Designing and Building a

Performance Support System

Just In Time Information:

Caitlin Curtin, Luminare President and CEO

•

Autumn Wagner, CSAA Manager, HRIS

Companies are restructuring and

changing at a rapid pace.

Everyone is trying to do

more – and do it faster and better – with less.

Today

Workers find themselves in a fast-paced,

high stress and constantly changing environment.

And they are serving customers with

increasingly high expectations.

Today

Companies need performance support systems

to support strategic goals.

Workers need performance support systems

so that they can provide quality,

expert service to customers with less stress.

Today

Use EPSS for:

Accessible and maintainable corporate-wideprocedures and knowledge base

Just-in-time support for difficult, important,

fast-changing, hard-to remember and critical information

Just-in-time support for both software

and non-software relatedtasks and procedures

Customized performance paths for different levels and/or functions of users

• Can be distributed and updated quickly

• Provide immediate on-the-job performance – for all skill levels

• Don’t require time away from the job for training

• Reduce time and costs associated with errors and rework

• Support consistency of practice across an enterprise

• Enable new products, services and business practices to be implemented quickly, thereby increasing return on

investment and allowing quick response to competition

EPSS Reduces the Need for Training Expenditures

These systems often replace portions of a training curriculum and are desirable because they:

Luminare created an EPSS for CSAA to help themrespond to market price and product pressures

“The challenge that we were up against wasconverting from a single-function to a multi-function staff. We needed to do it in an 18- month time period. With 1,500 people to reskill, we knew we couldn’t do it the traditional way. We looked at various approaches, and what we built is a very sophisticated, customized help system that employees can use on the job.”

Within its first year of use, the system will provide CSAA with “at minimum a 300% return on investment.”

Autumn WagnerTraining Manager, CSAA

CSAA EPSS in Action

CSAA EPSS in Action

“Before the online system, we had all of our cheatsheets. Everything was on a separate piece of paper and every time there was a change in procedure, you were asking customers to please hold ... now I just click on my mouse.”

Will EltonTelephone Service Consultant, CSAA

• Provides consistent, accurate, “just-in-time” information

• Reduces business risk because content was verified by business & legal experts

• Allows timely & efficient communication of business changes

CSAA Online Guide Benefits

• Frees supervisor time to provide 5Diamond service coaching

• Learning occurs as by-product of use

• Increases skills, confidence & performance

CSAA Online Guide Benefits

Our Process

Phase I• Technology Assessment

• Task Assessment

• Prototype

• Design Production Process

• Feasibility and User Testing

Goal: Design, Build and Test EPSS Prototype

Phase II• Develop Authoring Tools

• Develop Human Interface Design Document

• Research and Develop Text and Graphics

• Develop Online and Print Style Guide

• Review and Revision of Draft Materials

Goal: Produce Useable Pilot Modules

• Production (online and print)

• Testing of Draft Materials

• Release to Beta Site

• Usability Testing

Phase III• Release first EPSS modules

- Touring

- Auto Underwriting

- Claims

- ATS

- Member Services

- User Testing

- ROI Evaluation

Goal: Rollout Major EPSS Modules

Phase IV• Assist in identification of organizational needs

- Structure

- Skills

• Plan for skills transfer

• Plan software and maintenance tasks handoff to CSAA staff

• Implement requested system enhancements

Goal: Develop CSAA plan for updating and maintaining

Online and Print Help

Challenges in Designingand Building a

Performance Support System

• Support the performers’ work life – not the applications!

• Design around changing systems and business procedures

• For use by novice and expert performers

• Consider the emotional, cultural and physical environment

Design Challenges

Organizational Challenges

• IS – Architecture and Operations

• Training and Documentation

• Human Resources

• Business Units

• Users and Their Managers

You will need resources and support from many departments:

• Close collaboration is necessary

• Have executive sponsors from each affected group

• Take plenty of time to communicate

• Show your prototype to everyone

Organizational Challenges

• Existing products sometimes are not suitable

– Customized solutions may be required

• Designing consistent help for new and legacy applications

• Evaluate potentially helpful tools early

• Tool availability affects design and the development process

• Plan for integration of future media

Technical Challenges

Need to:

• Create tools for production and communicationamong team members

• Code and manage many thousands of bits of information

• Use many tools – Databases

– Programming languages– Graphics and word processing programs

Technical Challenges

• Project Management

• Instructional and Information Designers

• Technology Architects and Programmers

• Domain (Content) Experts

• Graphic Designers

• Editors

• User Interface Designers

• Usability Testers

• Administrative and Production Coordinators

To create an excellent EPSS, you need an interdisciplinary team.

Personal / Team Challenges

• Team members need a working familiarity with other disciplines

• Each discipline brings its own point of view and priorities to the project

- United, this results in a well-designed, well-functioning system

- Fragmented, this can result in chaos

• Take plenty of time to educate team members about procedures or technologies affecting the boundaries between them.

Personal / Team Challenges

• Establish internal business

• Matrix within a hierarchy

• Internal leadership supported by:

- Cross functional team

- External expertise and resources

How CSAA Did It

• Develop business plan and budget

• Gain organizational buy-in and approval

• Design business organization and structure

• Recruit and select staff

Establishing an Internal Business

• Anticipated technology issues

• Focused on core business functions

• Conducted continuous scope checks

• Maintained close ties with business units

• Recruited cross-functional team

Meeting the Challenges

• Developed internal network and multimedia hardware expertise

• Maintained positive vendor relationships

• Maintained organizational support

Meeting the Challenges

• Enthusiastic Employee Acceptance

• Improved Member Service

• Positive Return on Investment

• External Recognition

EPSS: A Success Story

• Enable employees to handle multiple business functions

• Ensure consistent, accurate, “just-in-time” information

• Reduce learning time & associated costs

• Leverage investment in personal computers

(5,000 PCs currently in use)

EPSS: Goals

Designing and Building a

Performance Support System

Just In Time Information:

Caitlin Curtin, Luminare President and CEO

•

Autumn Wagner, CSAA Manager, HRIS