Tell Me I’m Wrong

A new 9-1-1 Director related the following:

“Our last hiring produced five very qualified, intelligent, mature, and capable people.  I was very pleased with our new testing process and felt we had made great headway in hiring a more qualified and competent applicant.  Slowly, the new hires began dropping like flies.  Either they were quitting on their own or their evaluations were terrible.

There was a lot of disappointment, tears, struggling, and stress on the floor for these new people.  I decided to have “exit interviews” to see if I could find out where we went wrong in our testing process, what we missed, if there were common themes or problems.  The result was a discovery that my experienced dispatchers may be hazing the new people.  In other words, starting out with the attitude that they would fail and “throwing them in the fire” just to make sure they did.  The seasoned dispatchers made it that way.

The attitude was that if the rookies couldn’t handle it – they didn’t belong here.  One woman objected to the repeated use of profanity and dirty jokes.  A supervisor told this woman that she definitely wouldn’t make it here, didn’t belong if she couldn’t understand the people and their stress release.  Another didn’t fit in because she was a know-it-all from another agency.  She eventually left, disappointed and angry.”

After more research and interviews, the Director decided to try something different.  Being a trainer became a position that you won in competition with others.  (Not to her surprise, many of the former experienced people did not try out for the new position.)  Newcomers were put on different shifts, and a group project was made to train the beginners.  The shifts were working as a team to support, motivate, teach, and evaluate the progress of the novice.  The results were immediate.  There was a sense of excitement about working together to find innovative ways to train.

What makes a great trainer?

A great trainer must excel in all aspects of their work.  The trainer must be able to perform the skill, possess full knowledge of the skill, and exhibit an attitude that enhances the training process.  Above all, the trainer must be a valid and effective leader.

Listens with understanding; willing to discuss problems; open to ideas; gives time to listen.

Trainers must be willing to view their trainees as adults with ideas, problems, and possibly even solutions.  Trainers must also seek help from supervisors when up against a problem.  Too often time is not provided to two-way communication.  Not only does the trainee need this feedback, but the trainer does as well.  Both need a time each week for people to sit down and say “How is it going for you?”

Supports and helps; backs you up, is on your side; remembers your problem.

Ah, how soon we forget what it feels like to be a learner.  Sometimes it’s tough.  The trainer has to get out the pom-poms to cheer the new person on.  How many times do we have to hear that people only hear negative remarks, but never the good things? “They tell you when you make a mistake, but never when you do something good.”  Receiving only negative reactions may cause the learner to become defensive and shut down communication.  If learners also hear what they do well, they will appreciate the trainer and trust the trainer’s comments on what corrections need to be made.  Feedback requires both positive and corrective information from a supportive leader.

Uses a team approach to help the group reach better decisions and facilitate cooperation.

It’s sometimes difficult to go it alone with a trainee.  Many times, other trainers or supervisors may have a good idea on how to overcome a problem.  Below, we discuss group meetings – a key component of all effective training programs.  The trainer must serve as a liaison between the trainee, dispatchers, administrators, and, often, the officers working with the new person.  It is essential that the trainer is open to and able to handle all factions effectively.

Avoids close supervision; does not over-boss; does not dictate or rule by the book.

During the learning process, the learner will progress from close supervision to occasional feedback.  Hovering over the trainee when they should be progressing is damaging.  A good trainer knows when to let the line out and when to pull it in.  Although it’s tough to rule by the book if there isn’t one, many supervisors have their own “book” or rigid set of expectations.  It can be exhausting trying to live up to inflexible demands.  Strict adherence to a set of rules on how the trainee should learn indicates the trainer’s lack of skill and knowledge about adult learning styles and training methods.

Delegates authority; trusts the group; relies on their judgment; permits group decisions; has faith in the creativity of others.

While the trainee may need a lot of guidance, that doesn’t mean they have no ideas whatsoever.  Keep the trainee informed about the status of their training.  Ask them to self-evaluate, share ideas on how they can improve, and offer suggestions on how to enhance their learning.

Communicates openly and honestly; tells you what she thinks; you can trust what she says.

Many times, trainees just “know” something isn’t right, but they aren’t sure just what.  “My trainer is mad at me, can’t look me in the eye”: is the symptom they see.  Usually, the trainer doesn’t know how to tell the trainee that they have a problem.  This comes either from the trainer’s belief that if the student fails, the teacher fails or from the trainer’s inability to tell the trainee that they are not doing well.

So in comments, tell me if I’m wrong.