How can you onboard new employees quickly, optimize efficiency, and support knowledge transfer and retention? By creating Training Materials that include mapping workflows, documenting job tasks, and detailing work instructions.
A crucial partner to this process is the Subject Matter Expert (SME). As the name implies, they know the tasks needed to do a job and how to get them done. Success Trek has partnered with client SMEs over the years to create a variety of training materials. Even our team members have become the SME themselves when documenting internal processes. Experiencing the role first-hand enables us to connect with a client’s SME and work toward creating robust training materials.
Because of the depth of investigation necessary to gain clarity when creating Training Materials, SME’s may feel like they are having their work scrutinized or are under a magnifying glass. To curtail these feelings, here are some tips for them to keep in mind.
- No matter how detailed, the training materials will never replace you. While the materials can support training others or be used in a pinch during an unexpected absence, no one else will possess your experience or style when performing a job.
- Seeing your tasks and work instructions laid out can identify areas for improvement. Who would not want to work smarter instead of harder?
- Documenting your tasks and how to do them may be stressful; however, the result brings value by relieving stress. During the process, your thoughts run the gamut from “this is silly” to “this level of detail is overkill.” Keep at it, and in the end, breathe a sigh of relief and gain a sense of accomplishment when you see just how much you know and do.
- You are the SME for a reason: you know the job and how to get it done. What better way to reaffirm your role within the business than to ensure another’s future success in the position or reduce everyone’s stress (yours included) in an unexpected absence?
Our collaboration with clients and their SMEs create training materials that work: from a simple workflow map to a detailed set of work instructions incorporated into a training guide with checklists and job aids. Success Trek sends out a hearty “thank you” to all the SMEs we’ve worked with over the years: without you, we would not have been able to create useful training materials. Our content writers would also be bored as they have learned about so many different jobs through the process!
How can we help?
If you or your team need help to identify obstacles and challenges in your workplace situation, contact Theresa, or visit our Contact Us page to schedule a 30-minute Complimentary Conversation. Reaching a goal is a journey, and Success Trek is here to take that journey alongside you.
