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Future Pharmaceuticals Magazine
...Winning Their Hearts and Minds! |
Nick Schacht is President and CEO of Learning Tree International. He joined Learning Tree as its COO in 2002. Prior to joining Learning Tree, Nick was President of Global Learning Systems, an eLearning product and service developer and integrator.
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 Interview with Nick Schacht, President and CEO of Learning Tree in Future Pharmaceuticals Magazine, Q4 2006
Jim Phelan is a Senior Director in Organizational Learning at Merck. He has primary responsibility for leadership and management skill development for Merck worldwide, and works with divisional areas and groups to foster the development of Merck’s future leaders.
JP: There are so many factors that influence the effective design of learning today: blended strategies, demographics such as age of learner, time available for learning, and of course, the holy grail of training - ROI. How do you think about all of these factors as you approach a learning need?
NS: At the end of the day, content needs to be interactive, engaging and based on real–world scenarios that business professionals can relate to – they need to be able to apply their new knowledge and skills in an environment that is consistent with what they’ll face back on their jobs. That hasn’t changed, and our success in driving ROI for our customers is tied directly to how well we meet those criteria. However, a critical factor that must be considered in designing a learning solution is choosing the appropriate content delivery vehicle. Some projects can be addressed with eLearning or blended approaches, while others require highly interactive instructor–led training (ILT). We work with our customers to customize programs that use appropriate learning modalities to ensure success. That can mean anything from developing and delivering condensed ILT courses, to programs that blend our ILT programs with other eLearning assets.
JP: Many practitioners believe that it’s very difficult to measure Level Three (behavior change) with topics like leadership behavior or discussion skills. How do you think about and ultimately ensure that learners are actually able to internalize and demonstrate skills such as feedback, coaching, and even selling skills?
NS: That’s a good question. Long-term behavioral change with respect to individuals requires an organizational culture that not only supports but encourages change – and that’s not always the reality. As such, we go beyond simply presenting learners with theories on the qualities of effective leadership, communication, change management, etc. Our programs feature extensive, interactive simulations and role–playing that are based in the real-world where politics, reluctance to change, and the pressures of challenging deadlines are the norm. We incorporate substantial rich–media elements that reflect the contemporary workplace and its constant barrage of information from e–mail, phone, the Internet, and other sources. We give our learners the tools they need not only to improve their own skills, and help them increase the receptivity to change in their work environments.
JP: All of us are faced with the daunting challenge of globalizing our learning and training. How do you approach this challenge so that global learners are considered “up front” in the design of learning, instead of adopting the mind set that all we have to do is get a program translated once it is complete?
NS: Learning Tree combines the strength of consistent, centralized product development with a distributed local capability to tailor, customize, and localize content as necessary for maximum effectiveness. We have a single worldwide Product Development organization through which we ensure a set of core products that match global customers’ requirements for consistency and quality. In every course that we create, we require that the development team include course authors from various parts of the world. As a result, our products reflect global cultures, standards, and business practices. I’ll give you an example: Project Management practices in the U.S. most commonly follow the PMI model, whereas in Europe PRINCE2 is the standard. Rather than employ a “one–size–fits–all” approach, we have developed separate course titles that reflect each methodology – and with our customers we select the course title that most closely matches their internal project management discipline. However, both courses are designed with the same degree of diligence and delivered with the same high level of quality – and the information contained in both courses is essentially consistent. We also are able within each of our Operating Units to localize course materials in terms of vocabulary or language – or to customize course content as necessary to meet customer requirements.
JP: The average amount of face time between physicians and Pharma reps has continued to decline from about three to four minutes on average, to less than one minute. From your perspective, what role can learning play here to equip our reps to build dialogue with physicians in such a 60 minute relationship? What strategies would you recommend in particular?
NS: We need to take a look at the underlying interpersonal skills that Pharma reps need to be successful in that initial 60–second window. Assertiveness, communication skills, active listening, and influence skills all play a role – and these are not always the same as traditional “selling” skills. The key is to develop a standardized “game plan” for those 60 seconds, and then employ the appropriate set of behaviors and skills based on the key elements of the interaction. In order to equip Pharma reps with those tools, we provide structured role–playing mapped to each of the core interpersonal competencies that could be part of that interaction. Creating an environment where learners can practice with a skilled facilitator is critical to the success of this type of program, and ILT provides a proven crucible for forging the necessary skills.
JP: I don’t have any statistics here, but common sense tells us that the average age of a pharmaceutical representative continues to get lower. We’ve had Generation Y for a while, and now the Nextgeners are here. What trends do you anticipate in terms of learning design and delivery to meet their needs? In your opinion what are the benefits of blended learning and ITL as opposed to eLearning?
NS: Each new generation that enters the workforce is significantly more comfortable with new technology than the generation that preceded it. In fact, younger workers today probably have already had some exposure to distance learning or eLearning in school or in their careers. However, there is a danger in assuming that simply because these generations are comfortable with technology-based learning that we should continuously shift more learning experiences to those modalities. What is – and has always been – key is to ensure that the design and modality selected for learning will be those that are best suited to accomplishing the objective at hand. Learning is often about getting people to master new behaviors, and therefore out of their comfort zones, so it is often a mistake to make learning as comfortable as possible. Effective, yes; totally in the comfort zone, no. As an example, workers today often use handheld wireless devices to communicate with customers, but are we sure that younger workers possess the appropriate skills to craft compelling e-mails or manage complex negotiations? Instant messaging and texting are not professionally accepted in today’s business world even though they are key elements in the personal lives of many younger employees. Therefore, training in areas such as management and business skills should focus on new ways to develop traditional skills in the context of today’s tech-centric workplace.
JP: As training vendors supporting the Pharma industry, what challenges and/or issues do you see in terms of designing and implementing new and innovative methods of design and delivery for meeting needs for the future?
NS: Like all industries today, our customers in the Pharma space are asking for training that is (a) global/scalable, (b) condensed, (c) relevant to their business/industry, and (d) cost-effective. In response to that, Learning Tree develops customized solutions that meet content and environmental needs and allow customers to seamlessly blend our ILT offering with eLearning modules and Learning Management Systems, while also incorporating internal case studies and best practices. The result is company-specific training programs that leverage technology without jeopardizing retention rates or driving up costs. Because this approach builds on specific practices and procedures within our customers’ organizations, it also provides key building blocks for long-term competitive advantage.
JP: What challenges and benefits have you encountered with regards to an eLearning management approach whether indirectly or directly?
NS: As I mentioned previously, it’s a matter of applying the right solution based on the nature of your business/training goal. Learning Tree embraces the blended learning concept, and our specific role is to be the best provider of instructor-led classroom training as a key component of the blended learning model. We work with our customers to match our abilities and product to their needs. What works most effectively is when our customers choose vendors that are the best in their respective areas of expertise, and then ask them to work together on their behalf. We have worked very successfully with a number of customers to map content between our area of expertise (ILT) and another vendor’s area of expertise (LMS, eLearning, consulting, etc.). The end result is a solution that meets specific customer needs without being held hostage to the constraints or limitations of any single modality or delivery philosophy.
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