Like a lot of software trainers, James Martin followed an indirect route
to his career.
"I intended to be an English professor, so I have a master's in English,
but while I was in grad school the job market for new PhDs looked pretty abysmal."
Fortunately, there was another field that had plenty of opportunities --
computing.
"I'd always had an interest in computing. I had done web development on
the side, and I looked around and thought, 'What's the quickest way for me
to transition to something IT related?'" Martin says. "One option would have
been to go back and do a computer science undergrad degree. But then I discovered
educational technology. So I did an M.Ed. in educational technology and kind
of veered off into [software training]."
Martin is now a software trainer and instructional developer at Trident
Technical College in Charleston, South Carolina. He does face-to-face training
for college staff. He also records screencasts so staff can learn about software
on their own time.
"We also function as a kind of second-tier help desk," says Martin. "If
there are questions that are related to how to do things in various apps,
they ultimately get funneled up to us and assigned to whoever's responsible
for that app.
"Beyond that, we do some departmental consulting," he adds. "If there's
some new software coming down the pike, and some department needs to migrate
from what they're currently doing to the new software, we'll work with them
one-on-one... and get the training in place so they have job support on the
new system."
Martin says it's important that a software trainer doesn't just like teaching,
but also enjoys the technology itself. That interest will make you a better
trainer, and you'll enjoy your job more!
"I like new software," says Martin. "I'm always testing new software on
my own. If you take an interest in these kinds of things and you genuinely
like seeing how you can solve problems and like kicking tires on software
to see how it fails and how it doesn't, then I think that's really the main
requirement."
Software trainer Kathryn Kroll agrees. "The best trainers come from the
people who actually use a software on a daily basis," she says. "They are
the people who know every short cut, trick and special technique to produce
amazing results. When I take a class, I want to be taught by someone who uses
a particular software 10 to 12 hours a day, every day. I don't care if that
person has a college degree or not."
Kroll owns a business in Texas that provides graphic design and computer
training services.
In the late 1980s Kroll worked as a graphic artist in a typesetting/paste-up
production environment. She'd been working at the job for 10 years when she
was laid off, to be replaced by a computer. She took a three-month AutoCAD
course to get a job using a computer to produce graphics.
"As I progressed in this course, I was able to help new and slower students
grasp concepts through my explanation of the process," says Kroll. "My instructor
made note of this, and teased me about taking his job."
A few months after taking that course, the school asked Kroll to lead their
graphic design training program. In that job she had to quickly learn a lot
of new software. Fortunately, she had an aptitude for it.
"I learned QuarkXPress over a weekend, and was teaching it on Monday,"
Kroll says. "For that first class, I was barely one day ahead of my students,
but it made me learn the program in-depth. Within a year, I had learned six
different applications and began teaching them."
The ability to quickly learn new software is essential for software trainers.
"The biggest requirement is that you can quickly get up to speed on new
technologies, because there are always new ones. And you always have to be
immersing yourself in something new so you can teach other people how to use
it," says Martin.
Kroll says there are three additional qualities that are important for
software trainers.
"First: Patience," she says. "Second: Absolute knowledge of a software
in a real working environment. You can't fake it. Third: Laugh. Enjoy working
with people to help them learn something new."
Michael Shumko says the best part of being a software trainer is interacting
with people and sharing ideas.
"I especially like the 'Aha! moment,' seeing the light bulb come on when
someone has grasped a difficult topic," he says.
Kroll echoes Shumko's comment: "The best is when I hear the DING and the
light bulb comes on, and the student 'gets it.' They become excited with a
new skill, and I have seen some amazing talent hiding in students. The next
best is when they call me to thank me years later, because they landed a job
they wanted, and they get to use what I taught them."
Shumko became a software trainer after discovering how much he enjoyed
sharing his knowledge of computers and software.
"As a young nerd fascinated with science and computers, I studied computer
science in college," says Shumko. "Then I worked as a programmer-analyst for
a big company for about seven years. During that time I became specialized
in certain computer systems, and started sharing what I knew with my colleagues.
That's when I discovered that I enjoyed working with people even more than
working with computers, and that sharing what I knew gave me satisfaction."
If you think software training might be for you, Shumko suggests you take
a close look at the teachers you have particularly liked, or not liked. Use
them as examples to see if you have the qualities that make a good instructor.
"They can try teaching their peers and parents about some software topics
that they themselves are knowledgeable," Shumko says. "Prepare some written
materials, workbooks, examples, exercises, and see if they can get grandpa
to start Skyping or using Excel. [They can] get constructive feedback from
their 'students.'"
Kroll offers similar advice: "Tutor younger students or older slower students
in your strong subject," she suggests. "Develop patience, compassion, understanding."
Kroll also advises keeping an eye on the big picture.
"Young persons still in high school who want to become a software trainer
should focus on a career field first, and the software used within a field
second," says Kroll. "Within any career, technology is leading the advances
made in any field: Medicine, engineering, electronics, etc. The field drives
the development of the technology and the software."
Aspiring software trainers should also have a high tolerance for change.
Software is an ever-changing field. Kroll has seen this first-hand.
"Within the 20 years I have been teaching computer graphic software, I
have watched companies and the software they created rise to the top and be
knocked off by another company's software," Kroll says. "I have thrown out
at least half of the software I learned, because the company that created
it is no longer in business. This trend will not change.
"Do not be brand loyal to one particular software manufacturer
or operating system," she adds. "It will change, and every year the changes
come faster and faster."