Creating Value with UPK Throughout the Project Lifecycle

Carol Griffeth AZZ incorporated Jordan Collard Synaptis

The presentation will cover how to use User Productivity Kit (UPK) more effectively early in the Project LifeCycle. This presentation includes best practices, success stories, and lessons learned.

UPK is not just a training tool, but an implementation.

We invest significant money and resources in the purchase and implementation of software applications. User Productivity Kit (UPK) enables an organization to be able to: see a return on your documentation investments; see an increase in production, and see a decrease in costs by allowing you to reuse content consistently across all business areas. In other words, content can be easily categorized and organized into a simple system that stores, retrieves, updates and reuses information effortlessly, and without duplication of efforts. UPK can bring significant benefits to an organization when used early in the project, and, more importantly, when used across the project lifecycle by addressing the most critical and often least thought of areas of user acceptance and user competence. The value that the UPK tool brings is that it captures all the steps during a system process development by recording every keystroke, every click of the mouse, each menu option chosen and, each button pressed. While the developer performs a single action of recording, UPK generates a number of valuable outputs without any further effort from the developer.

As well as improving user productivity, it can significantly improve project team productivity. This is because all the information recorded and linked in is extremely valuable across the project lifecycle when output in other appropriate forms.
COLLABORATE 12 Copyright 2012 by Carol Griffeth P a g e |1

One of the benefits of using UPK as an implementation tool is that it can produce transaction specifications, more commonly known as, Business Process Documents. In many cases these can be a requirement for compliance and/or a critical part of the system specification that is often overlooked in a busy project implementation, or created retrospectively as an after-thought. The application can also produce Test Scripts, either to support User Acceptance Testing (UAT) or the system testing activity. It can generate scripts ready to be input directly to HP Quality Center. When it comes to training the end user, UPK can produce Instructor manuals, student guides and quick reference cards directly from the same single recording exercise putting information into the users hands when they need it the most. The efficiencies that can be recognized across the project are obvious in terms of a single recording and development exercise supporting so many project activities. UPK could be financially justified on the generation of test scripts alone for a medium to large implementation. Modes of Operation and Output Generation Oracle UPK allows content authors to create content specific to their organization and industry standards but allows for the content to be universally understood by the end user (or audience) of the content. It is essential that content development focus not only on the technical specifications, but it must meet the needs of the audience. Most audiences have at least one thing in common: they are all adults. It has been demonstrated that adult learners want practical, useful information and skills to do their jobs better. They need to know WHY they should learn something and generally prefer to be active, not passive learners. Generally, learners will retain: 10% of what they hear; 30% of what they hear and see; 70% of what they hear, see and do; 90% of what they hear, see, do and show someone else how to do. The interactive modes of UPK assist the adult learner with reinforcing the content they are presented with. The interactive modes are: See It Mode; Try It Mode; Know It Mode, Do It Mode and; Print It! Mode. See-It Mode is an automated simulation of the process that can act as a demonstration of the system. It is valuable in the change and communication activity, to demonstrate the system when the final system is not or may not be available. Using a discrete recorder, UPK captures only necessary user actions. It can then play back the transaction with absolute precision and no user errors, mouse jitters or other issues that can detract from the system demonstration. It allows for the application to be presented in a clear, concise and uncomplicated way. The demonstration that can be repeated with absolute certainty every time, which is important to a users first view of the new system. You do not get a second chance to make a first impression. Try-It Mode is also a simulation of the application that requires the user to interact with the simulation, completing all the actions required rather than watching it run unattended to reinforce the topic that is being learned. This mode is most valuable in training; in the classroom or in a self-service learning context. Try-It Mode allows for the user to repeat the same exercise over and over without risk of changing the data in the application which can cause subsequent operations to fail. But how do we know if our users are really learning the system? Know-It mode allows the user to go through the process without the on screen guidance while tracking their progress through the required actions. Know-It Mode can warn the user when they stray off course and if the user makes further incorrect attempts, Know-It mode will provide additional remediation, culminating in the mode to complete the step for the user. The rub for the user is that at every incorrect action their score is reduced, potentially causing them to fail the test.

COLLABORATE 12

Copyright 2012 by Carol Griffeth

P a g e |2

The fourth mode of the UPK Player Package is Do-It Mode is for performance support rather than training. The user is working on the live application and UPK is hovering in the lower right of their screen, providing visual instruction, to guide them step by step as they perform their work on the live system. Print It! mode allows the user to view a PDF form of the procedures outlined in the tutorials in a Quick Reference Guide format.

Conclusion
To fully capture the value content management and training can provide, organizations should develop a plan that matches user preferences to training modalities needs which capturing critical business process requirements. The plan should include the tools and techniques necessary to measure the return on documentation investments, an increase in production, and a decrease in costs. In closing, UPK can bring significant benefits to an organization when used early in the project, and, more importantly, when used across the project lifecycle. From the above you can see how the UPK Player Package can improve user productivity and reduce project risk significantly, if used in an experienced and intelligent way

COLLABORATE 12

Copyright 2012 by Carol Griffeth

P a g e |3