The History of Human Performance Technology (HPT): It ’ s Evolution, Contributions, & Impact

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The History of Human Performance Technology (HPT):

It’s Evolution, Contributions, & Impact

Judith A. Hale, Ph.D., CPT

ibstpi Fellow

President of ISPI

Hale Associates

[email protected]

Skype: Judith Hale

Human Performance Technology-HPT

• Performance is the goal - it is doing worthy work efficiently, effectively, and ethically

• Human – performance is accomplished through human behaviors

• Technology – the application of a systematic process that examines the workplace, work, and the workers so people can perform

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Drivers for HPT

• Information Age - started with the development of the transistor

• Today we see: – Flatter structures with more information being pushed down into he

organization

– Greater decision making at each level

– Changed the balance of information, now have a need for knowledge management – just in time not just in case;

– Increased reliance on informal learning and a need for knowledge workers who know more about their job than the boss

• Resulted the need to look at the workplace, work, and work to optimize resources

– Human

– Physical space

– Technology

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Impact of the Information Age on Work**Art Isaacs

Products & systems

Workers & contractors

Government supplier customer

Quality approach

Increasing Complexity of Work

Increasing Quality

Increasing Interface

Increasing Diversity of Worker Skills

Simple Stand alone

Systems New Materials Miniaturization Computerization

Directive Collaborative

Unskilled Skilled Technical Specialization

Mixed skills Multi skilled

1930

Craftsman

1940-1950

Inspection

1960

Quality control

1970-1980

Quality assurance

1990-2020

Total quality

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Evolution of Training to Performance

Measures

Technology

Work design

Workplace

Increasing Demand for Return on Investment

Increasing Role of the Work Setting on Performance

Increasing Use of Performance Supports

Increasing integration of computers – work & learning

Norm

Job-aids

Programmed Video Computer-basedsimulations

Web-cast

1930

Design of tools

1940-1950

Leadership

1960 1970-1980 1990-2020

Integrated leadership- human capital

Criterion ImpactTransfer & Sustainability

Simplified tasks

EPSS Total design

Organizational Structure

Reengineer jobs

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Complexity of the Work

Type One

Repetitive Projects

Know what complete looks like and how to get there

Type Two

Quasi-experimental Projects

Have well described methods

Type Three

Complex Projects

Know what success looks like, but no universally agreed on way to get there or don’t know how to get there

Type Four

Catastrophic Projects

Not sure what success looks like and don’t know how to get there

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HPT’s evolution over past 50 years

• Moved from training to performance

• Appling more sophisticated measurement practices

• Increasingly use computers to both deliver content and support on-the-job performance

• Increasingly help design work processes to support performance

• Increasingly help design work environments that support the desired change in work behaviors

• Increasingly work with organizations as integrated open systems

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Evolution Milestones: 1940-1950

• Clients saw need to measure learning against criteria instead of norms. – Military and manufacturing required people to do task to

standard– Getting 70%, 80%, 90% did not work; wanted 100%

• This in turn forced trainers to design instruction based on meeting standards and testing both knowledge retention and application

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Evolution Milestones : 1950-1960

• Concept of programmed learning developed

– Tried “teaching machines”

– Chunked learning

– Built in feedback systems

– Moved from instructional objectives to learning objectives to learning outcomes

– Instructional technology was introduced

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Evolution Milestones: 1960-1970

• Trainers started looking at how to support learning back on the job:– Introduced job aids– Started building in performance supports into the job

setting or job itself– Started questioning the role of the supervisor and

importance of reinforcement

• National Society for Programmed Instruction (NSPI) was established

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Evolution Milestones: 1970-1980

• The term “performance” introduced into professional vocabulary

• Trainers were asked to prove training was being applied on the job, – Trainers started looking at the workplace and how it supports the new

behaviors– Recommended performance supports– Recommended reinforcement by the boss– Began to question the importance of job incentives and performance

management systems.

• NSPI became the National Society for Performance and Instruction

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Evolution Milestones: 1980-1990

• Trainers started referring to their work as “Performance Improvement”

• Trainers became more sophisticated in the use of delivery technology:– Video– Computer assisted, computer-based, simulations

• Language of “Human Capital” introduced

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Human Capital

• “…human capital, defined as 'skill, dexterity, and knowledge' of the population, has become the critical input that determines the rate of growth of the economy and the well-being of the population.“

Boyatzis

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Evolution Milestones: 1990-2000

• More complex solutions were developed to support and improve performance– Training combined with performance support– Incentive systems based on job deliverables– Reengineered work processes combined with more sophisticated technology.

• Measurement:– Increasingly expected to measure how well performance improvement

programs (training, job design, alignment of incentives, improved infrastructure, etc.) affected:

• Retention – done through testing• Application – transfer to the job; new behaviors on the job

• NSPI became ISPI – International Society for Performance Improvement

• First Handbook for Performance improvement published

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Evolution Milestones: 2000-today

• HPT increasingly:– Applies more sophisticated measures:

• Time to and cost of proficiency

• Business Impact – contributions to and effect on the organization’s competitiveness

• Societal impact – contributions to and effect on social and environmental issues

– Assesses how jobs are designed and workplace variables affect performance

• Certified Performance Technologist and HPT Standards introduced

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HPT’s Contributions for Tomorrow

• ISPI:

– Building strategic alliances with key industry groups

– Building strategic alliances with international partners

– Developing credentials to recognize organizations, performance improvement programs, and learning solutions

• Members doing more strategic work in key industries (education, healthcare, military, international development)

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Work & Workplace Challenges

• Work being done virtually

• Carried with you

• Organizations using global virtual teams

• A result is managers have an Increasing span of control over virtual/global workers

• Workers have an increasing reliance on sophisticated & integrated information & communications technologies

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Current Workforce Challenges

• Aging workforce – loss of tacit knowledge

• Generational differences in expectations

• Increasing reliance on multi-national workers for math and science skills

• Continual need to re-skill or up-skill

• Increasing need for skills in solving complex problems and innovation

• Increasing need for self-directed learning

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Consequence of these challenges

• New players offering solutions– Architects and interior designers– Information technology vendors– Quality consultants– Training vendors – Financial and business consultants

• All offer partial solutions that do not take into consideration the whole system

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HPT’s Position

• HPT the only discipline that applies a systematic process that examines the whole system -– Marketplace– Workplace– Work– Workers

• While – Staying focused on actual and desired outcomes or results– Being systemic is its approach and solutions – Seeking to add value in the process– Partnering or collaborating with all stakeholders

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Summary

• HPT as a profession will continue to:

– Make smart use of technology

– Develop efficient ways to evaluate its contributions to organizations and society

– Build strategic alliances with clients and stakeholders

– Develop standards to recognize organizations and individuals who exemplify the adoption of HPT

– Become more sophisticated in how to increase its level of influence