Caterpillar University Need

Faced with high organizational and traveling costs to train their Master Black Belts (MBBs), Caterpillar University’s College of 6 Sigma began searching for alternative approaches to meet their training objectives. Essentially, the highly complex and custom material being taught in MBB courses needed to be distributed globally in an easily accessible format. There were over 40 courses totaling 77+ hours of training that needed to be delivered to this exclusive audience. There were significant enterprise results as this training would “train the trainers” – Master Black Belts would learn how to train Black Belts.

How Iona Helped

Because of the scope and volume of training that was needed, Iona knew immediately that DVD would be the optimal format. Web delivery was not an option because this material was needed in parts of the world that did not have high internet bandwidth. We developed two DVD boxed sets that included digital video of the classroom teaching of all 40 courses. Iona utilized direct-to-digital video and audio recording of the live classroom training being delivered by the 6 Sigma subject matter experts. We used 3 digital video cameras and 8 microphones and an on-site digital production switcher to allow for live direction that produced a rough edit on the spot. All post-production was completed at Iona to create DVDs (many of them dual layer) with interactive menus. Replication and packaging was also administered by The Iona Group.

Connection Made

Being a leading proponent of 6 Sigma, Caterpillar has already achieved a return on investment in both tangible and intangible ways. Many training and travel costs have been reduced and the MBB have become more effective in their roles – a result that has far-reaching impact in Caterpillar’s global 6 Sigma efforts.