Skills Transfer: 4 Steps To Successfully Train Azeris (Or Anyone) To Write A New Training

Whether it's a new job or a new country, as one becomes more familiar with a new culture, less time is spent learning the norms of the culture and more time can be spent achieving goals.  Its for this reason that second year volunteers are more productive in their 'work', because we're able to achieve more within the rules and traditions of our host country's culture.

The more I accomplish (in Peace Corps, at Apple, in life, etc), the more my thoughts turn towards the time beyond mine.  Will everything I'm working on come to a halt when I leave or will it continue?  Whether its a project or skills, anyone who spends their time developing human capital wants to believe that what they are doing will have a lasting impact in some way.

Currently a lot of the work I'm doing Azerbaijan is workshop and training design; writing trainings together with host country nationals and, in the process, teaching them how to do this independently (inshallah*).  In general I've been pretty successful and thought people may find my process useful.  This process requires writing and delivering 4 trainings together (though I'm only focusing below on the skill of writing a training).  It usually takes me about 4 months to complete it.

1) The first time we work together is highly instructive.  Together we will brainstorm key ideas and potential activities.  Then, using what we've brainstormed, I will sketch out a potential outline for the upcoming training.  We then discuss the logic of the outline, I'll ask questions such as 'does this make sense as an outline?' and 'does it seem to flow together'.  I then tell them I will write a training based off this outline for the next time we meet.

2) The second time we write a training together is a bit more collaborative.  Just like first time, we brainstorm together.  Then we develop an outline together.  To give them a reminder of how a training flows, I give a copy of the previous training we wrote.  As we draft the outline I make comments about why certain parts make sense (like an activity after a new concept) or suggestions to what they have, or have not, written (like needing an introduction).  After, we split up the training for each person to write at home, usually with me taking the introduction and conclusion.  The next time we meet we combine our sections into one training and discuss the training as a whole.

3) The third time we write a training together I have them 'teach' me what they are doing.  Again, we have a copy of the previous training and I ask them to lead the outline discussion and explain their reasons after we brainstorm together.  If I have concerns about the training I ask questions like 'how will we see that they understand this main point?' or 'what is the goal of this activity?'.  After the outline we split up sections for each of us to write at home and I usually ask them to write the introduction and conclusion.  The next time we meet we combine our sections into one training and discuss

4) The fourth time we write a training together we don't do it together.  I ask them to write the training and we discuss it the next time we meet.  At this meeting I may give one or two suggestions but I try not to have it be a massive overhaul.  Them writing this training is an activity to develop confidence, seeing that they can do this on their own.

This strategy has served me well in Azerbaijan and in Apple.  Because I know that this is a skill I can effectively transfer, its a main reason why I work with Azerbaijanis in writing trainings so frequently.

*inshallah-an Azeri word meaning God willing