My company (shared service center)is rolling out a new online self service benefit enrollment tool. Instead of giving the local Benefits staff members benefit elections, employees can go online from work or home and enroll themselves. My company supports 20 locations throughout the country. All 20 will use this tool.My recommendation for the training is to provide the following:
- One page job aid on enrolling (procedural)
- A short video clip demonstrating the system
- Train the trainer to local benefits staff members so that they can support the employees at their locations.

Some people at my company are skeptical with my approach and feel that we should offer training. This new system will impact 6500 people all at the same time. What are your thoughts? I would say that this tool has a low complexity level, used infrequently (maybe once a year or once every few years) and is not job related.

I would appreciate feedback! Thanks!

Theirs is a typical knee-jerk reaction -- "new system, insert 'training'"

Yours seems a reasonable, realistic, and oft-used and successful approach to addressing the learning need of this change. The other stuff they're concerned about (that causes the knee-jerk reaction) needs to be addressed through a lot of communication...what basically amounts to marketing. "Look at this wonderful, new, convenient tool you'll get to use to have control over all your benefits..." (etc.)

Basically - this is a change issue, not a "oh my god, they'll have no clue how to do this" issue, and therefore it's not a training issue at all. Provide support, certainly, but I am with you. This does not require "training".

When someone insists that training is a solution, always ask for the analysis they used to reach that conclusion. (there are ways to ask for this without being as abrasive as the way it reads in that sentence)

Our benefits department went to an online enrollment process last year for the first time.

All they provided was a job aid that the vendor gave them-- and we (training) were not involved at all.

No one had a problem enrolling in their benefits, it was an easy, intuitive system. I think that people overcomplicate things unecessarily. Training was not needed for people to click buttons and hit "submit".