No matter the extent to which you are using the program, videos can help you learn how to bring polish to internal and external communications. After all, in today’s world of emojis, abbreviations and text-speak, you want to stand out so others take you seriously as an authority. We gathered a few of the tools that can help you accomplish this and provided you with some targeted videos below.

Let’s look at some Word tools that can create more effective business communication.

Automate organization and boost the usability of a document with dynamic tables of contents.

Consider human resources as an example. Undoubtedly, HR professionals will have to produce larger documents for their employees, such as a memorandum of internal policies or compliance-regulation materials. While this is required reading for a new employee, it’s also meant to serve as a reference guide for the future. So, make it easy for readers to find what they need quickly via the table of contents feature.

The most convenient part of this feature is that once you set it up properly, the table updates itself automatically so you don’t have to adjust the page numbers throughout each draft. Also, you can easily add hyperlinks to each chapter or section so that your readers can find what they need quickly. Watch the video above to see how!

Add polish to communications with headers and footers.

Headers and footers provide you with big-picture context on each page. As identifiers that run throughout the top and bottom of your document, they let the reader know important information such as the page number, title, author, chapter number and date. This way, readers can easily reference your work and can flip forward to know how much more they have to read on a given topic. And if you’re compiling a particularly research-heavy external communication, why not add citations to let recipients know where they can find more information?

And these are just a few of many communication-polishing tools you can find within Word. Check out our free videos on YouTube or sign up for a free trial for access to our learning library!

How to organize your library of training resources effectively

Videos

Videos can serve you well for both often-used and trickier software programs. Regarding the former, you know your business and which programs your staff uses most often. Create a dashboard for these programs in your learning system that conveniently houses these materials. Beyond this convenience, your employees can rewatch anything they need clarification on or have forgotten.

For more complex software, see if you can find videos that cover one subject at a time, rather than encompass the entirety of the application. This way your employees can gain expertise on their own schedules and only move forward once they’ve mastered a prior subject. Certain training platforms also come with tracking tools so you can see who has watched which module to completion.

PowerPoint/Slides

Use a library of slides to demonstrate step-by-step instructions of how a software program is used specifically for your business. For example, take an employee in human resources through the steps he or she needs to do in order to activate a new hire via screenshots and easy-to-follow descriptions. This can help employees develop methodologies for using the software, such as knowing when they need to hit “save” in order to preserve their work. If you think it would be beneficial, you can also save PowerPoint presentations as videos with optional voiceover to help move your trainees along.

Further, PowerPoint slides can empower your team members and users alike. With a little bit of PowerPoint aptitude, anyone can author training materials that are specific to your business. This win-win situation allows your team members to demonstrate mastery and make a positive impression on management, while you improve business continuity and boost institutional knowledge throughout the staff.

No matter which format you use, incorporate links to your library’s resources in your training instructions, and encourage department managers to do the same. This way everything is readily available if they miss any initial meetings or simply want a review of the materials.

As an IT professional you understand that businesses deploy SharePoint for many different reasons. Intranets, document management, collaboration and workflow automation are a few of the most popular reasons. End-users on the other hand, often times are confused, unwilling or have little to no desire for change. Providing users with some basic knowledge about SharePoint can assist businesses with user acceptance. Let them know that SharePoint lets them easily create powerful websites that provide users with collaboration and storage tools. If your company is deploying SharePoint Online via Office 365 let them know about the other benefits like Online Office Apps, the possibility of having the latest Office Software on their home PC’s, hosted Microsoft Exchange and availability Microsoft Lync, all things that provide businesses and users with productivity solutions for many different collaborative needs enabling that enable users to work from most any location.

In this post and with the videos selected, we are focusing on the basic understanding of SharePoint from the end-user perspective. We’ve included some short videos that touch on what SharePoint can do in order to help users better explain why an organization would deploy SharePoint. We highlight the fact that users within an organization often use SharePoint differently and will often times have a defined SharePoint roll within their company or department. We take the mystery out of the term Team Site, so that the end-user has a better definition of how SharePoint may be used by them or their work group. We also give a basic introduction to libraries and lists. The videos in this post are pulled from KnowledgeWave’s SharePoint Online 2013 Video series. A complete video list is at the end of this post.

KnowledgeWave hopes you find this post and these videos useful and we encourage you to share this post with end-users in your organization or consider a low cost membership to KnowledgeWave.com for the complete series to assist with user adaptation after your deployment.

What is SharePoint and Why Do We Use It?

The end-user of SharePoint often has specific needs and goals in mind when working in a SharePoint environment. In this video we define the five primary rolls that SharePoint end-users would fall under. Owners, Designers, Editors, Contributors and Members/Readers.

SharePoint Users Roles Explained.

You have SharePoint and you’ve heard of Team-Sites, now what? SharePoint Team Sites are like private websites for your company, departments or teams. It provides private access based on permissions for secure collaboration. Team Sites provide a central storage and collaboration space for documents information and ideas. It’s a great alternative to shared drives or flooding email boxes with messages and attachments.

Understanding Team Sites on SharePoint

Libraries, lists, apples and oranges we know they are similar, yet different. SharePoint Libraries are like a container that holds documents or files. Lists are a great way to house information in rows and columns. You can sort, filter, add items, and very easily edit the list. Libraries are also lists that allow you to set various views based on columns and even dynamic data.

Learn About and Start Using Libraries

Learn About and Start Using Lists

If you found these introduction videos helpful consider a membership to KnowledgeWave.com. We offer individual memberships as well as access for entire organizations. These videos above were pulled from our SharePoint Introduction series listed below.

Diving into the world of Microsoft SharePoint is like discovering a whole new layer of office based computing. This powerful, web-based platform integrates everything that’s offered in the Office Suite of programs along with Microsoft’s OneDrive cloud storage solution. The ability to create sites, pages and shared workflows using SharePoint opens up a brave new world of organization, collaboration and centralization. This video series has all the info you need to understand and utilize this powerful platform. If you’re interested in making this content available to your organization please request a demo, we’ll provide you with access to review this series and also show you how you can track usage and measure ROI on your training for your company!

Our End-User Introduction to SharePoint Series

Here are four benefits of custom training for your end users:

You can focus on only what your employees need to know

Many software programs cover a huge amount of tasks. Think about the platforms that use cloud computing to store an expansive amount of data, or even the many tools within Excel.

If your company is only using a portion of a program’s total capacity, it can be beneficial to create custom training that carries this degree of specificity. Focus on the tools your employees will be using, with perhaps a bit more so they can see what else the software might help them do. The point is to customize the plan to the role these employees play. By knowing their needs, you can save time.

You can leverage your staff’s collective savvy

Many premade training videos and presentations start at square one. Your staff members, however, might not have to do the same. If they’ve used similar software in the past, or you understand them to demonstrate a collective mastery of the basics, custom training allows you to start at the level that makes the most sense for the group. In doing so, you can demonstrate to your employees that you understand that their time matters and you’re respecting their already established skills.

You can call in the experts

Perspective from an outside expert contributes to your custom training plan in a variety of ways. First, to be frank, sometimes an outside voice of authority can carry more weight than yours. This may simply be because this person conveys a sense of novelty in addition to his or her expertise. By bringing in a subject-matter specialist, your staff may listen more effectively. Also, an expert will likely be able to answer more questions than you on not only how to use the software, but also how it has developed over time and what new features exist.

Partner with a knowledgeable and respected training organization. If you are on a budget, online videos and custom webinars can get a lot of bang for your buck. As a bonus: by presenting the information in a granular format, you’re allowing your employees to complete training on their own schedules so it doesn’t interrupt their work.

You can potentially save money

While there may be an upfront cost to hiring an individual instructor or signing up for a training platform, there’s a high probability of saving money over the long run with a custom training plan. Beyond the cost, it saves both your time and your users’ time if you’re looking at the bigger picture. If the training comes in a reusable format, the future payoff is potentially huge as well.

With this in mind, we’ve compiled some advice in managing training and education for a new software platform

Anticipate adjustments

Perhaps the most important thing you can do to help yourself is to start planning early. In addition to segmenting users appropriately and finding subject-matter experts within your company, there are some processes you should put to use before you even begin. One of these is testing. Macros, code and other customizations don’t always migrate successfully. When possible, engage some—if not all—of your users in the testing process and provide ample time to do so. Testing can identify integration challenges prior to deployment and uncover certain processes for which users need additional training, or that should be changed.

In addition to testing, an outside audit can be a useful first step if the platform is beyond your scope of expertise. By bringing in an outside expert to take a look at your current system and how you seek to change it, you can anticipate potential problems and training needs.

Before, during and after deployment, make sure your employees have a means to communicate questions, and encourage them to do so. At all three stages, send out email blasts to address commonly asked questions or concerns. This way you can minimize the amount of time you spend answering individual queries. It will also become very apparent whether the platform settings need any adjustments to better serve the group as a whole.

Use a combination of tools and training methods

As you’ve heard us point out before, people learn differently. In addition, you probably don’t have the budget to cater to each of your employee’s specific needs in an ad hoc manner. The easiest way to satisfy both of these issues is to use a combination of inside and outside training modules. While you do need to let your employees know you’re available for help and additional training if they need it, you don’t have to do it alone. For many software programs, there are outside specialists who can lead training in person or via video. For more esoteric platforms, some companies will even create new courses on your behalf. Online training options allow employees to complete the work within their individual schedules, maximizing the chance they actually get it done.

In addition to using inside and outside experts, use a blend of training structures. It’s a fallacy to assume you need a hands-on instructor for all users. In actuality, there are lower-cost options that actually can work just as well for many of your employees. Webinars allow for a one-to-many teaching experience via a presentation that can be easily delivered to staff, and the webinar’s attendees have a chance to ask questions if it’s done live. After your deployment, initiate short coaching sessions to help boost use acceptance and allow users to address specific needs unique to their roles.

And perhaps the most useful tool you can have at the ready is training tracking. Be open with your employees and let them know you can see whether they’ve completed their training. No one likes to feel they’re being spied on, and this way they know you’re taking it seriously.

Make life easier for next time

Why start from square one the next time you introduce new software? A successful formula can be repurposed for future training. Take the time to celebrate a successful rollout, then prepare the outline of a template for future learning based on this experience. That way, your employees will see some familiarity and understand what’s required of them.

Rethinking corporate learning

First, rebrand the initiative as “corporate capability” rather than “corporate learning.” As described by John Bersin, a founder and principal at Bersin by Deloitte, in a contributing article to Forbes: “Not only should your organization understand the basics of training and development, but you must integrate it with the company’s talent practices (career progression and leadership) and also create a ‘culture of learning.'” The main takeaway here is to give your employees a chance to see it as personal development as much as it benefits the company. When introducing the topic of the initiative, show them the bigger picture. If it’s training for a software platform, find them some numbers on how prevalent it is among the industry. This way they can have the perspective of boosting their resumes at the same time.

And while you’re asking your employees to see the value in learning, you must adopt a management philosophy that does as well. Perhaps the most important element in doing so is to be open to mistakes. Learning takes time, which is one of the reasons employees may be reluctant to embrace it. Instead of expecting them to cover everything at once, reinforce that you’re open to their learning in a granular format. Provide them with short tutorials that they can fit into their schedules and process one at a time. By allowing your employees the chance to experiment with tools in smaller bites and make a couple mistakes in the process, you’re encouraging innovation over the long run.

Keep communication open

You can’t set your employees up with training opportunities and then just let them loose without checking in. If you’re developing a corporate learning program, you also need to develop a streamlined and organized way for employees to give feedback and ask questions. In doing so, you can help mitigate discomfort and minimize the frequency of mistakes. This also gives you the opportunity to know if something’s not working or could be adjusted to make your employees’ usage easier.

In addition, don’t forget to check in with those who are doing well. As part of your “corporate capability” mindset, see if there’s a chance to reward those with certain proficiencies with more than words. If you have a company with set channels for advancement, let employees know that all positions above a certain level require proficiency with certain software. This way, they have a clearly communicated visibility into how training compliance can advance their careers.

Alternatives to traditional learning management systems

Yes, if you have an unlimited budget, an LMS can be a handy tool. It involves constructing an internal, universal process for learning new tools, so employees already know the procedure and what time is required of them whenever you roll out something new. In addition to being costly, however, an LMS can be complicated and set you up for a situation where you can’t quite please everyone. For bigger companies, the LMS usually takes the form of a course catalog with on-demand courseware.

But these sorts of tools are also readily available in lower-priced solutions. Taking that granular approach we mentioned above, sign up for a video, webinar or tutorial service that can help you develop a lesson plan and provide these resources to your company. Chances are if your company’s internal systems are already established, you’re not going to be initiating huge rollouts more than a few times per year at the most. Avoid the hassle of having to manage and maintain a comprehensive LMS by letting others do the work for you.

To view the Ribbon in Touch Mode:

1. Click on the drop-down arrow on the right side of the Quick Access Toolbar and select Touch/Mouse Mode from the list.

2. The Touch/Mouse Mode command will appear on the Quick Access Toolbar. Enable or Disable by clicking or tapping the Touch/Mouse Mode command, then select Touch or back to Mouse from the drop-down menu.

Touch Mode vs. Mouse Mode:

Here is an example of Touch Mode. The Ribbon expands allowing for easier tapping on your touch-screen.

Here is an example of Mouse Mode. The Ribbon is at default settings and you can easily toggle back and forth with this command on the Quick Access Toolbar.

Like this step-by-step tutorial? Want to see it in action? Join the KnowledgeWave Learning Site for great tutorial videos on topics like this one. Visit www.knowledgewave.com for a free trial offer, or call 800-831-8449 today!

For most companies, taking a whole day to train everyone at once just isn’t feasible. After all, you still need to make sure your daily operations are completed. Instead, providing shorter, targeted training content can lead to a higher completion rate by users because it’s much easier for them to find 10–30 minutes at a time on their own schedules. A great way to implement this is through video tutorials or online walkthroughs, whose subject matter has been broken up strategically by the experts. This way, you’re catering to all types of learners—video, audio and experiential—and you have the added benefit of training tracking at your fingertips. But how can you use these analytics to your advantage?

Putting the value of employee-training tracking software to use

First, in addition to being able to track who has completed the training, you can see who is lagging. An employee could find him or herself behind schedule with respect to training for many reasons, the most likely of which is simply a lack of time. By reaching out to employees who find themselves behind schedule, you can help them come up with a more personalized agenda to complete the training. This will empower them rather than make them feel as though they’ll never catch up.

Then, focus on those who are moving along nicely and find potential champions. With certain tracking software, you may even know whether an employee has completed any follow-up or supplemental coursework. These employees can help you take the temperature of the entire employee pool as to other ways your company can use this software, maximizing your investment. Also, put those who understand the purpose and implementation of the software in a focus group. In doing so, you can help them encourage others to embrace the change.

Certain tracking systems can also help your company in its efforts to meet compliance regulations. Though, it’s important to note that no tracking system is going to do all the work for you. Still, some software platforms are utilized to help companies in their efforts to follow governmental or organizational guidelines. By having this data gathered, you may be able to put it to use in a future audit.

Many software-training platforms offer virtual badges or measured rewards to those who have completed the modules or become certified. These prizes can encourage participation from users, as they provide gratification and help you identify those potential champions. To encourage their collection, you could even add the accumulation of certain badges to your employees’ yearly goals.

Since you have it, why not use tracking data to fuel future training programs? If you’ve got the numbers to support the fact that most, if not all, employees engaged in online platforms for training, you can use this to convince higher-ups that it would be a useful investment again, should you need it in the future.

And finally, shout it from the rooftops! With this data, you can back up claims that all employees in a certain department—or the whole company—are trained in a specific type of software. Use this in press releases and marketing materials to make your company stand out from its competitors. Also, encourage your employees to add it to their resumes and LinkedIn pages. It only makes everyone look more impressive.

First, let’s add text to the AutoText gallery:

1. In your document, select the text that you want to add to your gallery of AutoText entries.
2. On the Insert tab, in the Text group click Quick Parts. Point to AutoText and then click Save Selection to AutoText Gallery from the jump list.

3. AutoText entries are stored in Word as what are called Building Blocks. Enter your AutoText information in the Create New Building Block dialog box. Enter the name of the Building Block. You will have additional options such as Gallery, Category, Description, where to save it, and Options like Insert content only, Insert content in its own paragraph and Insert content on its own page.

Now, let’s enter the saved text to the document using AutoText:

4. On the Insert tab, click on Quick Parts then AutoText. Now the gallery is populated with the text that we selected called “Request for Volunteers”.

5. By right-clicking on the AutoText Gallery, you will see lots of choices. Choices include where in the document to insert your AutoText, an Edit Properties choice, Organize and Delete, as well as Add Gallery to Quick Access Toolbar.

6. Adding the AutoText Gallery to the Quick Access Toolbar is the quickest and easiest way to automatically insert text into a Word document. All you have to do is click on the Quick Access Toolbar button and choose your text from the dropdown. It is that easy!

Like this step-by-step tutorial? Want to see it in action? Join the KnowledgeWave Learning Site for great tutorial videos on topics like this one. Visit www.knowledgewave.com for a free trial offer, or call 800-831-8449 today!

The truth is when migrating to newer versions of software, training can help prevent productivity loss. Beyond that, short training sessions can help users maintain their skill sets while highlighting new features that can boost their capacities of using the software.

Without further ado, here’s our four-step software rollout plan:

Step 1: Identify users’ specific needs within the software you’re deploying.

Your employees’ time is valuable and limited, and you can demonstrate your understanding of this by personalizing their experiences. For example, PowerPoint can be a valuable tool for all employees within a company, but it’s used differently by various roles and departments. By allowing your employees to understand their real usage of the application, you can not only prioritize training topics, but also determine your training priority for different users and departments.

Step 2: Communicate to those who will use the software why they and the company need it.

Some people just resist change—a frustrating fact for those who are introducing something new. If your users understand the purpose behind the change, however, they may be more likely to embrace it. And the more willing they are to accept it, the more likely they are to pay close attention to training. Further, this is an opportunity to listen. By addressing specific concerns, you’re also mitigating fear or discomfort among those who may not be as technologically minded as others.

Step 3: Plan training early and time it accordingly.

Ideally, your users will be exposed to their new software prior to deployment. Webinars and demonstrations of new features are great ways to get them excited and helps reinforce that open communication you encouraged in Step 2. With that being said, you don’t want to train them months before they’ll actually be using it. Instead, time your training closer to deployment and make sure you’re targeting the right users. If it’s a totally new software, you may want to segment them into appropriate training groups when possible, as referenced in Step 1.

Step 4: Anticipate and limit IT-support needs by preparing for life after deployment.

Every rollout needs its champions—primarily those who can help others use the software. Identify your coaches and subject-matter experts prior to deployment and have a plan in place for your users to ask for their support. Training a few of these experts in advance can make the process considerably less expensive in the long run, as it can help to prevent mistakes or the need to hire outside help. You may even want to consider having a coach or two on your help desk for a temporary period for relevant questions. And always have additional learning opportunities ready for your users, so they can target specific parts of the software where it matters most to them.