Client handling

E.learning Age, Jul/Aug 2006 by Harris, Derek

Abacus Group has found productivity improvements worth £400,000 a year.

Reducing its reliance on costly classroom training through implementing computer delivered simulation courseware from SkillWise, the Abacus Financial Services Group claims that it is winning significant financial benefit. It has also reduced its reliance upon expert users for training. Mimicking a core client management application and offering guidance-assisted learning scenarios, the software is popular with users. Eighteen months after implementation, it was accessed 81 times in one month by staff seeking a refresher before working live on the main application...

The Abacus Financial Services Group is owned by the Royal Bank of Canada. Specialising in global wealth management, some 330 employees and 35 directors manage around £23 billion in assets for both corporate and private clients. Abacus has expanded from a head office in Jersey and now has satellite offices in Guernsey, London, Cheltenham and Edinburgh.

Good client management

"To help us manage the affairs of our clients, we run a sophisticated software application," said Mervyn Le Masurier, Group Training Manager at Abacus. "Known internally as the Client Handling System, or 'CHS', it is a key system which records client communication, holds client information and encapsulates the core processes of our business."

There are some 300 users of CHS, many billing their time by the hour. It is essential that staff are competent users; for their own efficiency, for the benefit of clients and to ensure they follow internal and state imposed financial services procedures.

Ensuring staff are well trained on CHS is an important responsibility for Le Masurier. Mistakes in the administration of clients' financial affairs within CHS could feasibly cost Abacus tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of pounds to correct.

Training challenge

Until early 2004, training and support on CHS was mostly provided by a small set of expert users. Classroom training in the Jersey head office was the normal forum. There were, however, disadvantages to this arrangement:

Risk: Reliance upon a small number of expert users would cause problems if they became unavailable.

Business disruption: Drawing expert users away from revenue-generating roles to prepare and deliver training was costing billable time. These staff also lost time giving help advice during the working day. Learners too were losing billable time to training.

Delay: New staff had sometimes to wait longer for induction training than was ideal, delaying their full entry into the workplace.

Costs: The expansion of the UK office network was leading to increasing travel and subsistence claims from trainers and learners.

Aware of th need to ensure training effectiveness, Le Masurier began to consider alternative training strategies. Extra pressure to find a solution came when several expert users sought sabbaticals. Le Masurier knew he needed to capture guidance from expert users and make it easily accessible to all staff cost-effectively. He chose to evaluate computer-delivered solutions. At the same time, however, he wasn't looking for a standard Computer-Based Training (CBT) solution. "CBT has a reputation for offering static instruction-style teaching. Seeking high skill transferability into the workplace, I wasn't interested in a typical CBT solution."

Le Masurier had heard of e-learning simulations and knew that this form of computer-delivered training allows users to perform in realistic scenarios. He contacted SkillWise. "SkillWise really understood our requirement to deliver a return on investment," explained Le Masurier. Following an extensive cost-benefit analysis, Abacus selected SkillWise to develop an e-learning simulation.

SkillWise in action

The bespoke solution Understanding CHS took around six months to develop and deliver, governed by the availability of expert users to meet with SkillWise. Priority modules were developed and delivered first, so that Abacus could win value quickly.

"SkillWise understood the limitations on our time and were thorough in development meetings, making best use of our time. Their people have excellent communication and project management skills," said Le Masurier.

Now live, the courseware mimics CHS, by replicating its functionality, screens and graphical details. Significantly the training system is self contained and is not connected to either client databases or the outside world, so the Abacus business and client affairs are not affected by training exercises.

The simulation follows the SkillWise learning methodology offering the user the chance to watch, then try and then be tested on the simulation. A learner can watch a full module demonstration, or just a feature, such as adding a new client. They can then try the processes for themselves, guided by onscreen advice. An infobox provides a captured commentary from an expert user. Users can then be tested on their own competency to perform key tasks in the simulation.

"Because the SkillWise simulation mimics our real environment, staff trust it and use it," said Le Masurier.