’Twas
the night before rollout and all ’cross the floor,
trainers were scurrying to get the course
out the door.
With stuff scattered about with no reason
or rhyme,
they still hoped it would all come
together on time.
Instructors were nestled all snug in
their beds,
while visions of full classrooms danced
in their heads.
Designers were making their last minute
tweaks,
hoping to stay clear of the programmer
geeks.
Dozens of objectives written that few
will read,
500 slides ready, just in case there’s a
need.
Handouts are copied with that sweet
Xeroxing sound,
and put into binders weighing more than 10
pounds.
We remember how it started some 12 weeks
ago,
we were just sitting around, as the
workday was slow.
When all of a sudden there appeared such
a clatter,
we sprang up and ran out to see what was
the matter.
The business was in crisis, a course had
to be done,
or the world would end, and that’s no
fun.
Our VP came today to speak to us all,
and we listened intently to her clarion
call:
Now designers! Now developers!
Now SMEs too!
Now artists! Now programmers!
Now instructors old and new!
Now IT! Now HR!
Now departments big and small!
Now train away! Train away!
Train away all!
Then sometime last month the course was
upended,
when the boss decided it all must be
blended.
This wasn’t the first time it was all
torn apart,
the team had a tendency to put horse
after cart.
Today it’s loaded on the LMS with care,
in hopes that enrollments soon would be
there.
The course was great, there was nothing
it lacked,
except we forgot just one simple fact.
We never talked to the client, not once,
it’s true,
so we never found out that their strategy
was through.
Their business had changed and had all
turned around,
the course we had built was no longer
sound.
Nobody told us, we put our heads in the
sand,
we only wanted to make our course grand.
We have lots of cool stuff but won’t meet
the need,
it’s great to look at but useless,
indeed.
Now the night before rollout we still have
no clue,
that the course will fail miserably,
there’s nothing we can do.
Although interactivity’s such a beautiful
thing,
we ignored the first rule, that content
is king.
As we shut down the office to go drink
and have fun,
our manager took off, saying job well
done.
And we heard him exclaim as he drove out
of sight,
“Happy training to all, and to all a good
night!”
(Apologies to Clement Clarke Moore)