Iteration 2: Training
Planning
It
is common that the implementation of a new software, application, or system is
met with some resistance or lack of know-how of their operation. After all the
transformation from the manual way of doing things to relying on a new
automatic system or application can be daunting for people involved. However,
this transformation should not be something dreadful, however. With proper
training staff will be able to comprehensively learn and understand the system
as complicated as it will be. The training, in this case, will help the
organization in avoiding setbacks, errors, and employee turnover among other
frustrations while at the same time it will facilitate a smooth transition to
the new application (Cohn, 2015).
According
to research, in this case, training will not just be helpful. It will be one of
the most essential undertakings in the implementation process of the SQL server
business intelligence. The second iteration is about the training for all the
IT professionals in the organization as a strategy to ensure that everyone at
the organization and especially the IT staffs are aware of how the new platform
can be applied in the meeting goals and objectives of the organization. It will
not just be training since it is going to involve a comprehensive review of the
different SQL server business intelligence options and the ones which will be
appropriate to the organization as a whole.
The
training will also involve the assessment and evaluation of various editions.
However, this will not just be an assessment or evaluation since it will
strategize thus ensuring all professionals at the organization have become
aware of how the SQL server business intelligence can be applied to improve
productivity and additional skills of the of the employees when it is
implemented.
Action
All
the planning had been done and the researcher had also taken care of all the
preparations required for the successful implementation of the iteration.
Additionally, the researcher had already known his training needs, he had set
goals and objectives, and the management of the organization was behind him.
Furthermore, he had promoted his training schedule, thoroughly prepared the
material, training space, and people especially the IT staff. Now the training
day was here.
The
researcher introduced the training session with a brief overview of the
training subject which was reviewing different SQL server business intelligence
options and those which would appropriately suit the organization. The
researcher then told the employees the information which they wanted to hear
and in the process explained some key points, going over policies,
demonstrating procedures, and relating any other information the trainees
needed to know about SQL server business intelligence. The researcher ensured
that he always explained what trainees were going to see before showed a
multimedia portion. At the same time the researcher used as much hands-on
training as possible which served the trainees better because they
comprehensively understood what he wanted and how he wanted (Bickerton, 2014).
Going
on with training, the researcher tested frequently whether the trainees
understood while involving them. He asked the participants to share their
previous experiences with the SQL server business intelligence which was the
training topic. Coming to the end of the training, the researcher repeated
questions before answering them to ensure the trainees knew the question.
Additionally, the researcher analyzed the training session as he moved on. He was
always on the lookout what worked best. The researcher discovered new
techniques and methods that seemed to work well with the employees and noted
them in the training materials (Silver, 2015).
Observation
In
this case the researcher was the training manager. As a training manager the
researcher had to ensure that the employees and specifically were well-equipped
with the required and necessary skills and knowledge to increase productivity.
In this case, the employees were to have a comprehensive understanding of ways
in which the platform would be applicable to the organization as one of the
strategies that was going to meet the organization’s goals and objectives. The
training was mostly a review and also capturing various SQL server business
intelligence options especially ones which were appropriate to the
organization. As a training manager, the researcher also to understand the
employees were the most valuable asset the organization has. Therefore, the
organization would not have consistently grown without ensuring the employees
were trained (Beyer, 2011).
The
importance of ensuring the employees were trained is invaluable to the
organization according to the observation by the researcher. The researcher
also observed the numerous methods and materials which he was going to help the
employees and prepare them to comprehensively understand and use the SQL server
business intelligence. However, the only problem anticipated by the researcher
was determining the best method and technique for training which through
consultation he was able to come up with.
Just
like it was important to train a new employee of the procedures of the office,
it was also important that employees were trained ways of using new
technologies. While developing a training program, the researcher made an
observation in which he concluded that it was right and advisable to consider
the culture of the organization. Additionally, without considering the
organization’s culture, the researcher reckons that it was going to impossible
to achieve meaningful success.
Reflection
Between
the training methods the researcher used and any other method, the training
would choose this very method. The method which the researcher ensured the
employees comprehensively understood SQL server business intelligence worked
wonders and beyond the expectations of the researcher. The researcher was able
to comprehensively train and explains what he wanted using minimum resources
and in a more creative and functioning way. The method involves more ways of
learning which the researcher embraced. Additionally, it allowed the employees
to express their feelings and opinions towards what they were able to learn and
whether they understood or not. It is the method which gave the employees a
platform on which to learn ways in which the SQL server business intelligence
suited the organization.
While
ways in which employees are trained has changed, the researcher had changed
more. In training the employees and ensuring that they comprehensively understood
the SQL server business intelligence, the researcher had to take the long road.
One was thorough research on ways he was going to ensure that he succeeded.
Talking of success the researcher succeeded in ensuring the employees
understood what they were meant to understand. However, this did not come as a
surprise or a shock since the researcher had also prepared and knew what he was
going to train the employees on. Planning was key to the success of the
iteration. Additionally, collaboration was also one of the highlights of the
iteration.
Looking
back, the researcher reckons some of the things which went against the plan.
The researcher had planned to have a small group of trainees but as it turned
out the number of people swelled thus making it almost impossible to ensure the
success of the iteration. Were it not the plan the researcher had made, the
researcher would not have been talking about success in the iteration.
Iteration 3: Follow-Up Meeting
Planning
The
researcher wonders if what he trained the employees on will have a lasting
impact. The success of the training largely depended on the work of the
trainees. Training, in this case, is a process as opposed to it being an event.
Therefore, without making a follow-up, it is doubtful whether there was going
to have any real change. Follow-up is important in all training sessions
because it provides the participants with further support and the development
of skills. Additionally, the researcher knows that follow-up is going to improve
the existing training and any training plans in the future. The researcher is
going to get feedback on what the trainees learned during the training period.
In the same way, the trainees will have a better chance and opportunity of
reflecting on their learning a second time. The researcher is not going to
conduct the follow-up meeting. The chance to conduct the follow-up meeting will
be left to the organization’s head of the department, and it is coming soon
after the end of the training (Laipple, 2014).
The
main purpose of the follow-up will be assessing and evaluating the ability of
the IT professionals to link the SQL server with business intelligence (BI)
needs of the organization. Besides the follow-up meeting, the heads of
departments will gather views and look for ways in which there can be
improvement using the views from the trainees on how the organization will be
able to get as much gains as possible from the training and adoption of the BI.
The iteration will require planning. Besides planning, it will be a
collaboration process between the researcher and the heads of departments in
making follow-up meetings. The researcher and heads of departments hope that it
will be a successful iteration because of the preparation (Matthews, 2012).
Action
As it had been said before, the
researcher was not going to conduct a follow-up meeting. Therefore, he left
this to the heads of departments at the organization. Armed with the general
information of the training each head of departments started by asking the
attendees from their departments to email them a brief summary of at least two
most important points they took away at the end of the training. Each head of
the department gathered the feedback together after which they posted the
responses in a central location where everyone could see. However, the list was
going to taken down at the expiry of two weeks. At the end of the two weeks,
the heads of departments emailed the responses to the trainees. Additionally,
they emailed along with any feedback that came during that time. This gave the
heads of departments an opportunity of reinforcing what the trainees learned a
second time.
It
was now appropriate that the heads of the departments post statistics in
relation to the training. The training was on ways in which the organization
can benefit more from the adoption of business intelligence in their
operations. The heads of departments reported there was no ways in which the
adoption of business intelligence was proving useful to the company. However,
the response was good because the trainees had learned and actually seen ways
in which the organization was going to benefit from the adoption of the
business intelligence.
Several
weeks later, the heads of the departments sent a quiz in relation to the
content in the training. The attendees received the quiz enthusiastically
because they knew they had learned and understood the content. The responses
were posted and the prize for the best answer was awarded. Surprisingly, almost
everyone had a right answer and it was even harder to determine the winner
given that there was no way of determining the winner. The heads of departments
concluded the training was conducted well.
Observation
There
is a high likelihood of people forgetting most of the things they have learned
if the things are not repeated and reinforced regularly afterward. The
researcher knows from the experience that having attended a training session,
most of the people are likely to forget a lot of things they might have covered
once they are back to work and everyday work takes place. Therefore, according
to the observation, there is a way through which one could always remember what
they have learned, and that is through follow-up on what they have trained on.
Additionally, businesses and organizations have the tendency of investing
heavily in training. However, this might never be importance if the
instructions from the training do not have the needle because it will not be
implemented throughout the life of the organization. It is knowledge known to
everyone that training needs follow-up. However, that is just a portion of the
story. There is more to training and follow-up than just what people know. Ways
in which follow-up is conducted makes all the difference. Organizations have to
start making training pay off, and the best way of doing this is through
follow-up.
There
is a way in which follow-up is conducted. One of the things managers and
business leaders need to do is integrating training into everyday work and ways
in which employees behave within the organization. Additionally, these managers
should support, encourage, and shape the desired behavior changes over the time
the employees are in their organization. This involves engagement instead of
just mere compliance. There is also the need to foster participation
across-the-board and empower the workforces. But doing this requires that
executives and supervisors cascade a type of learning which will help the employees
when the managers or the boss to who they report is unavailable.
Reflection
With
completing training, the employees were in a good position of benefiting from
various things from the training and ways in which the training was conducted. What
remained was refreshing their memory on things that they already knew which
just needed a reminder about. Although the researcher knew that the employees
needed follow-up, the biggest hurdle was ways in which follow-up was going to
be conducted. However, with him having to conduct and complete the follow-up,
the researcher knew that it was going to be a hard task and at the same time it
might never be completed. Therefore, the researcher had to come to a full
solution to this impending problem as soon as possible. The researcher found
out that it was going to be easy for him to focus on the problems of the
training if he did not do it himself. That is one of the reasons why the
researcher had to let the heads of the departments complete the follow-up meeting
with the employees. From the look of things, the iteration was a success
because it was completed in such a way that it involved many things thus making
it successful.
The
iteration was full of highlights and insights. The iteration gave the organization
and the researcher himself new revelations about ways in which the training was
conducted. It was not very hard to persuade people that the training was
successful through the follow-up. Besides emphasizing on what the training has
brought about, follow-up was also a way of ensuring that they really understood
what they had been trained on. There was no any other way of doing this other
than through follow-up which the researcher collaborated with the heads of
departments in ensuring that it was successful.
Iteration 4: Testing and Implementation
Planning
Testing
and implementation will be a very important stage. If it was system or
application, it would have ensured that all requirements have been thoroughly
developed within the user requirements and without errors. Although the
organization is moving away from the old ways of doing things to the new ones,
it does not have a new system which might be said that it has been developed.
Therefore, there will neither unit testing nor component testing or the testing
done during the development of the system. However, the testing will be done by
careful isolation of the different ideas which enable the company to get the
most out of the brainstorming and training iterations in which there is a need for
adoption of SQL server with business intelligence in the organization and with
the project promoting the success of the organization’s productivity.
In
collaboration with the researcher, the ideas as generated will be taken one
after the other. The options will then be tested to get the most suitable one
for the organization. The main issue here will be comparing between the old and
the new productivity. Having completed the testing and implementation, the
organization will select the best idea and option which will then be
implemented. It is anticipated that there might be problem along the way.
However, all logistics will be taken care of before testing and implementation
begins. Additionally, the researcher will work hand in hand with the heads of
the departments in ensuring the iteration goes according to the plans and that
everything has succeeded. The best option for the organization will also be
discussed further thus ensuring it meets all conditions for the organization.
Action
The
researcher in collaboration with the heads of departments and other members of
management met to discuss the best option from among many required by the
organization. However, it was not just the option the organization required but
one which was going to improve the productivity of the organization. There were
several options and the organization needed the implementation of one while the
rest were not going to be implemented. However, they started by carefully
comparing how each of the options was suitable for the organization and how it
was going to have an impact on the productivity of the organization.
The
team started by drawing advantages and disadvantages of each option side by
side and also in a way that anyone could easily and comprehensively understand
what was being tested and how it was being tested. Besides assessing the
advantages and disadvantages of each option, the team, under the leadership of
the manager of department of information technology also looked at ways in
which the options were suited to the organization’s way of doing things and how
it could be scalable in the future.
Out
of the initial options, the team narrowed on two which looked viable and which
could easily be implemented. However, the team could not recommend for the
implementation of the two options. Therefore, they went back to the drawing
board and start discussion while testing ways in which was going to suit the
activities of the organization while improving productivity. Finally, the team
settled on one of the options which they recommended to the organization for
implementation. Additionally, they documented about the option and presented it
to the management for implementation and financing during the implementation
(Parvez, 2015).
Observation
There
is a way of looking at things before they are implemented. This organization
had a special way of ensuring the option they were going to choose was the most
suitable and that it was going to improve the productivity of the organization.
However, the organization was not going to do this alone. There was a need for
collaboration of various stakeholders who had taken part in the previous
iterations of brainstorming, training, and follow-up meeting. According to the
observation of the researcher, the iteration and the process of testing and
implementation borrowed much from the previous iterations (Chaudhuri, Dayal,
& Narasayya, 2011).
According
to the observation, the iteration assembled a complete team which was going to
ensure the organization had the best option of SQL server and business
intelligence. The team for testing and implementation comprised of the best
there was for the organization and there was no doubt the most suitable option
for the organization would be selected which they surely did at the end of the
iteration. Making close observation, the researcher noted that the iteration
was a process made up of other sub processes.
Testing
and implementation involved the evaluation and assessment of the advantages and
disadvantages of each option the organization was going to select. This was the
most suitable way of making sure the any option among very many presented was
going to suit the organization in terms of improvement of the productivity.
Additionally, the option had to be scalable in such a way that it was going to
accommodate more functionality in the future in the event that the organization
was going to expand and improve its functions. At the end the team in
collaboration with the researcher did their best to select the best option for
the organization (Kerzner, 2013).
Reflection
The
iteration was a learning opportunity for the researcher and the team which was
partaking in the testing and implementation of most suitable option for the
organization. Additionally, the iteration gave new revelations about SQL server
and the business intelligence which the researcher reckons that it would not
have been gotten from anywhere else except through this iteration. The
researcher was already aware of the options previously discussed but he was not
sure how they were going to settle on the most suitable option for the sake of
the organization and ensuring that the organization was going to have its
productivity improved.
The
researcher enjoyed the iteration and the whole process of ensuring the
organization had the most suitable option of the SQL server and business
intelligence. The iteration totally built on the knowledge the researcher had
previously gathered thus making him better than he thought he would become at
the end of the iteration. The researcher enjoyed everything about the iteration
and the members of the team were wonderful since without their aid he reckons
that he would not have been successful in learning most of the things he
learned.
The
researcher reckons that everything went according to the plans. This can be
said the first reason why the iteration succeeded since without planning things
would have been worse. However, it is not a meaning that there are some of the
things which went contrary to the plans. According to the researcher, he would
have wanted a scenario of which there were many more options which they were
going to assess and evaluate thus coming up with the most suitable. However,
these were some of the things which he would look out in the future.
Summary of Learning
The
researcher has really enjoyed employment as an SQL server with Microsoft
business intelligence. The whole process was a learning one full of new things
the researcher had never heard of before. Although there is a different way he
would have still achieved this, the researcher feels that this was the most
suitable. The researcher has expanded his knowledge and understanding of the
SQL server and the business intelligence. Additionally, he has improved his
human interaction skills since he was interacting with different people all
through. The researcher’s knowledge and understanding of the SQL and business
intelligence has increased as well as his ability to engage people in selecting
the most suitable option in case there is a need.
The
whole action research was comprised of iterations. The four iterations of
brainstorming, training, follow-up, and testing and implementation made the
researcher reach distances in terms of knowledge and training he would not have
reached before. Additionally, he engaged in things he had never engaged before
such as brainstorming and which he would not have done. When he looks back, the
researcher has nothing but admiration for the things he did and how successful
he was at the end.
One
of the things the researcher loved from the iteration was collaboration with
other stakeholders within the organization. Collaboration was one of the things
the researcher feels that they enabled him succeed. He liked the way he did not
know or understand one thing and how someone else comprehensively understood
such thing. He liked how knowledge was passed from one person to another
through brainstorming and collaboration. These are some of the things which
made the action research enjoyable and a happy process.
References
Chaudhuri,
S., Dayal, U., & Narasayya, V. (2011). An overview of business intelligence
technology. Communications of the ACM,
54(8), 88-98.
Kerzner,
H. R. (2013). Project management: a systems approach to planning,
scheduling, and controlling. John
Wiley & Sons.
Larson, B. (2009). Delivering Business Intelligence. New
York.
Larson,
B. (2012). Delivering Business Intelligence with Microsoft SQL Server 2012.
McGraw-Hill Osborne Media.
Parvez, M. M. (2015). Designee of a Scalable Database
Management Systems (DBMS). Journal
of Image Processing and Artificial Intelligence .
Silver,
J. (2015). Five effective employee training techniques that work.
Sherry Roberts is the author of this paper. A senior editor at MeldaResearch.Com in college research paper services if you need a similar paper you can place your order for best essay services online.
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