'Posted on the Trainers Update Listserv in reply to a question on credit union training systems'

I recommend CU Training out of British Columbia, Canada. Their LMS is absolutely fantastic. It really is a step above CPD. (Sorry CUNA, but it's true!) What I like about CU Training:

MODULES

• Their training modules are COMPLETELY customizable. Literally, they emailed me the text in a word document, and I made the changes I wanted to make the module exactly right for my credit union. This means I don't have to follow up with employees after the REG CC course to tell them what we really do with check holds. I can put our policies right into the text. I even had them re-record an audio file, for a small fee. (I think it cost me $25, which is nothing compared to the value of having things EXACTLY the way you want them.)
  
• They do a good job of accounting for different learning styles. Although their courses are primarily text (so we can edit them), every page has something to click on, and an audio file to play. (Visual/Verbal, Kinesthetic, Audio learning styles)
  
• Each module asks the learner to interact with the information in a number of different ways. There is always a "what do you know" pre-test. After the body of the module, there is a list of discussion questions, which you can either ask them to respond to verbally or in writing. (To answer the questions, they have to process at a higher level than just memorization.) Then, there is a review test, which refers you back to the module if you need more information. Closed book exams are assigned separately from the modules, but are available for each module.
  
• There are modules on everything from cash handling to selling. They have good compliance courses, as well. (They contract with a compliance company in California to make sure that their content is accurate.)
  
• The company works exclusively with credit unions, having begun as the training department of a credit union in BC, and it shows. Their modules really have the credit union feel, unlike many of the bank cross-over products.
  
• When my staff signs in to the system, they don't feel like they are signing into someone else's website. There is no advertising, no flashing banners with someone else's name on it. It feels like something that really belongs to us.
  
  
  LMS
  
  
• COMPETENCIES! The system comes with hundreds of knowledge and skill competencies. You can use theirs, or you can design your own.
  
• You can assign competencies to particular jobs. Jobs are also customizable.
  
• You can credit existing staff with competencies, so they don't have to prove that they can do something they have been doing for years.
  
• You can assign courses to jobs yourself, or you can use the wizard to assign courses based on the competencies required for that position. (Each module lists the competencies that it addresses, and you can modify these competencies.)
  
• The system has a "Training Roadmap" which allows the staff to look at the competencies required for their position, see which ones they have, compare them to the competencies for a future position they may want, etc.
  
• You can track courses from outside the CU Training system. It even lets me link to outside websites, so when my employees click on an outside course, they are taken to the website for that course.
  
• There do an excellent job of helping to track in-house courses. I can set up my course, identify the number of seats, and either allow the staff to request it or register themselves. (The system even has a built-in sign-in roster that I can print out.) Available courses are automatically added to the training calendar within CU Training, and to my Outlook calendar, if I want it to.
  
• I can track cost for each course, both in terms of hours and in terms of dollars. I can also assign a budget for each employee, if I like. This information can be displayed to the employee ("You have spent $100 of your $500 budget", or "You have received 5 hours of the required 10 hours of training"), or I can keep it just for management reports.
  
• Security is also very customizable. I can allow managers to see some screens, and not others. I can allow them to see some employees and not others.
  
• There is a neat feature called "CU Coach" in the exam section, where I can see an employee's exam answers, and which ones he or she is missed. This is very useful for helping employees who can't seem to pass an exam.
  
• For each course, I can determine whether employees can register themselves, or whether they must request the course and be approved. Generally, I use that latter feature for the courses that cost money. :)
  
• Every section of the LMS is both printable and exportable, so I can get to my information however I want it.
  
• The system resides on the web, so I don't have to have a special server, and I didn't have to upgrade everyone's computers.
  
• It was half the price of CPD.
  
  
  I'm sure there's more that I like about CU Training's system, but I should stop. (Really, I'm not on commission.)
  
  If you want a walk-through, please contact Patrick O'Brien at 888-466-1634 Ext 221, or by the email above. (I copied him on this email, so he'd know to expect calls.) Don't be afraid to call Pat. He's a walking advertisement for the kind of needs-based selling we all do. Sure, he wants you to buy his product, but only if it's the right thing for your credit union. I never felt pressured or pestered when talking to him.
  
  Hope this information helps.
  
  -- Kathy Stevens
  Employee Development Specialist
  Advantis Credit Union