Will Employee Performance Support Systems (EPSS) Ever Get The Credit They Deserve?

While putting the finishing touches on my next post "Talent Management - State of the Union", an interview with Talent Management expert Michael Sabbag, I read a case study which prompted one of my unpredictable thought spirals.

The case study was about a University who implemented an EPSS solution for a new Email & Collaboration environment with fantastic results. The thing that struck me as odd is that you so rarely hear of projects like this. For the purpose of this post, my definition of an EPSS tool is a piece of software (or collection of streams, etc.) that house themselves within a website or application and allow for instantaneous access to concise learning elements (typically a multimedia stream) without ever leaving the application or task at hand. Similar to a help menu but with far more flare.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, it's not easy to visualize so I will provide a little better illustration. Let's say that on your last enterprise email upgrade your IT organization spent a couple million dollars walking users through password resets and why their favorite features are in a different menu now (an extreme example for illustration). This time around, you employ an EPSS solution which embeds small tutorials directly into the application which users can access at that EXACT moment, in a single click. At the same time, the help desk is prepared like a wild west gunslinger to send links to these tutorials in the follow-up email after closing a support call. Finally, on the companies support website is a list of the top-ten support calls and links to the appropriate EPSS module.

Here's another example: A Company which enjoys high web traffic decides to change the user interface. The emails and calls begin pouring in. Support costs start to rise. Had they been forward thinking, embedded tutorials explaining common pitfalls of the new design would be made easily available to the end-user. Or, let's say there is a form or process on that website that is commonly filled out correctly or misunderstood. No problem, EPSS to the rescue.

So back to the question I pose in the title of this Blog...Will EPSS systems ever get the credit they deserve? Why aren't they being more widely adopted? Are there not enough credible solutions out there? Am I just way out of line in thinking that this is an effective set of tools (entirely possible, I thankfully only have one voice in my head so it's tough to debate)?

I do understand that even the term EPSS probably isn't well enough defined to mean the same thing to any two people. I also understand that the entire concept of EPSS is sometimes viewed as anti-training. That being said, I have never seen a case where the ROI from a well thought out EPSS solution was not staggering (primarily in adoption time and decreased support costs).

For those who are believers, or at least somewhat intrigued by my train of thought, I have included a few EPSS best practices that I have picked up along the way;

- Deploy WITH your new software/website/tool, etc. NOT AFTER.
- Communicate the benefits of the new tool early and often.
- Train your help-desk and support staff on use of the product extensively
- Also train these individuals to encourage users to become self sufficient
- Communicate before during and AFTER deployment

Here's an enlightening fact that I found in my travels as well. The average Level 1 support call costs a company roughly $24. The average user uses the help desk 1.6 times per month (this data is from 2005 and may not be entirely accurate). In a company of 5,000 employees this equates to $192,000 per month in support calls. If even 10% of those could be curbed by a well thought out EPSS solution, the savings would run nearly $200,000 per year.

In summary, these tools may be worth looking into. They are not traditional training and have little to do with Learning Management Systems but boosting performance and development is what we're all here for, so I thought it deserved some airtime.

Stay tuned!

Questions You Should Be Asking Of Your Potential LMS Vendors, But Likely Are Not.

What’s missing from your LMS RFP?

If you have been involved in sourcing or researching Learning Management System vendors in the past few years, you may have noticed that your functionality spreadsheets and RFI responses all look the same. If you think about it, this makes sense. Now that the number of vendors in this space has gotten closer to reaching earthly proportions, you would expect all vendors to meet the common requirements. Your task at this point, to narrow the field or identify a clear leader becomes quite difficult. It’s your responsibility to not only spend your company’s money wisely but also to put the right software behind the objectives.

Here are some tough questions that are not asked often enough of vendors. Some of them may make your salesperson squirm, but in the end will help you be more confident in your decision and avoid all-to-common pitfalls. This list should not be used verbatim nor is it intended to be complete. Pick the questions that are important to you and add them as you see fit. Most of all, keep a sharp eye out for candid responses. The vendors who are forthcoming with this information are one’s that deserve serious consideration.

What Post Implementation Costs Will We Potentially Incur?

Some vendors report as much as 65% of annual revenue from professional services. Why should this alarm you? Because you don’t want to more than double your initial investment to get the system to work the way you want it to. Find out what aspects of the system you have control over and what you will have to rely on (or pay) the vendor to do. Will you pay a fee to upload content? What will you have to pay if you choose to create a sub-portal to serve a unique user base? You're responsible for your project budget, don't let hidden costs derail your efforts to serve your organization.

Describe your 3rd Party Partner Relationships

There will always be a valid debate between best of breed vs. software suites. I could provide a compelling argument for either. Instead I will offer this insight: If your chosen platform includes 3rd party components, what does that mean to your support? Do you have a direct line of communication with those vendors? Do the 3rd party vendor’s product plans mesh with your LMS vendor’s? Is there potential for future competition between the parties? Will new releases always be in-synch to avoid any software conflicts? OK, so I just made a compelling argument for the latter. Regardless, this is a must-know.

How many clients are using the latest release of this exact platform? Provide references using the exact version of the software you plan to sell me.

With all of the mergers and acquisitions that have taken place in the LMS space, it’s not uncommon for a company to support several applications. Knowing if the vendor has a couple of dozen clients on each, is in the process of moving all clients to a single platform ($$) or phasing out products will give you a good read on what you may be in for during the term of your contract. I would also want to know that the household name references I was provided actually use the exact software I intend to purchase.

What impact will customizations have on future upgrades?

6 months after deployment, you finally have the application behaving exactly the way you want it. You and your team have put tremendous effort into building out your system. Your HRIS integration works flawlessly. Now, what happens when an upgrade is pushed out in the middle of the night? Will your system revert to its out-of-the-box existence? Will you be put into a queue until the vendor can provide you the manpower to make the migration? Worst of all, will you be forced to live with the current release while new clients get all of the new bells and whistles?

Describe your Support & Development Services (including location and escalation process).

Outsourcing is commonplace and I do not feel it should be weighted any differently than the domestic equivalent. I would like to know however if the support team and development team are in different hemispheres. I would also like to know specifically what support resources are available to me and how much client feedback goes into future product development.

How will integrations be supported on future releases?

At some point you are going to upgrade or change your existing enterprise applications. You will want to be certain you know what impact that will have on both one-way and bi-directional integrations with your LMS and what support will be made available to you to manage this process. Forward thinking vendors have chosen integration technologies which will require very little (if any) reworking to keep the data flowing.

Provide product release notes for the previous 12 months, next 12 months.

First, I want to see what you have done with the product over the past year. Are most of the changes enhancements or repairs? I also want to be wary of any large gaps in development. Stagnant software could be a sign of bigger concerns. I also want to know where the product is going. I’m going to feel a little silly buying a shiny new competency library, only to see it included in the next release of my LMS. Also be wary of any end-of-life releases in the vendors recent past. This scenario has caused countless headaches for otherwise faithful clients who are now forced to adopt the new (and sometimes unproven) technology, or stay with an obsolete and unsupported version.

Describe any major changes within your organization, and how this has impacted your clients?

If hundreds of clients were forced to upgrade to a different platform because of a merger or acquisition, well, I just want to know. I liken this to your car dealer calling and telling you that your new car was going to blow up in 6 months, but for a few thousand bucks you could come down and get on the waiting list for a new model.

How does your licensing model support infrequent users?

Many companies have large populations of learners who will be accessing the system infrequently (annual certification, compliance requirements, etc.). Your chosen vendor should offer a licensing model which takes into account that your bandwidth requirements and use of the system may fluctuate. There is no good reason to pay an annual fee for users who will access the system once a year. You may also consider asking about ways in which the "deactivation" of users can be automated to manage your licenses.

Closing Thoughts...

The Learning & Talent Management purchases that you make will have sizable and long lasting impact on your organization. We are fortunate to have learned from the first generation of LMS and eLearning licensing when we all became highly aware of our overzealous buying habits. I hope that we will continue to learn from our mistakes and share these ideas with our peers. All told, the Enterprise Software arena is high-stakes for all involved. While these types of questions appear only in a small portion of the RFP/RFI’s that come across my desk, I feel that they are imperative to making a sound decision. This is certainly a short list and I encourage you to share additional pearls of wisdom with your peers in the learning community.

Introduction

I have two passions which have led me here today; encouraging others to see things my way and writing. During my 8+ years in the Training & Development industry, I have had ideas ranging from brilliant (see future posts) to overly optimistic ("why shouldn't I be the only sales guy with his own corner office?" - I almost won that one). That said, if even a couple of the concepts, opinions or ideas I share here can help the people who have chosen training & development as a profession, which I view as quite a noble one, then I consider this time well spent.

My name is Justyn Howard and I am currently a Corporate Account Manager for a leading Learning & Talent Management software company. If you and I were eye-to-eye and I told you I absolutely love what I do, you'd recognize the sincerity and enthusiasm with which I said it. I started in this business selling CD-Rom tutorials to businesses in Central California. Since then I have managed training initiatives ranging from simple software roll-outs to enterprise wide paradigm shifts and everything in-between. The areas which I feel confident enough to put my expertise out for the web masses include; Training Design & Deployment, Enterprise Software & Soft Skills Training; Workforce Readiness, eLearning and Learning Management Systems. I have found my true passion in the Learning & Talent Management arena, the bulk of my posts will likely be in that area.

All said, I hope that my entries will serve some benefit to readers in the field that I love. I will do my best to keep these posts factual and unbiased, though I ask that you excuse me if my passion bleeds through from time to time. If you find the information I share useful, feel free to say so and share with others. If you disagree with my ideas then I appreciate that you care enough to have an opinion. If you have anything to add, please share and you will be given proper credit for your thoughts.