Keeping learners interested

Advice on conducting L&D programmes.

Michael Fraccaro, Head of Learning, Talent, Resourcing & Organisation Development, Asia Pacific, HSBC; Margaret Chiu, Senior VP, Group HR, AIA and John Allison, VP HR, APAC, FedEx Express share advice on L&D strategies.

Sustainable L&D solutions
Often the focus on training is programme specific, such as a training programme on customer service skills. Fraccaro shared his experiences from HSBC, explaining that when looking at development HSBC looks at the longer term benefits for the organisation and for the individual.
From a customer service perspective, he explained this would mean training programmes would be linked into the business strategy perspective, as customer service is extremely important in terms of repeat business and maintaining the brand in the marketplace. He added, “The development aspect is also aiming towards looking for ways of making sure the solution you’re designing is sustainable.”

Chiu also highlighted the fact that by encouraging, nurturing and developing the knowledge, commitment and professionalism of staff, AIA had been able to cater to and anticipate the needs of customers—internal, external and stakeholders. Chiu added, “We trace our roots in Asia Pacific back more than 90 years and we take best practices from all these markets to create a solid and robust training and development platform.

This provides a wealth of knowledge and experience in the industry and markets in which we operate. It’s a huge advantage operating across the different markets because it affords a better understanding of customers and their expectations.”

Relevance to today’s marketplace
Fraccaro explained the importance that organisations look for training that is relevant to today’s environments. He advised HR to ensure programmes are relevant for both the time when they are rolled out and the businesses they are aimed at. Moreover, they must demonstrate impact to the business objectives of the organisation. He added, “Flexibility and relevance are the key factors in the training design.”

In January 2010, HSBC launched the HSBC global induction or discovery programme, which is a globally consistent programme for on boarding new staff. The programme covers individuals, even before they start at the organisation, on what they do on day one, buddy and mentor systems, and a checklist of what managers need to do on day one through to the first three months of their employment. Also included within the induction is a half-day discovery programme, which focuses less on organisational structures and more on culture and values that exist within the organisation. Fraccaro explained that in this way, “The experience of an employee in Hong Kong and the experience of a new joiner in Brazil will be consistently the same. What will be different is that every country will have a slightly different, country-specific induction for the individuals, but the general concepts will be exactly the same for each person.”

Diversity in L&D programmes
Another important point raised by Chiu was that of diversity and its importance to the success of AIA. She went on to explain, “We recruit from a cross-section of industries. Similarly, our geographic footprint across 15 markets in Asia provides ample opportunities for our people to get on-the-job training in a cross-cultural environment to expand their exposure and perspective. Depth and breadth of experience ensures our training and development platform evolves in tandem with changing economic landscape as well as changing needs of our customers.”
Chiu concluded, “Companies should take a long-term view when formulating their training and development strategy while ensuring that it aligns closely with the vision and overall business strategy of the company. Develop an approach that leverages the strengths of your existing platform and infrastructure that is also dynamic enough to meet new needs.”

Keeping learners interested
To keep programmes interesting and relevant, Fraccaro explained, “We try to use a variety of integrated learning experiences, such as Instructor-Led Training and e-learning to complement and reinforce key objectives. Depending upon job roles some training is mandatory particularly in sales roles. But staff can also build their skills through a variety of programmes they can elect to attend. There is a balance between what the organisation expects and what an individual can choose to do.”

Training approach during lean times
John Allison, Vice President of HR in the Asia Pacific Division of FedEx Express pointed out that it hadn’t just been in the last year that thinking had changed, but rather there had been a gradual shift over a period of time. He said, “We’ve seen more programmes that lean towards development. During the economic downturn companies were not adding or replacing staff—so focus on training slowed down. On the other hand it was an opportunity to focus on development programmes—taking existing staff to a next level.”

At HSBC the approach to training during the financial crisis was to ensure programmes were:

• strategic in how they developed solutions;
• relevant to the business, and the individual;
• leading—by looking at best practices; and
• efficient not duplicating effort—achieved through the one HSBC concept.

Fraccaro went on to explain how customers’ expectations of staff in banks and financial institutions had changed—so training for employees in customer-facing roles was focused on how they can deal with issues customers are asking. The major changes have been increases in government and regulatory intervention, particularly with the selling process. Fraccaro explained, “We’ve had to adapt and refine our training to ensure we capture these differences in the regulatory environment. Licensing for employees selling products is more rigid; therefore before an employee sells something they must complete the training and development and then demonstrate their knowledge.”

Chiu pointed out the importance of acquiring new skill sets and knowledge base from external sources to allow organisations to quickly build their own in-house capabilities during times of change. She cited the examples of AIA, who last year launched an extensive re-branding campaign in the region. Chiu pointed out, “This provides an excellent opportunity to maximise synergies across the 15 markets in all areas, including consolidating our training and development efforts under one single platform.” She added, “The Strategic Initiative Office is critical to ensuring all people have strong project management skills and all changes whether macro or micro must be beneficial to the company.”

In particular during the economic crisis, AIA remained committed to help develop the next generation of executives and leaders for the benefit of the industry as a whole. Therefore during the summer of 2009, AIA offered internships to 30 students from local universities to give them a better understanding of the insurance industry and core skills for the various functions.
Attributes of a good trainer

Fraccaro detailed three key attributes of a good trainer:

• An understanding of people and business.
• An ability to connect with people—building rapport and credibility is essential.
• A commercial mindset —there are budget, resource, staff and time limitations. The reason for attending training must be clear and have an impact.

Joseph Chan, Assistant Manager, Operation and Process Management Training, HSBC—who won a Distinguished Trainer Award last year—also shared his views on what it takes to be a good trainer. Chan explained, “To be a good trainer you need to know the subject or product well in order to communicate it to your learners.

Good design of your training programme is vital, from understanding employee needs to developing the training experience and then delivering it in a meaningful way.” He added, “Equally important is a sense of humour because everyone wants a fun learning experience.”

Chan also highlighted the importance of passion both for the job and for people development. He stated, “I want to help people to learn and I love interacting with people. Connectivity is important, particularly to understand their needs. Trainers are a medium, connecting the subject with the individual. I hope that I develop people as individuals and by doing so contribute to the company.”
Fraccaro concluded by saying that the key is passion. “The training profession is a job that requires a lot of energy. You have to have a global mindset and a passion around connecting with people—that is a key differentiator of a good trainer from a great trainer.”