ERP training strategies: conceptual training and the formation of accurate mental models

ABSTRACT

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are large, complex integrated software applications that often take years to implement. This study examined a major determinant of successful ERP implementation, end-user training. Specifically, this study advances research in the area of ERP software through examining end-user training strategies that may impact the effective use of these complex systems. The Sein, Bostrom, and Olfman [19] Hierarchical Knowledge-Level model is applied in an experiment to develop more effective ERP training strategies. The experiment was a non-equivalent quasi-experimental design involving two groups of approximately 35 senior business students: one group was given the introduction of ERP workflow concepts as an advance organizer (TCT Group); the other received traditional, procedurally-oriented (PT Group) ERP training over the same 5 week time period. A series of post-test measures were administered after each training treatment, and ten days after all treatments concluded. The study finds that a workflow conceptual advanced organizer strategy (TCT group) improves end-users' mental model accuracy over time as demonstrated by the subjects' ability to recall ERP specific concepts. Results indicate that a conceptual advance organizer is an important component of ERP training and should be incorporated into an organization's training strategy.

REFERENCES

• 1: C. M. Allwood, Learning and using text-editors and other application programs, Cognitive ergonomics: understanding, learning and designing human-computer interaction, Academic Press Professional, Inc., San Diego, CA, 1990
• 2: J. R. Anderson, A theory of the origins of human knowledge, Artificial Intelligence, v.40 n.1-3, p.313-351, Sep. 1989 [doi>10.1016/0004-3702(89)90052-0]
• 3: Ausubel, D.P. Educational Psychology: A Cognitive View. Holt, Reinhart and Winston, New York, NY, 1968.
• 4: Piraye Bayman , Richard E. Mayer, A diagnosis of beginning programmers' misconceptions of BASIC programming statements, Communications of the ACM, v.26 n.9, p.677-679, Sept. 1983 [doi>10.1145/358172.358408]
• 5: Borgman, C. The user's mental model of an information retrieval system: An experiment on prototype online retrieval catalog. International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 10. 625--637.
• 6: Robert P. Bostrom , Lorne Olfman , Maung K. Sein, The importance of learning style in end-user training, MIS Quarterly, v.14 n.1, p.101-119, March 1990 [doi>10.2307/249313]
• 7: Thomas H. Davenport, Mission Critical: Realizing the Promise of Enterprise Systems, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA, 2000
• 8: Davis, S.A. and Bostrom, R.P. Training end users: An experimental investigation of the roles of computer interface and training methods. MIS Quarterly, 17 (1). 61--85.
• 9: Dixon, W.J. and Tukey, J.W. Approximate behavior of the distribution of winsorized t (Trimming/Winsorization 2). Technometrics (10). 83--98.
• 10: Gist, M.E., Schwoerer, C. and Rosen, B. Effects of alternative training methods on self-efficacy and performance in computer software training. Journal of Applied Psychology, 74 (6). 884--891.
• 11: P. N. Johnson-Laird, Mental models: towards a cognitive science of language, inference, and consciousness, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1986
• 12: Kieras, D.E. and Polson, P.G. An approach to the formal analysis of user complexity. International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 22. 365--394.
• 13: Norman, D.A. Some observations on mental models. in Gentner, D. and Stevens, A.L. eds. Mental Models, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, NJ, 1983, 15--35.
• 14: Olfman, L., Bostrom, R.P. and Sein, M.K., Training with a business focus: A best practice. in Bitworld 2001, (2001).
• 15: Lorne Olfman , Munir Mandviwalla, Conceptual versus procedural software training for graphical user interfaces: a longitudinal field experiment, MIS Quarterly, v.18 n.4, p.405-426, Dec. 1994 [doi>10.2307/249522]
• 16: Panko, R.R. and Sprague, R. Experiments in spreadsheet development: Task difficulty, level of expertise, and error rate Manuscript in preparation, http://www/cba.hawaii.edu/panko/papers//ss/Imexpert.htm, 1997.
• 17: Santhanam, R. and Sein, M.K. Improving end-user proficiency: Effects of conceptual training and nature of interaction. Information Systems Research, 5 (4). 378--399.
• 18: Sein, M.K. and Bostrom, R.P. Individual Differences and Conceptual Models in Training Novice End-Users. Human Computer Interaction, 4 (3). 197--229.
• 19: Maung K. Sein , Robert P. Bostrom , Lorne Olfman, Rethinking end-user training strategy: applying a hierarchical knowledge-level model, Journal of End User Computing, v.11 n.1, p.32-39, Jan./March 1999
• 20: Sein, M.K., Bostrom, R.P. and Olfman, L. Training end users to compute: cognitive, motivational and social issues. INFOR, 25. 236--255.
• 21: Shayo, C. Role of conceptual and mental models in motivating end users to learn new but related software packages Information Science, Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, CA, 1995, 419.
• 22: Conrad Shayo , Lorne Olfman, The role of training in preparing end users to learn related software, Journal of End User Computing, v.12 n.1, p.3-14, Jan.1.2000
• 23: Nancy Staggers , A. F. Norcio, Mental models: concepts for human-computer interaction research, International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, v.38 n.4, p.587-605, April, 1993 [doi>10.1006/imms.1993.1028]
• 24: Tabachnick, B.G. and Fidell, L.S. Using Multivariate Statistics. Harper Collins, New York, NY, 1989.
• 25: Wheatley, M. ERP training stinks CIO, 2000.
• 26: John R. Wilson , Andrew Rutherford, Mental models: theory and application in human factors, Human Factors, v.31 n.6, p.617-634, Dec. 1989