As a rapidly-growing cloud-based software platform, Avalara faced the challenge of doubling the number of customers implementing their software while growing the implementation team by less than 20 percent during the same time period. They needed to shift from a one-on-one and hands-on approach to software implementation in a scalable approach that enables customers to implement software on their own.

Performance support can truly transform the way an organization looks at training and the way it supports the workforce. However, the promise of such a transformation is about more than just the performance support tools and resources you provide. Truly transformational performance support programs go beyond the tools and resources and target the organizational culture.

Performance support is frequently addressed as an add-on solution or an adjunct to existing learning systems and processes based on a content-centric approach. This often leads to a disjointed user experience that in turn leads to lower rates of usage and poor return on investment.

Everyone wants just-in-time learning at the moment of need. Google set the expectation for this. “What I want to know, when I want to know it, and how I choose to learn it” is not only what employees expect, but this model has proven to improve business outcomes. As a learning leader you want to provide a performance support learning model, but that requires executive support, funding, IT support, and more. A performance support model requires changing the conversation with all the stakeholders.

Many ERP implementations typically involve a substantial training effort just before the system goes live. Louis van Cuijk will talk about the advantages of adding electronic performance support to the blended learning program and the positive impact this has on the risks and results of the implementation.

It is critical to have leadership support and funding for performance support to move forward. However, without proper personnel and expertise, there will not be desirable penetrations of performance support strategy. How can an organization build a team that is focused on performance support?

Software training traditionally focuses on the new bells and whistles that justify the latest version. This does nothing to prepare users for daily work with the tool and it doesn‘t provide the support when they need it. Organizations need more than just software training in order to maximize capital investments in software.

Performance support is very different from training. In a world where many people are conditioned to think that learning should look like school, with teachers, students, and formal instruction, it can be difficult to get the organization and its workers to adjust to a performance support approach.

The meteoric rise of mobile devices has opened up the opportunity make on-the-job performance support practical. The challenge is to get the right amount of the right content to the right place at the right time to enable improved performance and on-the-job learning.