In The Know with Axonify

Bring your skills strategy to life!
The skills conversation is everywhere. Everyone appears to want skills - people's proven ability to do the work - to be the foundation of their workforce strategies. It makes sense - on paper. But there are still plenty of questions left to be answered, including:

• What is a skill?
• How do you measure skills?
• How do you operationalize skill data to improve the employee experience and add value to the business?

Dani Johnson, Co-Founder and Principal at RedThread Research, stops by to set the record straight on skills. Dani and JD Dillon explore the potential for skill-based approaches to transform talent development.
JD also breaks down his biggest issue with the ongoing remote work debate.
Watch the full video of this episode on the Axonify YouTube Channel.
Read the RedThread article that inspired this conversation.
JD's new book - The Modern Learning Ecosystem - is available for pre-order via Amazon and ATD. Learn more at jdwroteabook.com.
In The Know is brought to you by Axonify, the mobile-first training and communication solution that helps make sure your frontline workforce is ready for anything. To learn more about Axonify’s digital learning experience and check out success stories from companies like O’Reilly Auto Parts, Longo’s, Briscoe Group, Citizen’s Bank, MOL Group and Etihad Airways, visit axonify.com.

What if you could take any random person off the street, plug them into your contact center operation and have them fielding customer calls right away?
It may sound too good to be true. After all, contact center agents have to solve complex customer problems while keeping up with new products and process changes. They typically spend weeks in a classroom before they’re allowed to speak with customers. Managers need them on the phone NOW to deal with spikes in call volume, but they also want agents fully knowledgeable about the company’s offerings. How can contact centers accelerate agent training while making sure they provide great customer service?

JD chats with Sebastian Tindall, Head of Learning and Development Operations at Vitality, who shares his approach to developing highly-capable contact center agents within a fast-paced insurance and wellness operation. They explore resource-based learning, which focuses on providing information and tools agents can access in the workflow to solve problems and build their knowledge.

Check out these recommended resources and professionals to learn more about applying a resource-based approach to learning.

• Bob Mosher - Chief Learning Evangelist, 5 Moments of Need
• David James - Chief Learning Officer, Looop
• Josh Bersin - Global Industry Analyst
• Modern Learning Ecosystem Framework (LearnGeek)

Listen to Sebastian’s appearance on the Learning Uncut podcast with Michelle Ockers.

The 80 Percent is brought to you by Axonify. To learn how you can provide communication and training to your frontline workforce that actually works, visit axonify.com. If you have a frontline story you’d like us to explore on a future episode, let us know at [email protected]

Join the #FrontlineForward effort by visiting axonify.com/frontlineforward to access free training content, download the 2020 State of Frontline Employee Training Report and subscribe for the updates.

How many times have you watched viral videos of Southwest Airlines flight attendants? They sing songs. They crack jokes. They make the safety spiel worth listening to. Southwest team members always seem ready and able to create exceptional guest experiences. However, they work in an industry that’s often known for the exact opposite. So how does Southwest do it?

JD sits down with Ginger Hardage, former SVP of Culture and Communications at Southwest Airlines, to find out how they built an exceptional workplace culture through frontline empowerment. Ginger spent 25 years leading a team of 150 people responsible for building and sustaining Southwest’s legendary culture and communications enterprise. She has received numerous honors throughout her career, including being inducted into the Public Relations Hall of Fame and being named one of Texas’ Most Powerful and Influential Women. In 2017, Ginger launched Unstoppable Cultures, a brand designed to help organizations create and sustain cultures of enduring greatness.

Check out the Unstoppable Cultures Fellowship, a 4-day, interactive Masterclass Experience that teaches proven, effective culture strategies and guides participants in creating their own Culture Roadmap, leading to increased retention, happier employees, and higher-performing organizations.

The 80 Percent is brought to you by Axonify. To learn how you can provide communication and training to your frontline workforce that actually works, visit axonify.com. If you have a frontline story you’d like us to explore on a future episode, let us know at [email protected]

Join the #FrontlineForward effort by visiting axonify.com/frontlineforward to access free training content, download the 2020 State of Frontline Employee Training Report and subscribe for the updates.

For over 60 years, Disney has set the standard for workplace safety, customer service and operational efficiency in hospitality and entertainment. But how does a dynamic company with hundreds of thousands of frontline employees manage to execute so consistently for so long? Is it magic? Or is it something much more practical that you can apply within your business?

JD explores the connection between leadership and frontline performance with Dan Cockerell. Dan is a 26-year veteran of the Walt Disney Company. During his storied career, Dan worked in a variety of roles, from opening the parking lot for Disneyland Paris to overseeing operations at the busiest theme park in the world, The Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Today, Dan provides customized, authentic presentations and insightful workshops focusing on leadership and management practices, drawing upon his extensive Disney career with relevant examples and inspiring storytelling.

Check out Dan’s new book How’s the Culture in Your Kingdom? Lessons from a Disney Leadership Journey. You can also watch his featured session from AxoniCom LIVE on-demand.

The 80 Percent is brought to you by Axonify. To learn how you can provide communication and training to your frontline workforce that actually works, visit axonify.com. If you have a frontline story you’d like us to explore on a future episode, let us know at [email protected]

Join the #FrontlineForward effort by visiting axonify.com/frontlineforward to access free training content, download the new 2020 State of Frontline Employee Training Report and subscribe for the updates.

Great customer service in healthcare is essential but includes added expectation thanks in part to the sensitivities and vulnerabilities associated with the industry. People want to be treated with respect and empathy and have easy access to reliable, accurate information. But providing this type of experience can be a challenge when you have thousands of employees across multiple business units. How do you make sure each customer gets the same top-notch experience during every interaction?
Sam Anderson, Director of Customer Experience Learning and Development at Cardinal Health, joins JD Dillon to share his team’s award-winning approach to customer service training. Sam explains why it’s important to start with the end in mind by identifying critical business metrics to measure the impact of your learning strategy. He breaks down the key components of the company's EASEE program and explains how they applied microlearning and coaching to reinforce key customer service skills.

• Read the Cardinal Health EASEE case study in Training Magazine.
• Download the Grocery Enablement Toolkit at http://axonify.com/toolkit
• Watch the full video of this episode on the Axonify YouTube Channel.
• Subscribe for ITK updates and show announcements at axonify.com/itk.
• Grab a copy of JD’s book - The Modern Learning Ecosystem - at jdwroteabook.com.

In The Know is brought to you by Axonify, the proven frontline enablement solution that gives employees everything they need to learn, connect and get things done. With an industry-leading 83% engagement rate, Axonify is used by companies to deliver next-level CX, higher sales, improved workplace safety and lower turnover. To learn more about how Axonify enables over 3.5 million frontline workers in 160-plus countries, in over 250 companies including Lowe’s, Kroger, Walmart and Citizens Bank, visit axonify.com.