The Netflix Model for Product Training is Key to IT Automation ROI

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In today’s evolving business market, organizations are faced with keeping up with changing and increasing demands. This is not a new idea, especially for IT departments. Even growing IT budgets can’t keep up with the ever-growing resource demands of the market. Our readers know the keys to shrinking this IT Resources Gap —and putting the right product and strategy in place is one essential.

However, even the most intuitive products have a learning curve. And even if users think they know it, they probably haven’t optimized their usage, or their IT Automation ROI. The Netflix model drives the value of automation training programs within organizations, which in turn drives return on product investment.

So, what do we mean by ‘Netflix model’ anyway?

When you want to watch Netflix, it’s there. It’s ready for you —not the other way around. If something urgent comes up, you can pause it. Forget about leaving the theater and missing the live show because of a family emergency —it’s right where you left it when you come back. Are you trying to find the documentary recommended by your colleague? Movies starring Meryl Streep? Whatever you need, you can simply search for it, and it’s there.

Most importantly, it’s unlimited. Imagine renting or buying each individual show or movie that you watched —things would get expensive, quickly. Netflix removes this boundary. This is the Netflix model, and it’s why Netflix is so successful.

In fairness, business is not personal life, and we can’t say the concept is identical. But in business, the wants are needs, and your time is more limited.  Resources are often tighter, and urgent matters more frequent. There are procedures, objectives, expected results, and, yes, sometimes mishaps and surprises.

You need to be able to search for a specific topic, access it instantly, and get back to your day. Plus, when things cool down, you want to be able to sharpen your skills and browse for something related to your specific role in your organization.

Here are 3 things product training programs need to be more like Netflix:

1. Unlimited Access: Allow users to subscribe annually to training with a growing collection of content that improves their usage of the product. Optimization and return on investment should always be the objectives for the course.
   
   
2. Searchability and Modularization: Make it easy to filter and search for specific topics of interest. Search is also key when referring back to training during day-to-day operations or troubleshooting. Plus, people rarely have the time to watch 12 hours of training all at once, so break it up into smaller, more digestible chunks that fit into schedules.
   
   
3. High Quality, Relevant Content: The training needs to be thoughtfully produced and refined, and relevant to users based on their roles. When surveying ActiveBatch users, we find that most individuals have multiple roles in their organization with respect to the product, yet most customers only take one or two training courses —meaning information and best practices critical to their roles are missed.

If your organization made an investment into a product —especially one responsible for coordinating and consolidating complex systems— make sure it drives the greatest return-on-investment by learning how to best use it, and staying sharp going forward.

If you’re an ActiveBatch user, you can learn more or subscribe to training here. To request a personalized demo of ActiveBatch IT Automation and ActiveBatch Academy, get started here.