Know-How : The Definitive Book on Skill and Knowledge Transfer for Occasional Trainers, Experts, Coaches, and Anyone Helping Others Learn

Know How: The Definitive Book for Occasional Trainers, Content Experts, Educators, Mentors, Coaches, and Even Parents, by Harold D. Stolovitch and Erica J. Keeps, is for people with the know-how that someone else requires. It is written for those who need to transfer knowledge to others: subject matter experts, proficient performers, managers, coaches, co-workers, and even parents.

Learning and development professionals are experts in many areas, and we often feel driven to transform what we have learned about training and learning into a useful tool that anyone can readily access and apply. Learning the best methods and practices for transferring our knowledge to those who need it is critical for us and for our trainees to be successful. Adding to the sustained success and influence of their previous books, especially Telling Ain’t Training, and incorporating feedback they have received over the years, Stolovitch and Keeps have written a fun, effective guide for readers who find themselves in the role of trainer, tutor, guide, coach, consultant, or helpful advisor.

The book’s 13 chapters each focus on a single theme and are sequenced like stepping-stones to help you understand how to best transfer know-how to those who learn from you. Chapters include brief explanations, guidance, tools, activities, tangible and accessible examples of real-world applications, and a summary exercise to reinforce your retention of key points.Know How provides you with what you need now to quickly get people learning and up-to-speed. No fumbling, bumbling, rambling, or messing with people’s heads―this book delivers know-how and that’s all.

Harold D. Stolovitch, CPT, is a graduate of both McGill University in Canada and Indiana University in the United States, where he completed a doctorate and postdoctoral work in instructional systems technology. With one foot solidly grounded in the academic world and the other in the workplace, he has conducted a large number of research studies and practical projects always aimed at achieving high learning and performance results. In addition to creating countless instructional materials for a broad range of work settings, Stolovitch has authored more than 300 articles, research reports, book chapters, and books. He is a past president of the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI), former editor of the Performance Improvement Journal, and editorial board member of several human resource and performance technology journals. He has won numerous awards throughout his 40-year career, including the Thomas F. Gilbert Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement, ISPI's highest honor; Member-for-Life, the President's Award for Lifetime Achievements from the Canadian Society for Training and Development, their highest honor; and in 2004, he and his team won the ASTD Outstanding Research Award for their work on Incentives, Motivation, and Workplace Performance. Stolovitch is an emeritus professor, Université de Montréal, where he headed the instructional and performance technology graduate programs and was the School of Educational Sciences associate dean of research. He is also a former Distinguished Visiting Scholar and clinical professor of human performance at work, University of Southern California. Stolovitch is a principal of HSA Learning & Performance Solutions LLC.

Erica J. Keeps, CPT, holds a master's degree in educational psychology from Wayne State University, Detroit, and a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan, where she later became a faculty member in the Graduate Business School Executive Education Center. Her 40-year professional career has included training management positions with J.L. Hudson Co. and Allied Supermarkets and senior-level learning and performance consultant positions with a wide variety of organizations. Keeps has not only produced and supervised the production of numerous instructional materials and performance management systems, but has also published extensively on improving workplace learning and performance. She has provided staff development for instructional designers, training administrators, and performance consultants. Keeps has been acknowledged by many learning and performance leaders as a caring mentor and major influence in their careers. She is a former executive board member of the ISPI; a past president of the Michigan Chapter of ISPI; and a Member-for-Life of the Michigan, Montreal, and Los Angeles ISPI chapters. Among her many awards for outstanding contributions to instructional and performance technology is ISPI’s Distinguished Service Award for her extensive leadership roles. Keeps is the managing director and a principal of HSA Learning & Performance Solutions LLC. Stolovitch and Keeps are the co-authors of Telling Ain't Training, first published in 2002, with a second edition in 2011.