Professional Trainer Interview - Coursework Example

Professional Trainer: Interview al Affiliation) Introduction My company, Kaizuki Tech, is a small company that caters to customers’ needs relating to the provision of telecommunication services, long distance services, Internet services, video services, wireless communications, and local exchange services. In addition, it manages wholesale and networking services. The business model is categorized as; wireline, wireless, and others. The wireline part is tasked with the provision of the wholesale and retail communication services for both domestic and international markets.

Additionally, the wireline service provided by the company is further categorized into data, voice and others. Driscoll et al., asserts that, the wireless part is the major contributor to the company’s income since it provides a very broad range of survives which include, high-quality data and voice communications on a nation-wide scale. These services are provided in varying pricing packages that include; the prepaid and postpaid plans of payment. Under this segment, it also caters to the sale of wireless-enabled computers, handsets, wireless enhanced personal computers and wireless data cards, which are developed by many suppliers to be used with the data and voice services (Driscoll et al., 2005). The other part includes outsourcing, satellite video services, customer information services, equipment and government related services.

Additionally, the security services rendered by the firm incorporate other services like disaster recovery, network and premise-based security products and business continuity operations. My company is responsible for 20 employees and 5 of them, including myself, are pursuing courses to become professional customer service trainers. I have decided to interview Matt Johnson, who is a customer service trainer at the company for six years. He can be reached through his email address: mattjohnson35@yahoo.com. His experience using the AT&T Connect for Staff Development and Training has been crucial to him being an ideal candidate for the interview.

He is 35 years old and has received numerous awards for his exemplary work in customer service training. Professional Trainer skills It is important to note that, Matt Johnson is a member of one of the employee resource groups due to his African heritage although he was born and raised in Houston, Texas, where he currently resides with his wife and son. During his time at the company, he has risen through the ranks rather quickly and is now responsible for training employees and even managers, regarding the policies and regulations of the.

In addition, he is responsible for ensuring that all staff members are well acquainted with the AT&T Connect for Staff Development and Training web platform. The platform was introduced two years ago to improve customer accessibility and improved service and communication. Wassmer argues that, the company provides a working environment that offers rewards based on the performance of the employees, with a view to creating a culture of competition and excellence at the company. Employee diversity is at the forefront of the company’s agenda, which is supported by the company’s action of creating employee resource groups that are open to entry by all members of the company.

However, the employee resource groups are primarily for supporting the company’s commitment to inclusion and diversity in the workplace, community, and the marketplace (Wassmer, 2011). The company uses the web platform, AT&T Connect for Staff Development and Training, to impart the necessary skills for both managers and lower level employees to deal with customers effectively and efficiently. Whalen et al., argues that the web platform is strategic with audio and video conferencing features that assist all the staff be at par with the ever growing demands of training, knowledge management, learning, and staff development.

It has enabled the company to reduce travel costs while still developing the trainers’ capability to expand their reach with on-demand training for customers, field representatives, channel participants, and employees. Additionally, the web platform caters for the needs of schools that can access students through their online platform (Whalen et al., 2010). Green et al., notes that AT&T Connect for Staff Development and Training is used to introduce emerging products into the market through web-based training.

It prepares employees for future advancement opportunities in relation to their specific career paths. It is achieved by, tracking and recording participation of the employees to ensure that they comply with the regulations and policies of the company (Green et al., 2012). Interview Q1.How long have you been a trainer? I have been a trainer in this company for the past six years, ever since I was hired, but cumulatively, I have been a trainer for close to ten years. Q2.How did you become a trainer?

I was an introduced by a college friend, who after graduating joined AT&T as a low-level employee. After about two years, he became a trainer and persuaded me to join the company due to its diversity programs and excellence culture. However, I opted to begin my training at a small startup tech company where I stayed for four years before joining AT&T. Q3.What education and certifications are needed to become a trainer in your field what are your responsibilities? What do you train? In what areas or skills?

To become a trainer, one requires a college degree in any field in addition to customer service, presentation, and telephone training courses that are offered in most institutions of higher learning. Currently, the company has begun offering the courses to its employees. Training is focused on cultivating and improving professionalism and etiquette when dealing with customers. Q4.How do you deliver training? Face-face? Online? Ever since the introduction of the web platform, two years ago, I deliver training through the online media but in the past I used to deliver it face-to-face. Q5.What method of training is more effective?

Standard lecture? Or hands on training? I am of the opinion that, hands on training is more effective since one can assess the effectiveness of the training session on the audience. Q6.How is new technologies influencing training? Training used to be face-to-face but nowadays, companies are beginning to understand the benefits of embracing online media. It is cheap, easily accessible and easy to monitor unlike face-to-face training. Q7.What are some of the drawbacks of online training? Generally, online training is in my opinion the best mode of training.

However, like all electronic forms, they are prone to power outages and unrestricted entry through hacking and viruses. Q8.What ways can the company improve its online mode of training? I think the company has done a very good job in making the AT&T Connect for Staff Development and Training platform very successful, but I would suggest that they change its online outlay and presentation to attract more visits. Conclusion The interview has given me a keen insight regarding the effectiveness of the online training mode and the necessary qualifications that a certified trainer should possess, to be able to perform his work effectively and efficiently.

The information I have received is very useful to me, an aspiring professional trainer since it is not quite as complicated as I had previously thought. I will use the information from my interviewee, to pursue a career in professional customer service training aggressively. References Driscoll, M., & Carliner, S. (2005). Advanced web-based training strategies: Unlocking instructionally sound online learning. San Francisco: Pfeiffer. Green, D., & Latchford, G. (2012). Maximising the benefits of psychotherapy a practice-based evidence approach.

Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons. Wassmer, G. (2011). Supporting new school leaders: The benefits of online peer communities. Whalen, T., & Wright, D. (2010). The business case for Web-based training. Boston, MA: Artech House.