New Horizons Atlanta, Georgia

Световната мрежа New Horizons Computer Learning Centers годишно доставя над 3 млн. учебни дни под формата на присъствени курсове и над 1 млн. часа онлайн обучение в над 300 учебни центъра в повече от 60 страни.

Независимо в коя част на света са разположени, центровете на New Horizons отговарят на едни и същи високи изисквания и спазват установен корпоративен стандарт по отношение на качеството на предоставяните обучения, квалифицираност на инструкторите, комуникация с клиенти и партньори, техническа база. Благодарение на това, оторизираните обучения, които можете да получите в център от учебната мрежа на New Horizons Computer Learning Centers, имат еднакво висока стойност по целия свят.

Всяка година представянето на центровете на New Horizons се оценява по редица критерии и показалите най-високи резултати се отличават с награда за 5-звезден център (Five Star Center of Excellence Award). Петте звезди се дават за представяне  в следните области: Удовлетвореност на клиентите (измервана чрез независими изследвания на Metrics that Matter®, прилагани към различни вендори от /Ит индустрията), Представяне на инструкторите, Статус на оторизиран вендор партньор, Учебни материали, Техническа база и учебна среда.

В серия от интервюта ще ви представим някои от отличниците на New Horizons Computer Learning Centers.

New Horizons Atlanta
Web: http://www.nhgeorgia.com
Awards:
2010-2011 Five Star Center of Excellence Award winner;
2009 Cisco Excellence in Acceleration Award Winner – New Horizons CLC was recognized as Cisco’s Fastest Growing Partner in the US & Canada
2010 Center Award from Cisco for delivering the most Training days in the Network

Authorized Training: Computer Application Courses (Windows 7, Microsoft Office, Adobe Courses, Crystal Reports, QuickBooks), Technical and Certification Courses (Microsoft Technical, Cisco, Citrix, CompTIA, Information Security, ITIL, Oracle, VMware), Business Skills Courses, Project Management Courses, Six Sigma Courses, Healthcare Information Management Program

James Hartnett
General Manager at New Horizons Atlanta

Mr. Hartnett, what were the most popular courses in New Horizons Atlanta in 2010?

Our CISCO Program was a tremendous success in 2010.  We were recognized by CISCO, for the quality of our delivery and received a Center Award, for the most Training days delivered in 2010. We enabled some 40 students to obtain their CCNA Certification.
‘We are helping students get employed – in a really tough economy’.

Was there a demand for courses on new technologies?

Yes, Our ICND1 and ICND2 Offerings led the way. Additionally, we  experienced, a huge demand for SHAREPOINT training, Project Management training and VMWARE.
In 2011, we anticipate a sizeable increase in the demand for our higher level CISCO Courses.
With companies starting to add more funding for training in 2011, we are adding a number of Business Skills courses to our center mix. Our students must be able to effectively communicate in this very competitive landscape.

What were the most important changes in IT in 2010? How did your center responded to these changes?

Companies were under tremendous financial pressure to do more with less, while their employees were being asked to expand their core capabilities.
Training dollars were impacted and we saw a large demand for our Mentored Learning modality. Our students were taking advantage of this modality and doing coursework during off hours.

We added additional courses to our program and ensured we had top notch Mentors available for our students, providing them with new skills sets. Additionally we created study groups and exam prep session for our students.

What were your most successful activities in 2010?
We believe our customers are the final arbiter.  We had to ensure we understood their needs and adjusted our programs to meet those needs.
We were/are a strong customer focused organization that adheres to quality practices and  delivery. Our Customer-Centric focus,  attributed to our success in 2010.  We had three of our Instructors achieve top ratings for delivery in the New Horizons network.

What is the key to top performance and utmost customer satisfaction?

At our New Horizons Atlanta Center, the customer is our priority. We maintain a customer focus and I personally make wellness calls to our clients quarterly. We welcome feedback and immediately apply lessons learned. This practice enables the optimal student experience.

What were the most popular learning methods in 2010?

We meet our customer where they are.  While many demand the traditional (ILT) Instructor led modality, we encourage a blended learning model.  We find time to competency is increased for our students, when we enable them to experience a blended method of delivery.
Making our course content available to students after the class has provided a huge dividend for both them and their employers. Our training delivery model is extremely flexible.

Why do customers choose Online Live?

As we discussed earlier, we employ a blended learning approach. However, customers that have a disbursed work force, find this delivery modality very effective.  They gain the advantage of having remote students participate in live classroom activity with a robust set  of course offerings and schedule flexibility.
‘The world truly is flat’ and this modality is growing in acceptance.

Companies vs. Individuals. Was there a change in the percentage rates in 2010?

Yes, we have a seen a change in our business mix in 2010. While companies were ‘Right-sizing – we experienced an increased demand for training. Our consumer business was also strong. We helped a large number of students transition into new careers.

New Horizons Atlanta: A different approach to staffing

Do you communicate with your customers through social media, blogs, etc.?

Yes, we have established a CCNA Group on LinkedIn for our program graduates. We also have a Career Center Blog for our students to interact with us. The center is active on Twitter and we employ social media to reach / advise a broader audience.  Again in the spirit of meeting our customers where they are, we are expanding our reach via social media.

Is your center involved in any Green activities? Or do you give back to the community in another way?

First and foremost, we have offered the Green IT Curriculum to our students.
I have joined the LinkedIn Green IT Executive Forum and we have begun some interesting sub-groups and local community awareness programs. Our New Horizons Center in fact – meets the Green Building standard.
We indeed encourage ‘Give Backs and Paying it Forward’ as a Center.  We have opened the center to the community and are all active in community based programs.
We support and actively participate in ASTD, TAG – the Technology Association of Georgia, WIT – Women in Technology and various community based programs.

In what aspects do you expect 2011 to be different from 2010 for your center?

2010 was a renewal year for us. New Horizons has had a presence in Atlanta for some time. Many of our clients given market pressure, have reduced their training spend, created internal Universities or in some cases, did minimal training, if at all.  Despite these issues and the worst economy in history, we actually grew our business.
‘Job One’ – for us in 2011, will be to continue our Customer- Centric behavior. We are excited about our business and the up-coming year. We are privileged to have a great ownership group and a team of dedicated employees.

OUR MISSION:
– To attract and retain the best talent
– To repeat as a CISCO delivery Center of the Year
– To repeat  as a ‘Five Star Center’
– To exceed customers expectations
– To achieve quality delivery
– To change our community one person at a time
– To have fun and enable our colleagues success

According to you, what IT skills will be in high demand in your region within the next 3-5 years?

As we have already discussed, we have identified several high demand skill areas for 2011 and beyond.
As a business owner I’d be concerned about all my business critical applications. Department Level Directors will be worried about the transition of applications to the Cloud.  Security, security, security. The Network and Secured Systems, will be top of mind for decision makers in the IT field.
To my mind, sharing and collaboration will be in high demand over the next 3-5 years and we have adjusted / augmented our core curriculum to meet these needs and changing market place.

In what ways will IT training change within the next 3-5 years?

KEY to our success is the recognition of Companies who fall into the following categories: Early Adaptors, Middle of the Road and Laggards.
Collaboration and integration will have a huge impact on training delivery.  For the early adopters, we are prepared for them to really stretch our remote Learning methodology. The Laggards will employ perhaps some OLA and ILT, those in the middle of the adoption cycle we will identify early and again meet them where they are, with of mix of ‘Best in Class’ offerings.
In any event our instructor core, needs to be able to embrace change, while maintaining our high standards for delivery.

What would you like to say to New Horizons students in Bulgaria?

You have taken the first step to changing your life.  You have the support of the entire New Horizons network throughout your journey. Study hard, ask questions – wishing you much success!

New Horizons Atlanta: Success is the key to happiness

New Horizons Team – Atlanta – changing the world, ‘One Student at a time’.