Distributed cognition always plays into my instructional design thinking. What and who do learners have at hand to support their thinking, ergo support their performance?

Recently, I heard the term “transactive memory” which proposes that groups of people collectively encode, store, and retrieve knowledge. This term is meant to explain the processes behind “hive mind” or “group think.” It’s not really a new idea either, but to me it seemed like another phrasing of distributed cognition.

A lot has been made that we are losing our memorization capabilities due to the easy and immediate access to information. My colleague Matt wrote about “second screens”; I find myself looking up information ever more frequently on my smart phone as I watch TV, read a book, listen to music, or take a walk outdoors. What is that flower, or tree, or snake!?

Wired Magazine ran an article called Is Google Ruining Your Memory? Like the article author, I believe we do remember the important things and that cognitive supports for remembering lesser needed information is actually a good thing. (I am concerned with our diminishing capacities for quiet reflection, but that is for another post.)

We humans have evolved based on our superior storage and retrieval strategies. It’s part of survival 101; where I live, a walk outdoors is liable to reveal an artifact cache. The picture accompanying this post is of a cache of stone tools found along a creek. The word “cache”  means hidden storage place. In computer engineering, a cache is a block of memory that the processor core keeps close at hand for speedy access.

Finding cache is cool. Native Americans didn’t want to haul unnecessary provisions, and our brains don’t want to either. We know where to look when we need it. We’ve always liked to cache it if we can.

VCA Animal Hospitals (NASDAQ:WOOF) operates over 580 small animal hospitals in 41 states and Canada, staffed with 2,600 fully qualified, dedicated, and compassionate doctors. VCA partnered with Enspire to create an 11 hour blended curriculum focused on doctor communication skills, of which high quality video is an important piece. The large video shoot supporting the program took place recently in Austin, and while days were long it was a resounding success. Here’s how your shoot can succeed, too.

• Show up with a finished script. Make the most of script development time with your client by staying focused on the topic to train. Duh, you say. But a lot of seemingly productive discussion can take you into the weeds. While we were talking to SME doctors about  communication (“this is how I might tell a pet owner this…”), our doctors would often sideline into discussions about medicine (“this is the circumstance under which I’d order that procedure…”).   When that happened it was time to redirect.

• Nail details. Verisimilitude yields credibility. In our case, the actors playing VCA doctors and clients needed to interact realistically in an authentic hospital exam room. Our medical team visited VCA hospitals all over the United States, interviewed doctors, took hundreds of photos, and wrote pages of dialog to make sure we got script nuances and visuals right.

• Shoot in a space you can control. If you need a set that will stand up to serious scrutiny, consider building it. This might seem counterintuitive, but after scouting VCA hospitals as potential shooting locations Enspire opted to construct a set at Eastside Stages in Austin. This afforded us complete control of the shooting environment and didn’t infringe on hospital operations.

• Schedule a rehearsal day. If you are shooting dramatic scenarios this can be very helpful. The subtlety of the script and our need to make sure our actors played convincing doctors and clients made this a great investment. Our shooting days could stay focused on getting it all on tape.

• Get your client on set. Clients will spot things that you can’t. The VCA team invested heavily in the success of the video shoot, bringing 10 team members, including the executive sponsor and 5 doctors to the shoot in Austin. They offered feedback on wardrobe, intonation, and a host of other items that only they could.

• Let the director direct. Having your client and your development team on set is highly desirable. Having them all talking at once to the actors and crew is highly undesirable. The Enspire/VCA joint team set up camp outside the exam room set, watching the action on video feed and communicating with talent through the director.

• Hire pros. Enspire’s media arm Houndstooth has organic video capabilities, but faced with the prospect of 45 people and 5 animals on set we needed big guns. Enter Revelator, a full service video production company in Austin. Some of the things they helped us do:
  • Hire great actors. Doctors who’ve taken some of our other medical courses sometimes ask where we found a doctor to be in our video shoot. We didn’t; we just found a really good actor.
  • Hire experienced animal talent. Well, do this if you need animal talent. Untrained animals can’t handle the commotion around a noisy, brightly lit set. The professional dogs and cats at our shoot were cool customers.
  • Get excellent catering. A good effort on the craft services front can raise flagging energy levels during a long shoot. It can pay dividends in other ways, too. See “Get your client on the set”, above.

Freed from having to manage the logistics of a large video shoot, Houndstooth was able do what they do best: art direction and media production. While the shoot was underway, HT team members also scooped up the animal talent to take them across the soundstage for green screen photo sessions.

Do you have any video shoot success tips to share?

1. Go to Bjorn’s session
On Monday, Feb. 13 at 2 p.m., check out How Simulations Can Teach Leadership and Business Acumen led by Enspire CEO Bjorn Billhardt.

2. Visit booth #614
Stop by booth #614 in the expo hall to see our latest training simulations and meet several members of the Enspire team.

3. Meet us for happy hour
Join us for the Social Media and Mobile Learning Pub Crawl. Sponsored by Enspire Learning and hosted by Jane Bozarth and A.J. Ripin, the mixer provides the opportunity to check out Atlanta’s nightlife, network with conference attendees, and earn the chance to win an iPad. The mixer will start at 6 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 13 at the Omni. Learn more by following Jane, A.J., Enspire, or Training 2012 on Twitter. Don’t have a Twitter account? Email mobipin@gmail.com for more information.

From grocery store scratch-off coupons to credit card use rewards, the marketplace recognizes our natural response to challenge and rewards. Learn simple techniques to integrate game design mechanics into your e-learning to boost engagement, retention, and compliance.

Attend our webinar and learn these gamification techniques that can help you transform your e-learning. Click here to register!

Playing Games With Your People: How Business Simulations Can Grow Tomorrow’s Talent
Friday, Jan. 27 at 8:15 a.m.
Session description: Static e-learning courseware has become a staple in the training world, but rather than revolutionizing the learning field as many had predicted, it is underperforming expectations and failing to deliver on improvements in behavior. What has been missing in the e-learning world is the social aspect. Live online interactions in simulations, webinars, online role-plays, and peer networking tools promise to change the inactive nature of e-learning. But how can and will companies apply social learning effectively online? What should companies watch out for as they introduce interactive and social learning experience into the online mix?

The question: “What does science know about translating our resolve into actual changes in behavior?” The answer: “People, when they perform a behavior a lot, outsource the control of the behavior to the environment.”

For Vietnam veterans treated for heroin addiction, only 5% relapsed during their first year returning home from Vietnam. The serviceman beat an extremely addictive habit by treating the physical addiction and by undergoing a radical change in their environment.

In other words, our mind automatically engages behaviors based on familiar environmental cues and patterns.

Our environment shapes our behavior. Which reminds me of the “broken windows theory” of discouraging crime by cleaning up neighborhoods — like Mayor Giuliani’s cleanup campaign of NYC in the mid-80s.

The implications for learning are big: a change of scenery may be just what’s needed to reinforce change in behaviors.

I’m working on a communication skills curriculum and instruction that includes a collaborative learning workshop, e-learning modules, social networking portal, and even coaching sessions. We’ve set up a comprehensive intervention to improve workplace communication skills. But, even with the best of intentions, knowledge, and skills, we all can fall back into routine patterns. Especially because, as the psychologist in the NPR story says, “We don’t feel sort of pushed by the environment – but, in fact, we’re very integrated with it.”

What can we seed into an environment to support change? More specifically, what can we do to the environment to support change in communication behaviors? Put an extra chair beside a desk or rearrange the meeting space seating? Change schedules to allow more time for conversations? Set up a system to provide team updates and share information more frequently?

I’ve developed a whole slew of job aids for performance supports and self-reflection, such as a colorful card tent to set on a person’s desk exclaiming “Communication Works!” That’s a visual cue that will serve as a constant reminder – until it’s put away and not there anymore. Maybe we need a set of collateral materials to post around common areas?

Maybe we could push daily reminders via email? Maybe certain work objects – such as common forms and other paperwork – can be redesigned to cue specific behavior responses?

Truly, learning transfer is hard. We need to consider how to make the environment work better to make us work better.

As a timely metaphor, our best learning products are like well-wrapped presents, carefully chosen for each recipient. This holiday season, we’ve created a handy shopping list of the important questions we ask ourselves when considering what “gift” to give our clients and end-users.

1. What’s the occasion?

Gifts are rarely given without cause – they are usually intended for a recipient who is celebrating an occasion: birthday, shower, Kwanzaa, retirement, etc. You pick a gift to commemorate an important occasion.

When designing e-learning, we must have a deep understanding of the learning occasion – is it on-boarding for new hires? Does the company want its employees to better understand its security policies? Is there a need for management training? Start generally and whittle the need down until it’s a precise problem to be solved. For instance, if a client specifies a need for a new-hire orientation, investigate further to understand why the product is needed now. Maybe there’s been evidence that recent hires don’t fully understand their benefit packages. Maybe a certain group at the company plans to bring on a large number of new employees and wants uniformity in their on-boarding experience. Understand the occasion and you can better understand your intended recipient.

2. What does your recipient need or want?

We’ve all received gifts that we don’t know what to do with – slippers we’ll never wear, gift cards to stores we don’t visit, bath salts that loiter on a bathroom shelf, and so on. Luckily, an unwanted present can be regifted to someone who might really appreciate it. The recipients of mismatched e-learning, however, don’t have that option. Instead, they may simply feign their interest in the message while secretly “zoning out” during the experience.

Grab and maintain learner buy-in and guarantee return on a client’s investment by ensuring you’ve nailed the “what’s in it for me” factor. Interview your client with precision. If you know who your audience members are, you can tailor your solution to meet their needs. For instance, most adult learners want self-paced, self-directed learning that they can access at any time, with “resume” functionality that allows them to leave and return to the learning experience on their own schedule. Drilling down, are the end-users for your client’s solution technologically savvy, or do they represent a full spectrum of internet and application aptitude? Where will they access the e-learning solution, and what is their assumed bandwidth capability?
And in terms of content and visual style, be sure to carefully focus your instructional strategy – the end result should meet your client’s needs while engaging the end-users’ interest. You have a responsibility to match your client’s brand and style standards, but you also want an innovative product that matches your audience. Don’t send a formal, austere package to a young, artistic recipient… and vice versa.

Finally, be wary of sending a gift that’s prescriptive, or that reflects your own preferences, rather than the recipient’s. You may be itching to try out a new development platform, but if your client’s LMS can’t handle it, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Or, to put it another way, will your sister really appreciate the gym membership you purchased for her – or will she take it as a not-so-subtle hint from you? Send gifts your clients want – not gifts you think they need.

3. What’s your budget?

Too often, fantastic gift ideas have to be abandoned due to insufficient funds. Our intentions may be great, but we all have to learn to work within the constraints of a reasonable budget, especially when we’re dealing with a client’s money.

Along those same lines, learn from your everyday practical wisdom – you wouldn’t show your loved ones photos of gifts you wished you’d had enough money to purchase, and you don’t take your kids down the candy aisle unless you’re prepared to purchase. So why show your clients capabilities that they may be unable to afford? Learn your clients’ financial limitations early, don’t distract them with bells and whistles they can’t accommodate, and design a solution that will get them the most bang for their buck.

And be creative – you may find that there are ready-made development platforms or presentation methods that may save development costs… or you may find they lead to a black hole of attempts to customize them to your client’s specific needs. Be savvy – does hand-knitting the sweater in your aunt’s favorite colors really save you money, after you factor in time and materials? And if not, does her potential happiness indicate it’s still the best option, or would she be just as pleased with that sweater on sale at the department store?

4. What’s your timeline?

Keeping track of all of your gift-giving occasions can be difficult. It helps to maintain an updated calendar that alerts you to impending holidays, birthdays, etc.

Keeping an up-to-date client calendar is mandatory. Establish a firm but flexible development schedule as early as possible in your meetings with clients. Allow ample time for client review of deliverables, factoring in the number of reviewers, potential need for legal review, vacation dates for both clients and development team members, and so on. Don’t forget to include time for adequate internal review, especially for your own quality assurance group. And perhaps most importantly, get client buy-in and approval for all projected dates, and keep them up to date as the schedule changes. Using a project tracking system is helpful, but even if you’re resource strapped, a shared calendar or cloud-hosted document platform can save the day. As with all gifts, make sure you’ve given yourself ample time to wrap your present well, double-check your address, and verify its delivery. Sending the package on time is often the most difficult hurdle.

Keep these four checklist items in mind, and you’ll go a long way toward pleasing everyone on your client list. When you see the satisfaction a well-designed and well-delivered product can create, you find that it truly is better to give than to receive.