The Manson Learning Network: This Ain't Your Grandpappy's Training Program
- Learning & Development Department
- Jul 8
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 10
It’s excusable if you think Learning & Development (“L&D”) is synonymous with “training.” The two ideas are, after all, related—but they are certainly not synonymous.
“Training” is a concept that has become bloated through overuse and misrepresentation. If you listen to all the “training” references you hear, you may end up thinking that training happens any time people gather in a classroom (real or virtual) or any time they read a manual or watch a “How To” video. Unfortunately, in the corporate world, “training” is almost NEVER happening in these situations. “Training” is a complicated idea, but, at its core, it is: an event or events that result(s) in verified and repeatable learned behavior. Most of what is called “training” these days is just plain old “communication!” The reason real training is rare is because in-the-workplace training usually takes a lot of focus and a lot of time—two commodities that are not usually dedicated to training programs, and, as a result, these end up being communication events.
By contrast, L&D is a practice that seeks to infuse learning into the workplace, and, where appropriate, connect it directly into the workflow. In some companies, L&D is an intelligence—a corporate way of being smart about solving current or eventual performance problems. In these companies, L&D is not just a department or people “doing training” but, rather, it’s a mentality of becoming better at our jobs and growing in our careers. When companies make this a priority from the top-down, it becomes a competitive advantage—helping them innovate faster and adapt to change better than their competitors. At Manson, we do some L&D, and we're actively changing the perception of L&D from a training function to a performance improvement strategy.
Think about this: What if your department’s biggest challenge isn’t a lack of people or tools—but a lack of shared knowledge, a lack of specific skills, or a lack of effective processes to move work forward? What if there’s a new and complicated software system deployed that affects nearly every operation in the company? What if some essential operation, such as cost forecasting, is not being consistently or effectively applied across all business units, potentially leading to inaccurate financial conclusions? All of these challenges have, at their roots, a learning challenge. And all of these learning challenges have L&D solutions. Let us illustrate this idea with a few recent examples delivered by the Manson Learning Network.
| Manson Hub: An Enterprise Resource Planning System
Manson implemented The HUB ERP system from CMiC in the summer of 2023. The Manson Learning Network (“MLN”) helped to overcome this very steep companywide learning curve by coordinating system super-users to develop HUB learning resources. The objective was to improve people’s performance with the system to ensure the smoothest transition we could. Accordingly, MLN developed more than 50 learning resources, including 16 detailed road maps (procedural documents), 22 video tutorials, and 15 reference items for completing critical HUB operations. Within two months of implementation, Manson employees had utilized those learning resources nearly 2,800 times. These are not “training” resources, but rather very specific “how to” educational units. By making these available when and where people are doing their work, performance improves well beyond inert “training” that is really only simple communication.
The Result: increased system competency, more fluid system implementation, and reduced help desk requests during a time of massive corporate change.
| Manson 101 – A New Non-Craft Onboarding Experience
The onboarding of new non-craft employees has always been ad hoc with little objective beyond covering the compliance tasks and meeting the new team. Realizing there is a significant advantage in actively educating and inspiring new employees, the MLN in partnership with the Human Resources Department and other corporate departments developed Manson 101; a collection of experiences and resources to help new hires learn about our company heritage, develop basic competency in our operating systems and platforms, and get familiar with what and where critical employee resources are. Manson 101 is not “training,” but, rather, it serves up micro-learning units spread across the first three weeks of onboarding—helping new employees absorb key information without the overwhelming classroom experience. Soon Manson 101 will expand to five weeks to include content on Manson organization and operations.
The Result: Accelerated knowledge of Manson history, values, and terminology and quicker skill development on Manson systems including SharePoint, Manson Hub, MOLLy, and Microsoft 365.
| Manson New Employee Portal
Prior to the summer of 2024, if you asked around, people would tell you that one of the most vague and uncertain processes at Manson was hiring new employees. Inconsistencies created too many errors and left multiple departments and staff to sort out the mess. Once again in partnership with HR and the other corporate departments, the MLN developed the Manson New Employee Portal: a one-stop shop for everything you need for error-free hiring of new employees. On the non-craft employee side of the portal, new employees will find easy steps to complete their onboarding efficiently as well as extensive resources to support them. In the Hiring Manager Resource Center, hiring managers are provided with a comprehensive guide detailing each step required to efficiently and effectively hire new employees. All the forms and documentation required are presented alongside each step of the process. The new Employee Portal is not “training,” but a process framework that improves performance around a frequently used and critical administrative operation. You can access the New Employee Portal by clicking on this banner on the SharePoint Splash Page.
"The new Employee Portal is not “training,” but a process framework that improves performance around a frequently used and critical administrative operation." —Thomas Barrett, Manson Director of Learning & Development
The Result: Improved performance through a simplified hiring process with all needed resources and steps readily available. Hiring managers and their designees spend less time and commit fewer errors with this resource. Corporate departmental support spends less time correcting errors. The hiring process is more consistent across the company.
| Got a Learning Challenge? Let’s Solve it Together!
These examples of performance support systems have alleviated significant operational challenges. No doubt there are many more operational challenges out there. Does your team’s performance suffer from any of these common challenges?
Recurring mistakes or inconsistent successes
New systems/processes that require change management support
Gaps in compliance, safety, or performance
Employee disengagement or turnover
Bottlenecks in operational tasks
- If any of these or other performance problems are holding back your team’s success, the MLN can help you to:
Assess work processes and identify learning gaps
Develop learning solutions that support employees in the workflow
Deploy learning resources where and when your team needs them
Create training that changes behavior
Improve the use of tools like Manson Hub, Microsoft 365, or project management processes in our construction environment
The MLN’s goal is to help elevate performance and remove obstacles, not just “check that training box.” We can help your team become more knowledgeable, more skilled, and more productive. At the MLN, this ain’t your grandpappy’s training program.
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