[pic] Microsoft® Office White Paper for Windows® 95 Learning Microsoft Office for Windows 95 [pic] A MASIE Center Whitepaper Elliott Masie and Pearl Louie Executive Summary This paper summarizes the Microsoft Office for Windows 95 Learning Analysis conducted by The MASIE Center. The purpose of the Learning Analysis is to address the following migration issues: • Review the Microsoft Office for Windows 95's User Interface from a learner’s perspective. • Estimate learning efforts required for both new and migrating users of Microsoft Office for Windows 95. • Analyze learning and training tools incorporated in Microsoft Office for Windows 95. • Identify successful learning strategies for organizational adoption of Microsoft Office for Windows 95. This MASIE Center's Learning Analysis is based on an expert review of the product and interviews with over 40 training professionals who have participated in the Office for Windows 95 Beta program. Overview Microsoft Office for Windows 95 is a "next-generation" business productivity application that has been developed with the learner in mind. Product improvements designed to make the products easier to use and learn are clearly evident throughout the product. The current Microsoft Office user has an easy migration path to Microsoft Office for Windows 95. Even new users of these integrated desktop applications will be able to quickly improve their productivity with a minimal level of learning and training investment. Specifically: • The integrated user interface of Office 95 will allow users to transfer existing application knowledge and utilize product knowledge to learn new applications. The MASIE Center estimates: • Current Office 4.3 users will require approximately 2 hours of self- discovery to learn the new features of Office 95. • Competitive application users will require about 6 hours of self- discovery or hands on training to learn Office 95. • The new on-line help model, with its natural language processing will allow users to solve their own problems in their own words. • A series of interface and navigational enhancements like screen tips and right mouse clicks will help Office users discover and use more of the features of Office 95. • Organizations that use Office 95 applications to build custom solutions will reduce training requirements needed to implement those business solutions. Office 95 from the learner’s perspective Migration to Microsoft Office for Windows 95 will not require a mandatory trip to the classroom and most users will be able to make the switch with a minimal briefing and "at your desk" self-discovery learning. The tightly integrated user interface of Office for Windows 95 allows users to transfer their existing knowledge of previous versions of MS Office applications. This will also allow users to leverage product knowledge of one application throughout the entire suite. The MASIE Center's analysis of this user interface revealed: The interface consistencies between Windows 95 and Office for Windows 95 (i.e. tabbed dialogs, screen tips, right mouse clicks, shortcuts) will reinforce learning of both the operating system and applications in the new environment. Users that have already become familiar with Windows 95 will be fully comfortable with the format and structure of the Office 95 user interface. New users of Windows 95, will be able to learn the operating system interface more quickly using Microsoft Office for Windows 95 as a familiarization environment. In general, current Office 4.x users will be able to quickly self-learn the core features and functionality of these applications within Microsoft Office for Windows 95. For example, a user of Microsoft Word 6.0 or Microsoft PowerPoint 4.0 will be able to immediately produce and edit documents using the new Windows 95 versions. They will be able to learn the new features and functionality of these applications without an extended trip to a classroom or a loss in daily productivity. The MASIE Center believes the training time for a new user to learn the initial application within the suite will be the same, the incremental training time for additional applications within the suite will be less. In other words, as a user learns Word through attendance at a class or technology delivered instruction, or even self-discovery, their personal learning curve shortens for each additional application within Microsoft Office for Windows 95. For example, the tools and navigational strategies they learned in Word allow them to master Excel or PowerPoint in a rapid and less costly fashion. For the first time, the focus of instructor led training can now begin to shift from "Press This Key and Then Press Enter" instructions, to presenting strategies for accomplishing specific work tasks, using multiple tools within the suite. An instructor can redesign training offerings for Microsoft Office for Windows 95 with new titles like: Preparing Executive Presentations, which will teach workers to use Office 95 as a specific productivity tool for their work environment. In addition, training departments will be able to customize offerings to more closely match the business needs and processes of specific departments. Users of Microsoft Office for Windows 95 will be able to discover and use the functionality of the product through a series of product enhancements including: • Screen Tips - on screen prompts and information displays that describe the functionality of toolbar buttons and icons. • Tip Wizards - tips that give users suggestions on how to use their software to complete their work. • Answer Wizard - a natural language on-line help feature that allows users to ask for help in their own words. Users can now learn the products as they need to use them. • Task Wizards - Office 95 features new Wizards that walk users through the steps needed to accomplish complex tasks. MASIE Center research indicates that the ability to perform a new task with a shorter "cycle time" to productivity increases the likelihood that the feature will be used. In other words, a person that needs to learn how to schedule a meeting using Schedule+ may avoid even trying, if they believe it will take time to learn it. However, if they can immediately begin, using real data and accomplish the task, it dramatically improves the likelihood of use. Office 95 migration learning efforts The MASIE Center's Learning Analysis provides a broad estimate of the training efforts required to bring users to a base level of competency for Microsoft Office for Windows 95. In addition to the Office 95 training, users will need between 1-3 hours of classroom and self-discovery training to become comfortable with Windows 95. These estimates will vary based on the specific backgrounds experience level, and preferences of the learners as well as the organizations targeted outcome competencies. |Type of User |Type of training|Total Hours| | | |Office 4.3 user |Initial |3 | | |briefing/demo | | | |(1hr) | | | |Self-discovery | | | |(2hr) | | |Competitive |Initial |6 | |suite user |briefing/demo | | | |(1hr) | | | |Classroom/struct| | | |ured (5hr) | | |New application |Initial |21 | |user |briefing/demo | | | |(1hr) | | | |Classroom/struct| | | |ured (12 hr) | | | |Self-discovery | | | |(8 hr) | | Let's put these estimates into perspective using a series of case studies of typical users: Current User Brian is a current Microsoft Office 4.x user who primarily uses Word and Excel. When his organization migrates to Microsoft Office for Windows 95, Brian’s probable learning plan could be: • Attend a Windows 95 Briefing (1 hour meeting) to see a demonstration and learn the corporate strategy for using this new operating system. • Complete a 1-2 hours of self-discovery using Windows 95. • Complete 2 hours of self-discovery with Word and Excel in Office 95 and take a self-guided tour of the new features within the suite. • Several weeks later, when his workgroup begins using Schedule+, Brian will attend a short briefing and then explore the product at his desk. • When he needs to start using PowerPoint or Access, he may attend a 1/2 day training session or teach it to himself, working with the supplied templates and wizards. Competitive Suite User Carol has considerable experience on a competitive desktop application suite. Carol wants to jump into the application and start building complex marketing analysis tools. • Carol will spend several hours touring Microsoft Office for Windows 95, exploring the various nooks and crannies, and importing her old data into the new suite. • Carol will attend a 2 hour session called Migrating to Microsoft Office for Windows 95 for Power Users. This interactive session will give her the tips and tricks that she wants to quickly master this application. • As an alternative, the meeting notes and/or a conversation with a Microsoft Office for Windows 95 expert in the MIS area will be a viable alternative. New Hire Lisa is a new hire and will be using her first set of desktop applications. Lisa will attend a one day class entitled Working Electronically at Acme Products. The class will explain how to use her PC, introduce her to Windows 95 and provide her a Quick Start Overview on Microsoft Office for Windows 95. The focus of the overview would be on creating several basic documents and communicating with co-workers throughout the organization. Lisa's manager may choose to send her to advanced classes in specific products or she may be provided with custom solutions that allow her to file expense reports, schedule meetings and create purchase orders, without launching specific applications. In each of these scenarios, the user was able to get up and running quickly without an extended visit to a training classroom. The MASIE Center Learning Analysis of Microsoft Office for Windows 95 indicates it is a "learning-friendly" product, that will allow users to quick become productive. We do believe that advanced users, developing complex applications and integrating third party products into Microsoft Office for Windows 95 will require additional learning and/or training. However, this product has broken the tradition that a software revision requires a mandatory expenditure on classroom learning. Successful learning strategies Our estimates of probable learning times and events for Microsoft Office for Windows 95 reveal The MASIE Center's perspective on the high impact training has on organizational migrations. The current rate of technology change requires a dramatic shift in how organizations develop technical competence in the workforce. The unit of focus for the user is now the document that they want to create, edit, mail, send or fax. By focusing on the document, and allowing the program to supply the appropriate tools, the user has less distraction to their work process. Microsoft Office for Windows 95 is an ideal product to lead that shift. Our research indicates that workers want to learn in a very personal fashion. They want: • Just In Time Learning: "I want to learn how to create a PowerPoint presentation the day that I actually need one." • Just Enough Learning: "Don't load me up with all this information. Just give me enough to get started." • Reasons for Learning: "Tell me why you are changing my word processor. The old one was great, why do we need a new one?" • Resources for Continuous Learning: "I'd like to be able to learn a few things every week." There is widespread reluctance for current computer users to make frequent trips to the corporate training room, and that reluctance is echoed in the hearts of their managers and in the size of the training budgets. Microsoft Office for Windows 95 provides organizations an opportunity to meet users’ learning preferences with a lower-cost and quicker alternatives. Briefings Assemble groups of employees, from a small team during a weekly staff meeting to hundreds in the corporate auditorium. In 30 to 60 minutes, provide them with: • A quick demonstration of Windows 95 and Office 95, focusing on new features, familiarity of the user interface and key productivity tools. • Corporate rationale for choosing Microsoft Office for Windows 95 and highlight enterprise wide benefits. • Lists of learning options, ranging from self-discovery to classes, in order to launch learners down the path to product competency. • Detail corporate support strategy. • Build workforce excitement and motivation for migrating to Microsoft Office for Windows 95. Self-Study Learners will be choosing self-study in large numbers as they migrate to Microsoft Office for Windows 95. There will be several types of self- study: • Self-Discovery: Confident learners will explore the product, take the embedded tutorials and use other books and resources to teach the product to themselves. • Technology Delivered Learning: There will be a wide range of technology products to deliver multi-media learning right to the desktop for Microsoft Office for Windows 95. These will include structured tutorials to media clips from experts explaining aspects of the product. • Brown Bag Clinics: Learners love to gather with other learners to share tips and tricks. Several weeks after organizations launch Microsoft Office for Windows 95 there will be an opportunity to sponsor 1 hour sessions in the workplace with a power user or Help Desk staff to facilitate knowledge sharing and answer specific questions. This is a great way to off-load support burden from the help desk during the migration period. • Seminars and Classes: Organizations can present, or contract with third party training centers to conduct four basic types of learning events: • Introduction to Microsoft Office for Windows 95 • Migrating to Microsoft Office for Windows 95 from a Competitive Suite • Application Specific Classes (e.g. Word, Excel, PowerPoint) • Productivity Classes: (e.g. Creating Effective Marketing Plans) Conclusion: The MASIE Center's Learning Analysis of Microsoft Office for Windows 95 reveals a product that is "learning-enabled". We believe that Microsoft Office for Windows 95 is part of a new generation of products that will enable workers to focus on work and not be overwhelmed or distracted by the need for long-duration learning events. Organizations migrating to Microsoft Office for Windows 95 should develop comprehensive learning strategies to direct the workforce to the appropriate methods of mastering these new products. Learning should be strategic! Microsoft Office for Windows 95 is an ideal opportunity to create a new model for delivering new technology and skills to the workforce in a cost-effective and work-focused method. Organizations will need to also focus their learning on making their workforce more network oriented. The networking and collaborative tools embedded in Microsoft Office for Windows 95 can be harnessed to teach workers and business units new methods of sharing information and utilizing technology for effective collaboration. One final thought. Learning is personal! People have strong feelings about how they want to learn and what they think they need to have in order to learn. Training managers and information professionals should carefully listen to the preferences of their workforce and leverage the power of Microsoft Office for Windows 95 to provide the type of learning that will work! The MASIE Center is a technology think tank located in Cambridge, MA. The Center explores the relationship between new technology and learning methods. Briefingware, Learning Analysis and Continuous Learning are trademarks of The MASIE Center. The Center conducts research and provides services to technology providers and corporate training departments throughout the world. The MASIE Center, in conjunction with Cue Education & Training, has created BriefingWare Kits. These are complete meetings-in-a-box, which contain videos, PowerPoint Demos and Getting Started Brochures in electronic format to present a Microsoft Office for Windows 95 Briefing. Contact: The MASIE Center, Inc. 75 Cambridge Parkway, Suite PH3 Cambridge, MA 02142 Phone: 800-98-MASIE or 617-252-0845 Fax: 617-2520751 Email: info@MASIE.com ######### ( 1995 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. The information contained in this document represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation on the issues discussed as of the date of publication. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information presented after the date of publication. This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. Microsoft, Windows, IntelliSense, TipWizard, PivotTable, PowerPoint, Visual Basic, and the Office Compatible logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft in the United States and/or other countries.