetings, etc. Now let’s turn our attention to the other half of the equation-employee involvement. Here’s an OSHA guide for demonstrating management leadership of safety and health program. Employee Involvement in Safety and Health Program You can’t have a safe workplace unless the employees can develop and express their buy-in to safety and health. This includes their own health and also the health of all other workers (plus contractors, temps, visitors, vendors, etc). Why Should Employees Be Involved in Safety and Health Management? Some companies may resist including employees in safety and health management, but that’s the wrong way to go about it. Here’s why: The rank-and-file workers are the ones who interact most closely with health and safety hazards. As a result, they have the most to win from an effective health and safety training program. Including more people leads to better results. More eyes, more brains, more solutions, etc. People are more likely to participate in a program they helped to create. On the flip-side, they’re less likely to participate if they feel it’s a "top-down" approach. Including workers makes them feel heard and appreciated. This in turn makes them more satisfied and productive workers. How Can Employees Be Involved In Health and Safety Management? Here are some ways that employees can participate in health and safety management: Participating in worksite safety inspections Performing job hazard analyses (JHAs or JSAs) Helping to prepare safe work practices Helping to eliminate workplace hazards or control workplace hazards Helping to develop and update safety and health rules Helping to train new and current employees on health and safety issues Being encouraged to report hazards Being allowed to fix hazards that are within their means to fix Being encouraged to provide feedback to coworkers who are working unsafely or are unaware of hazards (gently, of course) Being included in change-analysis teams when new equipment or processes are introduced Here’s an OSHA document explaining how employees can identify safety and health problems at the workplace. Here’s a short sample from the Building a Safety Culture e-learning toolbox talk by Convergence Training and Caterpillar. Safety and Health Management Programs: Responsibility, Authority, and Accountability It’s important to assign responsibility and authority for different aspects of the health and safety management program to various people. In addition, though, it’s important to make people accountable for the safety and health management program. According to OSHA, being accountable means "your performance is measured in relation to standards or goals that result in certain positive or negative consequences." When people-both managers and employees-are accountable for aspects of the safety and health program, they are more likely to work hard to find solutions to safety and health problems. And, they’re less likely to create obstructions. Here are some tips for creating accountability in your safety and health management program: Create company policies, procedures, and rules that make performance standards related to safety and health clear Provide all resources needed to meet those standards-a safe and healthy workplace, effective health and safety training, appropriate oversite of work operations. Create and communicate to workers a system by which performance can be measured and judged acceptable or not acceptable Create positive and negative consequences for accountability and make these known in advance Apply these rules and standards at all levels of the organization Click to read more about responsibility, authority, and accountability for health and safety management. Here’s an OSHA checklist regarding responsibility, authoring, and accountability for health and safety management. Safety and Health Program Yearly Audits and Reviews Your company’s health and safety management program should be reviewed every year. The purpose, of course, is to make sure it is adequately protecting against workplace hazards. The audit program does this by seeing if polices and procedures were implemented and, if so, if they may their objectives. This information can then be used to modify the program if necessary in the next year. OSHA provides a lot of helpful information on the yearly safety and health management audits here. Safety & Health Management Program Component 2: Analysis of Worksite to Identify Hazards The second necessary component of a safety and health management program is an ongoing process of analyzing the workplace to identify hazards. The purpose of this is to identify hazards at the workplace so they can later be eliminated or controlled. The worksite hazard analysis begins with a comprehensive, baseline hazard survey. Then, periodic updates should be performed. Conducting the Worksite Analysis OSHA provides these suggestions for conducting a worksite analysis: Become aware of the hazards that exist in your industry Create safety teams at work Create a system for employees to report hazards Encourage employees to report hazards using that system Have properly trained personnel conduct inspections of the worksite and correct hazards Ensure that any process changes or new systems are reviewed for hazards Get assistance from safety and health experts (insurance companies, consultants, etc.) Request a free OSHA consultant visit to get help from the experts In addition, OSHA recommends these four actions as cornerstones of your worksite analysis: Comprehensive surveys Change analysis/analyses Hazard analysis/analyses Safety and health inspections We’ll look at each in more detail below. Comprehensive Surveys This should include (at least): A survey of noise levels Review of the respirator program Review of ergonomic risk factors Inventory of chemicals and hazardous materials Review of HazCom program Analysis of air samples for industrial hygiene purposes Small businesses can get OSHA-funded, state-run consultants to visit their site and perform a comprehensive health and safety survey at no cost. Worker’s comp carries and insurance companies are other options for this. And of course, there are private consultants in this business as well. Larger companies most likely have internal staff to handle this. Here’s a safety and health inspection worksheet from OSHA. Change Analyses Before something new happens at the workplace, analyze it to identify any potential hazards. This is true of: New equipment New/different materials New processes New buildings New staffing Here’s a helpful process overview template from OSHA. Hazard Analyses At the simple end of the spectrum, this can involved performing a job hazard analysis (JHA). Want some free help? Download this free How to Perform a JHA Guide. Here’s a short sample of the Job Hazard Analysis e-learning course by Convergence Training. For more complicated jobs with more complex risks, consider using the following techniques: What-if checklist Hazard and operability study Failure mode and effect analysis Fault tree analysis Here’s further information from OSHA about these hazard analysis techniques. Safety and Health Inspections Your company should periodically perform routine health and safety inspections. The point is to identify hazards missed at other stages. These are generally done on a weekly basis. In addition, daily inspections of the work area should also be performed. Routine site safety and health inspections are designed to catch hazards missed at other stages. This type of inspection should be done at regular intervals, generally on a weekly basis. In addition, procedures should be established that provide a daily inspection of the work area. It’s a good idea to create a checklist designed for this (or get one that’s already been created). Base the checklist on: Past problems/hazards Standards that apply to your industry Input regarding safety and health from all employees Your company’s safety policies, procedures, rules, and practices Keep the following in mind about these inspections: They should cover ever part of the worksite They must be done at regular intervals (weekly and daily, for example) They must be done by people trained to recognize and control hazards Hazards that are identified must be tracked through to correction/control of the hazard Information from these inspections should be used to improve the hazard prevention and control program Here’s a safety and health inspection worksheet from OSHA. Dealing with Hazards That Escape Safety and Health Program Controls OSHA suggests the following tools for making sure identified and controlled hazards stay controlled and new hazards don’t arise or are controlled when they do: Employee hazard reporting Accident and incident investigations Analysis of injury and illness trends Let’s look at each in more detail. Employee Hazard Reporting Your company should not only set up a system for employees to report hazards. You should also make it clear how to use that system to all employees, and encourage employees to use it. It’s a good idea to provide several different ways to report hazards. This will allow employees who may be uncomfortable reporting a hazard one way to do it another. Remember, the ultimate goal is just to get the hazards reported so you can correct them. Some possible hazard reporting methods to consider include: Supervisor chain of command Safety and health committee member Voice mail Suggestion box Email Effective hazard reporting systems must include: A policy that actively encourages employees to report hazards Appropriate and timely responses to the employee making the report (unless the report is anonymous, in which case responses could be made publicly) Time and appropriate correct action when necessary A system to track hazard reports and hazard corrections Use of that hazard reporting/correcting system Absolute protection of employees reporting hazards from any negative consequences OSHA has some nice examples of employee  hazard reporting forms. Here is one and is a second. And here’s an example worker safety suggestion form from OSHA. Accident and Incident Investigations In the events that an incident does occur, an accident/incident investigation is necessary. This includes near-misses as well as injuries, illnesses, and property damage. You can use the information from that investigation to correct hazards so another incident won’t happen again. During the investigation, ask these six key questions: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Remember that incident investigations should remain positive, focus on finding the root cause, and are not intended to assign blame. Here’s a nice guide to performing an incident investigation from the National Safety Council. And here’s an accident investigation tips and tools document from OSHA. Analysis of  Injury and Illness Trends Finally, it’s important to analyze injury and illness trends over time to identify patterns. Identifying common/repeat causes of injuries, illnesses, and near-misses allow you to identify hazards, control them, and prevent future incidents. One place to start is by looking at your OSHA injury and illness forms. You can also check hazard inspection records and employee  hazard reports. The final action recommended under Worksite Analysis is analysis of injury and illness trends over time, so that patterns with common causes can be identified and prevented. Review of the OSHA injury and illness forms is the most common form of pattern analysis, but other records of hazards can be analyzed for patterns. Examples are inspection records and employee hazard reporting records. Safety & Health Management Program Component 3: Hazard Prevention and Control to Protect Workers Once your safety and health management program is in place, it’s important to continually analyze the work area to keep hazards in check and keep workers safe. Here are some ways to do this: Inspect and maintain equipment thoroughly and on a regular basis Make sure all hazard identification and correction procedures are in place Make sure everyone knows how to use PPE, how to main it, and is in fact using it appropriately Make sure everyone knows and follows established safe work procedures Make sure that, when needed, your worksite has a medical program appropriate for your facility Continually review the work environment and work practices to control or prevent workplace hazards Hazard Prevention and Control: The Hierarchy of Controls and More Identified hazards should be controlled using the hierarchy of controls and with other methods. The hierarchy of controls includes the following: Engineering controls Safe work practices Administrative controls PPE Let’s look at each. Remember that in many cases you’ll wind up using more than one control (such as an engineering control and PPE). Read more about the Hierarchy of Controls and download our free Hierarchy of Controls e-learning course. Engineering Controls Always try an engineering control first. The basic idea of an engineering control is to design the work environment and the job to eliminate hazards or reduce exposure to hazards. Here are some tips from OSHA regarding engineering controls: If possible, design the facility, equipment, or process to eliminate the hazard Next, if possible, try to substitute something that is less hazardous If removal or substitution is not possible, try enclosing the hazard If enclosure is not possible, try guards, barriers, and/or ventilation Safe Work Practices After trying engineering controls, turn to safe work practices. Safe work practices are general workplace rules and other rules specific to given operations, processes, or tasks. OSHA’s identified some cases in work safe work practices are necessary. Here’s their list: Respiratory Protection [29 CFR 1910.134]. Lockout/Tagout [29 CFR 1910.147]. Confined Space Entry [29 CFR 1910.146]. Hazard Communication [29 CFR 1910.1200, 29 CFR 1926.59]. Blood borne Pathogens [29 CFR 1910.1030]. Hearing Conservation [29 CFR 1910.95]. Laboratory Chemical Hygiene [29 CFR 1910.1450]. Remember that this list is not complete. Consult specific OSHA standards for more information. Administrative Controls Some people consider safe work practices (above) to be a type of administrative control, but OSHA breaks them out separately. OSHA uses the term administrative control to mean "other measures aimed at reducing employee exposure to hazards." Administrative controls can include things like: Additional relief workers Shorter job shifts in area where hazard is present Rotation of workers Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Personal protective equipment, or PPE, includes things like respirators, hard hats, ear plugs, and similar protective gear. If a hazard isn’t fully control using engineering controls, safe work practices, and administrative controls, then PPE should be used. But PPE should ONLY be used as a last resort. Never turn to PPE before considering the other controls. OSHA’s standard 1910 Subpart I includes specific requirements for PPE-check it out. Here’s an OSHA document on PPE selection and use. Here’s a short sample of the PPE e-learning course by Convergence Training. PPE Hazard Assessment and Training This process begins with an understanding of the hazards at the workplace for which PPE is required. From there, the next step is an in-depth evaluation of the PPE itself, including its proper use, the protection it offers, and its limits. And from there, it moves on to the creation of standard operating procedures employees should follow when using PPE, training employees on the limits of PPE, and training them how to  couse and maintain PPE properly. It’s very important that employees receive proper hazard awareness training before being given and told to use PPE. They must understand that the PPE does not remove the hazard, and that if the PPE fails, the employee will be exposed to the hazard. Before we leave the topic of he hierarchy of controls and move on to the next section, here’s an e-learning course about the hierarchy of controls created by the Convergence Training blog team. Tracking Hazard Corrections When hazards are identified, they must be corrected. The best way to ensure that this happens is to set up a system to ensure identified hazards do indeed get corrected. Different companies have different ways of doing this. Considering "building this in" to forms for inspection reports, incident investigation reports, and employee hazard reports. Computerized systems can also be used for this purpose. Preventive Maintenance Systems Preventive maintenance of machines and equipment reduces new hazards (from malfunctioning equipment) and helps to ensure that existing controls stay in place and continue to work. It’s important to schedule regular, periodic maintenance and to document the maintenance. The goal, of course, is to perform maintenance before repairs or replacements are necessary. This time intervals for different equipment may vary as a result. Good preventive maintenance plays a major role in ensuring that hazard controls continue to function effectively. It also keeps new hazards from arising due to equipment malfunction. Some OSHA standards require that preventive maintenance be performed. For example, 29 CFR 1910.179 makes just such a requirement for overhead and gantry cranes. Emergency Preparation A workplace that is safe and free from hazards may not be equally safe during emergencies. Instead, the emergency may cause new hazards to arise. This may happen as a result of things like: Floods Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Train and/or plane accidents Workplace violence Terrorism Etc. Always consider all emergencies that could occur and make plans for the best way to ensure health and safety if they should occur. OSHA offers the following items to consider: Create a list of all possible emergencies Place actions to reduce the impact of each emergency Inform employees of the plans and provide proper emergency training Hold emergency drills Here’s an OSHA document on emergency preparedness. Medical Programs The medical program at a company will depend on many factors, including: The size of company Processes and materials Hazards present Type of facilities Number of workers at the facility Characteristics of the workforce Location of facility in terms of proximity to health care facilities The medical program may be in-house or made through arrangements  through a local medical clinic. See 29 CFR 1910.151(b) for first aid requirements and 29 CFR 1910.1030 for the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard. Here’s an OSHA document on providing emergency medical care. Safety & Health Management Program Component 4: Safety and Health Training OSHA believes that: Safety and health training is vital to every work place Safety and health training is most effective when it’s integrated into a company’s overall training in performance requirements and job practices The materials covered in a company’s health and safety training and the methods of training presentation should reflect the unique needs and characteristics of the company’s workforce. AS a result, it’s important to perform a needs analysis early in the process. Five Principles of Effective Safety and Health Training OSHA suggests you follow these five principles of effective health and safety training: Employees should understand the purpose of the training Organize information so the training is most effective Allow employees to immediately practice and apply new skills and knowledge As employees practice, provide helpful feedback Provide training in a variety of methods Blended Learning for Safety Training Consider a blended learning solution that makes use of training materials of different "types" or "methods," including: Instructor-led On-the-job instruction/shadowing/following/mentoring Task-based instruction Written training materials e-Learning courses Videos More Click here to read more about blended learning solutions (scroll down to the bottom of that article to get our free downloadable guide to blended learning). Click here to read more about effective health and safety training from our guide to complying with ANSI Z490.1, the national standard for effective EHS training. Who Needs Safety & Health Training? All employees do. However, place a special emphasis on: New hires Contractor workers Workers in high-risk areas Workers who have to wear PPE Managers and supervisors should also be included in the health and safety training plan. Health and safety training for managers should emphasize: The importance of their role in providing visible support for the safety and health program Setting a good safety and health example for all workers Health and safety training necessary to keep them safe at work Health and safety training for supervisors should include: Training on company policies and procedures (for safety and health) Hazard detection and control Accident investigation Handling emergencies How to train and reinforce training Training necessary to keep them safe and healthy at work Also make sure to provide appropriate health and safety training to long-term workers whose jobs have changed or who will be working with new processes. Finally, don’t forget to provide refresher training, especially for responding to emergencies. Basic Safety and Health Training for Everyone Proper health and safety training can help to everyone at your company develop the knowledge and skills they need to understand hazards at the workplace and to follow safe working procedures. In addition, everyone in the workplace should receive health and safety training on basic topics including: What to do in the event of a fire or other emergency When and where PPE is required The types of chemicals at the workplace The hazards associated with those chemicals The precautions for working with those chemicals safely Other health and safety training to consider includes: Orientation training for site workers and contracts JSAs, SOPs, and other hazard recognition training Training required by OSHA standards, including the Process Safety Management standard Training for emergency response people Accident investigation training Emergency drills And in addition to that, workers should receive additional health and safety training based on the job tasks they perform. Here’s a list of OSHA standards that make training requirements. Click here to see a list of health and safety e-learning courses. Evaluate Safety and Health Training Just providing health and safety training isn’t enough. Instead, you’ve got to evaluate it so you know if it’s effective or not. And you should begin planning for the evaluation even when you’re first designing the training. You can then use the evaluation to fine tune your training if necessary. Click here to read more about evaluating safety and health training (from a guide to ANSI Z490.1, the national standard for effective health and safety training). Safety and Health Training Records Always keep and store training records to ensure people receive proper safety training. Read more about documenting and keeping records of health and safety training in our guide to ANSI Z490.1, the national standard for effective EHS training. Here’s an OSHA example of an employee safety and health training record. Here’s an OSHA example of a safety meeting record. Click to lean more about how an LMS can help with your safety and health training and your safety and health training records. Conclusion: Safety and Health Management Programs Well, that was a bit of information, but hopefully it was helpful. Here are some additional resources to get you moving forward: Printable checklist to review your safety and health management program. Online tool to evaluate your health and safety training management program.   The post What Is a Safety and Health Management Program? appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Are you involved in mine safety training, perhaps for MSHA’s Part 46 and/or Part 48 safety training requirement? If so, what does your mining safety training program look like today? How do you deliver your training? Is it effective? Do you have enough time to do it all? And how do you keep on top of things like making sure all new employees complete their training in the first 90 days, or that all miners get their annual refresher training on time? And while we’re at it, how do you create and store all your records of training, run reports on that training, and create the training plan and other documentation required by MSHA? If  you’re like a lot of people, you struggle to do all this, or to do all this well. Or maybe you’re doing it all and doing it all well, but you recognize that you could still improve. If that’s you, this article may be of interest to you. In it, we’re going to show you how some online training tools can help make your mining safety training program more effective while also reducing the amount of time you have to spend on clerical, organization, and recordkeeping tasks. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that makes a series of mining safety e-learning courses, many other health and safety training e-learning courses, a learning management system (LMS) designed specially for compliance with MSHA Part 46 training requirements, and more. Contact us for additional information, to view samples of our courses, and to set up a demo of our MSHA LMS. Or why not start by downloading our free guide to online MSHA Part 46 Training? Online MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 Training: Does MSHA Allow It? One of the first questions people ask us is "Does MSHA allow online training to be used for Part 46 and/or Part 48?" And the short answer is: yes. Read this article to learn more about MSHA’s requirements, what online MSHA safety training can mean, and what it can include. Is Online Training Allowed for MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 Compliance? How Can I Use Online Training Solutions for MSHA Part 46 Compliance? OK, so now that you know you CAN use online training for MSHA compliance training, let’s take a closer look at how you can use it for Part 46. Here’s a complete guide of everything you need to know about online training solutions for MSHA Part 46 and how they can be an effective, time-saving, and cost-cutting part of your Part 46 training solution. Online MSHA Part 46 Training Compliance: The Ultimate Guide Online e-Learning Courses for MSHA Part 46’s New Miner Training Program Need some examples of how you can use off-the-shelf mining safety e-learning courses for your mining safety training? Here are some examples of e-learning courses you can use to help you satisfy the MSHA Part 46 New Miner training requirement. Online Courses for the MSHA Part 46 New Miner Training Program What Is Online Health and Safety Training, Really, What It Can Do, and How It Can Help  You Still not sure what "online health and safety training" means? Still think it just means e-learning courses? If so, check out this article. You’ll learn that yes, you can use e-learning courses as part of your online mining safety training program, but you can also use instructor-led training, task-based training, online recordkeeping, and more. What is Online Health and Safety Training Really, and What Can it Do? More About Using a "Blended Learning" Approach as Part of Your Online MSHA Safety Training Program Learning experts talk a lot about the value of "blended learning" approaches. That means delivering training in more than just one format. For example, using e-learning; instructor-led training; written training materials; and in-the-field, task-based training. Read more about how you can use an online system to deliver and administer a blended learning solution for MSHA safety training. Blended Learning Best Practices for Job Training Or, download our free guide to blended learning. Free Beginner’s Guide to Blended Learning How Can a Learning Management System Help You With MSHA Part 46 Training? Good question. And we’ve got a few answers. First, start by checking out this overview of LMSs and e-Learning courses in safety training. Better Safety Training with an LMS and e-Learning Courses Next, consider how much easier an LMS can make your new employee onboarding. In the context of mining safety, that will include your new miner training, newly hired experienced miner training, and site-specific hazard awareness training for non-mining employees. Using an LMS for New-Employee Onboarding Training Also: Check out this short video that demonstrates the Convergence Training MSHA LMS. How Can e-Learning Courses Help Me With My MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 Training? We learn by doing. You know that. But we also learn by seeing-we’re hugely visuals creatures, and much of what we learn comes to us through our eyes. And visuals is one of the things that e-learning courses excel at. Read more about using e-learning courses to provide better visuals and more effective mine safety training. Better Mining Safety Training Through Better Visuals In addition, e-learning courses take advantage of the instructional design technique known as "chunking" to help miners remember and learn more effectively. Read more about chunking training materials for mining safety training. Chunking Mining Safety Training Another thing that e-learning courses make easier is helping to make sure you (or your trainers) deliver the exact same, consistent, standard training message to each employee every time. Or at least until you decide you want to change the message. Read more about using e-learning courses to provide standard, consistent training messages. e-Learning for Standard, Consistent Training Message Check out this sample of an e-learning course  on mining safety that you could use for your Part 46 training program. What If I Want to Make My Own e-Learning Courses for Site-Specific Information? But what if you can’t do everything with off-the-shelf e-learning courses? Sure, you can use instructor-led, written materials, and other training formats. BUT, you may also decide to make the little leap involved in becoming an e-learning course creator yourself. Creating your own e-learning courses, with products called e-learning authoring tools, is simple and even fun. Read more about creating your own e-learning courses for site-specific, custom training needs. How to Create Your Own Custom e-Learning Courses Refresher: Remind Me again about Part 46-What Is It? Finally, just in case you’ve forgotten, or in case you’re entirely new to all this-a reminder about Part 46. What Is Part 46? Conclusion: Online Mining Safety Training Solutions for MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 Tell us about what you’re doing for Parts 46 and 48. Are you using an online solution for part of your training and training administration? If so, what are you doing and how’s it working? The post Online Mine Safety Training: How It Can Save You Time and Money (and Improve Your MSHA Safety Training Program) appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

New to e-learning? If so, let us get you up to speed on a few e-learning basics: Learning management systems (LMSs) Authoring tools SCORM Get a handle on these three and you’ve pushed yourself ahead from complete novice/deer in the headlights to someone who’s not lost in conversations with e-learning developers, trainers, and instructional designers.Nice! Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with many libraries of e-learning courses, a series of learning management systems (LMSs), custom training solutions, and more. Contact us for more information or to set up a demo.   e-Learning Basics: Three Biggies-the LMS, Authoring Tools, and SCORM Here are three good things to know before you walk into a conference room with a bunch of e-learning developers and they eat you alive for not knowing the tools of their trade.  Learning Management System (LMS) A learning management system (LMS) is a software system you can use to administer a training program. The LMS will let you do all this and more: Import your own training materials (or materials created by others) Create training materials (online quizzes, field-based skills assessments, etc.) Assign training to workers or parts of your organization (teams, departments, sites, etc.) Let workers see a list of training assigned to them, including due dates and current completion status Let workers launch and complete some of that training Automatically create completion records when employees finish some of that training Allow administrators to manually create completion records when employees finish other parts of that training Store completion records Generate and print completion certificates Notify employees at key training moments, such as when new training is assigned, training that had once been completed must be completed again, or when a due date is approaching Generate reports on training data Automatically schedule and email reports Although an LMS CAN and often IS used with e-learning, it’s a very common misconception that an LMS can ONLY be used with e-learning. But that’s not the case-you can use an LMS to administer instructor-led training, task-based skill demonstrations and evaluations, and more. Click to read more about learning management systems. Or watch our 2-minute Enterprise LMS Overview video. Authoring Tools You may think that only big, fancy e-learning providers can make e-learning courses, and you’re only option is to buy e-learning from them. But again, not true. Au contraire, mon frere! Authoring tools are software applications that let you create your own e-learning courses. Many allow you to start with a simple PowerPoint presentation and add multimedia, interactivity, and quizzes from you. You can include your own site-specific information, create your own assessments, set you own passing scores, and then import your own self-created e-learning course into an LMS to assign it to your workers. Click to read more about authoring tools. Or watch our 60-minute video that shows how to use an e-learning authoring tool to make your own e-learning course. SCORM In ancient days, when sailors, travelers, and wanderers wanted to communicate with others around the globe, they’d often learn the lingua franca: the language spoken by many throughout a region or the world. For example, today English is a lingua franca, and one imagines Chinese will be one too if it’s not one already. e-Learning has something like a lingua franca too. This "e-learning lingua franca" allows e-learning courses to communicate with learning management systems. In technical terms, your friends in IT would refer to these e-learning lingua francas as "collections of standards and specifications for web-based electronic educational technology (also called e-learning). " I copped that definition from Wikipedia in case you’re interested. There are a few of these e-learning standards out there, but SCORM is the most common. The basic idea is that if you have a SCORM-compliant e-learning course, and a SCORM-compliant learning management system (LMS), the two will "play nicely together." Or, to put that another way, SCORM-complaint e-learning courses and LMSs are "plug and play" and ready to go. Amongst other things, that means you can buy a SCORM-complaint LMS from one company, and SCORM-compliant e-learning courses from another company, and they’ll work together. Or, you can buy a SCORM-compliant LMS from one company, get SCORM-complaint e-learning courses from another company, and then use an authoring tool to make your own SCORM-complaint e-learning courses, and they’ll all work together. As you’d imagine, this is very handy. Click to read more about SCORM. Additional Articles About LMSs, e-Learning, and/or SCORM If you’re still curious, we’ve got some additional articles for you below. Learning Management Systems (LMSs) Here are some articles about LMSs and how you can use them at work: How to Choose an LMS (Includes Free Downloadable Buyer’s Guide Checklist) 6 Must-Have LMS Features LMSs and Onboarding Better Safety Training with an LMS (and e-learning courses) Using an LMS to Deliver Optional Training Is an LMS Only Good for e-Learning? Nope. Do You Need an Authoring Tool to Use an LMS? Nope. Checklists for Training Via an LMS Combining OJT with Your LMS What Is Online Health and Safety Training And What Can It Do? Also: Learn more about the learning management systems (LMSs) by Convergence Training. e-Learning Authoring Tools Here’s some stuff about e-learning authoring tools: Step-by-Step Instructions of How to Use an e-Learning Authoring Tool (blog post) Step-by-Step Instructions of How to Use an e-Learning Authoring Tool (webinar) Do You Need an Authoring Tool to Use an LMS? Nope. SCORM Here are some articles about SCORM: Actually, the only SCORM article we’ve got for ya is that one we linked you to earlier. That covers what you need to know, but we’ll look into creating some additional articles on things like AICC and Tin Can. Bear with us, please e-Learning 101: The e-Learning Basics with SCORM, Authoring Tools, and LMSs That’s all we’ve got for you today. If you’ve got other questions, or if you’d like to add more information, please drop a line in the comments section below.   The post e-Learning Basics: LMSs, Authoring Tools, and SCORM appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

When many people think of learning management systems, they think of "online training" or e-learning courses. But what many people don’t think about is instructor-led training, classroom-style training, face-to-face training, weekly safety meetings, and similar things that happen when people are working together to learn. But you CAN use an LMS to administer instructor-led training, and doing so makes life easier for training administrators and for average employees as well. In this article, we’ll look at some examples of how you can  use an LMS to administer instructor-led training and show how doing so makes work easier and more efficient. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that makes a series of learning management systems (LMSs), hundreds of off-the-shelf e-learning courses in many different training libraries, custom training solutions, mobile apps for training and performance support, and more. Contact us to learn more and to set up a demo.   How to Administer Instructor-Led Training with an LMS How can you administer instructor-led training with an LMS, you ask? Isn’t it impossible to use an LMS, a tool for online learning, for face-to-face, instructor-led, classroom-style training? Nope, it’s not. In fact, an LMS is a perfect tool for administering training as a blended learning solution. Not sure what blended learning is? We recommend you back up, click that link you just whizzed by, and read the article. Even better, download the free blended learning guide. But, to condense the basic point into a few words, blended learning solutions provide training to people in many different training methods-e-learning, instructor-led, written materials, videos, webinars, task-based training in the field, job shadowing, following, and/or mentoring, online quizzes, and more. And you can use an LMS to administer all that training (not just the e-learning). You can assign it all. Your employees can see a list of everything that’s been assigned. You can give people credit for completing it all. You can run reports on it all. You can store records of completed training for all the training. So sure, you can’t use the LMS to deliver instructor-led training to your workers the way you can with e-learning. Your workers can’t complete instructor-led training online (unless you set it up as a webinar). But you still can take advantage of all the other administrative benefits that save so much time, effort, and money, and that make your training program so much more efficient and comprehensive. So, let’s take a look at some ways you can do this. Structuring Your Instructor-Led Training An LMS will allow you to create instructor-led classes with different "structures." What does that mean, you ask? It means the class may include one or more session. And it means the class may have only one instance of each session, or it means the class may have multiple instances of each session. Let’s make that even more clear by sketching out some examples. Different Class Structures In Your LMS One session, one instance-Have some employees come together one time for instruction. Send them on their way when it’s done. That’s it. One session, more than one instance-Have different groups of employees come at different times/places to hear the same thing. This works well when you want to deliver a single training message but can’t deliver it to a large group of employees at the same time. Multiple sessions, one instance of each session-Have the same group of employees come to several different sessions of instruction spread out over time (for example, one class a week for five weeks). Works well when you need to train a small group of employees a topic that takes more time than one session will allow. Multiple sessions, with more than one instance of each session-Spread instruction out over several sessions (for example, a five-session class that meets once a week) and have each of those sessions include two or more instances (so a group of workers can attend session one on Monday and a different group of workers can attend session two on Tuesday. Here’s what that might look like in an LMS: Scheduling Your Instructor-Led Training Use the LMS to specify the date and time that your class will be held (or, if it’s a multi-session and/or multi-instance class, as described above, specify the date and time of each session and instance). This date and time information is sent on to employees who are later assigned to attend the class. It’s also visible to other LMS administrators who may be scheduling their own class. Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Specifying the Location of Your Instructor-Led Training You can also schedule where the class is going to take place. Conference room A, the training room, an offsite hotel, a third-party training consultant, an OSHA or MSHA regional office, or anywhere else. You create a list of places where classes can be held-it’s as easy as clicking "New," entering some information, and clicking "Save." Then you can select a location when you’re creating a class. Here’s how that might look in your LMS: Allowing Workers to Self-Register for Different Sessions of Instructor-Led Training To Best Fit Their Schedule If you want, you can assign workers to complete a class and, if the class has multiple sessions and/or instances, you can specify which sessions/instances each employee has to attend. On the other hand, you can assign workers to complete a class but allow them to self-register for the different sessions and instances that they’d like to attend. Creating this self-registration process helps to put the employee in charge of his or her training schedule. This provides more flexibility so that the employee can fit the training in around his or her work schedule. It also generally makes the employee feel more respected, self-empowered, and accountable. If you do set up a class to allow self-registration, the employee that has been assigned to complete the class will be notified that he/she must self-register for the different sessions and instances. The LMS will "cap" registration for any session-instance at a maximum number of employees (selected by you). The self-registration process might look something like this in your LMS: Designating an Instructor for Your Instructor-Led Training Not only can you create and assign a class in your LMS, you an also select an instructor. If you’re creating a class with multiple sessions and/or instances, you can select the same instructor or different instructors for each session/instance. Here’s what that might look like in your LMS: Assigning Instructor-Led Training To Workers Once you’ve created a class in your LMS, it’s an easy process to assign various workers to complete that class. What’s better, your LMS should make it easy for you to select one or more individual employee, or all employees in a given team, department, or site, or all employees in a custom group of your own creation, or to mix and match to create your assignment (such as 3 individual employees, one custom group, and two teams). Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Letting Workers See a List of Instructor-Led Training That’s Been Assigned to Them (Along With Other Training Activities) Once you’ve assigned the class to the employees, they’ll be notified of the assignment and will be able to see the class on a list of their assigned training. Clicking on the class within the list of assigned training in the LMS will show them key details, such as date, time, place, instructor, and any other details you provided. Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Giving Credit to Workers for Completing Instructor-Led Training With an LMS, you can create a record of an employee completing a class with just a few keystrokes or mouse clicks. What’s better, the LMS will give you the flexibility to create a completion record for one employee, for a selection or employees, for all the employees in a custom group or on a team/department/site, or however you want to slice and dice it. Even better, those completion records are: Saved indefinitely (you won’t have to worry about losing them) All stored in the same central repository (say goodbye to a system of storing records in various spreadsheets, databases, and filing cabinets) Easy to search for and verify Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Storing a Scanned Sign-In Sheet After Instructor-Led Training Is Complete Many work places pass out a paper-based sign-in sheet during a training session. Employees print their name, sign the sheet, and write down the date, and then employers store these sign-in sheets in a seemingly endless collection of manila envelopes in metal filing cabinets, often in different rooms at different ends of a large facility. All of which makes these records hard to manage and retrieve when necessary. With an LMS, you can still hand out those paper-based sign-in sheets. And you can still collect those printed names, signatures, and dates. But what’s better is you can then scan that sheet and electronically "attach" the scanned sign-in sheet to the completion record you give to employees when they complete training. The LMS will store that electronic version of the sign-in sheet indefinitely, and it’s no more than a few clicks of a mouse to retrieve one when you need it. Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Running Reports to See Who Attended/Didn’t Attend Instructor-Led Training One of the great things about having records stored in a computerized system is that it’s easy to run reports on them. That’s no different when it comes to completion records stored for instructor-led training/classes within an LMS. And that makes it easy to see who’s done and not done with an assigned class. Here’s how that might look in an LMS: Running Reports to See If a Worker Has Completed Instructor-Led Training Along With Other Types of Training Of course, you’ll probably use a blended learning solution for training at work. Meaning, you’ll assign workers to attend instructor-led classes but also to complete other forms of training, such as e-learning, written materials, task-based training completed in the field, and more. So you’ll want to be able to run a report to see if someone has completed a series of training activities of multiple types. And an LMS makes it easy for you to do that as well. Here’s how that will look in an LMS: Permanently Storing Records of Completed Instructor-Led Training And finally, those records of completed training will be stored indefinitely in a secure, online location. No need to worry about fire or floods. No need to worry about hauling records back and forth from a back closet storage area. And no need to worry about computer malfunction-the records are backed up repeatedly onto two different servers in two different cities throughout the US. Wrap Up: That’s How You Administer Instructor-Led Training with an LMS When many people think of learning management systems (or online learning), they think it’s all about e-learning courses. As you’ve seen, though, an LMS lets you work with instructor-led training too. And even if the LMS can’t deliver the training for instructor-led classes directly online (unless you’re doing a webinar, which we’ll talk about in a different article), the LMS still provides you with tons of efficiency and power in terms of your training administration. If this is nothing new to you, use our comments section below to share your experiences and insights. And if this IS new to you, take a moment to consider expanding this new idea to other types of training, such as task-based training, written materials, and more. Because, yes, you can use an LMS to administer that type of training too. In fact, here’s another article that shows you more about what you can do with an LMS and "online training." If this article has made you curious to learn more, watch the 2-minute Enterprise LMS video overview and/or download the free LMS Buyer’s Guide Checklist below. The post 12 Ways to Administer Instructor-Led Training with an LMS appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

If you’re in EHS, you’re probably also in EHS training. If so, you’re going to LOVE the free downloadable guide at the bottom of this article. The guide is going to walk you through all the steps of having a top-notch EHS training program that follows best practices. We think it will make your job easier and your workplace a safer, healthier place. Hope you enjoy it. You can download it now, or you can read the short preview article we’ve prepared for you below and download it from the bottom of this page. Such a life-so many options! Convergence Training is a training solutions provider. We have many libraries of e-learning courses, including a wide variety of EHS e-learning courses and mining safety e-learning courses. We also produce a number of different learning management system (LMSs) for companies of different sizes and in different industries. Contact us to ask some questions and set up a demo.   Best Practices for Effective EHS Training Programs (With a Hat-Tip to ANSI Z490.1) No doubt you recognize the importance of effective EHS training. And, maybe, you’re entirely on top of this and your EHS training program is excellent (although if your EHS program is excellent, we bet you’ve got a continuous improvement program built into it, which means you’re no doubt interested in reading and learning more to make it even better). But maybe you’re like a lot of people forced to wear many hats at work. Maybe your expertise is in environment, health, or safety, or some combination of those, but you’re less familiar with the steps and methods involved in effective training. Or maybe you’re familiar with best practices of training, but your EHS training program could still use a little brushing up. In either case, we’re all fortunate that ANSI Z490.1, the American National Standard with Criteria for Accepted Practices in Safety, Health, and Environmental Training, exists. ANSI Z490.1 spells out everything you should do to put together, deliver, and continually improve an EHS training program. At the bottom of this guide, we’ve created something like a "companion piece" to ANSI Z490.1. It restates what the standard tells you to do, perhaps in more familiar, conversational language. It provides in-depth examples and explanations. And it includes links to many additional resources that will make your job even easier. Here’s what the guide will walk you through: The Scope, Purpose, and Application of ANSI Z490.1 It’s best to start at the beginning. What is this standard, who does it apply to, and similar information. There’s a helpful FAQ in this section of the guide. EHS Training Program Administration and Management Learn the responsibilities involved in administering and managing an EHS training program and how to integrate it into your EHS management program in general. EHS Training Development Learn everything you need to know and do before you begin training. This includes: Performing a needs assessment Identifying course prerequisites Creating learning objectives Designing the course Designing the evaluation Determining completion criteria Making plans for continuous improvement EHS Training Delivery In this section of the guide, we’ll tell you what you need to know about: Criteria for effective EHS trainers EHS training delivery methods EHS training materials EHS Training Evaluation It’s not enough to develop and deliver EHS training. You’ve also got to evaluate your employees to see if they’ve learned and evaluate your training program to see how effective it is and how it can be improved. In this section, we’ll walk you through: General EHS training evaluation criteria Training evaluation approaches Continuous improvement of your EHS training courses and program EHS Training Documentation and Record Keeping Finally, we’ll discuss the importance of documenting and keeping records of your EHS training, and give some best practices for each. This will include: EHS training documentation and recordkeeping systems and procedures Confidentiality and availability Issuing EHS training completion certificates Our Free Online Effective EHS Training Guide: Download it Below Want to learn more on how to create, design, deliver, and evaluate effective EHS training? If so, just click the download button below-we’ll send a free guide directly to your inbox. Nice! The post Effective EHS Training: A Guide to Creating, Designing, Delivering, & Evaluating EHS Training That Works appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

If you’re an operator or a production-operator at a surface mine in the U.S., you know you’ve got to provide safety training for your miners (if this is news to you, we’ll give you some relevant news and definitions about that in just a second). In addition, the production-operator and a contracting company share responsibility for making sure that contract employees working at a mine site get safety training as well. We’ve covered that all in our recent MSHA Part 46 Training Requirements for Contractors article. But in addition to that, you’ve also got to provide safety training to your employees who are not miners. And that’s what we’re going to explain in this article. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that makes mining safety e-learning courses, other health and safety e-learning courses, industrial maintenance courses, a learning management system (LMS) specially designed for MSHA Part 46 compliance, and much more. Contact us to ask some questions and set up a demo. Hey, why not download our free guide to online MSHA Part 46 Training?   For Starters: Part 46, Production-Operators, Operators, Miners, and Contractors for Part 46 Because we threw around some terms above, we thought we’d give you the official MSHA definitions and/or other relevant information before we turn to the real topic of this article, which is mandatory training for non-mining employees at surface mines. Scope of Part 46 Part 46 applies in the following mines: The provisions of this part set forth the mandatory requirements for training and retraining miners and other persons at shell dredging, sand, gravel, surface stone, surface clay, colloidal phosphate, and surface limestone mines. source Operator Here’s what an operator is: Operator means any production-operator, or any independent contractor whose employees perform services at a mine. source Production-Operator A production-operator is: Production-operator means any owner, lessee, or other person who operates, controls, or supervises a mine under this part. source Miner Here’s what a miner is: Any person, including any operator or supervisor, who works at a mine and who is engaged in mining operations. This definition includes independent contractors and employees of independent contractors who are engaged in mining operations; and (ii) Any construction worker who is exposed to hazards of mining operations. source Part 46 Training for Contractors We’ve got an entire article on this. Check it out. Mandatory Part 46 Safety Training for Non-Mining Employees at Surface Mines Keeping in mind some of the definitions above, we’re now going to spell out to you the mandatory safety training that non-mining employees must receive while working at a surface mine. Who Are Non-Mining Employees? If  you’ve got an employee at a mine site, and if that person doesn’t fit the definition of miner above, then he or she is a non-mining employee. Here are some examples listed in Part 46: Office or staff personnel Scientific workers Delivery workers source-46.11 (note that others are also listed in 46.11, and we’ll address them in later articles, but feel free to check out the list now) In addition to that list of examples from MSHA, non-mining employees might also include "normal" production workers working on a process that’s not covered by MSHA regulations. For example, I have a customer in my office today who’s the safety manager at a surface mine for gypsum. Part of their operation is covered by MSHA, but at a certain point of the process MSHA regulations no longer apply and workers in that area are covered by OSHA regulations. This is another example of a non-mining employee. (Hat tip to Russ for the example.) What Kind of Mandatory Training Must Non-Mining Employees Receive? You’ve got to give "site-specific hazard awareness" training to these workers. According to Part 46, here’s what that means: Site-specific hazard awareness training is information or instructions on the hazards a person could be exposed to while at the mine, as well as applicable emergency procedures. The training must address site-specific health and safety risks, such as unique geologic or environmental conditions, recognition and avoidance of hazards such as electrical and powered-haulage hazards, traffic patterns and control, and restricted areas; and warning and evacuation signals, evacuation and emergency procedures, or other  safety procedures. source How to Provide Site-Specific Hazard Awareness Training to Non-Mining Employees MSHA’s pretty flexible on this (as with other trainings). Here’s what they say: You may provide site-specific hazard awareness training through the use of written hazard warnings, oral instruction, signs and posted warnings, walkaround training, or other appropriate means that alert persons to site-specific hazards at the mine. source Conclusion: Part 46 Site-Specific Hazard Awareness Training for Non-Mining Employees at Surface Mines You don’t have to give your non-mining employees the same amount of safety training that you give your miners. But, you DO have to give them some training so they know about the hazards at the site where they are working. There are many ways to do this, and we encourage you to use a blended learning approach in which training is delivered in various different methods, such as e-learning, instructor-led, written materials, and more. Using one or more e-learning course in that blended learning solution can really pay off in terms of training effectiveness and efficiency. And what’s more, using that as part of a total online solution that also includes a learning management system designed to deliver, track, credit, report, and otherwise manage all that Part 46 training will make your training department much more efficient-making training more effective and more compliant while also saving you time and money. Read more about online MSHA Part 46 training by downloading the free guide below. The post MSHA Part 46 Training for Non-Mining Employees appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Job trainers have a lot of things to check off their to-do list. One is to evaluate the learning of employees who have completed training. This means things like assessments and tests, seeing if people can pass tests, have necessary knowledge, and (most importantly) have acquired necessarily skills/can perform necessary tasks. The second is to determine if the training is having a positive effect on the relevant performance metrics for the company and, if possible, to determine an ROI for the training (this is how you’re going to really prove your worth and really prove your training is effective). In terms of Kirkpatrick’s training evaluations, we’re talking about the elusive but equally important Level 4 here. But a lot of trainers go to school and learn a lot about instructional design theory while learning next to nothing about performance metrics (this includes me-guilty). As a result, it’s not always clear how to start showing if training has had a positive effect on those performance metrics. To help solve this problem, we thought we’d give you an introduction to some of the theory behind the development of meaningful workplace performance metrics, and in particular to what are known as "balanced performance metrics." This will be one of a series of articles we’ll write on how training is related to performance metrics and KPIs not just for the training department but for the company as a whole, so keep your eyes on future articles for more on this topic. What you’ll learn here is based off a handy little guide called Designing Metrics: Crafting Balanced Measures for Managing Performance by Dr. Bob Frost. We found this book to be really helpful, pleasantly brief, and to-the-point. We recommend you buy a copy if this article sparks your interest, and we note that Dr. Frost has written a few other books that look interesting as well. In particular, Measuring Performance: Using the New Metrics to Deploy Strategy and Improve Performance looks like it might be good and a logical next step to this book. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider that offers a large number of e-learning courses, a number of learning management systems (LMSs) for companies of different sizes and industries, mobile apps for m-learning and on-the-job performance support, custom training solutions, and more. Contact us to ask some questions and set up a demo. What Is a Balanced Performance Metric? Frost begins his book by breaking performance metrics into two very broad categories: The old way to do it The new way to do it (Frost wrote this book in 2007, and he repeatedly notes that this "new way" originated in the 1990s or so) The primary difference, according to Frost, are explained below: The Old-School Way to Design Performance Metrics Older performance metrics: Are focused primarily/solely on financial aspects Present just one perspective Are "lagging indicators" that take a snapshot in time and give information only about the past Aren’t "leading indictors" and don’t give actionable information Don’t present enough context to know the all-important "why?" Are poorly presented in tables that are hard to read/make sense of Tend to lead to unintended consequences in which workers ignore important things at work simply to improve measured metrics The New-School Way to Design Performance Metrics On the other hand, newer methods create performance metrics that: Are focused on multiple aspects of the company Present a variety of perspectives Aren’t just "lagging indicators" but provide "leading indicators" as well Give actionable information Do give enough context to know or get closer to the all-important "why?" Show trends Are presented visually in tables and graphs (not numerically in tables or in text) Balance forces that have a natural tendency to contradict and/or be in conflict with one another at work Frost explains that these newer metrics are "balanced," meaning that they look at many parts of a company’s performance instead of just focusing on financials. This allows companies to evaluate their performance from more perspectives or "angles," to gain more insight into what they’re doing, and to better anticipate what they should be doing next. We’ll learn more about these various balanced performance metrics in the next section. Six Balanced Performance Measurement Frameworks According to Frost, measuring performance begins by selecting a measurement framework. Your measurement framework(s) will help you identify your company’s critical success factors (CSFs), and your CSFs will help you identify what you measure (your key performance indicators, or KPIs). Frost then presents six different balanced measurement frameworks. They are: Balanced scorecard Strategy maps Stakeholder framework Program logic model Enterprise performance framework Cascading framework Let’s look at each in more detail, leaning on Frost’s explanations in his book. Balanced Scorecard The Balanced Scorecard is a popular framework for performance metrics. According to Frost, it’s the most commonly used at Fortune 500 companies, and Mobil Oil’s use of it is especially well known (it was critical for helping a once-floundering Mobil turn things around, according to Mobil execs, before they merged with Exxon). Companies that use a balanced scorecard measurement framework should ultimately create performance measures in four different categories: Financial Customers Internal Learning/Growth Let’s look at each in more detail. Financial performance measures: Nuts and bolts financial measures. Internal performance measures: How are your internal processes progressing? This includes things like quantity, quality, speed, cost, and so on. Customer performance measures: What do your customers think of you? Customer satisfaction measurements, things like customer service wait time, etc. Learning/growth performance measures: These items ultimately address whether or not you can sustain growth and/or retain your current market position (or improve it). Can include "nuts and bolts" things like training time, training completed, and training costs, but also things like major changes implemented and new strategic dimensions. Want to know more about the balanced scorecard? Check out The Balanced Scorecard: Measures that Drive Performance by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, available at the Harvard Book Review. Strategy Maps Strategy maps are really just a "repackaging" of the balanced scorecard to make it clear how the balanced scorecard and the performance measurements lead to the business achieving its business strategy. The strategy map was developed by Kaplan and Norton, big players in performance measurement, in their book The Strategy-Focused Organization: How Balanced Scorecard Companies Thrive in the New Business Environment. A strategy map looks at the same four aspects that the balanced scorecard does, but with each leading to the next.This makes it easy to see the company’s strategy as laid out in the measurement framework. From "bottom" to "top," these are: Learning/Growth Internal Customer perspective Financial Let’s look at how each leads to the next. Learning and Growth: Focused, strategic changes in the company’s knowledge and skills leads to… Internal: New and/or improved processes, which lead to… Customer: Better results for customers and increased customer satisfaction, which leads to… Financials: Better financial bottom line(s)! Stakeholder Framework This framework is a three-step process: Identify your stakeholders Figure out what they care about Figure out how to measure what they care about Program Logic Model This one is more common in government agencies and non-profits and not used much at all in business. There are different ways to use the program logic model. In one of the most common, you break things down into four categories: Inputs Activities Outputs Outcomes Let’s look at each. Inputs: Inputs include resources use to "do" things (human, financial, facilities and technologies). Activities: Activities include the things that get done. Outputs: Outputs are short-term results of getting those things done. Outcomes: Outcomes are the ultimate, long-range goals of the organization or program. Enterprise Performance Framework The enterprise performance framework is fundamentally based on the recognition of economic pressures and competition within a market. It looks at three aspects of a company: Effectiveness Efficiency Strategic Improvement Let’s look at each a little more. Effectiveness: How well is the company (or organization) doing in terms of completing its ultimate goal or mission? Efficiency: How efficiently is the company doing in terms of reaching its ultimate goal or mission? Or few (or many) resources is it using to make its accomplishments? Strategic Improvement: What is the company doing internally to anticipate/adapt/change/prepare for the future and changing business realities? As you see, effectiveness and efficiency look at the present (and the past), while strategic improvement looks at the future (and the present). Cascading Framework The cascading framework starts by identifying the company’s key mission or goals, then analyzes how the business units (and increasingly smaller sub-units)  contribute to helping the company achieve that mission. So it might look something like this: Business goal/mission Each business unit Under each business unit, the sub-unit(s) etc. The idea is that each business unit is evaluated  based on how they contribute to the goal or the critical success factors (CSFs) of the unit above. So, for example, level 2 may include 20 different mills at 20 different sites. Each mill would be evaluated based on how it’s helping the organization as a whole attain its goal(s). Level 3 (at one of those 20 mills) might include departments such as Production, Quality, HR, etc. Each department would be evaluated based on how it’s helping the mill it’s part of achieve its critical success factors (CSFs). And level 4 (at one of those 20 mills, in one of those departments, such as Production), might include multiple areas, such as Machine Line 1, Machine Line 2, and so on. Each area would be determined based on how it’s helping its department achieve its critical success factors. The point is to make sure different business units don’t "go rogue/AWOL" and become so autonomous they’re not really contributing to the overall mission. Performance Measurement Frameworks, Critical Success Factors (CSFs), and Actual Performance Measurements/Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): The Road Ahead Now that you know about balanced performance measurement frameworks, let’s see how you can select one, then use that to develop a list of critical success factors (CSFs) and then use those to create your list of performance measurements/key performance indicators (KPIs). Selecting a Performance Measurement Framework So what’s the best measurement framework for your company? There’s no one answer for that. Frost recommends getting to know them, analyzing which fits your circumstances best, and picking one, then moving forward to create your critical success factors (CSFs) and your actual measures/key performance indicators (KPIs). He stresses the importance of remembering that measurement frameworks true worth is in helping you select CSFs and KPIs. From Performance Measurement Frameworks to Critical Success Factors (CSFs) Critical success factors are the things your company must do to have success and be successful in the future. Once you’ve identified your performance framework, you can use them to begin identifying your CSFs. For example, if you’re using the balanced scorecard measurement framework, and you’re considering the "Customer" category, CSFs include things like customer satisfaction. Create a list of all the CSFs for your performance measurement and then move on to the next step. From Critical Success Factors (CSFs) to Measurements/Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Critical success factors are then used to determine what you should measure. Again, let’s assume we’re using the balanced scorecard measurement framework. As part of the balanced scorecard, we’re identifying the critical success factors (CSFs)  for our Customer level. We’ve determined that customer satisfaction is one of those CSFs. We can then determine ways to measure customer satisfaction-such as "average time on hold or in line" and "percent of cases successfully closed." How Many Measurements/KPIs? Again, there’s no single right answer here. Frost suggests that you have enough measurements that you acknowledge complexity, but not so many that you get lost, and notes that not all measurements will be important at all times. In addition, he warns you against the tendency to "rob Peter to pay Paul" when measurement systems are set up. If your company is going to measure something, know that there will be a tendency for people to try to meet that measurement even at the expense of other important things that aren’t measured. Keep them in mind and try to create a balanced measuring system. Conclusion: Balanced Performance Measurements-A Trainer’s Introduction We hope that was helpful. Let us know if you have any thoughts by writing in the comments section below. We’d  be especially interested to hear what you learned about this in school (if you did) and what measurements your company uses. The post Training and Balanced Performance Measurement Frameworks: What Every Job Trainer Should Know appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

We return, fresh from our trip to the annual National Safety Congress and Expo. Among other things, we got our first look at the OSHA Top Ten Violations data for another year (fiscal year, 2015). We’ll get more data from OSHA and the NSC about this list in December. Check out the list below. We’ve also included links to additional webpages related to each of the commonly violated standards-the additional pages include free training materials, fun word games, interactive glossaries, additional helpful information about the regulation and how to avoid violating it, free safety checklists, and more. And if you’re at NSC, don’t forget to check out Convergence Training at booth 1332. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with a long history in providing safety training, especially for industrial and manufacturing customers. Check out our health and safety e-learning library, our mining safety e-learning library, and our learning management systems (LMSs) for assigning, delivering, completing, crediting, tracking, and reporting on training. For more information, contact us directly to ask some questions or set up a demo. OSHA’s Top Ten Violations 2015 Here’s OSHA list of the most commonly cited standard violations for the past year. Fall Protection, 1926.501 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. And here’s a sample of our Fall Prevention and Protection e-learning course. Hazard Communication, 1910.1200 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. And here’s a sample of our Hazard Communication e-learning course. Scaffolding, 1926.451 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. And here’s a sample of our Scaffolding e-learning course. Respiratory Protection, 1910.134 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. And here’s a sample of our Respiratory Protection e-learning course. Lockout/Tagout, 1910.147 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. Here’s a sample of our Lockout/Tagout e-learning course. Powered Industrial Trucks, 1910.178 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. Here is a sample of our Forklift Safety e-learning course. Ladders, 1926.1053 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. Here is a sample of our Ladder Safety e-learning course. Electrical-Wiring Methods, 1910.305 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. We have several e-learning courses related to this. Check out the samples below. Arc Flash Safety e-learning course. NFPA 70E e-learning course.   Machine Guarding, 1910.212 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. Here is a sample of our machine guarding e-learning course. Electrical, General Requirements, 1910.303 Check out the regulation. Check out our webpage with free training materials, informational resources, and more. Electrical Safety General Awareness e-learning course. And click here to go to our website and see our brand spankin’ new Electric Shock e-learning course. Download Our Free Guide to Effective EHS Training Once you’re done checking out the list above, and the links to the associated resources and free training materials, download our free 42-page guide to Effective EHS Training and start doing what you can to cut down the number of violations at your workplace. The post OSHA’s Top Ten Violations, 2015 appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

If you’re new to safety, the different roles and titles can get a little confusing. Actually, that’s true even if you’ve been kickin’ around in safety for a while. Things get even more confusing if you’re trying to keep up with roles that are specially defined by regulators in certain circumstances. For example, OSHA and MSHA mean different things when they refer to "competent persons." And things can get still more confusing when one regulator uses two different terms for something that’s pretty similar. For example, MSHA refers to Part 46 trainers as "competent persons" but to Part 48 trainers as "MSHA-approved instructors." Confused yet? If so, we’ll get you back on solid ground shortly, we promise. Read on to clarify what we just talked about. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with many libraries of e-learning training courses, including libraries for health and safety training and mining safety training. In addition, we make a series of learning management systems (LMSs) to assign, deliver, track, credit, and report on workplace training. Contact us to learn more or set up a demo today. The OSHA Competent Person To OSHA, a competent person is someone who’s present while work is being performed. In all contexts, according to OSHA, the competent person is "one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them" [1926.32(f)]. However, in addition to that general, two-part requirement, OSHA places additional requirements on the competent person in different contexts through language in various standards. To read more about this, see our post about the OSHA Competent Person. The MSHA Part 46 Competent Person By contrast, to MSHA, a competent person is a role that’s related to training, not directly to work being performed. The MSHA competent person is  "a person designated by the production-operator or independent contractor who has the ability, training, knowledge, or experience to provide training to miners in his or her area of expertise. The competent person must be able both to effectively communicate the training subject to miners and to evaluate whether the training given to miners is effective" [30 CFR 46.2]. Please note that the role of "competent person" only applies to the Part 46 MSHA regulation that covers most (but not all) surface mines. For more about this, please read our article on the MSHA Part 46 Competent Person. The MSHA Part 48 Approved Instructor And, if MSHA’s Part 46 regulation specifies that a "competent person" is the one to provide safety training to miners, things are different in MSHA’s Part 48 regulation. For Part 48, it requires an (MSHA-) approved instructor. Approved instructors typically have to go to a three-day "instructor training" session held by MSHA or an MSHA designee to get that approval. To read more about all this, see our article on the MSHA Part 48 Approved Instructor. Conclusion: Hope that Helps! Got any questions for us? Anything to add? Let us know, the comments section is right below. Also-check out that free Guide to Effective EHS Training below. It can be yours in only a few clicks. The post Safety Roles: Competent Persons and Approved Instructors appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

A lot of people think that instructor-led training is ALWAYS better than e-learning. And, based on our experience, it seems that this opinion is held especially strongly among EHS professionals. But, the truth is, there are often scenarios where e-learning is as effective (and at times possibly more so) than instructor-led training. In this post we’re gonna take this topic head on, and give some examples when e-learning is the most appropriate training method to use. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider. We make a series of learning management systems (LMSs) to administer training at job sites. In addition, we made many libraries of off-the-shelf e-learning courses. And, in addition, we make custom training solutions and even apps for mobile training and job support (m-learning). Contact us to learn more or set up a demo. Hey, why not download our FREE 42-page Guide to Effective EHS Training?   Is E-Learning Always Better? The short answer is-no. Despite all the deeply held opinions out there, studies, data, and evidence show that the training media (e-learning, instructor-led, etc.) doesn’t affect the effectiveness of the training. But that’s when all things are equal. Meaning, when all the training materials and methods are included in each training media (e-learning, instructor-led, etc.). But that rarely happens. Can you build an e-learning course that provides a fantastic, life-like simulation of performing a task in the real world? Yep. Does it happen all the time? Nope. And can you build an e-learning course that provides fantastic feedback to the questions asked and skills performed by workers? Yep. Does it happen all the time? Nope. And on the flip side, can you have an instructor who has access to technically sophisticated visuals that help people understand abstract, difficult, or "hidden" concepts? Yep. Does it happen all the time? Nope. And can you have an instructor who evaluates the assessment of hundreds of workers who attended a training to determine their comprehension and assigns necessary re-training for those who don’t "get it?" Yep. Does it happen all the time? Nope. So while e-learning isn’t always better, there are plenty of times when it is. And that’s what we’ll look at here. When e-Learning Courses Are Better for EHS Training: 8 Cases So let’s get to the meat of the matter here: cases in which e-learning courses are a better way to train workers on EHS topics than instructor-led training is. 1. With concepts that are abstract, difficult  to visualize, and/or impossible to see Some concepts are difficult to explain in a purely verbal manner, such as instructor-led training. These can include abstract concepts, such as the molecular composition of a gas, or things that are difficult or impossible to see, such as a how the inside of a machine operates. e-Learning, on the other hand, with its use of video, animations, photos, and other images, all synced with explanatory audio, excels at conveying this type of information. By way of an example, check out this sample e-learning course about sling angles. 2. Training a remote workforce Many safety managers have to provide training to workers at more than one site. Or maybe to employees who work remotely, or at widespread customer locations throughout a region, nation, or across the globe. In some cases, it’s impossible to train (or fully train) a work force like this with instructor-led training. And so people go untrained, incidents occur unnecessarily, people get hurt or killed, safety-related costs go up, regulators deliver citations and fines, and so on. In other cases, it IS possible to deliver the training to this workforce with just instructor-led training, but it includes a lot of logistical and clerical headaches and a lot of extra costs. Who organizes the group training session? Who buys the plane tickets and hotel rooms? How much time does this all take? What is the cost of all that time in dollars? Who pays for the hotel rooms and the cost of the training room itself? What about meals and refreshments? What about overtime for the workers attending a training session on an evening or weekend? Or the opportunity cost of having this extended training occur on a normal work day, and not having your workers work? In situations like this, e-learning courses delivered over the Internet can be a great help. People can log in when their schedule allows and complete the training on their own. The clerical and logistic hassles of coordinating and booking travel are gone, as are the costs for travel and overtime pay. 3. Training workers on multiple shifts Even if all the workers you need to train work at the same site, they often work on different shifts. This creates many of the same scheduling, logistics, and clerical hassles that having workers at multiple locations does. And it leads to many of the same expenses as well when trying to use instructor-led training in all cases. Instead, using an e-learning course delivered through an LMS makes it easy for you to deliver some of those training messages online. Workers on all shifts can access them during their normal work hours. You don’t have to train multiple instructors to lead train workers on multiple shifts. Win/win, no? 4. Simple company policies Many times, instructors gather workers in a room for a training session (or several training sessions, with different people attending to hear the same information at different times) to be informed of something very simple. For example, a new company policy or a change to an existing company policy. Usually, there’s no good reason to bring people together into a classroom setting to deliver this kind of training. It’s just that there’s often no other way to deliver the information or to get a signature from the worker that he/she is aware of the new policy. e-Learning courses provide a much simpler, easier way to deliver the same information. Put the information in an e-Learning course you created (see how to build your own e-learning course), assign it to your workers, let them watch or read the materials when their schedule allows, and let the LMS record that they have seen the new policy. 5. Very basic information This example is similar to the last. Just as you don’t have to go to the expense of pulling workers together to explain a simple new policy, you also don’t have to use instructor-led training for very basic information that doesn’t require hands-on practice, supervision, real-time verbal feedback, and/or extensive Q&A. For example, a lot of material in a Slips, Trips, and Falls course can be handled with e-learning just as effectively or more effective than with instructor-led training, and done so at a lower cost. Why not save that instructor-led training time and budget for times when you really need it? 6. Situations in which automated testing/scoring is important In some cases, it’s important to be able to test your employees, score those tests, determine who passed and failed those tests, and keep records of those tests. You CAN do this with instructor-led training, but doing so takes a lot of time. You’ve got to hand out paper-based tests, score the tests individually when workers are done, store all your records of the tests, and later be able to retrieve those records. On the other hand, e-learning automates all this for  you. Tests are automatically delivered to workers online. Your LMS scores the tests and determines who passes and who fails (based on a pre-determined passing score). The LMS also stores records of these tests indefinitely, and provides a reporting suite that makes it easy to retrieve this information in a matter of seconds-even if the test was taken years ago, or even if you’re retrieving tests data for workers at multiple sites. Automated testing with e-learning and an LMS is an efficient way to evaluate comprehension of information. 7. When delivering a standard, consistent training message is essential It’s generally important in all cases that the same, consistent training message be delivered to all workers. But in some cases, it’s not just important, it’s critical. And even though instructor-led training can be great, one potential downside is that the instructor may veer from the desired message or not communicate the desired message as intended. Or maybe they just don’t communicate it effectively. This can happen for a number of reasons. Maybe the instructor simply forgot to say something. Or maybe one instructor misunderstands something that other instructors understand correctly. Or, maybe the instructor disagrees with part of the intended training message and goes a "bit rogue" on a point or two. You can avoid this with e-learning courses. In an e-learning course, the message is the same every time, to every employee, on every shift, at every site. Until you don’t want it to be, that is. Your LMS will provide tools to update e-learning courses and create new versions, too. So when you WANT to change the message, you can do it for everyone. But if you don’t want to change the message, it will stay the same. For some EHS topics, such as Lockout/Tagout, it’s important to deliver the same training message every time. 8. When you want people to be able to refer back to the training materials later Did you know that most people forget what they learned in training shortly after the training event? How effective is an instructor-led training session going to be if it’s one-and-done, and there’s no way to refer back to the training materials? Not very. e-Learning courses, on the other hand, make it easy for your employees to refer back to training materials when they need a refresher. And they also are easy to re-assign if you intentionally want to do that. With an e-learning course, reviewing the training is as simple as login and click. (Note: Blended learning solutions that begin with workers watching an e-learning course, then going to an instructor-led training session where they can ask questions and cover important details more thoroughly, and then being able to review the e-learning course in the future, are especially good for this.)   It’s easy to review an e-learning course when you need a refresher-it’s there 24/7. Conclusion: Sometimes, e-Learning Courses Really ARE Better than Instructor-Led Courses for EHS Training So there you have it, at least eight cases in which e-learning courses may be more effective than instructor-led courses for a specific training need. We recommend using all types of training in a blended learning solution, picking the right training activity type for each training need. What are your thoughts? When do you use e-learning and when do you use instructor-led training? What do you see as the benefits (and weaknesses) of both? If you’re still curious, we’ve included some additional, related resources below for you to check out: A Look at an LMS You Can Use with e-Learning and Other Types of Training for Your EHS Training Program Here’s a short, two-minute overview of the Convergence Training Enterprise LMS. We’ve got an LMS for Mining Safety/MSHA Compliance too. And we’ve even got an LMS for Contractor and Visitor/Vendor Safety Orientations. Click to read more about that. Additional Articles About e-Learning, LMSs, and Safety Training Still hungry for knowledge, my friend? Check out the articles below. 12 Ways to Administer Instructor-Led Training with an LMS Improve Your Mine Safety Training and Save Money with an Online Mine Safety Training Solution What is Online Health and Safety Training And What Can It Do? Online Courses for MSHA Part 46 New Miner Training Program Using an LMS to Onboard New Employees "Chunking" Mining Safety Training e-Learning for Standard, Consistent Training Message Better Safety Training with e-Learning and an LMS Create Your Own e-Learning Safety Courses Blended Learning for Safety Training Better Mining Safety Training with Visuals Better Safety Training with Visuals How to Choose an LMS (Includes Free LMS Buyer’s Guide Checklist) Blended Learning Best Practices Free Blended Learning Guide Is an LMS Only Good for Online Training? Nope. 3 Common Contractor Orientation Challenges And don’t forget to download the free Guide to Effective EHS Training below. The post 8 Times When e-Learning Is Better Than Instructor-Led for EHS Training appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Hey-we’ll be at the MSHA TRAM conference Tuesday, October 13 through Thursday, October 15. We’ll even be giving a presentation to show you how online tools, including a learning management system (LMS) and e-learning courses can help you with your MSHA safety training requirements. You can catch that on Wednesday, October 14 at 2:30 pm. We’ll be co-presenting with our friends at Catamount Consulting. Otherwise, swing by our desk and say "hi" or us any questions you may have. We’ll be at the desk most times when we’re not presenting. Look forward to seeing you there. Until then, check out the two videos below-the first of our Mining Safety LMS and the second of just one of our mining safety e-learning courses (we do general health and safety e-learning too, plus a lot more). Here’s our Mining Safety LMS Overview Video: And here’s a short sample of one of our mining safety e-learning courses: Go ahead and download our free guide to online mining safety training tools too! The post Come See Us at The MSHA TRAM Conference, October 13-15, 2015 in Beaver, West Virginia appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

There are many different aspects of MSHA Part 46 compliance training. Recordkeeping is one of those. It’s easy enough to see WHY there are recordkeeping and documentation requirements. Regulators have to know what’s been done and what hasn’t been done. Even if you don’t LIKE doing this, the logic is fair enough. You get it. That doesn’t mean that creating, storing, and later retrieving all those records is especially fun. And if you’re a safety manager, I’d be willing to bet it’s not your favorite part of your job. In fact, I just gave a presentation at MSHA’s annual TRAM conference, and I asked this very question to the 40-or so people who attended the presentation. I learned that basically nobody really enjoyed doing this; that nearly everyone felt they spent more time doing this than they wanted to; and that most everyone was a little unsure if their records were perfect or if they could quickly retrieve specific training records (the one person who said she COULD quickly retrieve specific different types of training records admitted that her confidence came at the cost of a LOT of time working with Excel spreadsheets). But online, computerized systems can help ease this recordkeeping and documentation challenge. They’ll help you spend less time creating, storing, and retrieving training records and other documentation. This means you can spend more of your time on safety training, safety audits, safety observations, in safety meetings….well, you get the idea. You can spend more of your time doing stuff that is more productive. In this article, you’ll learn more about some ways that online systems can save you time, headache, frustration, and even money on all this recordkeeping. Read on for the full story. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with strong offerings in general EHS and mining safety. For mining safety in particular, we have a learning management system (LMS) that allows you to administer your MSHA Part 46 training program online. This means you can assign training, import training, deliver some training online, notify employees of other assigned training, credit who’s done and not done with training, run reports, and even create Part 46 documentation that MSHA requires, such as the printed Part 46 training plan and a 5000-23 equivalent. And before you read this article, feel free to download our FREE 42-PAGE GUIDE TO ONLINE MSHA PART 46 COMPLIANCE. 8 Headache-inducing MSHA Recordkeeping Challenges (That Can Be Done Easier Online) Let’s look at a few ways that online tools can help make your MSHA Part 46 recordkeeping and documentation chores easier, faster, and less expensive. 1. Creating Completion Records Let’s see how an online system take make the creation of training records easier. Creating records for online training You’ll always perform training in the classroom or in the field as part of your Part 46 training. But online tools also allow you to deliver some training to your workers online. This includes e-learning courses on any number of topics: mining safety, general EHS, and more. When an employee logs in and sees the training assigned, he or she will see that the assigned training list includes e-learning courses. The employee can launch those courses and view them online. When the training content is over, the e-learning course seamlessly transitions to an online test. Your employee is asked to answer questions online, assessing his or her understanding of the training concept covered in the e-learning course. His or her answers are tracked and stored, and the online system determines if the employee passed or failed (typically, passing means the employee has correctly answered 80% or more of the questions). Sure, you’ll still have to create some training records on your own, and we’ll discuss this shortly. But automatic crediting for the completion of e-learning courses like this can save you a lot of time. Let’s take a moment to see what that looks like in an online system such as the Convergence Training MSHA LMS. Here’s a sample test question an employee would have to answer as part of an e-learning course. The online system will evaluate if your worker has answered correctly or incorrectly. After answering one question, the worker advances to the next question. Eventually, your worker will answer all questions in the test, and the system will tell the worker if he or she passed or failed. Here’s what it looks like if the worker passes: Now let’s see what that looks like from your perspective-the LMS administrator, meaning the person who’s responsible for making sure people have received and completed the proper training. Below is a screen grab of the "completion records screen." This is the screen that lists every completion record created whenever a worker completes a training activity. You’ll see we’ve circled one in red for you-it shows that employee Jeffrey Dalto completed the Hazard Overview e-learning course on 10-20-2015. If you clicked the green EDIT button next to the completion record, you’d find more details-where was the training completed, for example. Of course, you can run reports to see who’s done or not done with training, but that’s getting ahead of ourselves. We’ll show you that soon enough. Creating records for classroom-based training As we mentioned earlier, the online system can’t automatically create all of your training records. The system doesn’t know by itself if your workers attended some face-to-face, instructor-led training, or if they learned how to perform a particular skill in the field, or if they attended a safety meeting, or if they…well, you get the point. In some cases, you’ll have to manually enter some data into the online system and click a button or two to have the system create those records for you. Here’s how you’d give a worker or even 5, 10, or 20 workers credit for attending a class. Just check a box next to one, some, or all names and click the Save button. Pretty easy, huh? Creating records for field-based training The process is similar if the worker completed some task-based training in the field. The screen below shows how you’d check someone off for each item after teaching them, and having them perform, the steps of a "dozer pre-operation checklist." Creating records for "miscellaneous" training And what about giving credit for "miscellaneous" training, such as safety meetings, off-site trainings, and similar trainings? It’s just as easy to give workers credit for completing miscellaneous training that you’ve entered into the online system as what we call a "training event." Select one or more names (that’s a big bonus-you can select any number of names at one time, and you can even select all workers in a team, department, site, or district), fill in a few more details, and you’re done. You just check off the worker for each step on the list. You can even write a comment under each item. Note we’ve circled in red the field where you can select the names of multiple workers. Creating records for multiple activities And what if you need to give credit to multiple workers for completing multiple training activities of different "types" all at once? Yep, you guessed it. There’s an easy way to do that too. As you see in the picture below, our Bulk Credit Wizard let’s you select one or more worker and one or more training activity (it doesn’t matter what type-e-learning, instructor-led, written materials, OJT, whatever), and then it walks you through a simple three-step process of creating all those training records at once. You can literally create 200 records of completed training in less than a minute. Wow! Take a moment and think of how much time, frustration, and money that would save you. 2. Storing and Creating Sign-In Sheets for Completed Training Many mine sites pass out sign-in sheets during face-to-face training. The sign-in sheet includes the name of the training activity, the date and time, and the name of the instructor. The workers are then supposed to print their names and add their signature, confirming they attended the training. These records are then filed away-often in a manila envelope in a metal filing cabinet. And in addition, the record that the workers completed the training is probably kept in an Excel spreadsheet (note that you’ve now got two totally separate recordkeeping systems on your hand). And later, you may have to retrieve that sign-in sheet along with the record of completed training. This is all time-consuming and inefficient. With an online system, you still pass out that paper-based sign in sheet. But when you’ve got the names and signatures, you scan the paper-based version to create an electronic version (sure, you can still file that paper-based version away if you want.) Then you go to one screen in the online system to give credit to the workers who attended and completed the training-we’ve already shown you how that works, above. But in addition, you can attach that electronic, scanned copy of the sign-in sheet to the completion record of all workers to whom you gave credit for completing the training. Just click the Add Attachment button circled below, navigate to find the scanned file where you saved  it on your computer (take a look below, we circled the button in red). And now you’ve now got the sign-in sheet inside your online system-electronically "attached" to each of the appropriate records of completed training (again, look below). You can easily bring this up at any time-it takes only about 30 seconds to get to the right screen, perform a search, and open the sign-in sheet. 3. Creating Your Training Programs You’ll have to create what MSHA calls "training programs" for Part 46. This includes things like New Miner, Annual Refresher, and New Task training. You’ll go on to assign these training programs to workers. And then you’ll want to keep on top of things to ensure that the right workers have completed the right training programs. Let’s see how that works in an online system. Here’s the screen where the Training Programs you defined-meaning, the Training Programs that you created, named, and put specific training activities into-are listed. It’s now easy to assign these training programs to the right workers, and it’s equally easy to run a report, or reports, to see who’s done or not done with their assigned training programs.   "For us, we were very focused on our MSHA areas and beginning to use the Convergence MSHA LMS has helped that, of course, but it has really helped us become more compliant in our OSHA areas. That was an unanticipated benefit, to be honest. That’s because the training we previous delivered to our office staff wasn’t specific enough to the area they were working in. And this has really helped us to make our main office and our mechanic shop more in line with regulations because you can create those training groups and customize training programs and I think that this has really helped us in that regard." Cyndee Carter, Montana Rock Works   4. Getting Reports to Yourself, Supervisors, or Managers Not only does an online system make it easier to generate reports about training completion. It can also be set up to automatically generate and email reports to yourself, supervisors, managers, or other people. So that means you no longer have to take time every week or month informing different people about training progress. Instead, schedule a few reports and let the online system take care of it for you. Everyone gets the information they need in their email inbox on a timely basis. No more hassles or delays. You can see what that looks like below.   "I would venture to say that 85-90 percent of the companies we work with-companies that must comply with MSHA Part 46 training requirements-have employees who are overdue on training, have training that’s expired, should have been completed again, and hasn’t, and the company doesn’t know it. And for that matter, neither does the employee. Using the Convergence LMS to track upcoming due dates and training expirations has made it easy to keep track of these situations by having the LMS automatically send reports to supervisors and managers informing them in advance of these situations before they pass the critical stage. Without this information, companies are often at risk of not delivering necessary safety training, which of course increases the risk of an incident but also of a citation from a regulator." Scott McKenna, Catamount Consulting   5. Generating Your Written Part 46 Training Plan Creating a written Part 46 training program can include a lot of work. Doing it for multiple mine sites  can really increase the work load. An online system, however, includes tools to make this easier, including a data field to type into to enter the appropriate information, and tools to format and present your information in a clean, easy-to-read fashion. You don’t have to wrestle with creating a table, auto-formatting gone haywire, fields you accidentally forgot, or anything like that. Even better, you’re prompted to input the necessary information as you go. Let’s look at some screens to see how that works. The online system will prompt you to enter the Mine ID and the Person Responsible for Safety and Health for each mine site. This will later be included on the written training plan the system creates. You can even automate the entry of this information using a spreadsheet and a wizard. The system will also prompt you to enter information about your training subjects that’s required by MSHA for Part 46 compliance, as well as the competent person(s) for each subject. Again, the system then puts all that information into your written training plan. Your system will also guide you through the process of entering all the training activities to create all of your training programs for a site. You can then easily assign those Training Programs (shown earlier), give credit for completing them (shown earlier), and have the system create your printed Training Plan (including all of those Training Programs). Just press a few buttons and "voila," the system prints it out for you in a matter of seconds. Here’s the information about your mine site required for Part 46: And here’s an example of your printed Training Programs (in this case, New Miner): 6. Generating Written Part 46 Training Plans for Multiple Sites If it takes a while to create a written Training Plan by hand for one mine site, the job just gets bigger and bigger for each additional site. Wouldn’t it be great if you could use a computerized system to create one training plan for one mine site and then click a few buttons, make some site-specific modifications, and automatically have a new training plan for a new mine site? For example, say you’ve used an online tool to create a New Miner Training Program for Mine Site 1. That becomes part of your Training Plan for Mine Site 1, obviously. Your next goal is to create a training plan for Mine Site 2 that’s very similar to the training plan you created for Mine Site 2, but has some site-specific differences. An online system can let you do this copy/modify/rename process in a matter of seconds or minutes, not hours. Just select a Training Program (in the example below, it’s New Miner for the Sales, OR site) and copy it, rename it, add some site-specific elements as needed, and now you’ve got a New Miner training program for a new site (Macon,  GA in this case). "We are using the Convergence MSHA LMS to deliver MSHA Part 46 training to 4 different site locations with a total of 125 employees. Some of the employees change site locations depending on the job that needs to be done. With a change of job site comes new site specific training. The LMS allows you to easily change a user’s site location and be automatically assigned training based on what that site is required to have. The LMS also allows for groups to be formed to cross-train workers who might be located at different sites but have the same job descriptions. These abilities, plus the ability to copy training programs and modify them on a site-by-site basis as needed,  has saved supervisors travel time as well as production time." Sherri Ison-Mohr, United Safety Solutions   7. Creating A Training Plan for Each New Year In some cases, you’ll want to take a training plan for one year, make a few modifications, and create a training plan for the next year. Again, with an online system that lets you copy/modify/rename, this takes only a few minutes. The image below shows the process of renaming the 2015 New Miner training program. 8. Collecting and/or Printing Documentation There are any number of times when you need to generate reports or collect printed versions of training documentation. Maybe an MSHA Inspector is at your site and wants to see some proof of training. Or maybe an employee is leaving your company and wants a copy of his or her training records. Depending on what you’re looking for and how organized your records are, this might take you quick a deal of time. But with an online system that has built-in MSHA documentation capabilities, you can generate a report with the data you want in less than 20 seconds and print it, if necessary, in another 20 seconds. Meaning you’ve still got 20 seconds to sit back and drink some coffee before the minute’s done.   Conclusion: MSHA Part 46 Recordkeeping Made Easier We’ve probably missed a few ways that an online system can make Part 46 documentation and recordkeeping easier, quicker, faster, less expensive, and less frustrating. But by now, we bet you’ve seen there’s a lot of potential here. Why spend all your time, energy, and training budget on things an online system can easily automate for you? As a safety manager, your time is better spent leading training, talking to employees, being out in the field, performing JHAs, inspections, and audits, and doing stuff that makes the workplace safer. That’s not to say that these records and documentation chores aren’t important, because they are. But surely you can use a hand making them simpler. Before you go, check out two more things, below. First, our short overview video of the Convergence Training MSHA LMS, and second, our free 42-page guide to online MSHA Part 46 training, which you can download right now. Here’s the overview video: Here’s the free guide (enjoy): The post How Online Tools Can Save MSHA Part 46 Recordkeeping Headaches appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Knowing if your training program is having a positive effect on relevant KPIs, and are helping move your company toward its business goals, is a good thing. Trainers do this by performing what’s known as a level 4 evaluation (in the four-level Kirkpatrick training evaluation model). In this article, we’re going to look more closely at evaluating a training program to see if it’s created the desired effect on the relevant KPI(s). Here we go. Convergence Training makes learning management systems (LMSs), e-learning courses, and more. Contact us to learn more or set up a demo. You may also want to download our FREE Guide to Effective Manufacturing Training.   Before You Begin: Identify the Goals, KPIs, and Data Sources Before you get to the point of evaluating your training program, you should: Find out which business goal(s) the training program supports. Find which KPI(s) track progress toward that goal and how to get the data. Design, develop, and deliver the training, keeping the business goal(s) in mind. Then you’ll be ready to get into evaluation. Evaluating A Training Program: Four Levels The standard evaluation method is Kirkpatrick’s Four-Level Evaluation Model. The Kirkpatrick evaluation model breaks evaluation down into four levels: Evaluation Level 1: Reaction In level 1, we’re getting the opinion of the learners who attended/completed the training. These are the post-training evaluation sheets (sometimes dismissively referred to as "smiley sheets") that are handed out after training. Evaluation Level 2: Learning In level 2, we’re trying to figure out if the learners "learned." This is typically measured with some form of assessment during or immediately after training. This might mean a paper-based test, an online quiz, or some form of skill demonstration that’s evaluated by the instructor. Evaluation Level 3: Behavior In level 3, we’re concerned with whether or not workers are actively applying what they learned when they return to the job. This is what we’re talking about when we talk about "transfer." Evaluation Level 4: Results In level 4, we’re talking about the effect that the training program had in helping the company reach a business goal. Progress toward those goals is measured using KPIs. And that’s what this article is about. How Often and When Will You Perform Level Four Evaluations? Two questions that come up when thinking about level four training evaluations are: Will I do this for every training program? How long after the training program should I do this? We’ll give some helpful information about each question in the sections below. How Often Will You Perform Level 4 Training Evaluations? You may wonder if every company performs all four levels of evaluation for every training program they create and deliver. The short answer is no. Nobody’s got time and money to do that all the time. Below are some benchmarks to consider for evaluating at different levels. Check them out. (The information below includes a fifth level for "ROI," which is the business effect put into monetary value-we’ll address this in a later blog post.) From left to right, the table shows recommended targets for each level by the authors of a book on ROI; targets established by the GAO; real-life figures in public sector (federal, state, and local governments) as determined by a research study, and targets that Wachovia Bank has established for themselves. Source: "Return on Investment: ROI Basics"  by Patricia Pulliam Phillips and Jack J. Phillips, ASTD/ATD Press, December, 2005, page 30.   When Should the Level 4 Training Evaluation Take Place? As explained above, once the training has been delivered, you can return and evaluate the change in the relevant KPI(s). Which raises an interesting question. How long after training should you wait? Let’s return to the book  Return on Investment: (ROI) Basics, already referenced above, for some expert opinion on that issue: "Levels 3 and 4 data collection occurs sometimes after the new performance has had a chance to occur-the time in which new behaviors are becoming routine. You do not want to wait until the new behavior becomes inherent and participants forget where they learned these new behaviors. Typically, Level 3 data collection occurs three to six months after the program, depending on the program. Some programs, in which skills should be applied immediately upon conclusion of the program, should be measured earlier-anywhere from 30 days to two months after the program. Level 4 data can be trickier, however. While the ROI calculation is an annual benefit, do not wait a year to collect the Level 4 data. Senior executives won’t wait; the problem will either go away, executives and senior managers will forget, or a decision will be made without the data. Collect the Level 4 measures either at the time of Level 3 data collection or soon after when impact has occurred. " Source: "Return on Investment: ROI Basics"  by Patricia Pulliam Phillips and Jack J. Phillips, ASTD/ATD Press, December, 2005, page 70. Level 4 Evaluation: Examples of Training Programs Affecting a KPI Assuming your training program has been successful, it will help move your business toward a business goal. (Yes, your program can have no effect, or even a negative effect, but we’ll ignore that sad possibility for now.) As a result, the KPI that measures progress toward the business goal will change. In some cases, the KPI will go "up," meaning progress has been made. In other cases, the KPI will go "down," but this can still mean that progress has been made. It depends on the KPI you’re tracking. Let’s look at two quick examples. Level 4 Training Evaluation Example: Net Profit One example of a commonly used KPI is net profit. It’s possible that this is the KPI or one of the KPIs you’ve chosen to track to determine if you training program had the desired influence. In this case, you’d want to see the KPI go "up" after the training program was implemented, because when you’re talking about profits, going up is good. And, as you can see above, in this case the net profits did go up after the training. Level 4 Training Evaluation Example: Safety Incidents Another example, this time from safety or EHS, would be workplace injuries or illnesses (sometimes referred to as "incidents"). Because safety incidents are bad, and the goal would be to have fewer, in this case you’d want to see the KPI go "down" after the training program. And, as you can see above, safety incidents did go down after the training. In both examples above, the data have been simplified, but you get the idea. In each case, you’ve got some strong evidence that the training program created the desired effect for the business goal. In the first example, net profits went up after the training program was implemented. In the second example, safety incidents went down after the training program was implemented. Both were successes-good job, training team! Additional Points about Showing That a Training Program Had Desired Effect on a KPI Savvy readers like yourself no doubt notice the sleight of hand above. Yes, the KPI went in the desired direction (up or down) in the two examples above. And yes, the KPIs moved in the desired direction after the training program was implemented. However, as we all know, correlation does not imply causation. Which is a fancy way of saying that even though the KPI went up in the first example and down in the second example, and the desired changes occurred after the training program was implemented, we don’t have enough evidence to prove that the training program is what caused the desired change. That’s what you were thinking, right? If so, congratulations. Because you’re right. You still need to do what’s called "isolating the effect of the training program." This means controlling the effect that other variables might have had on the KPI so you can determine how much of the change is due to the training program. For example, in the first case, the rise of net profits after the training program might have been the result of a simple price change or a new advertising campaign. And, the decrease in safety incidents in the second example might have been the result of the installation of a bunch of new machine guards. So we’re going to write another blog post about isolating the effect of the training program. Don’t let us forget-feel free to remind us. In addition, we’re also going to write a second follow-up post to show you how to quantify that data and convert that data into financial terms (you know-dollars and sense) and create an ROI. That will make it much easier to communicate the value of your training program to others at your company. So stay tuned for both. In addition, you may find this related post that looks at providing graphic evidence that a training program has had a desired effect within a manufacturing training setting, providing examples based on safety, production efficiency, and quality, interesting. Conclusion: Demonstrating that a Training Program Has Affected a Business KPI You’ve now read an overview of how to perform a level four evaluation of your training program, showing that the training helped your company make progress toward a business goal as measured by a relevant KPI. What are your own experiences? How often do you do level 3 and level 4 evaluations? Which KPIs are most relevant at your workplace? How often do you go the further step of isolating the effects of the training program, quantifying the change in the KPI, and converting that to dollar figures? We’d love to hear your thoughts below. The post Level 4 Training Evaluations appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

Not so long ago, we were giving some thought to the MSHA Part 48 Approved Instructor. And that led us to give some thought to the three-day, Instructor Training sessions that MSHA leads so that people can become Part 48 Approved Instructors and, in turn, deliver Part 48 training to mine site employees (and contractors, etc.). We were fortunate enough to get Jeff Duncan, the Director of Educational Policy and Development at MSHA, to give up some of his own time to tell us more about that program. We’re thankful to Jeff for being so generous with his time to do that. So below we’ve got the highlights of that discussion with Mr. Jeff Duncan of MSHA. We hope you find it interesting and that it sheds more light on the role for of the MSHA Approved Instructor for Part 48. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with special offerings for companies in mining and mining safety. We offer a mining safety learning management system (LMS); mining safety e-learning courses; other e-learning courses on topics such as general EHS, operations, maintenance, HR, and more. Please contact us to learn more or set up a demo. Also, take a moment while you’re here to download our free guide to Online MSHA Part 46 Compliance. The MSHA Part 48 Approved Instructor Training Sessions In our discussion, we asked Mr. Duncan quite a bit about the Approved Instruction Training sessions. Here are some of the highlights. On Mr. Duncan’s Role in his Directorate Jeff Duncan: My directorate is made up of several components programs. The National Mine Academy is part of my directorate and that’s where we provide training to all of our entry-level journeymen inspectors…incidentally, the National Mine Academy is one of only seven thoroughly chartered academies in the nation, much like West Point in Annapolis or the FBI Academy. We also have a field component, the Educational Field and Small Mines Services. It’s a relatively small MSHA group by comparison, but we have folks spread out across the country. I believe there’s roughly sixty full-time employees in Educational Field and Small Mine Services when we’re fully staffed. They provide training more directly to mine operators and the miners. They assist them in developing training plans, and we do instructor evaluations through the Educational Field and Small Mine Services. We work with them for important things like helping them understand the importance and actually providing a little bit of training on things like workplace examination. We work very closely with mine operators and miners all across the country through that group. We also have a small policy group herein Arlington and they’re the folks that help me make decisions about any educational policy or regulation issues that come to our attention. And then, beyond that, we also maintain the qualifications and certifications branch in Denver, Colorado, and that’s where we maintain a database of all the instructors-all those folks with any sort of MSHA qualification or certification. On the Purpose of the Instructor Training Program Duncan: Well, the ultimate purpose…is what we’re looking for in this is we want to determine if candidates have the basic ability to provide effective training. Can they communicate effectively? Can they deliver training in a way that the learner is going to kind of get it? The program only touches on basic instructional techniques and provides an understanding of Part 48 Requirements and kind of teaches the instructor how to develop objectives and develop and use evaluation methods. On What In Particular MSHA Feels Make Up Effective Training Techniques Duncan: Well, you know, one of the requirements to get approved as an instructor is to have knowledge of a subject matter that you’re going to teach. We’re looking for that. And then it’s what I said. Can they communicate effectively? Can they deliver the message to the miners? Are the miners going to get it? Do they know how to evaluate the effectiveness of the training? Are they using those evaluations methods throughout the training, o are they just waiting until the end and giving someone a quiz and kind of trying to decide on the tail end whether miners were getting the message throughout the course? We really want to round them out. We’re not going to make teachers out of people in three days, but we want to make sure that they have that basic understanding that there’s a right way to do things and a wrong way…we’ve seen instructors that want to stand in front of a classroom and lecture the entire time. We’ve seen instructors who want to plug a video in and walk away and come back in twenty  minutes and plug another video in. That’ snot what we want. We want to make sure that, however, they’re delivering that training, it’s in a way that miners are going to understand and the training is going to be effective. When you think about how much training miners receive and kind of put that in perspective in relation to the hazards that they’re exposed to, every minute-every hour-of that training is very important. So we want to help these instructors and make sure that they understand how to maximize on that limited time they have with those students. On Evaluating the Effectiveness of Training Duncan: Well, I think from my perspective, the best way to evaluate training is to keep it interactive. Keep the learner involved in the training itself because that gives you a real good opportunity to see if they understand the message, if your delivery is on target. Oftentimes, those evaluations and that interaction actually leads to additional training. We’ve seen miners kind of teach themselves in some of those courses that become very interactive. On How To Apply to Be an Approved Instructor Duncan: The way you apply to become an instructor is your submit a resume to the district manager. The instructor approvals are actually outside of my authority. That’s done by the enforcement programs. The district managers have the authority to approved instructors. On How District Managers Approve People as an Instructor Duncan: Most district managers-when they receive the application, there’s a few things they’re looking for. One, naturally, is that resume that establish your subject matter level, subject matter expertise. But the other thing they’re looking for-most of the district managers look for nowadays is the instructor training course. That you’ve satisfactorily completed that course. Most people are coming to EFS or coming to the academy or to the state grantee or whomever to actually get that training course under their belt and then reply to a district manager for approval. On How Potential Approved Instructors Demonstrate Their Subject Matter Expertise Duncan: That person who wants to become an instructor…has to submit an application to the district manager and, in that application, they would include a resume and that resume would lay out their experiences. I think most of the folks are skilled enough that they’re going to know if-during the class, they’re going to figure out whether you actually have all that experience that you’ve put on your application. On What Happens if A Person Attends the Instructor Training But Doesn’t Pass Duncan: If they don’t successfully complete the course the fist time they take it, we’re hoping that whoever is teaching the course is going to explain to them why, what they need to work on. And hopefully those individuals go out and actually do work on under efficiencies and come back and take the course again. They can take it as many times as they want. We have no limit. They can take it until they pass. On the approval it’s a little bit different because number one, like I said, most of the district managers are looking for completion of the instructor course and the other part of that is the subject matter knowledge and if they don’t have that and if that’s the reason that they’re not approved, they’ll have to go get that experience before they reapply. On the Availability of Resources to Consult Before Attending the Instructor Training Session Duncan: Actually, we’ve got a workbook. It the same book that’s used in the instructor training workshop. It’s available through our National Mine Academy. It used to be called IG24A, which is instructor guide, but it’s the instructor training workshop of Part 48 workbook and folks can contact the Academy and order one of those books before the class. It will give them an opportunity to kind of see what they’re going to be doing in the class, but also give them an idea of what’s going to be expected of them. We do have a-and it’s a very basic course. It’s a web-based course on principles of adult learning. It’s on our trainers’ page. That’s always helpful and I know there’s a number of other sources out there for that type of training. We would encourage people to look to some of those sources and actually get some training in adult learning principles. That’s important. A lot of people think that it’s like teaching children, but it’s not, and I know that you know that Jeff. The way that we approach the training-whether it’s instructor-centered, learner-centered what works the best-that all plays a role in whether the training is effective or not. So we encourage people to do those kinds of things. If they have the subject matter experience in the mining industry we’ve got an awful lot of miners out there that have worked for three years, five years, twenty year in the industry. Probably done about every job at a mine site. So what they really need is to learn how to teach and learn how to communicate effectively.  Learn those adult learning principles and how to make their training effective. I encourage people to look to some of those courses as well. On How Long The Approval of an Approved Instructor Stays Valid Duncan: …It’s pretty much good forever. There’s a requirement that you teach at least one class every two years. We’ve actually been looking at ways that we could make some recertification requirements, continuing ed-type requirements, actually have these instructors report back to us periodically that they’ve not only conducted training classes, but they’ve actually completed some continuing education themselves. That’s a major undertaking and it would requirement rulemaking. I don’t want to mislead you. On Whether The Instructor Training is the Same All Over the Nation Duncan: The instructor training is essentially the same all across the nation. It’s like I’ve said, we administer that program through the academy, through EFSMS, and through the grantees. So that’s pretty much a standardized program. On Whether Approval Works the Same Way in all Districts Throughout the Nation Duncan: The approval criteria can vary district to district and that criteria is established by the district and the district manager has the authority to approve instructors. There are differences from district to district in experience requirements. I believe that almost all of the districts require the instructor training course though. On the "Portability" of Approved Instructor Status Duncan: Once you’re an approved instructor, you’re an approved instructor. So it is nationwide approved. You’re approved by a district manager, but that gives you a driver’s license for anywhere in the country. On the Different Requirements for Part 46 Trainers and Part 48 Trainers Duncan: There isn’t a requirement for an approved instructor in Part 46 and the reason is the rule doesn’t require it. There are several differences between Part 48 and Part 46. I recall—I just arrived here at MSHA in June of nineteen ninety-nine and the rule published—Part 46 rule published—in September of ninety-nine. We went out—we had a roll out plan that took us all across the country and so I got to talk to a number of instructors and safety professionals from across the country. Several of them stayed silent on it. A number of them—and these are more, some of them were from more progressive, larger companies that I think really understood the benefits of effective training—but I recall some of those folks as well, some of our grantees, were really upset about the fact that it didn’t require an approved instructor—that Part 46 didn’t require an approved instructor. Some of those folks from those larger companies said, you know, we’ve always used Part 48 instructors and we’re going to continue to do so. And I thought that said something about the importance they placed on providing effective training. I’ll say this: some mine operators—and I believe it’s probably a majority of them—do take training very seriously. They understand that there is a return on their investment, that effectively trained miners are safe miners, they’re productive miners. And so, they’re willing to make that investment. They’re willing to make sure that the competent person that they identify to provide training to their miners is able to communicate effectively, deliver the training effectively, and has that subject knowledge. Now, I believe on occasion, there may be some miner operators that oh gee, we got to do training? And you know, unfortunately, they look to see who is most available instead of who is best qualified to provide the training. Jeff Duncan’s Closing Thoughts About Part 48 Approved Instructors and the Instructor Training Sessions Duncan: You know, the bottom line is, Jeff, that we just want to make sure that the miners receive the best training possible and we’ve prepared them the best way we can to go to work and come home safe and healthy at the end of their shifts. That’s what it’s all about and that’s what we’re focused on. We’d like to thank Mr. Duncan for taking the time to participate in this interview and for explaining the MSHA Instructor Training sessions to use better. If you’d like even more information about MSHA training, download the free guide immediately below. The post The MSHA Instructor Training Session: An Interview with Jeff Duncan, Director of Educational Policy and Development (MSHA) appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

In a recent article, we provided an overview of Training Within Industry (TWI). TWI is a training program that was created by the U.S. government during World War II. In the long-term analysis, however, TWI was more influential overseas than it was in the U.S. In particular, it really caught on in Japan, and it could be said that TWI was one of the things at the roots of the Japanese lean manufacturing revolution. In this post, we’re going to take a closer look at the Job Instruction (JI) method. Convergence Training makes learning management systems (LMSs), e-learning courses, and more. Contact us to learn more or set up a demo. You may also want to download our FREE Guide to Effective Manufacturing Training. The "J Programs" and "PD" TWI isn’t a single program. Instead, there are four TWI programs or components that are intended to be used together for a more comprehensive workforce development solution. These four are: Job Instruction Job Methods Job Relations Program Development Job Instruction, Job Methods, and Job Relations are frequently referred to as the "J Programs." In this article, we’re going to focus on the Job Instruction program, but we’ll give you a quick overview of all four before we zero in on Job Instruction. Job Instruction (JI) This is a method for teaching workers to perform necessary job skills, with an emphasis on performing job correctly and safely, ramping up to productivity on the new skill(s) as quickly as possible, and reducing waste and damage. Job Methods (JM) This is a method for training workers to improve the way their own jobs are performed, with an emphasis on increasing more quality products in less time using available manpower, materials, and machines. Job Relations (JR) This focuses on training workers to solve personal problems with other coworkers in an analytical way minus emotions, with an emphasis on treating people as individuals and understanding people on all levels. Program Development (PD) The focus here is training to solve production problems unique to specific organizations, with an emphasis on personal and training issues, while technical means are applied to other issues. The TWI Job Instruction (JI) Program: Teaching Workers Job Skills Quickly and Effectively In the Shingo-award winning book Training Within Industry: The Foundation of Lean by Donald A. Dinero,  Dinero explains that many companies train new hires (or current employees who need to learn new skills) by pairing the worker with a more experienced worker who already has the desired skill. This is still a commonly seen training method in American companies, and is often referred to as "shadowing," "following," or "go follow Joe." You’re no doubt familiar with these kind of programs. There are times when shadowing programs like this can work, either wholly or partially. However, these programs are often ineffective for several reasons. First, the experienced worker often has to take the training chore on in addition to his or her standard work responsibilities. This can create stress and frustration. Second, the experienced worker may be very skilled but may have no particular knowledge of how to effectively train someone. For example, not every baseball All-Star can teach novices how to bat or field. And third, these shadowing programs often lead to a lack of a standard method for performing the job skills, with each trainer teaching his or her own version. Dinero notes that "JI Training results in standardized instruction and standardized instruction results in standardized methods…the JI training is such that a person learns the job correctly and safely in the shortest amount of time possible. This reduces waste in time, material, and damage to tools and equipment. Proper training with the resulting standardization will help an organization change its culture." (See note 1.) Preparing to Teach Job Instruction to Trainers TWI and the Job Instruction program can be thought of as a "train the trainer" kind of program. So, as we continue to explain the basics of Job Instruction, we’ll be focusing on the training method a TWI trainer would teach to a supervisor/trainer who works at a specific company. Now, we’ll learn what those would-be trainers would learn to do in order to prepare for the time when they will teach their own employees specific job skills. This can be broken down into four steps: Create a training timetable - Determine the skills your workers need and determine which workers already possess each skill. Keep this information in some form of checklist or matrix. Identify which workers need to learn new skills and the date by which you want the workers to learn those skills. Break down the job into important steps and key points - The trainer will "break down" each job into the smaller steps that make it up. The reason for doing this is so that instruction can be developed for performing each step and therefore the job as a whole. Note that the job is broken down into steps and key points. This is an important part of the TWI method and will be explained in more detail later in this article. Prepare equipment, materials, and supplies for training - Get all training materials ready in advance. Arrange the workplace properly - Have workplace arranged the way worker should keep it (until a Job-Methods related improvement comes along). Breaking Down the Job Into Steps and Key Points for Job Instruction (JI) The process of breaking down a job into its smaller steps and identifying key points is at the heart of the Job Instruction method. The JI "Job Breakdown Sheet (JBS)" is used to break the job down (you can find an example on page 168 in Dinero’s book). It’s essentially a three-columned table, with the three columns including the information below: Important Steps (of the job) - What to do to perform the job, listed in step-by-step order Key Points - Key points for how to do each step. There are three criteria for including something as a key step. First, if the information in the key point "make or break" the job. Second, if the information addresses a safety issue that could harm the worker. And third, if the information makes the job easier. Reasons - Why the step is important (this is a more recent addition to the original two points above). Here’s an example of a JI Job Breakdown Sheet taken directly from Dinero’s book (see note 2). It’s an explanation of how to tie a fire underwriter’s knot. This is a TWI standard and was in fact the example used in TWI training sessions. (See note 3.) Dinero goes on to make a couple more points. First, because you should tailor your training to your individual learners, you may end up creating different a different Job Breakdown Sheet (JBS) for more-experienced workers than you would for less-experienced workers. That’s because the more-experienced worker may know how to do something like "start the machine" but a less-experienced or novice worker may need step-by-step instruction to start the machine in addition. (See note 4.) And second, trainers at one company should compare their JBSs and create one standard version, so all employees are being taught the same thing. And third, as Dinero mentions frequently throughout the book, the Job Methods program (in which employees constantly look for new and better ways to perform their jobs) creates the possibility that JBSs will need to be changed over time. Teaching Instructors to Instruct with the TWI Job Instruction Method Once the job has been broken down into steps, key points, and reasons, and the Job Breakdown Sheet has been created, it’s time for the trainer/supervisor to teach employees the job task. As mentioned above, during TWI training sessions (in which a training consultant teaches the TWI method to other trainers, who will then use that method to teach their own employees real job tasks), the first demonstration that’s used is how to tie a fire underwriter’s knot. But regardless of the job you’re trying to train a worker to perform, JI lists the following four "how to instruct" steps. These steps were printed on a small wallet-sized card and handed out to TWI trainees as well. Step 1, Prepare the Worker - Make the employee feel comfortable, talk about the job and see what the employee knows about it already, get the person interested in the job, and make sure the worker is in the correct position (sitting, standing, etc.) to learn the job. [Readers with a training or instructional design background may recognize some of Gagne’s first Events of Instruction here.] Step 2, Present the Job/Operation - Tell, show, and illustrate one important step at a time; stress each key point and reason; instruct clearly, completely, and patiently, but do not give more information than the person can master. [Readers with a training or instructional design background may recognize some aspects of "chunking" here.] Step 3, Try out Performance - Have the employee do the job, step-by-step; correct any errors as they come up; have employee do the job again, this time with worker also stating each important step, key point, and reason; make sure the worker understands the job and steps; continue until you’re sure he/she knows. [Readers with a training or instructional design background may recognize some aspects of active learning and adult learning principles here.] Step 4, Follow Up -  Release worker from training and back to work; make sure worker knows who to go to for help; check in with worker often, see how things are going, observe performance, encourage questions; eventually taper off the follow-up as you’re convinced worker has mastered the job skill. (See note 5.) The Job Instruction Method of Presenting the Job/Operation to the Worker You just learned the four basic steps of teaching a worker a job in the Job Instruction method: prepare the worker, present the operation; (let the worker) try out the performance; and follow up. But the Job Instruction method is pretty strict about how to present the operation-meaning, how to show the worker the steps of the job-so let’s look at that in more detail now. First, tell the worker how many steps there are in the job. This gives him or her a chance to prepare and begins to place the job into a mental "framework" for the worker. Next, demonstrate the job, step-by-step. As  you demonstrate each step, state the step. For example, in step 1 of the knot-tying exercise listed above, the trainer would untwist and straighten the wire and say "untwist and straighten the wire." Do this for each step in the job. Next, demonstrate the entire job again. This time, while performing each step, say what the step is but also state any key point for that step. Again, as an example, in step 1 of the knot-tying exercise, the trainer would untwist and straighten the wire and say "untwist and straighten the wire" and then say something like "the wire should be untwisted about 6 inches from the end." Do this for each step in the job. Demonstrate the entire job again. This time show every step and state each step, key point, and reason. Pay attention to the worker. For a simpler task, three demonstrations is probably enough. For a more complicated task, you may have to do it more. Once you believe the worker is ready, let the worker try to perform the task. (See note 6.) The Job Instruction Method of Letting the Worker Practice the Job/Task Just as Job Instruction has a specific method of having the instructor demonstrate the job to the worker, there’s also a specific method in which the worker should perform the job and demonstrate that he/she can perform it during the training. Those steps are: Have the worker complete the task on his/her own. Worker should be silent while doing the task the first time. The trainer should watch the worker closely and quickly stop the process if the worker is doing something wrong, providing helpful feedback to get the worker back on track if that happens (this is true every time the worker performs the task). Once the worker has done the task silently without error, have worker perform the task again, this time stating each step as he/she proceeds. Next, have the worker perform the task again, this time stating each step and each key point. And next, have the worker perform the task again, this time stating each step, key point, and reason. The instructor will observe the worker and, when instructor is satisfied that the worker has mastered the skill, end training for the worker and let the worker perform the task on the job (with appropriate follow-up in the field, of course). Conclusion: The TWI Job Instruction (JI) Method We’d like to know if you’re familiar with, and have used, TWI and/or the Job Instruction (JI) method before. If you have, please leave your comments below. You may be curious if there are any technological tools that could help to teach procedures to workers in the way that JI does. If so, you may find this article on teaching procedures/using checklists interesting, and you may be interested in learning more about the Convergence Training learning management systems (LMSs) and their "tasklists." Remember that this blog post was the second in a series, and that the series began with a general article about Training Within Industry that you may find interesting. And keep your eyes out for additional articles about Job Relations (JR), Job Methods (JM), and Program Development (PD). Finally, feel free to download our free guide to effective manufacturing training, below. Notes: 1. Dinero, Donald A., Training Within Industry, p. 55. 2. Dinero, p. 168. 3. Dinero, p. 168. 4. Dinero, pp. 176-177. 5. Dinero, p. 97. 6. Dinero, pp. 167-168. 7. Dinero, p. 9. 8. Dinero, p. 11. 9. Dinero, pp. 34-40.   The post The Training Within Industry (TWI) Job Instruction Program (JI) appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

You can train people all you want, but it’s nice to know if the training is working. More specifically, is it helping your company reach a business goal? Luckily, you can use training data from your learning management system (LMS), along with other KPI data (for example, KPIs about operations or safety), to create a compelling visual display of the positive effects of your training program. And as you know, a picture is worth a thousand words. We’re going to give you a couple of quick examples of how to do just that in the post below. Convergence Training makes learning management systems (LMSs), e-learning courses, and more. Contact us to learn more or set up a demo. You may also want to download our FREE Guide to Effective Manufacturing Training. Identify Your Training KPIs Your LMS will track, record, and store the required training data. Depending on the training, this may mean attendance, activity completion, average test score, training completion percentage, job qualification rate, and so on (see this separate article for more about training-related KPIs you can track in your LMS). For the sake of example, let’s say we’ve done two new things in our training program and we want to see if they’ve had a positive effect on training-related KPIs. Those KPIs would be: Training Completion Rate (which in our example rose as a result of implement a new LMS) Average Test Scores (which rose as a result of implementing a new blended learning solution) Correlate Training Data With Business Metrics: 3 Examples In the next step, you’d gather data about performance at your work place, perhaps on safety, production, or quality. You could get this data from any number of sources, such as your safety tracking software, ERP system, or data historian. To make a convincing case that the improvements in Safety, Production, and Quality all resulted from the training changes, we can create graphs that superimpose the training data and the data from Safety, Production, and Quality, respectively. For Safety, we’ll use the Incidence Rate. For Production, we’ll use OEE. For Quality, we’ll use First-Pass Yield. Of course, in real life, you might choose to use different KPIs from Training, Safety, Production, and Quality (or other departments/business units), but the method we’re describing would still be relevant. 1. Measuring the Effect of Training on Safety We’ll start by getting information on a safety metric. Let’s use the Incidence Rate. We can see from the graph above that the incidence rate took a downward plunge (which is good in this case) after March of 2015, but it’s not clear why. Below are two graphs each showing the positive effect that training had on safety. In the first graph, we see that improved training completion is closely correlated to better safety numbers. In the second graph, we see that improved test scores are also closely correlated to better safety numbers. The graph immediately below shows training completions (in orange) and the incidence rates (in blue). We can see that the orange line representing the percentage of training completions increased at the same time the safety incidence rates decreased. The next graph shows improved average test scores (in orange) and the incidence rates (in blue). We can see that the average test scores increased at the same time the safety incidence rates decreased. So now you’ve got two graphs, each giving some pretty compelling evidence that the changes in your training program had positive effects on a key safety KPI. This information is good for you to know, but it’s also stuff you can take to management to demonstrate the value of the training department and/or the training program. 2. Measuring the Effect of Training on Production In our next example, we’re going to use a Production/Operations metric. We’ll use OEE (you can read more about OEE here). As was true with the safety metric, the graph below shows that OEE increased (good in this case), but it’s not clear why. Next, we’ve got two graphs each showing the positive effect that training had on OEE. In the first graph, we see that improved training completion is closely correlated to the increase  in OEE. In the second graph, we see that improved test scores are also closely correlated to the improved OEE. The graph immediately below shows training completions (in orange) and OEE (in blue). We can see that the percentage of training completions increased at the same time OEE increased. And the next graph shows improved average test scores (in orange) and OEE (in blue). We can see that the average test scores increased at the same time OEE increased. Again, you’ve now got some strong, compelling evidence that the changes in your training program had a positive business effect, this time on Production (as measured by OEE). As was true in the safety example, this is information that’s useful to you but can also be presented to management to show the effectiveness of your training program. 3. Measuring the Effect of Training on Quality For our third example, we’ll use a quality metric-first pass yield. As we saw with our two earlier, examples, something good happened in March of 2015 (in this case, first pass yield went up), but it’s not clear why. Again, below we’ve got two graphs each showing the positive effect that training had on quality/first pass yield. In the first graph, we see that improved training completion is closely correlated to a higher first pass yield. In the second graph, we see that improved test scores are also closely correlated to better first pass yield. Here’s the first graph, showing training completions and first pass yield (in blue). We can see that the percentage of training completions increased at the same time first pass yield increased. And here’s the second graph, showing improved test scores and first pass yield (in blue). We can see that the average test scores increased at the same time first pass yield increased. As was true with the examples for safety and production, we’ve now got two graphs correlating positive changes in the training program with positive changes in a key Quality metric. Conclusion These examples are a bit simplified, but you get the idea how you can superimpose your production data on top of your learning/training data to make a compelling demonstration of the effectiveness of your training program. Take some training data from your LMS, collect some KPI data from other workplace sources, superimpose the two on one graph, and you’ve got a quick and easy way to visually demonstrate the positive effects of your training program. In reality, you’d also want to control the other variables that might have caused the change in your KPIs. We’ll write another post about that. And you might want to quantify all this to put together an ROI for your training program. Again, watch for that in a future post. And speaking of other posts on related topics, you may find this article about performing a so-called "level 4 training evaluation," based on the Kirkpatrick four-level training evaluation model, interesting. What about you? What do YOU do when you try to demonstrate the positive effects of your training program?   The post How to Measure the Impact of Training on Business Goals and KPIs appeared first on Convergence Training Blog.

EHS professionals are in the business of trying to reduce the number, reduce the severity, or completely eliminate incidents at work. There are a lot of ways to do that. Establishing and maintaining an effective safety and health management program is one way. Leading effective EHS training is another. Controlling hazards is yet another. And there are more. One important method that falls under the category of "more" is performing an incident investigation. An incident investigation is something you (and/or others in your company) should perform when an incident occurs at the workplace. This can include near-misses, accidents, property damage, illnesses, injuries, and fatalities. There are two primary purposes of an incident investigation. The first purpose is to identify the "root cause" or causes of the incident. That’s the short-term goal. And the second purpose is to use the information gathered in the incident investigation, and the determination of the root cause, to prevent a similar incident from happening again. That’s the long-term goal. But not everyone knows how to perform an incident investigation. What about you? Do you have a plan in place right now? Do you know what you’d do if you had an incident at work? If you have already planned your response and investigation, hats off to you. If not, you can begin planning now. But if you don’t begin planning your investigation until you’ve had an incident at work, you’re much too late and will be behind the proverbial eight-ball. So in this article, we’ll sketch out what you need to know about performing an incident investigation. And we’ll even give you a list you can use to begin making your incident investigation plan and another list you can use to begin stocking up your incident investigation kit. Hope you find it helpful. Convergence Training is a training solutions provider with a strong EHS offering. We make several different learning management systems (LMSs), e-learning courses on EHS and other topics, custom training solutions, and more. Contact us for more information or to set up a demo. And while you’re here, why not download our free Guide to Effective EHS Training? INTRODUCTION We’re going to break this article down into the following sections: Incidents Incident Investigations-An Overview Incident Investigations-A Closer Look at Each Step Incident Investigation Plans We recommend you read the entire article, and then use the "incident investigation plans" section at the end to guide you through what to do next. INCIDENTS Before we charge ahead and begin explaining how to perform an incident investigation, let’s start by making sure we know what an incident is and what incidents should be investigated. What’s an Incident? "Incident" is an umbrella term that includes the following: Fatalities Injuries Illnesses Property damage Near misses We’ll look at each a little more closely. Fatalities Just what it sounds like. When someone dies at work. Injuries A physical injury, such as a bump on the head or a broken arm. Illnesses A sickness, such as a respiratory illness suffered from inhaling chemical fumes. Property damage Damage to property, such as crashing a forklift into a shelving unit and damaging the forklift and shelving. Near misses Something that could have resulted in a fatality, injury, illness, and/or property damage, but didn’t. For example, a wrench falls from a shelving unit and falls to the ground, barely missing striking a worker on the head. Should You Investigate All Incidents? The best practice is to investigate all incidents, even near misses. The more incidents you investigate, the more information you’ll gather, and therefore the better chance you’ll have of avoiding incidents in the future. Obviously, some incidents will SCREAM for an investigation, such as a fatality (there will be legal requirements to consider as well), while a very minor injury or near miss may not call quite so dramatically for investigation. But again, the more incidents you investigate, the lower your risks will be in the future. Do All Incidents Merit the Same Type of Investigation? No. You’ll use a similar technique for all incident investigations, but you’ll apply more resources while investigating some incidents than you will when investigating others. For example, it’s logical that more people will play a role in investigating a fatality than in investigating a near miss that would have led to a minor injury. INCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS-AN OVERVIEW An incident investigation is a multi-step process. Those steps include: Gather the necessary people to perform the investigation Get  your pre-prepared incident investigation kit Go to the location of the incident Help provide any first aid, medical care, or assistance necessary Secure the area where the incident occurred Preserve the work area as it is/as it was at the time of the incident Identify witnesses to the incident Separate witnesses Interview the worker(s) involved Interview the witnesses Document the scene Create an incident investigation report Distribute the incident investigation report Use the findings of the incident investigation report to better identify and control hazards Ensure that the corrective actions called for in the report are put into place Just by skimming the list above, you can understand that you’ll benefit from a lot of planning and consideration in advance. Knowing what the incident investigation will involve will help you in two ways: First, it will help you create a plan for incident investigations that will take place in the future Second, it will guide you through the steps of an incident investigation when you’re performing one. We’ll look at each of these steps in much more detail in the section below. INCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS: A CLOSER LOOK AT EACH STEP Gather the Necessary People to Lead and Take Part in the Investigation Normally, an incident investigation is led by the supervisor of the worker(s) involved in the incident. In some cases, other people may also help the supervisor or may lead the investigation instead of the supervisor. This can include: The EHS/Safety manager A special Incident Investigation team The Safety Committee In addition, the incident investigation will include: Workers who were injured or made ill by the incident Workers who were present and/or participated but were not injured or made ill Other workers who witnessed the incident In some cases, the worker  involved may have the right to request that an employee representative be present during the investigation. If the incident is especially major, or if a fatality is involved, senior management, engineering, and/or legal personnel may also play a role. Get Your Pre-Prepared Incident Investigation Kit When going to the site where the incident took place, take with you an incident investigation kit. You should have prepared the incident investigation kit in advance so it’s ready when needed. The incident investigation kit should include: Incident investigation forms Interview forms Markers/tape to barricade the incident area High-visibility tape Scissors Scotch tape Warning tags and/or padlocks to secure the area A camera and/or video recorder A voice recorder (possibly integrated into video recorder) Measuring equipment (measuring tape/ruler) Flashlight Containers to hold samples Personal protective equipment appropriate to your work site First aid kit Gloves Large envelopes Graph paper Other paper to write/sketch on A checklist that lists the steps of the incident investigation and the order in which to complete them Remember, if you don’t have an incident investigation kit prepared now, you want to do it soon-before you forget. Do it now, or put a reminder on your email calendar to do it tomorrow, or get old-school and put a Post-In note somewhere. But don’t put this off for long. Go to the Site of the Incident Once you’ve got the correct people and your incident investigation kit, go to the site of the incident. As you approach the area, remember to pay close attention and be cautious. Don’t walk into a situation that will harm you, making a bad situation even worse. Also, make sure you’ve equipped yourself with any PPE that’s necessary to enter the area, either because it’s normally needed in that work area or because the incident has created a need for the PPE. Help Provide Any First Aid, Medical Care, or Other Assistance Necessary Remember, there’s been an incident. People may have been hurt, or a hazard may exist. Do what is necessary to help any sick or injured people, to get people out of harm’s way, and to control the hazard safely before you begin your investigation. Secure the Area Where the Incident Occurred Once people are safe, barricade the area where the incident occurred so that people can’t enter. Preserve the Area As It Was At the Time of the Incident With the area barricaded, make sure everything in the area stays as it was when the incident occurred. If things are not removed, moved, or changed, it will make the incident investigation more effective and meaningful. Identify All People Who Were Involved in the Incident and Who Witnessed the Incident When you get there, you’ll want to identify the people who were: Involved in the incident Witnesses to the incident Do this as soon as possible, before people go their separate ways and begin to forget key details. The reason you’re doing this is because you’re going to want to interview all of these people to find out what happened. But there are two important points to keep in mind at this point. First, don’t interfere with someone if they have suffered a significant injury or illness and need medical attention. That may be obvious, but it’s worth stating now and keeping in mind during a real incident investigation. And second, once you begin identifying and talking to the participants and witnesses, it’s important that they know why you want to talk to them and what the purpose of the incident investigation is. And it’s equally important that they know what the purpose is NOT. You want to make it clear that the purpose of holding the interviews and conducting the investigation is to gather information that can be used to help prevent similar incidents in the future. And likewise, you want to make it clear that the purpose is NOT to place blame, assign fault, or punish anyone. Here’s a hint: you’ll have better luck explaining that the purpose of conducting an incident investigation is simply to prevent future incidents and is NOT to place blame or punish if it’s something you’ve already explained to workers in advance. Consider explaining the purpose of incident investigations to your workers as part of the general safety training that they receive, and/or as part of the standard efforts associated with your safety and health management program. Employees are more likely to cooperate fully, and less likely to worry about participation, if you do this. Separate the Witnesses Separate the people that you’ll interview: sick/injured people, other participants, and witnesses. You want to hear each person’s wholly unique perspective and thoughts on what happened. If they’ve hung around and discussed events together, you’re less likely to get that raw, unfiltered information and more likely to get people or ideas that have been influenced by other people. Interview the Workers Affected and/or Involved Take the person to a place where you can interview him/her privately. While you’re interviewing the person, keep the conversation informal. Talk to the person as an equal-don’t talk down to the person. Avoiding creating an atmosphere that’s accusatory or confrontational. Begin the interview by reminding the person that you’re not trying to place blame or penalize, and that you’re just trying to learn what happened so similar incidents won’t happen again. Then, ask the person to explain what happened, from beginning to end. Don’t interrupt the person-let the person explain the incident in his or her own words. It’s a good idea to record this conversation as its happening, and you may also want to take notes with paper and pencil as the person talks. Once the person has completed his or her story, ask additional questions to fill in any "gaps" or clarify any confusion. Try to use open-ended questions that invite the person to give extended answers based on his or her own thoughts-try to avoid close-ended questions that the person will answer with "Yes" or "No." Once you believe you understand the person’s full story, tell it back to that person. Have them listen to your explanation of their story and ask if you’ve captured what they experienced accurately. If the person explains that you’ve got something wrong, or adds more information, correct your version. Next, ask the person why the incident happened what they think could have been done to prevent the incident from occurring. Have them focus on the conditions and events that led up to the incident. Once the person’s finished their explanation, you may find it helpful to lead them through the "5 Whys?" exercise. You may already be familiar with this, but if not, it’s a simple exercise that helps to identify the root cause of an incident. All you do is ask the question "Why?" five times (give or take a few, based on circumstances) to get from superficial explanations to the true root cause(s) of the incident. Here’s an example: You: Why did the person get hurt? (Why number 1.) Worker: He put his hand on the moving blade. You: Why? (Why number 2.) Worker: He didn’t know there was a blade there. You: Why? (Why number 3.) Worker: He wasn’t properly trained about safety aspects of this machine. You: Why? (Why number 4.) Worker: He doesn’t normally work in this area and was called in as a replacement without receiving the safety training people who work in this area typically receive. You: Why? (Why number 5.) Worker: There’s no organized way to determine who’s received safety training for this area/that area. You get the idea. You can also see that the 5 Whys? method could have gone in a different direction above, and that the worker could have suggested that the moving blade should have had been guarded to prevent workers from touching the blade. Remember that your goal is to "dig deep," moving past superficial explanations of a direct cause (the person’s had was cut by a moving blade), through indirect causes (the person didn’t know there was a moving blade there), to root causes (the person hadn’t received proper safety training to work in the area, there’s no way to know who’s received what safety training, etc.). Remember, there’s nothing "magic" about the number 5. Ask "Why?" until you’ve identified root causes. Finally, check to see that you’ve got the following information, all of which may prove helpful during your investigation, while making your report, and while trying to put corrective measures into place: Characteristics of all workers involved with the incident, including: Age Gender Department Job role/title Experience Tenure Employment status (full time, part, time, seasonal, contractor, consultant) Type of injury/illness/incident, including: Description Body part(s) affected Severity Task being performed when incident occurred, including: General task Specific activity within that task Location of involved workers Body posture of involved workers Was person working alone or with others? Time factors associated with incident, including: Time of day Hour within worker’s shift (example: 3rd hour of 8-hour shift) Shift (example: day/night) Phase of worker’s day (example: entering work, normal work, 15-minute break, mealtime, overtime, leaving work) Supervision when incident occurred (example: worker directly supervised, indirectly supervised, or worker not supervised at time of incident) Expected supervisor when incident occurred (example: normal/not normal, expected/not expected, feasible/not feasible) Interview the Witnesses Use the same technique that you used to interview people involved in the incident (explained immediately above) to interview all other participants and witnesses. Document the Scene of the Incident Once everyone who was involved and/or witnessed the incident has been interviewed, turn your attention to the evidence at the site of the incident. Because you would have already barricaded the area, conditions should be the same as they were immediately after the incident (or as close to that as possible). The process of documenting the scene may involve: Taking photos and/or videos Making audio recordings document the scene (perhaps as part of the video) Writing notes Sketching/drawing the scene Making measurements Taking samples Noting information in equipment operation logs, charts, and records During this part of the incident, gather the following information: Position/status of machines, tools, equipment, supplies, or similar devices Information in equipment operation logs, charts, and records Characteristics of machines/equipment/tools/supplies associated with incident, including: Type Brand Identification numbers Size Distinguishing features Condition Specific part(s) involved Operating settings/status Entries in logs/charts/records Any other materials/subjects involved (example: chemicals) Atmospheric/environmental conditions, including: Temperature Light Noise Weather Ergonomics Preventive measures in place when incident occurred How well any preventive measures in place performed Create an Incident Investigation Report Once you’ve gathered all the information, it’s time to create a written report. Your report should: Summarize everything you learned during your investigation Identify root causes of the incident Recommend corrective measures List who’s responsible for ensuring each corrective measure is put into place State the date by which each corrective measure should be put into place Distribute the Incident Investigation Report Once you’ve created the report, it’s time to distribute the report. Once of the things you should do before an incident occurs is determine who should get a copy of incident investigation reports and how quickly these reports should be created and distributed. In addition, you should have determined what kind of information gets relayed to managers and general employees, and how that information is made public. You’ll want to follow through accordingly to plan and communicate the appropriate information accordingly. Communicate Report Findings to the General Work Force You may not distribute the full incident investigation report in its original form to all workers. However, you should communicate key findings of the report to the workers at the site. Use the Findings of the Report to Implement Corrective Measures Use the findings and recommendations of the report to put corrective measures into place. Make sure anyone who is responsible for putting a corrective measure into place knows: What he/she is responsible for doing When he/she should have the correct measures in place How he/she should communicate any problems experienced while putting the corrective measures in place or how to communicate if he/she could not put the corrective measures in place How he/she should communicate that the corrective measures have been put into place so that they can be tracked Ensure that the Corrective Actions Called For Are Put Into Place You should have some way to track if and when all corrective actions have been put into place. Be sure everyone involved in implementing corrective measures knows how to track completion of those measures, and make sure someone has the final responsibility of ensuring that all measures have been implemented by a certain date. If you don’t track the completion of these corrective measures, it’s easy for one (or several) to never get done. INCIDENT INVESTIGATION PLANS Now that we’ve discussed incidents and incident investigations, let’s turn our attention to the logical next step: the incident investigation plan. What’s an Incident Investigation Plan? It’s your plan for preparing to lead incident investigations and for how you’ll actually conduct one. When Should You Create an Incident Investigation Plan? Now. Or soon. The critical thing is, you want to create an incident investigation plan before you need to perform an incident investigation. And of course, since the future’s uncertain, you don’t know when the next incident is going to occur. So the sooner you create your plan, the better. Reading the information below will help you create your incident investigation plan. Why Should You Create an Incident Investigation Plan? An incident investigation is a multi-step process that requires you to have: Considered some things in advance Made some decisions in advance Inform some people in advance Provide training in advance Gather materials in advance Create forms in advance All this work that’s done in advance will make your incident investigation much more effective. And that should be reason enough to do it now. Now that you know quite a bit about incidents, and also know what to do during a real incident investigation, it’s time to start creating an incident investigation plan for your workplace. Do it now, or soon, instead of later. If you’re not going to do it now, go to your calendar, find the next open opportunity, and set an appointment with yourself. Get the time blocked out now, make it a personal action item, and get it done. What to Include in Your Incident Investigation Plan Here are some things to include in your incident investigation plan: Which incidents will be investigated? Some? All? Just injuries and illnesses? Property damage? What about near misses? How intensively will different types of incidents be investigated? It makes sense that some incidents, such as ones that result in a fatality or serious injury, may lead to more intensive incident investigations that other incidents, such as those that lead to a near miss that would have led to only a minor outcome. Give this idea some thought now and come up with a plan to respond/investigate appropriately. Who should be involved in incident investigations? Who will be involved in incident investigations? Will it always be the same person/people? Or might it include different people with the same job title (for example, the department manager who supervises the worker involved)? Will the EHS/Safety manager always be involved? When should management, engineering, and/or legal be included? Is an employee representative to be included? If so, in which cases, and who is that person? What will be in your incident investigation kit? Come up with a  list (use the recommendations above as a starting point), go get what you need, and put it all together in a single bag or case. Remember, sooner is better than later for this. Are policies and procedures in place for contacting outside help in the event of an emergency? This is a little off-topic, but it’s worth double-checking at this point. Are there specific policies in place for employees, managers, and others at the company to summon emergency assistance when necessary after an incident has occurred? Have these methods been explained adequately to all workers? Do all workers understand the explanations, and can they do what’s necessary should the need arise? Do all methods and systems used to do this (example: emergency phone systems, alarms) work and are they tested regularly? This is stuff that’s worth checking on. Has everyone received proper training about incident investigations? Some people at your workplace may actively play a role in conducting an incident investigation. Before they do, they should know they may be called upon to do this, and they should be trained in the purpose and methods. In addition, all workers could potentially be included in an incident investigation-being interviewed because they were directly involved or because they were witnesses. As we mentioned earlier, it’s important that they understand the purpose of the incident investigation isn’t to assign blame or punish. Make sure all workers know in advance that incidents will be followed by incident investigations, and make sure they realize the purpose of an incident investigation is to determine root causes and implement preventive measures so similar incidents won’t happen again. And that the purpose isn’t to assign blame or punish. Create, print, and store interview forms Create an interview form that can lead interviewers through the process of conducting interviews with the people who were involved in the incident or witnessed the incident. Print out many copies of the form, put them on a clipboard or in a hard-covered binder, and put them into your incident investigation kit. Keep an electronic copy and save it in some logical place on your computer or the work network so you can access this later, print more copies, and/or modify it as necessary. Create, print, and store investigation forms Once you’ve finished with the forms to lead investigators through the interview process, create a similar form to lead investigators through the rest of the investigation. Use the section above, where we explain what to look for during the investigation, as a starting point for what to include in your investigation forms. Print out many copies of the form, put them on a clipboard or in a hard-covered binder, and put them into your incident investigation kit. Keep an electronic copy and save it in some logical place on your computer or the work network so you can access this later, print more copies, and/or modify it as necessary. Create a template form for your incident investigation reports You’ll also want to create a form that acts as a template for the person completing the incident investigation report. That form can be used to guide the person writing the report so that he/she is sure to include all the relevant information. It’s not necessary to print this out, but do save a copy on a computer or the work network so its’ ready when needed. Determine who will complete the incident investigation Who completes the incident investigation report? The same person every time? Or is it someone different each time? Determine how quickly the incident investigation report should be completed Will there be a specific deadline for completing incident investigations? No deadline? Or will it vary, depending on the type of incident? Figure out who will get a full copy of the completed incident investigation report When the incident report is complete, it should be distributed at the workplace. Determine who will get a full copy of the report and have that list available and ready when needed. Determine a method for implementing corrective measures How will people responsible for implementing the various corrective measures know they’re responsible? How is this communicated? How will they note when they’ve successfully implemented the corrective measure? What will they do if they try to implement a corrective measure and can’t? How will they communicate that information? Determine a method for checking to see if corrective measures have been implemented Finally, create a method to check back and confirm that all of the correct measures have been implemented. Make sure someone’s responsible for doing this and that it’s done by a specified date. If that person finds that one or more measure has not been implemented, have the person follow through to find out why and to get the measure implemented as soon as possible. CONCLUSION: INCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS By performing an incident investigation as described above, you’ve got a better chance of eliminating or reducing the number of incidents at your workplace. If you explain the process to all the workers at your site, and explain its purpose is to prevent future incidents and not to blame or punish, you’ll have a much better chance of getting their buy-in and of getting full cooperation during an actual investigation. Remember that the people who will help lead investigations need training in advance about the purpose, methods, and tools used in the investigation, and be sure to get your incident investigation plan and incident investigation kit finished soon, using the tips above as a guide. One final point, which probably occurred to you already. You’ll collect a lot of information during an incident investigation. If you store that information in a manner that allows you to later analyze and cross-reference data from multiple incidents, you may start to find connections and relationships beyond what you’d notice from one incident or just from comparing root causes. For example, you may discover that a certain type of incident is more likely to occur after people eat, and that may lead you to re-ordering work flow around the eating schedule. There are software systems to help you create, store, manage, and analyze this kind of data, and they may well be worth the purchase price. 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