Compliance & Ethics Professional - Society of Corporate ...

··Scarcity and Authority. The influence ofthese two is straightforward and obvious.I’m not going to say much more aboutthem because, over the long term, the firstfour influencers have a far greater effect onbehaviors. I’ll come back to Cialdini’s workin a bit.Scaling the learning approachA key step in any training design is to set yourachievement goals. The standard I like to useis Donald Kirkpatrick’s four-level learningassessment model: 3··Level 1 is Reaction. This measures whatstudents thought of the course. They alsomay recognize when they have encounteredan ethics or compliance issue.··Level 2 is Learning. Here the students cantell others, in their own words, about thematerial presented in the course. Learners“know” the material, but there is no guaranteethey would apply it.··Level 3 is Behavior. The students incorporatethe concepts of the course into theirpersonal values and intuition. They act inalignment with stated learning objectives.When Level 3 achievers encounter challengingsituations, their values, beliefs, andintuition have a chance of guiding theirSystem 1 responses in the proper direction.··Level 4 is Performance. The learners’actions have a measurable effect on theoutcomes of the organization. These outcomescould be reduced cost, improvedquality, or timelier delivery.Most of today’s ethics and compliancetraining efforts only achieve Level 1 or Level 2results. And although we wish all of ourcourses could lead to Level 3 or Level 4 results,unfortunately, most training budgets andresource allocations for ethics and compliancekeep us firmly grounded at Level 1 orLevel 2. Basically, the annual training is done,and we can tell the regulators that we are incompliance. However, if we could achieve atleast Level 3 results, we have the potential tosignificantly reduce organizational risk andassociated reputational and cost impacts.Good ethics and compliance habits alsobecome good performance habits.Here is a choice point. If Level 1 or Level 2learning and the associated risks are acceptable,then online web-based training isprobably your best choice. It’s scalable andefficient. However, if you wish to be better preparedand reduce your risks, then a differentlearning approach is needed.In the early 2000s, I was involved with adesign team that was trying to develop anonline learning activity for newly mintedfirst-line managers. Our promotion rate wasfairly low, and it took several months to filla classroom with 24 to 30 managers. Somepeople had to wait as long as six months toattend their first management class. The lackof knowledge and skills caused by the delaypresented unacceptable risks. This wasn’t anethics or compliance course, but the lessonslearned are applicable.The first thing we did was focus onthe attributes of highly successful learningexperiences. Not surprisingly, interactive,collaborative, and transformative learningactivities were more likely to achievea Kirkpatrick Level 3 or Level 4. When thelearner was able to influence the learning outcomes,the activity was even more effective.Yes, people can learn individually; however,the most effective learning occurs when peopleare learning together in a co-creative fashion.The resulting hybrid online learningexperience was a success. Students participatedin the class from their “home” locationsaround the world. A facilitator convened four90-minute conference calls with a “pod” of 10 to15 managers over a 45-day class term. Duringthe conference calls, the facilitator presentedtopics of interest. Managers were directed toCompliance & Ethics Professional March/April 2012+1 952 933 4977 or 888 277 4977 | www.corporatecompliance.org 65