Best Laid Plans
As you all have been going to the web form and indicating your preference for switching to 4HOnline, there have been a couple of things that caught me by surprise... first, that at the present time, 100% of you want to change this fall. That's extremely gratifying, but scary. In the beginning, I had planned to switch about a dozen folks this fall (the Guinea Pig Group), but then decided to open the decision up to some other Brave Souls. Turns out we're just FULL of bravery here in Iowa!!! The second surprise is that 2/3 of those who have responded want to start with empty datasets. Again, I was HOPING for a few of the Guinea Pig Group to try it, giving the rest of us a view of the advantages/disadvantages.
Before anyone can use the new program, there are some things I have to do: set up user accounts, convert our projects/literature/activities, set up some standard screens, and LEARN more about the program both from an administrative and user standpoint. However, the "fall-empty" group should, in theory, be able to begin using the program very shortly. So the dilemma is more about training than anything else. If I hold off on deployment until I can head to Texas and get myself all trained, that's going to delay this whole thing maybe more than it should be. So, should we forge ahead and muddle through this together? Hmmmm... Maybe.
My TENTATIVE and subject-to-change-again "plan" MIGHT be to start the fall-empty folks as soon as we can make that happen, and book 3-4 days of a come-and-go 4HOnline Party here on campus. We'd be learning together, and I'd provide laptops for you all to get started entering data and learning the program. You would have a double benefit of actual uninterrupted data entry time, and the learning aspect.
In the meantime, I'd continue working on the conversion process--it's going to take a lot of pretty manual data manipulation on my part to export BR data, then get it into the file format that 4HOnline needs. When that's done, then the fall-converted folks would be ready to roll. Again, we'd need some workdays, hopefully with some of the first group attending.
I will definitely be reprising the Snowstorm Tour this year, and expanding it to more sites, so lay in plenty of provisions. During that time, if anyone chooses the "winter" option, they'll get training. But more important, everyone will get more than the "triage" training that the fall will consist of! I'm considering 10-12 sites, so there are people who would have an option of which one to attend, I think.
So what's the elephant in the room? Tonya addressed it in her previous comment... with fewer folks in the county offices, leaving for training becomes more difficult. Can we use Connect? You all know that I'm not exactly "excellent" at the whole Connect thing, particularly in terms of doing training that way. I tend to lose my place, lose my mouse, lose my memory, and lose my train of thought. HOWEVER, I'll be willing to give it a shot, particularly in terms of "lunch and learn" 30-minute sessions on specific tasks/topics. Depending on how quick the fall crowd gets comfortable, it could either start after the first of the year, or towards the end of the Snowstorm Tour. That might be a valuable way to continue training and share discoveries. We'll also develop a library of support docs, similar to the HelpSheets we have for Blue Ribbon.
The short version is that I can't completely eliminate training and the scheduling challenges that it presents. I'll do my best to make it as easy as possible, and I also want to utilize my EXCELLENT Guinea Pig Group (which is growing by leaps & bounds) as mentors for others. In no way do I want them to feel burdened by support expectations, as that is (and hopefully will "always" be) my job, but in a situation like this, with all of us learning together, combined knowledge is always going to be better than any one individual.
We have all seen instances where the deployment of new technology created more problems than it solved, and that is honestly my worst nightmare. There will be frustration in learning and using something new and unfamiliar. The only "control" I have over the outcome of this switch is support and training. If I support you well enough, and train you well enough, maybe the frustrations won't be overwhelming. I also hope that by giving you choices in when & how you convert, you can make it work best for your own circumstances.