By the time you have invested in a Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) system, you are ready to overcome the inefficiencies of your current processes, and reap the benefits of improved business operations and profits.  The key to maximizing those benefits lies only partially in the program itself.  The other part rests firmly in the hands of those who will implement the new program.  Making sure your employees know how to use the system to its best advantage will put your company well on its way to achieving its goals.

Employee Training as an Investment

Change, by itself, is often frustrating. Employees using one system for years grow comfortable even with features that do not operate as intended, sometimes designing elaborate work-arounds just to get the job done. Suddenly presented with a new PLM system, these employees may dread the unknown and cling to a subpar system for its familiarity alone.  Getting employees involved with the new PLM system early in the process when bringing a new system on board is important in maximizing its efficient use in your company.

When introducing your new system, start with a reminder of what you learned from your employees about the old system: what problems they were having, where there were inefficiencies or delays, and what impact that had on their ability to get their work done.  Then invite them to see how the new system will help alleviate those issues.  Once they see how they will benefit from your new program, they will be ready for their next step: learning how to use it.

Certified Training Opportunities

Training is available for product design and management programs including Windchill, Creo, Arbortext and more. Options include public or group training events, private training sessions and remote or eLearning opportunities. Web modules offer further employee development.

Whether they breeze through free tutorials and are completely comfortable with the new program, or whether they require more hands-on training, each member of your team will need full access to instruction that will make them experts in using the new PLM program.

You should also consider having a system available for experimentation. Each employee should be able to get the feel for how Creo, other CAD platforms, Microsoft Word, and company procedures work within a system like Windchill. Finally, get feedback from your teams to understand how they feel and what additional assistance they want.  Knowing that you want to give them all the tools possible to make the new program work will remind them that they are important players in helping your company achieve its goals.

How Training Your Employees Helps Your Business

Investing in your employees and their training is time well invested. Employees who are happy in their positions and feel appreciated are likely to stay at your company and take it to a higher level of productivity.  Employees frustrated by not understanding a new system, on the other hand, may look for greener pastures.  Implemented correctly, a new system can enhance not only work efficiency but employee satisfaction as well.

The highest quality, most advanced PLM products on the market are only as good as the employees that use them. Remember to invest in your employees as much as you invest in your technologies.  And when you feel thankful for that new program and the efficiencies it has brought, this time of year is a great time to show thanks to your team for ensuring your business success.

It has been a great year looking back upon 2011! Many of us have been very busy and have accomplished many goals. I was asked to continue my PTC U Certifications within the Windchill course offerings alongside keeping up with the new Creo Elements Pro 5.0 (ProEngineer Wildfire 5.0) courses. I will continue to talk about Windchill during next week’s topic. This week I would like to reflect on those customers that have accomplished their goal of learning a new CAD system. Here is one perspective on switching CAD software from someone who has done it before.

Lately, I have had many customers that have taken my Introduction to Creo Elements Pro 5.0 course with extensive prior knowledge of a different CAD system. These experts of the other CAD system usually always appear a little reluctant to learn something new. I can totally understand! These customers are being asked to take a week off from being productive at work as well as their productivity will be down while trying to produce work within a new CAD system. In addition to this their old habits, comfort, etc. will be put the test and will most likely have to be either lost or recreated. All of this equals stress!

As I teach these customers I like to take away that stress. The less stressful I can make the training environment the better it is for learning. Switching CAD software is a process. I too made a similar switch a dozen years ago when I learned Pro/ENGINEER being a prior AutoCAD user. This switch from a 2D CAD system to a 3D CAD system can be the most difficult scenario I run into. I like to let the customer know this fact to ease any of their frustrations they are having during class, as well as reassure them that they are doing really well in the learning process. I also like to let the customer know of similar or different terminologies and concepts. However, they soon learn that this 3D element opens a whole new world of capabilities and precision.

Another common customer I run into during these Introduction classes are ones switching from a smaller company to a larger company. Sometimes smaller or startup companies go with a less powerful CAD choice like Inventor, Solid Edge, or Solid Works. When customers leave those positions in search of new opportunities they tend to find themselves having to now learn a version of Pro. This switch is not as difficult if the learner is actually willing to except the change. Meaning, I sometimes find an individual in my class that will not be 100% to the change even though they openly admit that Pro is a much more powerful CAD system and they even understand that many of the other parametric 3D CAD systems are based off if it. This customer will still wish they can continue to use their old CAD system.

Both situations go back to the customer’s habits and comfort. To ease the transition of switching CAD software I tell them that the only cure I know of is to make switch with an open mind and build more models. The more models they build, the more time on the system, and the more they will understand it. I can even see this during the one week I spend with them. Thursday and Friday are always easier for all learners during the Intro class than Monday was. I must run and prepare for some Windchill training next week…Take care!