Training is an essential part of providing clients with a complete solution to meet their individual assistive technology or productivity needs. Without product tuition, clients could be left with a thick user manual, a software DVD and no real knowledge of how best to get started.
Whether it’s a one-to-one course on how to use Dragon Professional to dictate letters and e-mails quickly or a group session teaching doctors how to operate their latest digital recorders effectively, training (by a qualified tutor) provides end-users with the tools to become more productive and achieve the results they want from their software or hardware.
What’s a typical day in the life of one of our assistive technology trainers like?
“I always try to get to a client’s address 15 minutes before the session starts so that I have time to introduce myself, get to know the client and find out what they want to achieve in that session.
For training locations in the South of England, I tend to drive to the client and pre-arrange parking but for locations further afield, I generally get the train to their home town, or close to their workplace, the night before and stay in a hotel so that I’m refreshed and ready to assist them.
We have refined our training guides and course structures over many years of providing assistive technology & digital dictation tuition which clients really appreciate. We also modify, on the fly, core training structures to suit how clients want to use their new software and hardware tools.
One size does not fit all when it comes to how individuals use applications such as speech recognition software (Dragon Professional 14) or text-to-speech software (Read & Write Gold 11.5). I ensure that, during the day, I tailor how I teach these applications to allow clients to operate them effectively in their environment and in their own in-house systems.
Most training sessions last about 3 hours (normally 10am to 1pm) although we also provide full day sessions. Depending on what applications users are supplied with, subsequent visits may be required, after a period of time that allows the client time to practice the skills I’ve taught them.
I leave the client at the end of each session happy that I’ve made a difference to their working (and often home) lives and have enabled them with a new set of skills. I leave my contact details (and our helpdesk number) so that once I‘ve left the site, they’ve got access to continued support. No two days are the same so it’s an interesting and rewarding job.”
To get the right set of training tools & understand how to get the most out of your new software & hardware, contact us and arrange to get trained.