Software Training and Support

University of Phoenix

Software as a service (SaaS) technology is available, vendors now offer the option to host their software on their own servers and provide cloud computing technology to their consumers via the internet. The vendor usually takes care of the technical aspects of managing the software; ensuring that it’s up to date and security patches have been installed correctly.

The global SaaS market is growing rapidly and it’s anticipated to continue growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.20% during 2018-2023 . This means that software trainers and end-user support specialists will be in much higher demand then they were 5-10 years ago.

No matter how intuitive or user-friendly a software’s graphical user interface (GUI) is training is a must in order to utilize the full capabilities and technology the software provides. Organizations must realize the importance of training and end-user supporting efforts, an organization cannot thrive if their staff are using the software incorrectly or making mistakes that are costing the company large sums of revenue each day.

Organizations can expect major issues and consequences if they do not implement onboarding, training and support protocols. Any seasoned project leader can attest that bad things will happen if this process is overlooked. Not receiving proper software training can lead to project delays, lowered effectiveness of technology, reduced returns on investments, increased costs, staff resistance to software changes, increase in manual processes, frustration and lowered job satisfaction from all levels of staff. The biggest consequence of inadequate training and support is losing control and the ability to maintain the software properly .

These are just a few examples as to why training and support should not be underestimated. “Training has been proven time and again to the better enablement of resources to their fullest responsibilities and successfully adopting new paradigms to improve how things are done today” .

Methods of Training

Training, by definition, is the skill and knowledge or experience acquired by one that trains and there are a lot of different ways a person can be trained. It’s important to include key methods of software training; you’ll want to implement the one that is the least expensive. Modes (or methods) of training include self-study, electronic learning, face to face or coaching. I strongly suggest the coaching and face to face methods when providing training and support to end-users.

Coaching sessions provide an opportunity for a software expert to teach a user how to use the software. Say for example an end-user forgot a step, the software coach (might also be known as the department lead) can work with that user to help remind them or show them the steps again in a live environment providing both visual and verbal instructions within a seamless and harmonious environment. This method can be very accommodating to the user when learning new software.

Face to face is also a good way to train or simulate software operations within a classroom setting. However, while this is a good way to teach, most users may not retain the information very well. Most users will learn best when they begin using the software and seeing how it works first hand. Therefore the coaching method is a much better approach. Coaches are on standby to provide assistance when users have questions or run into trouble.

Being able to support users with training both via the face to face and coaching methods sadly is not enough to fully support users. Documentation is key as it serves two purposes; 1 – it’s a means of communication and 2 – the material can be used to reference information when the user forgets or just needs something to help guide them through the process of completing actions within the software. I highly recommend that when implementing training and support procedures you deploy the coaching method with documentation to provide the users. This way all bases are covered, the user receives the training they need to better understand how to use the new software and is left with documentation that outlines what was demonstrated during the coaching session.

Support after implementation

Now that we’ve covered the importance of training and support through the initial release of the new software, we now need to review the importance of on-going support after the software has been fully implemented. Having a strong onboarding process must be the backbone of successfully providing adequate training to any new user(s) coming on board with the organization.

During this time trainers can meet with the new hire, explain how the software works and provide demonstrations of how the software is intended to work. Depending on the software, training could take several months to learn. For example, an electronic health records system has many moving parts and could take a long time for a new hire to get the hang of things. Department leads can also provide support to their department staff long-term if the organization does not have a dedicated IT support team in place.

Conclusion

Despite the many challenges that come with new technologies that software brings. Each organization is responsible to give their staff the proper training and support they need to succeed. After all, a carpenter could not build or construct cabinets if they do not have the proper tools to do so. Organizations must realize that proper training and support are the very tools needed that allow their staff to succeed, without it, consequences can be dire.

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