Learning is the backbone to our business but it’s not often we also get to learn on the job!  During a recent supply chain project with a large NZ employer, we were lucky enough to gain a greater understanding of the intricacies involved in receiving, moving and exporting food product.

For this organisation, we were engaged to develop an organisational development learning programme that was mapped to a New Zealand qualification for our clients’ Distribution Centre Operators.  In the process, we were able to apply our consulting skills, while also adding to our knowledge and perspective of this industry that’s at the heart of the New Zealand economy.

Preparation

Initially, we met with several stakeholders to gain a wider perspective of the strategy, future intent and expectations, and their view of the teams’ current challenges.  We then visited several manufacturing and distribution sites, walking through the product journey and observing the team in action.  We heard from the Operators about what their job involved, the dependencies they had to consider, and the challenges they faced.  Having an open mind allowed us to learn a great deal about their work, the processes and the context within which they were both constrained and provided autonomy.

This further allowed us to test potential delivery techniques and structures, and the best engagement methods for learning interventions.  We tested some ongoing assumptions that were presented to us and started to uncover some key themes that needed to be validated and explored.

Research and road-trips

Additional site visits allowed for a deeper understanding of roles, tasks and technologies used.  We drafted some high-level competencies at this stage, and presented our initial observations to the sponsor group.  We were also able to share our initial findings about the NZ certificate that aligned to the objective of the project and against which we could recognise prior learning.

During a road trip around several sites working with the Operators in a series of focus groups, we engaged with a cross section of site staff using analogies they could relate to.  Asking them first to think about the skills, knowledge and attributes that good rugby players demonstrated, we drew out from participants the tasks, processes, skills and other attributes that made up a competent operator.  After cross referencing against our initial findings, we built a more comprehensive capability framework and learning outcomes for each level of the programme. 

We were also responsible for identifying a potential ITO partner that could work with the business once the programme was up and running, and identify how to measure the business benefit.  At this stage, we presented our findings and prototype to a sample group of stakeholders for validation and feedback.  We provided them with a comprehensive view of what the Operators role involved and how they might interact with the learning programme to achieve their qualification. 

Result – a new learning programme is created

After a few minor iterations, a learning programme was born!  The programme has been created so that internal coaches can support learners through any missing skills, knowledge or attributes and the ITO assess and validate the evidence provided. 

Within 90 days, we delivered:

• A capability framework
• Validated learning outcomes of a development programme
• A learning programme aligned with the NZ Certificate in Distribution (Level 3)
• A recommended approach to delivering and evaluating training, on the job resources, and assessment of capability within the programme
• A draft implementation plan for an appointed programme team to deliver

If you’re keen to find out more about our approach to developing learning programmes in a rapidly changing world of work, contact Clare at clare@beyondperformance.co.nz or call 021 517 050 - alternatively click below.