Use Design Thinking to Get Inside Customers’ Minds
Like a wildlife biologist observing a pride of lions in the grasslands of the savanna to learn about their behavior, the designers at UberEats also watch their products “in the wild.” In an article for medium.com, (now former)…
What legalization means for workplace cannabis use
Statistics Canada carries out a National Cannabis Survey and releases results four times each year. The findings issued in May noted that of those people who use cannabis daily or almost daily, 27 per cent consumed the drug…
Why you should care about Canada legalizing cannabis edibles
A year ago, Canada legalized the recreational use of cannabis, and now the country is set to make the sale of new cannabis products legal as well. These include edibles, beverages, topicals, and extracts. Legalizing cannabis edibles and…
Disability awareness: Accommodation doesn’t have to cost a lot
I am a short person, just a little over five feet tall. When I began working at Velsoft, the chair I was provided was too big for me, and my back got sore every day. The company accommodated…
Getting Started with Microsoft Windows 10: May 2019 Update
TOPIC A: What is New? This course is designed to help in getting started with the Microsoft Windows 10: May 2019 Update. Microsoft Windows 10 is a powerful and easy-to-use operating system. Nearly everyone who works with computers…
Why you should (or shouldn’t) get Windows 10 May 2019 Update
Is it necessary to install updates to Windows 10 on your computer? Yes and no. In most cases, Windows will still function without the update, but it is crucial in preventing hackers and other unwanted users from accessing…
Useful Features That Will Change How You Use Microsoft Word 365
I’ve used Microsoft Word for years. I’ve worked with it for so long that I can’t even remember when I began using it. I never had formal training – I just learned how to use the various features…
Developing Formative Assessments for eLearning
As trainers, how do we ensure that we are assessing for higher levels of learning in the e-Learning environment? Formative assessments are tests or evaluations that take place throughout a course and provide feedback to the student in…
Getting Started With Word: Course Excerpt
Identify the Components of the Word Interface Microsoft Word is a powerful, easy-to-use word processor. It can be used to create reports, letters, memos, and all sorts of different documents. If you have used earlier versions of Microsoft…
Key Performance Indicators that Manage Sales Success
Key performance indicators (KPI) are the measurable parts of each step along a sales representative’s activity funnel. Each KPI naturally aligns with the activity a sales representative does every day. For example, “leads” are the direct result of…
Stop being a bottleneck: Learn the art of delegating
Do you cause congestion in the workplace? Are you a bottleneck? Does not having control over every little thing that your staff works on make your skin crawl? Is the only way for things to get done correctly…
Assessment — Nuts and Bolts
Now we will look at Assessment Nuts and Bolts. This is the final blog in a series that started with Assessment -- Some Initial Thoughts, and Some Assessment Vocabulary. Individual Assessment Instructors should work with students to develop criteria for…
Teamwork: On the ice and in the office
I’ve seen it happen many times. Both of my daughters played hockey growing up, and I’ve seen their teams lose important games because the teams stopped acting like teams. It usually goes like this: the team is behind…
Knowledge Platform: What could it contain
In April, I wrote a blog looking at the future of learning as I see it. At the end I said the Learning Management System of the future was going to be a Knowledge Platform. Today I’d like…
How to get staff on board with eLearning
You’ve finalized all the eLearning details for your organization, except one: How to get employee buy-in. I’ve worked in offices where training was mandatory and accepted grudgingly and with plenty of grumbling in the classroom. You may be…
Understanding Self-Management through Reflection
Understanding Self-Management Self-management is really about controlling your reactions. Early in my career I remember being told that I would not be judged on my actions, but on my reactions. Things happen all the time and many of…
What is the Client’s Decision-Making Process?
The process of developing an effective and efficient sales system requires a clear set of selling steps that mirror the way in which a prospective client likes to make buying decisions. For example, a purchasing manager looking to…
Some Assessment Vocabulary
It is important to get to know the vocabulary related to assessment, otherwise you may think things are being written in some alien language. This is the second blog in a series that started with Assessment - Some…
Getting Started with Excel 365 Online
Excel 365 Online is the cloud-based version of Microsoft’s spreadsheet program. It offers many tools for managing numerical data, as well as the ability to add charts, shapes, and much more. Best of all, Excel 365 Online’s interface…
Building staff relationships through benefits
Think of your workplace as your backyard. You have heard the expression: a good fence makes good neighbors. It is a good contractor, however, that builds a good fence: a contractor that is trade-certified, experienced, talented, and motivated…
Softskills refresh: Offering the best training resources
Here in the production department at Velsoft, lately we’ve been concentrating on updating the softskills courses that we’ve developed. This is because we want to offer the best available training courseware kits to our clients – trainers like…
Assessment- Some Initial Thoughts
The American Association for Higher Education (www.aahea.org) has developed Nine Principles of Good Practice for Assessing Student Learning1. They are a good place to begin to explore assessment strategies: The assessment of student learning begins with educational values.…
Creativity in the Workplace Quick Reference Guide
When we think of creativity what often comes to mind are inventors such as Leonardo Di Vinci or Steve Jobs, or people who have created masterpieces such as Picasso or Bach. There are many definitions of creativity, but…
Creativity leads to success in the pool
When the LZR Racer swimsuit was banned after the Beijing Olympics, Speedo needed to create a replacement for swimmers to wear in competition and at the London Summer Games. To spark their creativity, the team employed a technique…
Getting Started with PowerPoint 365
PowerPoint 365 is the cloud-based version of Microsoft’s powerful word processing program. Using PowerPoint 365, you can create professional presentations of nearly any type. You can also add videos, pictures, and much more. Best of all, PowerPoint 365’s…
Looking back on the eve of 40 years as an adult educator
Looking back at my nearly four decades of educational experiences, I realize that we can learn much about others' stories, cultures, struggles, and hopes. But, we cannot take their stories and try to live them. We can only…
What is Creativity?
Two Myths of Creativity What is creativity? When we think of creativity what often comes to mind are inventors such as Leonardo Di Vinci or Steve Jobs, or people who have created masterpieces such as Picasso or Bach.…
Communication is key to a healthy workplace
In the past, workplace health has been discussed in very limited terms, and rarely in connection with quality initiatives. But recently, and rightly so, workplace health is taking a more holistic approach. Occupational health and safety, employee assistance…
The Use of Humor in the Classroom
Before I begin to talk about the use of humor in the classroom, I’d like to start with a couple quotes from two of my favorite philosophers. The first is from Plato: “Do not train a child to…
Investment in Health
Whether you’re an employer of one or an employer of a 1,000, investing in your employees’ health is not just a nice thing to do. It’s a sound business decision. You know all too well that healthy employees…