Improving Performance:
Low-Cost Solutions in a Tight Economy

by Harold D. Stolovitch, CPT and Erica J. Keeps, CPT

For the last three years, we have repeatedly heard that the economy will turn around "very soon." Meanwhile, budgets grow tighter and every new training and performance support initiative is scrutinized with a magnifying glass in one hand and an ax in the other. Despite the austerity on the learning and performance support side, the pressure is still on to produce and maintain an increasingly productive workforce and prepare employees for new systems, regulations, and products.

How do we as performance improvement specialists cope with these seemingly impossible challenges…credibly? The usual route seems to be via technology-e-learning, reusable learning objects, knowledge management systems, learning management systems/learning content management systems, webinars, and other forms of distance learning. However, we all know these are fraught with uncertainties, frequent lack of user adoption, and early abandonment. There are also the high initial financial investments, infrastructure costs, and time required to develop and implement new technology-based interventions. Worst of all, what results can we anticipate? There is little research to guarantee high return-on-investment (ROI).

Why not turn to low-cost solutions with strong track records of high yield that are much easier to develop and implement? Here are a dozen of our favorites:

• Cleaning up performance expectations. Research in human performance identifies a lack of clarity of expectations to be the number one cause of inadequate performance. Despite its high toll on productivity, this cause tends to be neglected when searching for improved efficiencies and results. Yet, reviewing, verifying, and redefining expectations so that they align with desired behaviors and outcomes costs little while producing extremely high ROI.
• Developing feedback systems. Inadequate feedback constitutes a close second to unclear expectations in causes of deficient performance. Feedback comes in two useful varieties: corrective feedback that informs performers as to where they are off-target, and confirming feedback that tells them they are doing the job right. Feedback systems are far less costly than virtually any technological intervention and produce powerful impact.
• Creating performance support systems. No matter how good the training, without adequate support mechanisms, acquired skills and knowledge tend to deteriorate. Review of procedures, processes, and tasks, guidance in initial stages of application, and emotional support to build and maintain confidence all provide inexpensive support that results in fluent performance.
• Designing simple and effective job aids. This is still one of the most cost-effective means for achieving performance results quickly. Decision tables, algorithms, step-by-step procedures, directories, cookbooks, troubleshooting guides, and checklists are some of the many job aid options. When well designed, they result in immediate success. If training is required, it is usually brief to help performers use the job aids.
• Ensuring adequate policies, processes, procedures, and resources. When the roadmap is unclear, one is bound to get lost, especially if the vehicle is also faulty. Review of policies, processes, procedures, and adequacy of resources is a first step. Stakeholder consensus, support, and consistent application rules are the next steps. Communication, practice, feedback, and enforcement constitute the final steps. Compared to high-tech interventions, this is a low-cost, high-yield solution to obtain desired performance.
• Providing and aligning incentives and consequences. In a recent year-long, rigorous study, we discovered that incentives, especially tangible ones, can improve performance 13-40% (Stolovitch, Clark, & Condly, 2002). Well-designed incentive systems and well-administered consequences that are perceived as fair and equitable can have dramatic results on performance.
• Increasing motivation to perform. Motivation is critical in both learning and performance along with ability and prior knowledge. By influencing perceived value to perform and confidence in one's ability to succeed as well as eliminating factors that create negative mood, we can strongly affect workplace motivation. Motivated workers tend to perform at much higher productivity rates.

• Making sure mechanisms for training transfer are in place. Studies have shown that several months after a training intervention, usually less than 30% of what was learned remains. Simple interventions such as having supervisors prepare workers for training, ensuring that training includes considerable practice closely aligned to back-on-the-job work, and support and follow-up post-training immensely increases on-job transfer.
• Reviewing and tightening performer selection systems. Poor selection of performers results in poor performance. Select individuals with characteristics, prerequisite skills, and knowledge that you are not prepared to invest in. Train for specific, job-required competencies. By tightening selection criteria and procedures, you can better fit the right person to the right job. This decreases training investments, supervision time, and turnover-all costly items in a tight economy.
• Eliminating tasks that interfere with job performance. Lower priority or administrative tasks often interfere with getting important jobs done. For example, a salesperson with a specified number of calls to make or amount of revenues to generate may be held back due to mandated report writing and meeting attendance. Eliminating unnecessary, counterproductive tasks can result in considerable performance improvement.
• Adopting structured OJT and PAL. More money and time are spent in informal on-the-job training (OJT) than in formal classes, including e-learning-perhaps four to five times as much. Imagine the efficiencies if OJT were structured. Peer Assisted Learning (PAL), in which more advanced peer-level buddies are trained to assist novice workers, can also achieve remarkable results at a relatively low cost.
• Strengthening existing training. When all else fails, review and clean up existing training? You can retrofit ineffective training by applying sound instructional design to it. Break existing training into logically connected units. Then, build in meaningful rationales, objectives, learning activities, evaluation, and feedback. By strengthening your current training instructionally, you can increase its effectiveness at a fraction of the cost of building new, more sophisticated learning systems.

The Nielson Group can be reached at 972.346.2892 or through e-mail at workshops@nielsongroup.com. You can visit The Nielson Group at http://www.nielsongroup.com.