#ASTD2012 Social Media Back Channel Chat Tools

EXCITED as the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) International Conference & Exposition kicks off in Denver, Colorado this Sunday, May 6th thru Wednesday, May 9th 2012!

Over the years, it's become an AMAZING networking and educational event where I've had the good fortune to participate in-person, on-site at the Convention Center during the live event - but it's become additional FUN to participate via the social media "back channel chat" tools as well.


All sorts of ways to connect with friends and colleagues - old and new. :-)


The social media back channel is also a GREAT way to learn, discuss & digest if you can't be here.


How?


Check out these FAB tools:


Start with this "How to Learn from a Conference You're Not Attending" primer from David Kelly @LnDDave:


http://www.mindflash.com/blog/2012/05/how-to-learn-from-a-conference-you-arent-attending/

Then check out these cool #ASTD2012 Twitter tools put together by Ben Wilkoff @bhwilkoff:

Visual Representation of Twitter

bit.ly/astd2012visualize

TAGS - Twitter Archive
bit.ly/astd2012archive 

If you're in Denver, let's connect! and if you're not - then meet me in the Twitterverse! 

Find me at: @trishuhl

See you on the flipside!  


~ trish


****
~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
The CPLP Certification Expert
Coach, Facilitator, Author, Speaker, ASTD Chapter Leader, Mentor
trishuhl at owls-ledge dot com
@trishuhl

Last Chance for Achieving CPLP in 2012!

Many people don't know that the test windows and work product submission deadlines for the Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP) credential are only available at certain times of the year - rather than available all of the time.

This means that - although we are still early into the new year - there is only one chance left to become CPLP certified in 2012!

Here are some tips:

• CPLP Knowledge Exam - The CPLP Knowledge Exam is offered four (4) times per year. The test windows are aligned to the U.S. seasons - spring (March/April); summer (May/June); fall (September/October); winter (November/December). The exam is otherwise not available at other times of the year. For example, you cannot take the exam in January, February, or July - and during the months it is available, it's only available during specific dates (e.g. May 19 - June 9).


• CPLP Work Product - The CPLP Work Product is only available for submission twice a year - late February (sometimes very early March) and late August (sometimes very early September). Candidates' deadline for CPLP Work Product submission is based on when they are scheduled to take the CPLP Knowledge Exam.

Here's how it works:

• Spring/Summer -Candidates who take the CPLP Knowledge Exam in March/April or May/June submit CPLP Work Product on or before the August/September deadline.


• Fall/Winter - Candidates who take the CPLP Knowledge Exam in September/October or November/December submit CPLP Work Product on or before the February/March deadline.

Given as such, learning pros interested in CPLP certification for 2012 MUST take - and successfully pass! - the CPLP Knowledge Exam in May or June so they can submit CPLP Work Product by August 24, 2012.

Candidates successful with their August CPLP Work Product submissions will receive their results - and their status as to if they are CPLP certified or not - in October 2012.

After August, the next CPLP Work Product submission deadline is February 2013!

Below is a GANTT chart I created that illustrates milestone dates against a timeline for achieving CPLP certification in 2012. Use the >> at the top right to view full screen by Opening in New Window. Click the Printer icon to print the document.

 

Keep in mind - candidates (on average) spend 10-12 weeks preparing for the CPLP Knowledge Exam. 

So if CPLP is part of your performance goals for 2012, it's time to get started!

You have until April 6, 2012 to register with the ASTD Certification Institute (ASTD CI) as a candidate - to take the CPLP Knowledge Exam during the May/June window.

Not sure if you're ready? 

I have some tools that can help!

Download a copy of my free eBook, "Mastering the CPLP Knowledge Exam" and learn how you can get started on the road to CPLP mastery & professional certification!

To your success!

With gratitude,

~ trish


****
~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
The CPLP Certification Expert
Coach, Facilitator, Author, Speaker, ASTD Chapter Leader, Mentor
trishuhl at owls-ledge dot com
@trishuhl

CPLP Work Product Submission - If You've Got that Quesy Feeling

By now the certification process may have taken a toll on your self-esteem and ability to reason rationally, but relax.

Many of us felt at least somewhat inadequate and questioned our professional skills and acumen during the credentialing process.

Think of it as a rite of passage and know that you're not alone; many a CPLP candidate fingernail is--at this very moment--still being obsessively chewed while the other hand tears out chunks of hair.

Hang in there, hang in there, hang in there!
 

Some counsel for those who have sent their packages off into the stratosphere:

* Breathe deeply. Give it about a week for that sensation of relief (for getting it done and out the door) mixed with that sick-to-your-stomach feeling (just knowing that you forgot something or could have done something better) to subside.

Now go out and celebrate! 

You've worked hard these many months to get to this very point - treat yourself!

***Personally, I'm a fan of good food - with great company - and a pedicure (with a good book).***

Besides, regardless of when you submitted your Work Product, it won't be scored for several weeks. So you may as well breathe and think positive thoughts (that's about all you *can* do, right?).

The rest of life will inevitably invade and you'll soon stop obsessing over your certification results.

When will you receive notification of your results?


Results for this cohort are typically sent in late April.

My guesstimate? I'm guessing notifications will go out via email the week of April 23, 2012.

So, really, relax. Celebrate the moment.

Get ready to move on to the next thing... (recertification credits!)

I look forward to welcoming you to the Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP) community!

Cheers to you and to your success!

With gratitude,

~ trish


****
~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
The CPLP Certification Expert
Coach, Facilitator, Author, Speaker, ASTD Chapter Leader, Mentor
trishuhl at owls-ledge dot com
@trishuhl

The Legacy of 3 Learning Leaders

I strive to be grateful every day, but Monday has become my day of gratitude - the start of my week where I devote myself to activities focused on the people in my life who have given me the gift of their time, attention, and support. 


Today it seems especially fitting - as today marks the start of Employee Learning Week - that I find my attention fixed on three learning leaders who radically changed the learning profession.

It is a privilege and an honour to pay tribute to Deb Colky, Carol Susan DeVaney, and Terrence Wing - three ASTD leaders who leave legacies behind that have, and will continue to, influence the learning profession and learning professionals for years to come.


In each case, we lost each of them much, much too soon - but to leave the similarities only to that one data point would be a disservice to them and their work.

Although they were much different as individuals, they each represented some of the same learning lessons --


Consider the following common tenets to who they were, the work they did to inspire an emerging profession, and the legacies they leave behind:

• Be yourself. Deb, Carol Susan, and Terrence each were beyond comfortable in their own skins - each was very much her/his own person. Self-possessed. Authentic. Real. To talk with any of them was to have an interaction with a genuine, present person.
• Live life with passion. Each was not only passionate about who they were, but also what they did - and they let EVERYONE know it. Their energy was infectious; you could not help but get caught up and inspired to action.
• Just do it. That's also the point - it wasn't enough for each of them to model behavior and take action; they were dedicated to inspiring others to take action as well. They didn't see life as a spectator sport, and they expected those around them to roll up their sleeves and get busy too - no excuses.
• Organizational objectives; business results. ::shaking my head:: These were not "fluffy bunny" training people saddled with outdated views - old mental models - of training's role in organizations. These were learning leaders who knew the true value of learning & performance as a driving force for workforce development, talent management, organizational change, competitive differentiation - learning as a strategic partner contributing directly to the bottom line and organizational outcomes. They understood 21st century learning & performance as transformation, globalization, innovation, and strategic enablement - and they dedicated their careers to advancing the profession forward.
• Contribute. Support others. Deb, Carol Susan, and Terrence dedicated much of their work and their lives to us - the learning community. Experts in their own individual areas, they were generous with sharing their experiences and supporting the development and professional growth of others in the learning field. We were exceedingly fortunate, in the ASTD community, that (amongst other roles and responsibilities), they each volunteered their time and service to serve as ASTD Chapter Leaders.
• Challenge yourself and others - every day. I don't know about anyone else's experience, but I can tell you that I was challenged by each of them --

I am smiling through tears as I say this, because I can hear each one in my head giving me the "What for" about something that I initially showed a bit of resistance to; that I eventually pushed through at their insistence. 

Deb would get on me about my academic work; she also convinced me (on more than one occasion) to remain on the CCASTD Board of Directors. If it wasn't for Deb's intervention years ago, there's a good chance I would have left the ASTD community (that I now can't imagine my life without) and I certainly would not have continued my chapter leadership and my work with CPLP. 

Carol Susan kicked my butt (and necessarily so) throughout the CPLP Pilot; she instilled in me strong leadership skills by administering some tough love when I just wanted to lay around and be a wuss. 

Later, she and I - warrior to warrior - discussed our respective battles with cancer; our frustrations with cancer treatment; our perspectives on life, living, mortality, and dying; and encouraged each other to remain strong, determined, resolute. 

It is important to me that all learning & performance professionals also know how much Deb and Carol Susan contributed during the CPLP Pilot, and afterwards, to shaping and influencing the integrity inherent in the ASTD Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP) credential. 

Both were involved in the creation of the certification, the execution of the Pilot, and its  industry adoption. Deb, for example, was ahead of her time as she was the first - in any academic institution worldwide - to overhaul the graduate program at Roosevelt University to align to the - then new - ASTD Workplace Learning & Performance Competency Model (upon which the CPLP is based).


You will find no greater role models of what it means to be CPLP than Deb and Carol Susan; those who aspire to become CPLP certified should recognize that they truly stand on the shoulders of giants.

Terrence, well, Terrence - quite literally - challenged me from the first moment we met - over a "random" lunch table at the ASTD International Conference & Exposition in Washington D.C. His first words to me (as he noted my conference name tag flair identifying me as a member of the conference planning advisory committee) were (and I quote) - 

"There aren't enough people on Twitter at this conference. We need to do something about that." 

I - immediately and without hesitation - agreed with him. He didn't leave any room for disagreement! 

What's really really flippin' AWESOME is that, well, he - we - did exactly that. Amongst other adventures, we served on the following year's ASTD ICE planning advisory committee together and - in large part, through Terrence's passion and leadership - the Twitter back channel has grown at ASTD events ever since.

Terrence then went on to influence happenings all over the learning technologies spectrum - from ASTD TechKnowledge, to DevLearn, to other industry events involving social media and technology. 

Part of my daily routine became seeking Terrence out in the Twitter ecosystem - to tune in to the next episode of #elearnchat, to ask his advice, or just to exchange friendly hellos.


There is no doubt that Twitter has paled over the past few days in the absence of Terrence's voice.

"To live in the hearts we leave behind is not to die." -Thomas Campbell


So this week, my friends, colleagues, and learning peers - this week in particular as we move ahead with our Employee Learning Week activities - I am eternally grateful for - and want to celebrate - the lives and legacies of Deb, Carol Susan, and Terrence.

To do so, I challenge you - learning professionals worldwide - to create your personal Action Plan by reflecting on:

A year from now, what will be your learning legacy? What will you have done to leave your mark on our emerging profession? What contributions will you make? 


I can think of no greater way to honour Deb, Carol Susan, and Terrence's work and memories than by joining together to continue the work that these learning leaders started with the same spirit, integrity, passion, and iron-will that they imprinted on all of us.

This is your Call to Action. 

Draft your Action Plan. Roll up your sleeves. We have work to do.



With gratitude,


~ trish



****
~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
The CPLP Certification Expert
Coach, Facilitator, Author, Speaker, ASTD Chapter Leader, Mentor
trishuhl at owls-ledge dot com
@trishuhl

>> Learn More About Deb Colky, Carol Susan DeVaney, and Terrence Wing by accessing the links below:

• Dr Deb Colky
• Carol Susan DeVaney
• Terrence Wing 

Terrence Wing's eLearnChat co-conspirator, collaborator, and partner-in-crime - Rick Zanotti - is hosting a memorial eLearnChat for Terrence this Wednesday, December 7th. 

Live broadcast and past episodes can be found at: http://elearnchat.com/

Measurement & Evaluation Extravaganza - Ken Phillips - Developing Valid Level 1 Evaluations

We've all heard of - even - hopefully! tried to apply - Kirkpatrick's Four Levels of Evaluation.

Afterall, the training industry has had the Kirkpatrick Four Levels of Evaulation for fifty (50) years now!

The question is, how many learning & performance professionals know how to do them right?

The research shows - not many. :-/

So I'm launching a Measurement & Evaluation Extravaganza on this blog. It's meant to help all learning & performance professionals to gain mastery over this area, and to assist ASTD Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP) candidates to prep for the CPLP Knowledge Exam.

Let's start with Kirkpatrick's Level 1 Evaluation... When should you use Level 1? What does a valid Level 1 Evaluation look like? When is it inappropriate to use Level 1?

Ken Phillips, Ph.D., CPLP - founder and President of Phillips Associates - is a learning & performance measurement & evaluation expert.

Ken has a knack for helping us regular humans understand when, where & how to measure, evaluate, summarize & report.

Ken has written a series of articles on the subject - I've included regarding Level 1 Evaluations below.

If reading isn't enough - and you want more - you can catch Ken at the upcoming CCASTD Evanston Lunch Bunch on February 15th (what better Valentine?!).

Meeting Ken in Evanston is a great way - given a smaller audience - to get some of his time & attention.

Ken is also one of our facilitators for our online, facilitated CPLP Mastery Knowledge Exam prep course.

Those attending the ASTD International Conference & Exposition (ASTD ICE) here in Chicago, well, you'll have an opportunity to meet Ken too - he's presenting on the subject of measurement & evaluation at the conference.

BTW - if you would like a copy of Ken's article, please contact Ken directly. You'll find Ken's contact information contained within the article below.

Below is Ken's article on Developing Valid Level One Evaluations. Use the >> at the top right to view full screen. Hyperlinks appear hot, but they're not. Use the Text Select tool to copy & paste into the browser.

~ trish

~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
CEO, Owl's Ledge LLC
http://www.cplpcoach.com/
Twitter: @trishuhl | @cplpcoach

10 Steps to Successful Teams Released on Amazon.com!

Yay cake! My first book as a contributing author is now available on Amazon.com!

Here's what publisher ASTD Press has to say:

10 Steps to Successful Teams is designed to be a practical resource for both team leaders and team members. It can be used as a guide for the entire team, whether it is a new team or an existing team trying to work better together. There are tools to help team leaders manage conflict and improve communication. You will find individual team member and leader self-assessments to help focus the team on getting results and identifying areas for improvement. One key feature of the book is a collection of tips for both team members and team leaders which are designed to give advice on what works in team environments and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Here's what author Renie McClay (@reniemcclay) has to say:

Thanks to contributors Trish Uhl, Ken Phillips, Lanie Jordan, Deb Taber, Louann Swedberg, Terrence Donahue, Cary Dudczak, Julie Jacques, Gerald Haman (@SolutionMan), and more!

>>>

I'm proud to report that the book made its first conference debut at the Sales & Marketing Training (SMT): Center for Sales Excellence Conference in Orlando, Florida October 14-16.

Ken Phillips & I took it out for its first author signing at the ASTD Leaders Conference (ALC) in Arlington, Virginia just last week! (BTW - Ken's Team Member Self-Assessment on pg 86 is the real deal!)

For those who attended the ALC Ship to Shore session that Kim Seeger (@SolutionSource) & I facilitated at ALC, we used material from this book for our session on team communication & collaboration.

How cool is that?!

>>>

What's next?

I've got another new book with Renie McClay coming out in February 2010 - right around Valentine's Day! - Fortify Your Sales Force: Leading & Training Exceptional Sales Teams.

::BEAMING WITH PRIDE::

~ Trish Uhl, PMP, CPLP
CEO, Owl's Ledge LLC
http://www.cplpcoach.com/
Twitter: @trishuhl @cplpcoach

Owl's Ledge - building the 21st Century Workforce, one Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP®) candidate at a time.

* Transformation * Globalization * Innovation * Strategic Enablement *