Exploring the Enablement Strategy Focus Areas

We have covered the first focus area: "enablement objectives". Next, let’s consider enablement governance.

Enablement governance goes beyond merely defining roles and responsibilities. It involves establishing a comprehensive framework to guide all aspects of the enablement team’s processes.

There are two elements under the focus area of enablement governance:

• Enablement team structure, roles, and responsibilities
• Enablement reporting

In the enablement strategy, explain the structure of the enablement team, including each role and their responsibilities and who they report to. Often, project team members are not aware of all the resources that are involved in enablement and how they fit into the overall project team.

Additional developers and trainers may be required at peak development and delivery times.

Relating this to the 4S Project, you have already met the enablement team members in the first unit.

In your specific project, the roles of the enablement team and the people who fill them can vary, based on the specific needs and structure of your organization. The key is finding individuals who can bring the necessary skills and knowledge to the roles.

We have already looked in detail at Grace’s role, responsibilities, and skills in the first unit. In the following video, let’s look at the rest of the enablement team and the skills and knowledge that each role requires. Consider how to select the right people and know what to do if you don´t have the right people or enough resources.

It is also useful to document the key stakeholders for the enablement team. The project team must be clear on who they interact with and what their involvement is in the critical enablement activities.

Enablement reporting covers the following aspects:

Usually, the enablement lead reports to the overall project manager. The cadence of meetings and reports to be submitted to the project management office (PMO) vary depending on the size and complexity of the project.

Usually, the enablement lead will attend a regular status meeting with the project team, most likely led by the project manager. There may also be requirements for the enablement lead to attend a steering committee, at critical times during the project. For certain countries, there can also be requirements to present information for consideration to unions or labor councils, for example, the worker’s council in Germany.

Meeting attendance may differ in frequency. Occasionally, exceptional meetings are called at critical times during the project.

As part of the enablement strategy, contact the project management office/administration function of the project to understand what the project management reporting process is. There is usually a requirement for the enablement lead to submit a regular report, for example every two weeks or every month.

It is also important to bear in mind any compliance issues that enablement must adhere to, for example any internal regulations, or legal, or industry standards relevant to your sector.

Every workstream in a project must regularly document risks and issues and the associated mitigating actions. As part of the enablement strategy research process, several risks and issues can become evident. The earlier these risks and issues are identified the better. In the interests of transparency, document them in the enablement strategy and aim to put the mitigating actions in place as quickly as possible.

We have covered enablement objectives and governance, moving on to the next focus area.

The next focus area of the enablement strategy is the project plan. In the last lesson, you learned about creating a high-level enablement project plan, which can have an impact on your enablement strategy. Thus, as the enablement lead, the enablement project plan is typically one of the first things to define, alongside the enablement strategy. We cover the enablement project planning activities in detail, in the following unit. The main thing to consider about the enablement project plan in this enablement strategy topic, is the fact that the high-level enablement project plan must be clearly illustrated in the strategy document. So, all stakeholders are clear on the key enablement activities, milestone dates, and interdependencies.

Next in the enablement strategy flow, the learning needs analysis is a substantial enablement activity. Outlining the learning needs process at a high level will suffice in the enablement strategy. We cover the detailed process steps of carrying out a learning needs analysis for project team and for users in a later unit.

In the enablement strategy, summarize the key value drivers around content development.

Review the following video on what aspects of content development to explore in the enablement strategy.

As part of the enablement content development effort, translation can be a big topic for large multinational companies.

Watch the following video to understand the actions an enablement lead will need to follow if translation is a consideration in your project.

There are many ways to deliver enablement. It is important to explore the methods of delivery you will use and document them, again, at a high level, in the enablement strategy.

The following video provides some guidance on how to consider different methods of delivery.

In summary, blended learning offers variety for learners in a way that best suits them, when they need it. It also helps to make learning more flexible, and learner focused. As part of the enablement strategy process, talk to key people in the business and project about the methods of delivery you must follow.

Take time to download and complete the following exercise, Selecting Delivery Methods ExerciseAfter completing this exercise, you will be able to select appropriate delivery methods to achieve the objectives defined earlier. Furthermore, you will explore different types of enablement content that needs to be prepared, in order to deliver training.

Each delivery method chosen in the enablement strategy directly influences the enablement execution activities. You will need to choose carefully, taking into account the available budget, resources, and tools, as well as the learning culture you want to foster.

Once you have completed the exercise, compare your results here: Exercise Answers Selecting Delivery Methods

Enablement ecosystem relates to what tools, resources, and platforms are required to support the enablement process. This includes:​

Tools cover, for example a content authoring tool, such as SAP Enable now or WalkMe and learning management systems to track learner attendance and invitation management, mandatory assessment results and so on.

A standalone training system is required when learners need hands-on experience to complete system exercises, especially for more complex topics and functionality. Ideally, the training system should be located where it cannot disrupt any system testing or development. Consider the significant process of creating training data for users to successfully complete hands-on exercises.​

In the enablement strategy, document the tools that will be used and any future technical requirements around a training system and data.

Sustainable enablement refers to the ability to establish a continuous learning process after Go Live, to successfully bring enablement into the learner’s day to day life. ​

The actions taken to make sustainable enablement:

Finally, an enablement approach in the cloud world is all about being adaptable and agile. A key user network is often invaluable in this process. Key users maintain knowledge levels and act as the bridge between the business and the project. ​

Document this sustainable approach in the enablement strategy and focus on identifying any outstanding decisions about future enablement.