Tag: training

Edtech Unicorns and JIT Training

Udemy went IPO last week, and PitchBook just published a note on the category, so I thought to write about my positive experiences with Coursera.  Online learning is segmented by subject, level, and quality of instruction.  See the research note for a complete rundown.

The edtech boom has not waned now that most schools and universities are again meeting in person. 

Coursera is oriented toward college credit and professional certification.  My instructor for neural nets, Coursera co-founder Andrew Ng, is a professor at Stanford.  They offer online degree programs in conjunction with major universities.  For example, you can earn a Master’s in Data Science through CU Boulder.

I was intrigued by that, but … I have a specific business problem to solve, and I already have grad-level coursework in statistics.  It doesn’t make sense for me to sit through STAT 561 again.  For me, the “all you can eat” plan is a better value at $50 per month.

What I need, today, is to move this code off my laptop and into the cloud.  For that, I can take the cloud deployment class.  If I run into problems with data wrangling, there’s a class for that, too.  This reminds me of that scene in The Matrix, where Trinity learns to fly a helicopter.

People can gain the skills they need, as and when they need them – not as fast as Trinity, but fast enough to keep up with evolving needs on the job.  I think this is the future of education, and 37 million students agree with me.

Wanted: Experienced F&I Trainer

I am in the process of creating an eCommerce department for Safe-Guard.  Regular readers know that I specialize in creating new organizations, and my record is pretty good.  The training function, which is also a kind of sales function, is likely to grow.  So, this is an opportunity to get in early.

The job is to train all of the F&I managers who sell products administered by Safe-Guard, and ensure they know how to present them properly using any of the top ten menu systems.  For one person, at least to begin with, this will be a challenge.  We are in thousands of dealerships.

Thus, the successful candidate must have the skill and temperament to leverage the resources of our affiliated agents, vendors, manufacturers, and dealer groups.  Self-starter.  Travel.  Proficiency in F&I procedures and software, notably menu systems.  Salary commensurate with experience.