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Rising to the Challenge
Maintaining Diversity & Inclusion Training with Less...
April 2009 With the
economy in its current status, it seems as though we've all been asked
to maintain productivity with less. Less money. Less time away from
work. And even in some unfortunate cases - less managers and employees.
A recent report shows that the U.S. corporate training market shrank
from $58.5 billion in 2007 to $56.2 billion in 2008, the greatest
decline in more than 10 years.
With training budgetary cuts this large, is your organization one that
is thinking about putting Diversity and Inclusion Training on hold as a
way to save money? Well, your organization might want to think twice
about this decision.
According to several works by law professors Peter Siegelman and John
Donohue, surging unemployment during recession has a profound impact on
workplace litigation. According to their research, an increase of just
1.5 percent in the unemployment rate translates into as much as 21
percent increase in harassment and discrimination claims, mostly in
federal court.
And, with global and competitive influence affecting your market more
than ever, cutting Diversity and Inclusion training could actually be
negatively affecting your bottom line.
In recent Gallup Workplace Studies, companies that were effective in
creating and maintaining an inclusive environment saw remarkable
business advantages when compared with companies that did not. They saw:
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Customer satisfaction increase by 39%
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Productivity increase by 22%
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Profitability increase by 27%
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Turnover decrease by 22%
So, if you think about it in simple terms, practicing Diversity and
Inclusion principles is a cost effective way to increase profits and
productivity by tapping contributions from a broader pool of talent
and market place WHILE decreasing turnover and lawsuits.
But not all training approaches and techniques are equally
effective. With this said, it is critical for those of us in the
workplace development world to make better-informed budgetary
decisions about which Diversity and Inclusion training should be
supported, which should be improved, and which should be eliminated.
By following the 10 helpful hints below, your
organization can remain flexible with Diversity and Inclusion
training constraints without sacrificing the quality
of your training.
Avoid Training Traps and Gaps
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Hint #1: |
Gather
a list of your current Diversity and Inclusion assets
including all training programs, products, techniques, and
vendors that you currently employ. Utilizing this list, conduct
an audit as to where your organization has been in lines of Diversity
and Inclusion training. Ask yourself the tough questions.
Which traditional training methods have worked well for you in the past?
Which have had the highest return on investment or positive influence?
In the same sense, which have been “not so successful?” Use
your findings to determine which direction your current
training initiatives should head in to be most effective and
efficient.
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Hint #2: |
Don’t
recreate the wheel. Be willing to explore what other leading
organizations are doing with their own Diversity and
Inclusion training and initiatives. Remember, a good
percentage of unnecessary and unaccounted for training budgets
can be spent recreating areas that have already been proven
successful.
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Hint #3: |
Never
implement piece-mill Diversity and Inclusion training. Just because bits and pieces
of your past training had positive results doesn’t mean that
collectively it will have the same impact. Be sure you tie
together your training modules together into a unified, and most
importantly, linear process where tangible skills are built
upon and reinforced.
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Hint #4: |
Just
having your employees attend the training isn’t enough.
Ensure that your learning experiences are remembered by
making modules interactive and applicable to your
organization and industry. In the same sense, don’t be
afraid to periodically test learner knowledge or skill sets
through real world Diversity and Inclusion scenarios or challenges. |
Stretch
Your Training Budgets
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Hint #5: |
Reduce administration time and costs by:
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Centralizing all learning by creating consolidated
scheduling, delivery, and reporting methods. This
can be done through a Learning Management System (LMS)
that is accessible via your corporate intranet or via the
Internet.
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Tracking only the learner information that is
absolutely necessary. Don't over-analyze just for
the sake of creating reports that no one utilizes.
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Hint #6: |
Reduce travel costs by:
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Utilizing existing team meetings to conduct
smaller, but effective, training sessions or
discussions around Diversity and Inclusion.
Remember travel costs are often more expensive
than the training itself.
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Utilize e-learning modules or webinar-based
“live” training sessions.
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Hint #7: |
Reduce waste by:
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Converting your previous paper-based
Diversity and Inclusion training to electronic formats such as PDF
or e-learning.
Distribute this new format via company
email, intranet or LMS.
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Hint #8: |
Consolidate vendors:
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Many Diversity and Inclusion vendors will offer discounts for
multiple products or services. Try
selecting vendors with multiple areas of
expertise and who can provide a Blended
Approach to training.
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Hint #9: |
Use training as a resource tool:
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Provide access to Diversity and
Inclusion course content and
materials through your intranet or
LMS. This provides employees with
training that can double as a
subsequent reference guide.
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Hint
#10: |
Use "bite-sized” learning:
- Reduce time away from work while
keeping Diversity and Inclusion
at the forefront of your team’s
mind by creating smaller
“bite-sized” learning sessions
that target a specific Diversity
dimension, topic, or pain-point.
Be sure that the message is
still uniform and that your
overall training goal is met.
This can be accomplished by
revisiting past session key
learning points and
foreshadowing future
“bite-sized” learning within
each module.
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Overall, by ensuring that your Diversity
and Inclusion approach is refined and streamlined, you'll be maximizing
talent and resources while avoiding needless spending and resources -
every organization's goals during times like these.
To request more information or for a no-obligation trial of our
products, please email
info@knowledgestart.com or call
toll-free 877.650.0454.
Who We Are
KnowledgeStart is an employee development company which, for the past seven
years, has specialized in online training for its U.S. and global clients.
We are a leading provider of award-winning e-learning programs and platforms
that maximize learning, increase collaboration and retention, and improve
competitive edge. Over the years, we have excelled in
enhancing organizational and individual productivity in topics such as
Diversity and Inclusion,
Generational Differences,
Harassment Prevention,
Business Ethics, and
Substance Abuse Prevention.
KnowledgeStart understands that every decision made by your employees eventually
crosses someone's path somehow and can often have a "ripple effect" across your
entire organization. Even the smallest of decisions can have a BIG impact on
your company and the people around you. Your workplace is an incredibly
inter-connected environment.
Through this understanding and our collective skill sets and experiences with
leading companies, we are proud to deliver innovative approaches to employee
training, compliance, and outcome measurement software.
Visit our website:
http://www.knowledgestart.com
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