Why You Should Use Web Based Learning for CAD Training in Your Organization

Since 1992, Caterpillar has invested millions of dollars to purchase CAD software, and spends nearly $2M per year keeping its engineers up-to-date, via instructor lead training (ILT), as new enhancements are introduced. Periodic upgrades to the software also require huge resource (people, costs) commitments for the planning and execution of the training requirements required for a large global workforce.

This paper will examine gaps uncovered in the efficiency and effectiveness of the current training process, and the cultural change required as a result of switching from an instructor led environment to a completely web-based solution, which, once deployed, had promised to change the way Caterpillar approached training for the future. The proposed change promised to improve human resource capability by utilizing new technological capabilities, and resulted in improvements in organizational capabilities as well. Topics reviewed include:

• Reasons for initiating the change, including perceptions of the as-is process (voice of the customer), and pros/cons of the current state.
• Business Risk Management (BRM) for the planning and organization issues required for the as-is process and procedures, and contrast with the future state.
• Outline the Organizational Change Management (OCM) issues, including the cultural shift required for success.
• Describe the benefits of the to-be process, including changes to people, quality, velocity, and cost (PQVC) metrics.