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OPERATION A.B.L.E. OF GREATER BOSTON, INC. OPERATION SERVICE! SIX-WEEK CUSTOMER SERVICE AND COMPUTER TRAINING OPERATION A.B.L.E. OF GREATER BOSTON, INC.

OPERATION SERVICE!
SIX-WEEK CUSTOMER SERVICE AND COMPUTER TRAINING


































BayStateWorks Promising Practice Case Study

Tee Provost
Program Manager, Senior Human Resources Generalist
Operation ABLE of Greater Boston, Inc.

June 6, 2006 Table of Contents


1 Program
Synopsis ................................................................................................................... 3
2 The
Need................................................................................................................................. 3
3 The
Solution............................................................................................................................ 4
4 Implementation ....................................................................................................................... 5
4.1 Recruitment
Modifications ................................................................................................. 5
4.2
Modifications to Job Search Module .................................................................................. 5
5 Results..................................................................................................................................... 8
6 Lessons.................................................................................................................................... 9



2 I have come away with a powerful new meaning to my work
life.

- Mary Lodge
Program Participant



1 Program Synopsis
Operation ABLE of Greater Boston, Inc. provided customer service and computer skills review
training called Operation Service for 134 mature workers aged 45 and older in ten six-week
training cycles of 30 hours each, achieving a subsequent placement rate of 65%.

The curriculum included the following:
computer skills review: Windows, MS Office, Outlook and the internet, emphasizing
screen navigation;
financial planning for mature workers;
customer service skills;
job search training; and
retention strategies.

2 The Need
This case study focuses on the program leaders' efforts to tighten the recruitment process and
modify the job search component of Operation Service. Although the opening class proved
successful according to feedback from students and instructor observations, several problems
surfaced during the first six-week cycle:
A number of students going on interviews within the first two weeks of their training
were not adequately prepared either to pass their computer tests, or to navigate the job
search process effectively.
During the second week of class, students began to approach the Project Coordinator
expressing distaste for the customer service/call center jobs that the program targeted and
indicating that they were frustrated, confused and unable to identify their career
directions. A few exhibited a less than committed attitude toward their free training
opportunity.
At the program midpoint, a number of students were beginning to talk about reverting to
patterns established before starting training, e.g. continuing to care for ill or disabled
family members, working part-time without benefits, or drawing further on limited
savings for living expenses, rather than proactively pursuing a new job.


3 Midway through the program during the fourth week, students were becoming frightened about
conducting a job search alone after the class ended. They began to reach toward familiar and
accessible fall-back positions though dissatisfaction with their previous work and/or living
circumstances and the desire for change had brought them to the program initially. Program staff
analyzed the reasons for the problems participants were having. A few explanations came to the
fore: 1) participants coming into the program with minimum exposure to computer use were not
accomplished enough to succeed in the review of MS Office, which started on the first day of
training; 2) job search assistance was scheduled for just one day per week, on Fridays, which
may not have given participants enough guidance early on in the training; 3) the formal
Customer Service module was not introduced until the third week, permitting students to
ruminate over inaccurate perceptions of call center and customer service jobs until then; and
finally, 4) students who thought they knew what they wanted were questioning their decisions
and had no tools to evaluate their interests, skills, values and motivations.

The need therefore was to develop strategies to resolve these challenges, create solutions that
would improve the quality of the students experience by addressing their unique needs as
mature workers, raise morale and build collaboration, not only between the instructors and the
students, but among the students themselves. With several adjustments, the program was able to
provide participants with a solid base of confidence and skill on which to rely after they finished
the training and were job searching on their own.
3 The Solution
Program adjustments to better serve participants were focused around modifying the recruitment
strategy, changing some instructional practices, and reinvigorating the job search training
program component. At the outset, program leaders aimed to reframe the course to new recruits,
building value into the free program by describing it as fast-paced and intensive. The
recruitment process was tightened to identify highly motivated students with at least low to
average computer skills who understood the concept of the internal and external customer and
exhibited a passion for collaboration. Program leaders adapted the definition of customer service
to emphasize the needs of the current business environment for fluid written and verbal
communication capabilities from most employees in most jobs.

From an instructional standpoint, curricular exercises were modified to target several adult
learning styles. The course now includes field trips and daily homework assignments, for
example. Besides employer presenters, outside speakers were invited to provide fresh points of
view and to reinforce topics already introduced. The instructor emphasizes the concept that all
forms of classroom communication are opportunities to improve skill by observing classmates
techniques, receiving input from classmates and learning the habit of self-awareness and self-
evaluation.

The job search component expanded from 20% of program time to 40%, with a heavy focus on
job search material in the first two weeks, starting with stress management and self-care
exercises. The job search component was enriched to include in-depth values examination, skills
and interests clarification, exercises to assist choice of industry and cluster of job titles aligned
with students values, skills and interests discovery. Instructors presented the job search strategy
as a customized self-marketing campaign.

4
To keep motivation high during and after the program, students begin applying for real jobs
during the second week of training, immediately after resume and cover letter review and
completion, reporting regularly to classmates on their progress. This would continue throughout
the six weeks. Program leaders increased the formality of mock interviews to make them more
realistic. Students also received more support

post-program: the Project Coordinator begins at
least weekly contact with each student starting the first week after each cycle ends and
continuing through and after placement.
4 Implementation
4.1 Recruitment Modifications

The program was described to potential participants as fast-paced and intensive with plenty of
homework. During the recruitment process, students were asked to convince the Project
Coordinator of their commitment, if chosen to participate, and to demonstrate their motivation in
an essay in which they would discuss their previous jobs and/or living circumstances, their work
goals, their reasons for believing that Operation Service would help them, and why they should
be invited to attend the program. Students were asked to sign-off on a list of classroom rules that
included the policy of no absences and no lates (exceptions for interviews and, of course,
emergencies), and agreement to complete all classroom and homework assignments. In