After months of research, planning, and preparation, you’ve decided to implement a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Promising, exciting, and positive changes are on the horizon but first comes the training.
Start by clearly defining your expectations for your ERP training program. Then, determine the desired outcome prior to beginning that training. How do you decide what these outcomes are? Start by speaking with project managers. Evaluate business data. Determine which employees will require special training for specific ERP modules. Gathering this information helps you determine the direction of your training program and target that training for your staff.
Some of your employees will use the new ERP system more than others, so it’s important that you involve all your employees in the training process. When everyone at your company has at least a baseline understanding of the system, they can complete basic procedures and data entry.
When designing an ERP training program, adaptability is key for several reasons. First, learning is an individual process. Some people learn better with the visual stimulus; others retain information better through hands-on learning. Second, attempting to bring together everyone at once is challenging if not impossible. Finally, things rarely go as planned. For your ERP training program to be successful, design it using a combination of options, such as:
· Virtual, streaming, or live workshops or online seminars for advanced topics and students.
To ensure success, offer the training options that work best for your staff.
When designing an ERP training program, you must allow for feedback. Not only will the feedback show you who had difficulty and enable you to provide them with additional resources, but it will help you make changes to your overall training program so that it can be more efficient and effective in the future. Expect to learn that your training program didn’t work for everyone or that individuals struggled with some portions but not others.
When designing your ERP training program, be sure you plan for continuing education. ERP software is continually adapting and updating; therefore, your employees will need to continue to learn to use the software efficiently. You can provide continuing education in classrooms, online, or through on-demand videos. Again, create the continuing education program based on the needs of your company and your employees.