One particularly interesting challenge I recently took on, was inspiring a group of experts to create technical trainings for their less experienced colleagues.
Preparing such a training often feels like an insurmountable challenge, and many attempts turn into a grind - this was also the case here. A particularly effective way out of this, is the concept of the Minimum Viable Training (or MVT), inspired by the well-known 'Minimum Viable Product' approach.
When experts are asked to build a training, they often aim for a 'moonshot'—a perfect 2-day training with flawless materials that covers all their knowledge. But creating such a perfect training takes an enormous amount of time and effort, which most experts simply don’t have.
The point is to let go of the idea of perfection, which is practically unachievable anyway, as everyone has their own idea of what 'perfect' looks like. The Minimum Viable Training concept helps to address this: instead of aiming for the perfect training, start with a simple 2-hour Q&A session. From there:
Build a half-day training that covers the Q&A's most common and relevant questions
Use feedback from the half-day session to create a full-day training
Continue iterating and improving as needed
This approach has two big advantages:
It adds immediate value, as arranging a Q&A can be done instantly and with little or no preparation
It ensures the training content aligns with the actual needs of the audience
As an example, imagine you want to train engineers on tunnel design:
Start with a 2-hour Q&A session where participants discuss their biggest challenges, such as soil stability analysis, ventilation requirements, or cost trade-offs.
Use this input to create a half-day training focused on their most common concerns. Include practical examples, like as analyzing soil data.
Based on participant feedback, expand the training into a full-day session that dives deeper into advanced topics like detailed structural calculations, waterproofing techniques, and case studies of successful tunnel projects.
In short, if your team is struggling to create technical trainings, I highly recommend giving the Minimum Viable Training concept a try!
And if you'd like my assistance in kickstarting your team on this topic, or on the more in-depth subject of Knowledge Management, through a keynote or workshop, feel free to contact me.
