Live Training is Sometimes Best

A few months ago, I was asked whether it would be a good idea to develop an online version of Personal Accountability and the QBQ! training. This is a course developed by John G. Miller based on his book, QBQ! The Question Behind the Question. I am a licensed distributor of the QBQ training and have been facilitating / re-licensing the QBQ training to clients for over 8 years.

My comments back to John were based on my experience facilitating live online training / teaching live online training for New York University (NYU) in 2000 - 2001. NYU's experience was that the percentage of students that complete self-paced online training is low. It takes a very motivated "student" to complete the training. They found that a blend of live instructor-led online sessions with self-paced sessions got the best results.

Clients who have taken various self-paced online training classes have told me that they battle numerous distractions / interruptions at work, especially in "cubicle" environments. Some people will just click through to complete the class, missing a lot of the good content that's offered.

As for QBQ! training, I believe the strength of the class is the combination of the DVD instruction with the live facilitator to manage / customize the discussion ("Pause & Process"). The live element allows for true customization before and during the class session. If you convert the content to an online, more generic format, you will lose the ability to customize the Pause & Process elements before as well as "on the fly" during the class. 

I've also found the class interaction helps drive home the key ideas John presents in the DVD, and the discussion can sometimes get lively based on the comments of some of the class participants. 

Call me old-fashioned, but this topic is too important to fall into the online training trap. I see as a major problem today that we stare at technology (smartphones, iPads, TV's, computer screens, etc.) for hours on end, and we don't talk to each other anymore. QBQ! training really encourages participants to share ideas and actually talk to each other!

If you haven't read any of John G. Miller's books (QBQ! The Question Behind the Question, Flipping the Switch: Unleash the Power of Personal Accountability Using the QBQ!, OUTSTANDING! 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional, etc.) you've missed some great stuff. His books are fun, quick reads that contain many great ideas. I highly recommend them.