The terms ‘bring your own device’ (BYOD) and IT consumerisation have become part of business jargon as increasing numbers of employees use mobile devices in the workplace. But what are the associated opportunities for mobile learning, and how should L&D professionals seek to maximise these?

Now for the fun part of the project: configuring it for actual operation. The “real” configuration tasks will be reserved for lab exercises, but some initial setup helps things run more smoothly. The tasks involved are as follows:

Have you ever considered how some people may consider security awareness training to be like exercising? Some employees may feel the need to do it because they have to, while others simply do it because it’s the right thing to do. While many companies perform security awareness training, not all do so in a way designed to reap maximum benefits.

There are three generally accepted ways to access equipment for a lab. First, you can rent rack time from a wide number of vendors, which can save on your power bill and simplify practice. Second, for routing platforms, you can use an emulator or simulator, such as Packet Tracer or GNS3. Finally, you can get your own equipment and assemble your own lab, which I think is the best choice. You can utilize spare equipment at work, request some from your local Cisco Users Group, or purchase your own using Craigslist or eBay. Here is a parts list that can make the process straightforward.

Along my journey from CCNA to CCIE, I had to go through the task of periodically building lab environments to give me hands-on experience. This was especially critical in the CCIE Lab, which involved multiple devices, protocols, and tasks to complete. When I first began teaching CCNA courses, I came up with the idea of creating a scaled down version of a lab exam to assist with hands-on learning.

As workplace learning professionals, we help our clients define, design, and develop comprehensive learning strategies that include a very deliberate blend of learning modes. You may be familiar with the 70−20−10 rule of workplace learning which estimates that about 70 per cent of workplace learning takes place on the job, through solving problems and through special assignments or other day-to-day activities. Another 20 per cent occurs through accessing the knowledge of others in the workplace and through support, coaching, and mentoring from managers and colleagues. Only 10 per cent occurs through formal learning, whether classroom, virtually-facilitated, or eLearning.

If you’re going to integrate learning with work, you had better understand the work. Watch people, talk to people, use appropriate analysis tools, and think like the performer. Understand their world, day to day pressures, tools they use (or could use), and how they use them. Understand the job inputs, processes, and feedback mechanisms for job incumbents.

With less than two months left in 2011, some of you may still have certification goals to accomplish this year. If so, you might have time left to meet your resolutions. What’s important is to start with a game plan. For example, the CISSP exam is scheduled to be updated in 2012, so you might want to look at testing dates this year.

In keeping with the standard of continuous improvement, the ITIL 2011 refresh will incorporate over 500 changes since the release of ITIL v3 in 2007 that includes feedback from the user and training community. Among other places these changes are reflected in the course syllabi and exams.

Learning professionals talk often these days about “business impact”. However, not long ago most Executives were satisfied with taking it on “faith” that it was worth making the investment. Now most Executives need to justify all expenses, and they’re taking a closer look – they want data that shows the investment in training and development will pay off.