Kevin Corbett is the Director of the Hyland Software University. Hyland Software has had a long standing relationship with AIIM and supporter of the AIIM Education programs. I had the opportunity to interview Kevin recently and discuss how AIIM training has been of benefit to the team at Hyland Software.
I want to thank you Kevin, for talking time to talk with me and sharing your thoughts and experiences with our readers.
Bob: Please provide me with a description of your company, your role with the company and the AIIM Certificate courses your organization has focused on to date.
Kevin: I work for Hyland Software, an independent enterprise content management (ECM) software vendor. We’ve focused on ECM with our OnBase suite since we were founded in 1991. But a lot has changed since then. In those days, “ECM” translated to “scanning” and “archiving.” For us, this was first applied in banking. Paper-based checks were taking over valuable building space and couldn’t be managed effectively.
Since then, OnBase has honed its concentration to managing almost any manual process and unstructured piece of content that’s out there. Though the financial sector still makes up the bulk of our nearly 9,000 customers, by revenue, healthcare has grown to be our largest vertical market. Many other industries have taken advantage of OnBase as well, including government, insurance, higher education and manufacturing.
As you know, these industries all have their own niche business problems. And in each of these numerous instances, ECM can help, but in slightly different ways. To make sure our employees have the best possible understanding of exactly how ECM can be applied most effectively, we dedicate a lot of resources to training. In fact, my department, Hyland Software University or HSU, is dedicated solely to training. Our belief is that by investing in it this way, we’ll develop the best product, sell it the right way and support it – all while exceeding customer expectations.
One staple of our employee training is AIIM’s certifications. We use it as a way to get employees onboard with the industry from the day they start, and also to keep them up-to-speed throughout their careers at Hyland. New employees are offered the Enterprise Content Management Practitioner training. We’ve found that it gives the most comprehensive overview of our industry – a very important tool when you’re training folks who’ve had limited or no previous exposure to information management technology. It also helps us to create an even playing field among our employees. Everyone is presented with the same knowledge, regardless of their background or role in the company.
After the Enterprise Content Management Practitioner training, many employees opt to take their education further. In HSU, we encourage staff to look for certifications that match their job function and expand their skill set. We’ve had great feedback on these other certifications, especially the more advanced ECM courses and the Electronic Records Management (ERM) program.
Bob: When did you get the idea to make AIIM Education part of your company's training focus and what were the drivers for the decision?
Kevin: From the get-go, employee training was a priority at Hyland Software. HSU was actually started through an initiative led by our president and CEO, A. J. Hyland. He made it clear that it’s up to us to solve customers’ specific problems with solutions that are designed to operate intuitively. And, the level of expertise needed to achieve this only comes from continuous learning.
While the OnBase expertise was in place, we were missing a thorough source of industry knowledge. At the time, we agreed that looking externally would be the best option. The right partner would afford us a comprehensive, up-to-date resource base we wouldn’t have access to otherwise. Coincidentally, at the same time we identified this need, AIIM was working on their certification program. They brought us into the room with other industry experts to discuss the program’s objectives, audience, content and execution. It was clear that this was the resource we were looking for to round out our employee education.
Bob: How did this training expand your organization's knowledge?
Kevin: I think it’s fair to say that “expanding organizations’ knowledge of information management” could be AIIM’s broad goal for the certification program. It’s definitely been achieved at Hyland. But to us, the more important part is how the new knowledge is actually applied to better meet our customers’ needs.
One of our five core values states: “We deliver configurable business solutions that are intuitive to use. Our customers are confident when navigating our solutions.” It takes knowledgeable employees developing and supporting software that makes these things possible. AIIM’s program continues to help us to train people who build solutions for today’s problems, yet are flexible enough to add value tomorrow, too.
Bob: What do you feel is the greatest benefit gained from your organization taking this training?
Kevin: I think for Hyland, the greatest benefit of the training is having that outside perspective. It’s impossible to be aware of and understand every business problem, especially as we continue to grow our vertical expertise and solutions. In a way then, AIIM’s training has and continues to help us efficiently grow our business. Because the training compiles so many vendor experiences with organizations of all industries and sizes, it enables us to grow our knowledge in line with our customers’ needs and expectations.
Bob: How is your organization applying this new knowledge to address business challenges/issues for your company and your clients?
Kevin: Customer service is the top priority at Hyland, and the better educated and informed our people are, the better service our customers receive. A.J. Hyland makes this commitment to our customers clear. One of the most obvious ways is that he has his desk and cell phone numbers on our Web site. Customers, should they feel the need to contact him, can reach him directly at any time.
As our customer count continues to grow - we’re now approaching 9,000 organizations worldwide - customer service becomes a bit more challenging. No customer is exactly like another, nor are the challenges they’re encountering in dealing with manual, paper-intensive processes. AIIM’s training is one of the most effective ways we address this challenge. It makes us aware of organizations’ information management issues, even before they’re brought to us. This keeps us on the offensive when providing customer service. And beyond that, we’re able to provide customers with ideas and solutions that they might not have considered otherwise.
Bob: For the future, what role do you see for AIIM education in your organization?
Kevin: Although our industry’s technology is typically considered “mature,” there are many changes going on right now that have the power to influence what we develop. Take, for example, the explosion of e-mail communications. Organizations are realizing that e-mail is a critical source of information as well as a compliance challenge, and they need a strategy for managing it. Because of the constant changes, AIIM is and will continue to be our go-to for keeping our organization up-to-speed. The changes happen so quickly – and customers have higher expectations for vendor service than ever – so this education is imperative as we differentiate our company and product from the competition.
Bob: What would you say to someone teetering on the edge of taking one of our training courses?
Kevin: In tough times, your best asset is your company’s knowledge base. It impacts the products you develop and how you’re able to sell and support them. If you’re going to invest in anything, it should fall into the employee training category. My advice would be to start small. Identify which certification makes the most sense for your organization right now. And tie the course with a business need. This will not only help upper management see the value in it, but it will also make it more meaningful for the attendees.
Bob: Would you recommend us to your users? Why?
Kevin: If you’re looking for content on information management, AIIM is the place. It’s a great start for those just getting into the industry and the perfect refresher for the experts, too. I know it’s made a difference in training our employees, so I’m sure our users would benefit as well.
Bob: Is there anything else you would like to add that we may have missed?
Kevin: In any organization in any industry, employees make or break the success of the organization. If they’re trained and understand your business strategy, we’ve found that the business is much more cohesive and effective. This is why we invest so heavily in training our employees. By educating our staff for weeks before they hit their desks, they have a better handle on what we do as a whole and how what they do contributes to our success.
We know that our industry and product is complex for most folks when they come to Hyland. AIIM’s training is one tool we use to simply and logically explain it in terms they understand and can eventually apply.
Bob: I want to thank you again Kevin, for taking time to share your thoughts and experiences with our readers.
Kevin Corbett, Director of Hyland Software University can be reached at Kevin.Corbett@onbase.com
What say you? How do you view and manage your training efforts? Do you have a story to tell? I want to hear from you and learn what you and your organization are doing.
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Bob Larrivee – AIIM
blarrivee@aiim.org
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