Welcome to this month’s issue of the Learning Dispatch newsletter.

Today, we’ll discuss:

• Considering Training as a Portfolio, our Learning Dispatch insight for the month.
• A case study on Enabling Vendors to Adopt a New Software Application Through Targeted Training

This Month We Ask

Are your training catalogs, curricula, and inventories haunted by abandoned ad-hoc sessions, out-of-date courses, and neglected programs that no longer track overall business strategies? Consider managing training with the same approach and goals that might be used for a financial or application portfolio.

Considering Training as a Portfolio

On one hand, the thought of training as a portfolio may be commonplace. Training is often a collection of courses or curriculum. However, the concept of a training portfolio may be extended into other dimensions.

A financial portfolio, after all, isn’t just a collection of stocks, bonds, and other investments. What makes it a portfolio, one might argue, is the way that the collection is managed to achieve specific goals. Personal financial goals might, for example, include funding retirement, building wealth, generating income, or managing risk.

When training is considered as a portfolio, training program management becomes more than retiring (or inactivating) individual courses or determining whether requested training is the right solution to a business problem. Management becomes focused on ensuring that all elements of training—formal and informal, courses and coaching, delivery and reporting—work together to help propel an organization toward achieving its strategic goals.

Portfolio Management

What might this mean in practice? Some guidance might be found (once again) in software development. For software, application portfolio management, for example, starts with the assumption that an organization’s existing software solutions are likely to be the result of multiple and overlapping needs of different business units, and that applications need to be managed as a portfolio with the goal of ensuring that each application is oriented toward furthering the organization’s business goals.

A popular approach to application management, Gartner TIME framework, provides a useful suite of tools.

In the TIME model, each individual application is rated according to technical fit (whether the application is high quality, easily maintained, and compatible with other systems) and functional fit (whether the application is aligned with and supports business goals), and then assigned to one of four quadrants: tolerate, invest, migrate, or eliminate. The individual application is then managed based on the quadrant to which it is assigned, with an eye toward ensuring that the portfolio as a whole furthers an organization’s overall strategy.

Applying TIME to Training

Training management might apply this basic framework.

Tolerate. Training programs that are high quality and easily maintained but aren’t aligned with specific goals. Vendor-supplied courses on generic topics such as communication or time management might fit in this category. They may be well designed and useful, but tangential to an organization’s strategic goals.

Invest. Training that is high quality, easily maintained, works across systems, and clearly advances business goals. An example might be mentoring programs that have a proven effect in equipping employees to achieve strategic goals.

Migrate. Training that advances business goals but lacks needed functionality. A training department’s learning management system, for example, might be essential in delivering and tracking training, but possess inadequate reporting capabilities.

Eliminate. Training that is low quality, difficult to maintain, disconnected from other business systems, and no longer aligns with business goals. Individual courses that are out of date and rarely taken might fit in this category.

First Steps

The initial step is to take an inventory of training infrastructure, including everything from individual courses to learning management systems to competency frameworks.

Once the inventory is completed, each asset can be rated on technical fit and functional fit (note that these categories would need to be defined in light of an organization’s specific situation) and then graphed.

Once you’ve mapped the portfolio, you can manage it, executing on the decisions and continually assessing the portfolio, adjusting as needed.

Where Do We Go From Here?

This is not a simple process. It takes time and dedication, calls for hard decisions, requires clearly defined ownership, and only succeeds with support from leadership.

However, the end result can be worth the investment. Managing training as a portfolio helps ensure training programs are fully aligned with the business goals of an organization. It enables management to say yes to the right projects and no to those that do not fit, with a clear understanding of how every yes and every no—every consequential decision—is made with a focus on what will enable the business to be successful.

Let’s Talk About Your Training Challenges

Would you like assistance with managing training as a portfolio? We’d welcome the conversation.

For more than 35 years, Microassist has operated at the intersection of strategy, procurement, and learning development execution, helping organizations turn training plans into measurable results. Across government, corporate enterprise, and higher education, we’ve seen one constant: technical skill is expected. Real success comes from a partner who understands your environment and can adapt as it evolves.

Ready to talk through your next step? Contact Nivarni at [email protected] today.

Case Study: Enabling Vendors to Adopt a New Software Application Through Targeted Training

Managing training as a portfolio means ensuring that training is always aligned with broader business goals. Let’s look at how Microassist helped one large supplier ensure that their vendors were able to effectively use the new software platform that the company recently purchased to optimize their operational processes.

Client

Microassist provided training support to a large supplier working with an extended network of vendors and retail partners. As part of a broader operational modernization effort, the client implemented a new software platform designed to streamline billing and reconciliation processes across its vendor ecosystem.

Opportunity

The client implemented a new software application to replace a legacy process used to manage billback claims between the organization, its vendors, and retail partners. The goals of the new application included reducing accounts receivable timelines and significantly decreasing the volume of monthly invoices.

At the time of implementation, no vendor-facing training materials existed. Vendors needed clear, practical guidance to navigate the new application, complete required processes, and adopt it efficiently. The client identified the need for structured training development and live support to ensure successful vendor onboarding and minimize disruption.

Solution

Microassist partnered with the client to design and deliver a comprehensive vendor training solution focused on practical application use.

Collaborating closely with client subject-matter experts, Microassist developed a suite of training materials that included:

• A slide deck for virtual instructor-led training sessions
• Step-by-step job aids aligned to key vendor processes
• A condensed quick reference guide summarizing core workflows
• A facilitation guide to support consistent, effective virtual training delivery

The training focused on foundational system knowledge and the specific actions vendors needed to perform, such as accessing the application, managing billback claims, exporting data, and completing approvals or challenges within the application.

Microassist also supported and hosted live virtual training sessions, providing real-time support to the client and vendors during rollout.

Success Drivers

Effective delivery required aligning key training drivers:

• A diverse vendor audience with varying levels of technical familiarity
• No existing training content for the new application
• Concise, task-based guidance grounded in real workflows
• Ongoing coordination with client subject matter experts to ensure accuracy
• Remote delivery that maintained engagement and clarity

Microassist addressed these drivers through performance-based instructional design, modular job aids, and interactive virtual facilitation.

Results

The vendor training program provided vendors with clear, actionable guidance for using the new application:

• Vendors gained the foundational knowledge needed to navigate and complete required processes
• Training materials supported consistent application use across the vendor network
• Live virtual sessions enabled vendors to ask questions and build confidence during rollout
• The client was positioned to achieve improved operational efficiency through faster adoption of the new application

The structured combination of job aids, reference materials, and facilitated training helped ensure vendors could successfully transition to the new platform.

Does Your Organization Encounter Similar Issues?

As part of ensuring that training continues to be aligned with strategic goals, organizations rolling out new systems often struggle to ensure external partners adopt tools consistently and effectively. If your organization needs vendor or partner training that is practical, scalable, and aligned to real workflows, Microassist can help.

Need help? Contact Nivarni at [email protected] today.

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Until next time,

Kevin

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