{"id":23,"date":"2016-07-16T20:51:03","date_gmt":"2016-07-16T20:51:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/figartconsulting.com\/?p=23"},"modified":"2016-07-16T21:32:32","modified_gmt":"2016-07-16T21:32:32","slug":"five-signs-your-sme-is-the-wrong-teacher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/figartconsulting.com\/wordpress\/2016\/07\/16\/five-signs-your-sme-is-the-wrong-teacher\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Signs Your SME is the Wrong Teacher"},"content":{"rendered":"

Congratulations! \u00a0You’ve installed a new system or an upgrade that will make work easier for your office, automate some routine tasks and bring your organization up to date. \u00a0 It’s fun and exciting to–<\/p>\n

What? \u00a0Your end users are complaining? \u00a0Your staff hates the system? \u00a0Your IT person has rolled her eyes at the users so often that her pupils have fused to the back of her skull?<\/p>\n

What happened?<\/p>\n

Upgrading often has some\u00a0resistance, yes. \u00a0The reality is that people often don’t like change. \u00a0The longer a person has used a system or, the more expert the user is in other areas, the more reluctant the user will be to embrace the new system. \u00a0A fact of life. \u00a0Even in the face of this, you might want to make sure that you didn’t fall down on the training end.<\/p>\n

It is not uncommon to shoehorn teaching duties into your IT staff. \u00a0They know the material, right? \u00a0So they can teach it, no problem!<\/p>\n

Wrong.<\/p>\n

Teaching –especially teaching a technologically\u00a0resistant\u00a0learner, is an often frustrating job requiring a specialized skill set. \u00a0Your IT guy may be brilliant at what she does otherwise, but might be exactly the wrong teacher.<\/p>\n

Five signs your subject matter expert might be the wrong teacher<\/h1>\n

1. The SME is contemptuous of the end user.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, everyone in the tech field has spelled “end user” “l-user” at one time or another.\u00a0 We’re human.\u00a0 We get frustrated.\u00a0 I’m just saying that if your IT person has a shrine to the BoFH<\/a> or has a mug that says RTFM1<\/sup>, this person might lack the necessary empathy in this particular area to be a good trainer.<\/p>\n

2. The SME has a\u00a0lack of verbal facility.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you can’t translate “geek” to “normal”, you’re not in a position to train the end user on the new system or software.\u00a0 Can that IT person you’re thinking of yanking away from his computer do that?\u00a0 Talk to him.\u00a0 If he uses expressions like “dumb down”, let him get on with what he knows and can do well.\u00a0 Find someone else to teach.<\/p>\n

3. The SME\u00a0equates technological expertise with intelligence.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is an incredibly common sin among the IT crowd. \u00a0While in theory, it needs to stop, in practice, you get someone like this as a teacher, and you’ve set yourself up for a real mess.\u00a0 There are several professions notorious not only for intelligence but for resistance to change in computer systems and applications.\u00a0 Don’t believe me?\u00a0 Go to your nearest hospital and take someone from the IT department out for a drink.\u00a0 Ask them who they hate to teach the worst. \u00a0You’ll get an hour on why they hate training senior physicians.<\/p>\n

I think we’re agreed that to get an MD, one must be of at least slightly above-average intelligence, yes?<\/p>\n

The problem is a bit of a lack of empathy on both parts.\u00a0 Doctor Labrat really is used to being an expert.\u00a0 She’s not used to the pain<\/strong> of being incompetent at anything.\u00a0 Chances are good it’s been a long time since she’s perceived herself as having the time to study anything outside of his field.\u00a0 IT is Ms. Sysadmin’s field<\/em>.\u00a0 Part of her job is learning new applications and systems.\u00a0 This is routine for her, and it’s in her field.\u00a0 Ms. Sysadmin, unless she’s a teacher as well, won’t know how to guide an intelligent, accomplished person through the pain of being incompetent and will likely chalk it up to mental laziness on Dr. Labrat’s part2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

4. The SME hates public speaking.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Teachers are public speakers.\u00a0 We’re good at it; we know how to engage an audience.\u00a0 We know how to be clear, and we know how to inspire.\u00a0 If that’s not happening, it might be because your teaching candidate doesn’t like talking in front of people.\u00a0 There’s no shame in this.\u00a0 Let her get on with what she’s good at and why you value her work in the first place.\u00a0 Don’t shoehorn her into something she doesn’t know or do well.\u00a0 Training your employees is too crucial a job to give to someone who doesn’t know how to do it.<\/p>\n

5. The SME doesn’t have the time!
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Teaching a good one-hour class takes about three hours of preparation for new material.\u00a0 If the system is less than three months old, or the teacher has not taught a live class on this very subject more than once, it’s new material!\u00a0 While it might look like a good teacher just gets up in front of a class and spontaneously spouts that entertaining and informative lecture, it doesn’t work that way.\u00a0 Spontaneity is often a matter of careful preparation.\u00a0 Don’t mistake the casual competence for a lack of prep time!\u00a0 If your employee doesn’t have three times the prep time that he has for face time in front of the class, your employee doesn’t have time to teach!\u00a0 Get a contractor, hire someone, spread the duties around.\u00a0 Do what it takes to get your employees trained properly.<\/p>\n

The subject matter expert can be the right teacher.\u00a0 Just keep in mind that teaching is a skill set all its own.\u00a0 Study your people carefully and see if they have the skillset for training.\u00a0 If not? Well, there are lots of trainers out there ready to help you on a contract basis.\u00a0 Check around and good luck!<\/p>\n

____________________________
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

1<\/sup>Please read the manual, sir.<\/p>\n

2<\/sup>Not that mental laziness doesn’t happen<\/em> at that level. It can be anywhere.\u00a0 But unless you’ve got a real teacher, it might be hard to spot.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Congratulations! \u00a0You’ve installed a new system or an upgrade that will make work easier for your office, automate some routine tasks and bring your organization up to date. \u00a0 It’s fun and exciting to– What? \u00a0Your end users are complaining? \u00a0Your staff hates the system? \u00a0Your IT person has rolled her eyes at the users … <\/p>\n

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