Peter Pipe

Robert F. Mager, an authority in the fields of training and human performance improvement, passed away May 11 at the age of 96. When news came in of his death, one month before his 97th birthday, tributes poured in from talent development professionals who read one of his many books, attended his workshops, or knew him personally.“Bob was a giant even among the giants in the learning and development field. His writing and ideas were clear, crisp, and personal, making them important, powerful, and enduring,” said Will Thalheimer, a learning expert, researcher, instructional designer, business strategist, speaker, and writer. “We, as learning professionals, owe a debt to Bob for providing a clear set of principles and practices. For those of us who look to communicate as thought leaders within the learning field, Bob Mager should be always our guiding light.”He is best known for his Criterion Referenced Instruction (CRI) framework, which is a comprehensive set of methods for the design and delivery of training programs. Some of the critical aspects include:goal or task analysisperformance objectivescriterion referenced testingdevelopment of learning modules tied to specific objectives.Many in the human resources and training fields considered him the father of objective-based instruction. His 1962 book, Preparing Instructional Objectives sold more than 1 million copies and was translated into more than 12 languages. In the preface of the book, he writes, “Before you prepare instruction, before you choose material, machine, or method, it is important to be able to state clearly what your goals are.”Mager received the Distinguished Contribution to Human Resource Development Award in 1991 from the American Society for Training and Development (now the Association for Talent Development). The awards booklet highlighted his value to the profession, pointing to a 1984 survey of human resource professionals that selected him as the most respected leader in the training and development field. It also noted that in a 1988 poll of his peers, Mager was selected as the most influential individual in the field of instructional technology.“Bob was a professional giant, renaissance man, and gentleman. His first and second editions of Preparing Instructional Objectives set the standard for formulating and delivering effective training competencies that were purpose-driven and evaluatable,” explained Roger Kaufman, professor emeritus, Florida State University. “With Peter Pipe, his criterion referenced instruction—the Mager Workshops—have become the gold standard for delivering skilled training and development professionals. Bob leaves a huge, indelible footprint on our profession and on all those he directly and indirectly influenced.”He was one of the founders of the National Society for Performance Improvement (NSPI, now ISPI), and through his training, he touched the lives of millions of people, including Elaine Biech, author, consultant, trainer, and president of ebb associates.“Robert Mager was one of those rare souls who was both brilliant and charismatic, wise, and witty,” she said. “I am a self-taught trainer/facilitator, and Robert was one of the first gurus that I studied to better understand the profession. We connected over a love for the profession, a passion for writing, and a shared sense of humor.“After reading all the books and articles he had written, I wrote to him and he responded with an invitation to meet him for lunch at an ASTD Conference,” Biech added. “Another time we chatted about his How to Write a Book book, and he encouraged me to write practical content for readers. Bob confirmed his wit and wisdom at each of these encounters.“I learned something new each time we met,” Biech explained. “We all know Bob for his standards for writing objectives and criterion-referenced instruction; but did you also know that he was a ventriloquist, played the banjo, rode a unicycle, and was a certified locksmith? He also wrote more than a dozen nonfiction books, and most recently, close to a dozen fiction books. Bob was one of the respected gurus who helped me make sense of a profession that I didn’t know existed until I was already waist deep in it.”Mager’s legacy will continue, and the respect for him and his work was evident through the comments that flooded tributes on LinkedIn, with many calling him a legend, true pioneer, and an inspiration. And others felt a strong will to “carry on his work.”

TD Professionals Mourn the Passing of Training and HPI Trailblazer

For many, Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) is designed to address the specific concerns, inequities, and bias experienced by underrepresented groups (such as women, people of color, LGBT, people with disabilities and others) who have not had equal access to opportunity and face unique barriers, compared with the “pale and male.”  With the U.S. population rapidly becoming majority non-white, shifts in attitudes, buying power, are relationships are inevitable; successful organizations will harness these changes to grow and innovate, as well as attract, retain, and develop talent and mirror the communities in which they operate. Advances in D&I have been painfully slow; some research suggests that there has actually been a deceleration in progress. White men are 68 percent more likely to hold leadership roles in the private sector, which is most  prevalent at the executive ranks. According to The Study on White Men Leading Through Diversity & Inclusion  white men are less engaged with D&I than diverse colleagues. As a major employee group that still largely retains the levers of power, not including white men means that any D&I initiative will achieve less than what is possible. The Polarities of D&I Any change involving deeply held beliefs and practices is challenging to implement. This is particularly true when we are addressing historical privileges and power. Too often, D&I initiatives are presented as an “either/or” issue, such as minority vs. majority needs. In fact, progress will be achieved by framing “both/and” polarities to be managed—a concept described by Barry Johnson.Failure to acknowledge and address the inherent complexities and manage the polarities of D&I does not produce desired results. Here are examples, in addition to the focus on diverse populations vs. white male inclusion, that illustrate inherent D&I polarities: Understanding differences vs. Emphasizing commonalitiesAddressing inequities vs. Avoiding stereotypingPromoting diversity through policies vs. Encouraging authenticityMeasuring and tracking progress vs. Focus on numbers Some obstacles to engaging with white men in D&I initiatives include:concern about investing limited resources in this group, assumed to be already enjoying great privilegesavoiding discussions about  relationship and power issueslack of white men’s comfort level interacting with others who are differentlack of awareness that d&i includes white men. If the focus of D&I is exclusively on underrepresented groups, this may have the unintended consequence of fostering more exclusion, not less. Impact of ExclusionRecent research has revealed that the feeling of being excluded produces a perception of physical pain, with  increased activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate and anterior insula regions in the brain that are activated by bodily pain. As far as your brain is concerned, a broken heart is not dissimilar from a broken arm. If D&I initiatives are unintentionally promoting such reactions from white men, the likely result will be rejection, anger, or defensiveness and further retreat within their own cohort—none of which will promote needed progress in creating more inclusive environments. Why White Men Are Needed White men are a critical part of every organization’s D&I journey. Exclusionary practices tend to promote an insiders” and “outsiders” mentality. Typically, members of the dominant group are viewed as distinct individuals, while outsiders are stereotyped and viewed as homogeneous.   A big driver for social progress is proximity, shared goals, and organizational norms. When people interact with others who are different, have a need to work together; and see that the organization requires working well across various elements of diversity, comfort and trust are built over time—creating a virtuous cycle of integration and acceptance. In The Study on White Men Leading Through Diversity & Inclusion, nearly 80 percent of respondents report that white male leaders are able to show respect for diverse co-workers. But the same study also showed that only 36 percent of white male respondents are “quite” or “extremely” effective in demonstrating candor with diverse co-workers, suggesting that there are multiple factors at hand that limit their full participation in D&I progress. Understanding Root Causes: Will And SkillIt’s important to assess the multiple factors holding white men back from embracing D&I in your organization. I suggest revisiting the work of Robert Mager and Peter Pipe, classic thinkers in the field of training and development who developed a methodology for assessing reasons for “non-performance” that applies.   Let’s start by taking a look at the issue of white male skill in D&I:Is it primarily a lack of awareness?Is it a lack of skills to be able to conduct candid conversations and promote greater understanding? ?Is it a lack of knowledge about what to do? Another key issue is will:Do white men want to change?Is it a lack of desire to make meaningful change happen?Is there a feeling that this is a zero-sum game? It is likely that the root causes will be a combination, suggesting that future initiatives should involve self-awareness, feedback, skill building, rewards and creating accountability for change. Bottom line: to build meaningful change for D&I, white men must be part of the solution. Action Steps Here are 10 steps that can promote a fully inclusive workplace, which promotes greater understanding at all levels and by all employees so we can harness the best efforts of all: Integrate D&I in all leadership development efforts.Reward and recognize white male participation in Employee Resource Groups as an ally, supporter or sponsor.Promote reverse mentoring among diverse groups.Track year-over-year D&I progress.Reward white men for participating in sponsorship roles for underrepresented talentDemonstrate the link between D&I, innovation and business success.Promote the idea of a true meritocracy.Highlight success stories of white men who have been D&I champions—what they do, how they accomplish this and what the impact is.Promote D&I initiatives that manage inherent paradoxes.Offer training to all that helps leaders to understand and include others who are different. What actions do you take to ensure that your D&I programs are “all in?”

All In: White Men Needed for Diversity & Inclusion

This engaging and interactive session was moderated by Peter Bonner and included a distinguished panel consisting of Quentin Currie, U.S. Department of Education; Mary Lamary, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; and John Palguta, the Partnership for Public Service.  After introductory remarks, the panelists dove directly into the challenges of building a successful leadership pipeline.Key StepsThe moderator and panelists together came up with a series of foundational steps that must be taken in order to build a successful pipeline:Identify the mission.Determine what it will take to complete.Look to buying talents while building a plan.Identify potential candidates and assessments to evaluate them.Engage frontline managers, who are crucial to influencing and owning the process.Manage resources and lead people.Identifying Potential LeadersThe panel also discussed creative strategies to identify and develop top talent.  Alumni networks for agencies can be great places to find people given that these are people with government experience and experience specific to a particular agency.  There wouldn’t be so great of a need for extensive onboarding for people with pervious federal experience, thereby reducing ramp up time.  Alumini are also people who may know other alumni, whether or not they are affiliated with alumni groups.The panelists also agreed that they liked to see people with multiple agency experience as it told of a number of leadership qualities, such as initiative, risk-taking, and flexibility, along with a more holistic view of government.One of the panelists suggested that when looking at retention of quality leadership candidates within the government, one should broaden the definition of retention by looking at retention across multiple levels, including agency, department, and within the broader framework of public service.

Peter Pipe

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