As we implement an ERM environment within our organizations, training is critical.
It starts with the development of a training plan. This plan describes what content is to be delivered, to what audiences, and in what fashion. Training will need to be provided on records management concepts and the importance of records management broadly. It should also address organizational records management concepts, policies, and expectations. It needs to identify the responsibilities for records management across the organization and according to role.
The plan should also identify different specific training needs for records managers, for support staff, for other specialized staff such as IT and legal, and for senior management. This last may not be training as much as awareness and education.
The plan will outline how to acquire the training – in other words, whether the organization will create all of its own training materials, whether it will acquire them from a third-party for internal delivery, whether it will simply hire a third-party training firm to deliver the content in some fashion, or some combination of these. Each of these approaches will require different levels of resources, different types of expertise, and will result in a different approach to the design of the training content and the training process.
The plan needs to identify which approaches to take with regards to delivery of the training. The options range from instructor-led, face-to-face training, immersive online courseware, to a simple self-study training manual. Formal training should be supported by exercises, handouts, and additional references.
Finally, if your organisation will deliver content using your instructors, there will need to be a step in the process to train the prospective trainers, not only on the course materials, but also on adult learning theory, how to teach the content and how to run the exercises.
Some form of ‘training needs analysis” should be undertaken as part of this planning. You will need to:
- Identify the current baseline competencies of general users and specialized staff in IT, records management, and legal; and
- Determine what users and other relevant parties need to know in order to use the ERM environment effectively, given the expected level of support.
Once, you understand the training needs, you can determine:
- The best ways and means of ensuring that users have the requisite level of skills by the time the environment goes live and they have to use it. This may include a mixture of face-to-face briefings, classroom training and/or online training,
- What level of support will be required after go-live and the best way to deliver this support?
- What type of ongoing or refresher training is required for general users?
- What type of training is required for specialized users?
- What type of training is required for the system administrators and support staff?
Tell us about your successes in developing training programs for your staff.
What challenges have you faced in providing records management awareness to your organizations?
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