The word “potential” is rarely used to describe the amount of success that implementing new software can have on a business. Many companies assume that they’ll be able to purchase and install new software and that they will immediately have new found success as a result. Unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case. The truth is that the best software in the world is only as good as the people that use it. In turn, the people that use the software are effective in using the software if they are properly trained.It doesn’t matter if your talking about construction software, manufacturing software, accounting software, project management software, inventory control, and so on…there are so many different ways to enter and edit data and transactions in any system.Therefore, it can be argued that the quality and depth of training that your end users receive is more important that the actual software you choose to use. If each user of your software is operating with different ideas of how to input data and what kind of data to input, the functionality of the software will suffer.So how do you make sure that your end users are properly trained?For the most part, there are three main ways that vendors offer training on their products. Of course, training can also consist of a combination of the following three methods, but for the purpose of this article, I will focus only on the following three training methods:1) In-house
2) Off site (at the vendor’s location or an independent location)
3) Internet-basedIn-house training is exactly what it sounds like. Representatives from the software vendor will come to your location and train your users to use the software properly in their “home” environment. This makes sense for several reasons. First, people that learn to use the software in the environment that they will be using it are more likely to become comfortable with the software much faster. Second, people are often more “open” in an environment where they feel comfortable, meaning they’ll be more likely to ask questions, voice concerns, and so on. Third, not having to deal with distractions like travel plans, staying in hotels, etc. allows users to focus completely on the task at hand – learning the new software. Finally, completing the training on-site gives companies the ability to look at old reports, data, etc. as they will be readily available, as will executive management personnel in cases where they need to be consulted on decisions involving software installation, data manipulation, etc.Additionally, a number of decisions must be made during the initial software setup that are much easier to accomplish when training takes place on-site. Things like job-cost or project-cost coding, payroll accounting, and purchase order tracking are good examples. A number of these decisions require specific information, which is, of course, much more readily available at the headquarters of the business that plans to use the software.However, on-site training also has a few key disadvantages. First, since the vendor has to send representatives to the customer’s site, the training is generally done over an intense period of a couple of days. Beyond the travel costs and time associated with this, there is also the issues of losing time for daily tasks that still need to be completed as well as the potential to give employees so much information in such a short period of time that all of the relevant information is not learned.Training at the vendor’s site or a separate location can be successful if it is possible to arrange for all key personnel to be at the training…and possible for the company fund their travel expenses. The main advantage of doing the training at the vendor’s location is that all the vendor’s staff will be available so that if technical questions come up that the “trainer” doesn’t know the answer to, those answers can be found.Additionally, completing training away from home has the advantage of reducing the distractions that arise at the corporate headquarters.Completing Internet-based training programs has the main advantage of flexibility. Training sessions can be scheduled for employees independently of each other, meaning some employees can handle the daily operations of the company while others train. This results in a much smaller loss in productivity during the training process. On-line training also has the advantage of allowing users to progress at their own speed. It eliminates the idea of users failing to learn all the necessary skills as they will be able to progress through the training program at their own pace. Of course, the downside to this advantage is that it could take longer to properly train everyone, which can delay the amount of time before the software is completely implemented and ready to use.In conclusion, the “right” software training for each company will likely be different and will depend on a number of the factors mentioned above. The most important thing is to ensure that training is done and that it is thorough. Training is one area where it is essential to ensure that all necessary resources are dedicated.

What are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime? So asked my 9 year old grandson.

As I thought of the question the local Green Grocer came to mind. Because that is what the greatest change in shopping in my lifetime is.

That was the first place to start with the question of what are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime.

Our local green grocer was the most important change in shopping in my lifetime. Beside him was our butcher, a hairdresser and a chemist.

Looking back, we were well catered for as we had quite a few in our suburb. And yes, the greatest changes in shopping in my lifetime were with the small family owned businesses.

Entertainment While Shopping Has Changed
Buying butter was an entertainment in itself.
My sister and I often had to go to a favourite family grocer close by. We were always polite as we asked for a pound or two of butter and other small items.

Out came a big block of wet butter wrapped in grease-proof paper. Brought from the back of the shop, placed on a huge counter top and included two grooved pates.

That was a big change in our shopping in my lifetime… you don’t come across butter bashing nowadays.

Our old friendly Mr. Mahon with the moustache, would cut a square of butter. Lift it to another piece of greaseproof paper with his pates. On it went to the weighing scales, a bit sliced off or added here and there.

Our old grocer would then bash it with gusto, turning it over and over. Upside down and sideways it went, so that it had grooves from the pates, splashes going everywhere, including our faces.

My sister and I thought this was great fun and it always cracked us up. We loved it, as we loved Mahon’s, on the corner, our very favourite grocery shop.

Grocery Shopping
Further afield, we often had to go to another of my mother’s favourite, not so local, green grocer’s. Mr. McKessie, ( spelt phonetically) would take our list, gather the groceries and put them all in a big cardboard box.

And because we were good customers he always delivered them to our house free of charge. But he wasn’t nearly as much fun as old Mr. Mahon. Even so, he was a nice man.

All Things Fresh
So there were very many common services such as home deliveries like:

• Farm eggs

• Fresh vegetables

• Cow’s milk

• Freshly baked bread

• Coal for our open fires

Delivery Services
A man used to come to our house a couple of times a week with farm fresh eggs.

Another used to come every day with fresh vegetables, although my father loved growing his own.

Our milk, topped with beautiful cream, was delivered to our doorstep every single morning.

Unbelievably, come think of it now, our bread came to us in a huge van driven by our “bread-man” named Jerry who became a family friend.

My parents always invited Jerry and his wife to their parties, and there were many during the summer months. Kids and adults all thoroughly enjoyed these times. Alcohol was never included, my parents were teetotallers. Lemonade was a treat, with home made sandwiches and cakes.

The coal-man was another who delivered bags of coal for our open fires. I can still see his sooty face under his tweed cap but I can’t remember his name. We knew them all by name but most of them escape me now.

Mr. Higgins, a service man from the Hoover Company always came to our house to replace our old vacuum cleaner with an updated model.

Our insurance company even sent a man to collect the weekly premium.

People then only paid for their shopping with cash. This in itself has been a huge change in shopping in my lifetime.

In some department stores there was a system whereby the money from the cash registers was transported in a small cylinder on a moving wire track to the central office.

Some Of The Bigger Changes
Some of the bigger changes in shopping were the opening of supermarkets.

• Supermarkets replaced many individual smaller grocery shops. Cash and bank cheques have given way to credit and key cards.

• Internet shopping… the latest trend, but in many minds, doing more harm, to book shops.

• Not many written shopping lists, because mobile phones have taken over.

On a more optimistic note, I hear that book shops are popular again after a decline.

Personal Service Has Most Definitely Changed
So, no one really has to leave home, to purchase almost anything, technology makes it so easy to do online.
And we have a much bigger range of products now, to choose from, and credit cards have given us the greatest ease of payment.

We have longer shopping hours, and weekend shopping. But we have lost the personal service that we oldies had taken for granted and also appreciated.

Because of their frenetic lifestyles, I have heard people say they find shopping very stressful, that is grocery shopping. I’m sure it is when you have to dash home and cook dinner after a days work. I often think there has to be a better, less stressful way.

My mother had the best of both worlds, in the services she had at her disposal. With a full time job looking after 9 people, 7 children plus her and my dad, she was very lucky. Lucky too that she did not have 2 jobs.