Introduction to Human Performance Technology

Put the facilitator’s name here

Put ISPI contact hereJudy@ispi.org

2

HPT is the discipline of Improving Individual &

Organizational Performance

Worker

Work

Workplace

People

Processes

Environment

– Internal & external

It considers:

3

Work & Workplace Challenges**Art Isaacs

Products & systems

Workers & contractors

Government supplier customer

Quality approach

Increasing Complexity

Increasing Quality

Increasing Interface

Increasing Diversity

Simple Stand alone

Systems New Materials Miniaturization Computerization

Directive Collaborative

Skilled Unskilled Technical Specialization

Mixed skills Multi skilled

1930

Craftsman

1940-1950

Inspection

1960

Quality control

1970-1980

Quality assurance

1990-200+

Total quality

4

Work & Workplace Challenges

Virtual

Carried with you

Global virtual teams

Requires integrated technology, systems, & equipment

Increasing span of control over virtual/global workers

5

Worker

Aging workforce – loss of tacit knowledge

Generational differences in expectations

Increasing reliance on foreign workers for math and science skills

Continual need to re-skill or up-skill

6

In Response, Organizations

WorkplaceLevel

WorkLevel

WorkerLevel

ReorganizePlanIntroduce initiatives

Six sigmaQuality

Add regulationsMake policiesMergerChange facilities

Re-design jobsAutomateAdd technologyGo to teamsImpose standardsRe-engineer

processes

Add performance

criteriaDevelop feedback

systemsDevelop/TrainCertify Use incentives

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HPT - Human

It deals with people in terms of their:

– Group norms

– Behaviors

– Motives

– Capability & capacity

It deals with the organization’s ability to provide people with:

– Direction

– Feedback

– Resources

– Incentives

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HPT - Performance

Performance is doing worthy work to standard

– Producing outputs & outcomes of value in ways that are efficient, effective, and ethical with minimal negative fallout.

– Applies to all levels:

» Individuals & project teams

» Departments & functions

9

HPT - A Technology

It is:

– Systemic – considers environmental context & constraints

– Systematic – applies rules, principles, & heuristics

– Scientific – involves discovery, hypothesis, data, experimentation, and validation

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The Performance Improvement Process

Start with the end in mind

Get your measures – baseline

Identify the goal state & metrics + leading indicators

Diagnose before prescribing

Consider sustainability

Manage the implementation

Measure along the way & celebrate

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Case Example

Now tell a story to illustrate the ideas shared to this point

The story that follows on the next 9 slides is an example – use it as a template

– Background – set up

– Discovery

– Validation

– Results

– Design requirements

– Solution

– Metrics

– Telling the story

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Case Example

The request:

– 90-minute webinar on how to motivate employees

– Attendance is required

The audience

– Top 100 executives including the CEO, CFO, CIO, CLO, and all EVPs

– From Europe, Asia, and the Americas

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Heuristic - Discovery

Interviewed 15 Execs from target audience about why a need for motivating employees– Everyone is required to be on call 24/7

– No vacations or days off are taken

– No one uses a backup, but does everything him/herself

– All hold excessive meetings with no agenda where everyone is expected to attend

– Meetings held at 6:30am, Sundays, holidays - there is no respect for time, time zones, holidays, etc.

– No excuse tolerated for not being personally available or not knowing the answer

14

Heuristic - Validation

Interviewed Medical Director and medical claims representative re health related costs

Interviewed HR re retention, turnover, absenteeism

Learned (became the baseline):

– 2 occupational suicides

– Increasing health costs - early retirements, more on disability, & absenteeism due to stress related illnesses

– Increasing loss of key talent

– Increasing absenteeism and tardiness

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The Goal - Results

No suicides

Fewer health claims

Lower health insurance costs

Less absenteeism, tardiness, & turnover

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Heuristic - Hypothesis

Group norms by Executives encouraged:

– Poor planning

– Disrespect

– Masochism/sadism

– Do it yourself, don’t trust others

– Selfishness

– Absence of priorities

– Me first, I don’t care about you

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The Design Requirements

Change group norms of leaders

– Appeal to ego and peer pressure

– Make public who’s playing nice and who is not

– Engage group’s leaders (model new behaviors)

Make the cost of current behavior explicit

Make leadership accountable for health & retention costs

Publicize participation and track interim results to sustain engagement

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Heuristic - Solution

Series of working sessions where executives built, refined, and agreed to:

– A set of work protocols that were based on respect, good planning, and effective use of people’s time

» Meetings – who to invite, when to schedule, how to build agenda

» Demanding availability – respecting weekends, holidays

» Back up – legitimizing having and using a back up

– Holding each other accountable for the new behaviors

Publicizing participation through self-report at quarterly executive meetings – appeal to ego and one-up-man ship

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Heuristic – Success Metrics

Adoption of protocols – leading indicators:

– Number of vacation days taken

– Number of executives that had & used backups

– Number of meetings with agendas and outcomes

– When meetings were scheduled

Success measures by correlating adoption with:

– Number of disability claims, early retirements, absences due to health

– Turnover or retention of key talent

– Health insurance costs

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Case Summary

Program Measures

Needs Assessment - Discovery

Cause Analysis

Baselines

Developed protocols (solution)

Suicides, retention, disability due to stress, pre-mature retirement

Irresponsible anagement practices

Healthcare costs, lost days, retention

Identified need for new protocols

Rate of adoption Personal goals w/ measures

Conducted awareness sessions, used shame & peer pressure

Measure leading indicators

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HPI and HPT

Human Performance Improvement is the goal.

Human Performance Technology is the means for achieving the goal. HPT is a recognized body of professional knowledge and

skills whose aim is the engineering of systems that result in accomplishments that the organization and all stakeholders value.

Many people talk about HPI in loose terms and confuse ends and means. HPT is a disciplined professional field that is systemic in its vision and approach, systematic in its conduct, scientific in its foundation, open to all forms of intervention and focused on achieving valued, verifiable results.

Harold Stolovitch

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Debrief & Reflection

Given what you have learned during this segment, what new ideas have emerged for you?

List the specific takeaways and or actions you will consider because of this segment?

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HPT is a Discipline

We have a system of rules that govern our conduct and activity

– Focus on results

– Think systemic

– Add value

– Partner or collaborate

– Employ a systematic process

– Be data driven

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HPT is a Technology

We:

– Employ a scientific method for achieving a practical purpose

– Operate from a set of principles and procedures to define the problem, collect data, and to test our hypotheses

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HPT is an Attitude

Engagement is key

We honor the other people’s perspectives

We get our measures in the beginning

We trust but verify others’ opinions and data

We see solutions are vehicles for shaping behavior not ends in and of themselves

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HPT is an Approach Work smart

Listen to gain understanding.

Engage clients and stakeholders in the process of discovery, diagnosis, and implementation so to get mutual and ongoing commitment to a solution.

Begin with end in mind

Get success measures up front

Establish the baseline

Develop a hypothesis and get the facts to support or reject it

Honor the constraints and limitations of the organization

Leverage data already being collected

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What Distinguishes HPT

1. We are uniquely prepared to address ill-structured problems:

– Multiple ways to define the goal

– Multiple paths for achieving the goal

– Accomplishment done over a period of time

– Context of application is unique

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What Distinguishes HPT

2. Our systematic process is a heuristic not a procedure

– It aids in discovery, learning, and problem-solving

– It includes formative feedback so we can adapt and adjust as needed

Ken Silber, Ph.D., CPT

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What Distinguishes HPT

3. We are solution neutral or appropriate:

– We guide clients to the appropriate set of solutions

– We may have a hypothesis, but we test it out before we suggest a course of action

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What Distinguishes HPT

4. We see solutions as vehicles to drive behaviors that produce worthy results, not artifacts

– To achieve congruence and clarity

– To improve efficiency

– To improve capacity, capability & resiliency

– To move people to action

– To align goals, results, & consequences

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What Distinguishes HPT

5. We work with organizations as open systems:

Required

Emergent

FacilitiesTechnology

Resources

CompetenciesRewards

Environment FeedbackCulture

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What Distinguishes HPT

6. We work within constraints

– Limited resources

– Conflicting goals

– Personal peccadilloes and agenda

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Role

Our role is to engage (build relationships) with the client so to:

– Help determine or clarify the need

– Scope the project

– Get success and baseline measures

– Explore and get agreement on possible solutions

– Perhaps broker services

– Perhaps help with the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of the solutions

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The Big 5

1. Keep the results in mind – everything has a purpose, even things that are dysfunctional

2. Think systems – a direct line is not always the shortest route

3. Partner or collaborate - earn people’s trust, give away the glory

4. Add value – build your bank account

5. Be data drives - trust but verify as people tell the truth based on what they know or have experienced

35

Debrief & Reflection

Given what you have learned during this segment, what new ideas have emerged for you?

List the specific takeaways and or actions you will consider because of this segment?

36

Judith A. Hale, Ph.D., CPT

Judith is the author of Performance Based Evaluation, Performance-Based Certification, Performance Consultant’s Fieldbook 2nd ED, Performance-Based Management, and Outsourcing Training and Development(Jossey-Bass).

She is the architect of the CPT certification offered by ISPI.

She has been a consultant to management for over 25 years. She specializes in certification and performance improvement.

Haleassoci@aol.com630-427-1304