Midwinter training portal to ease software transition

According to a statement, the training portal, The Midwinter Academy, will enable advisers to access at any time a range of courses on their own AdviceOS software solution.

The portal comprises seven key modules: customer relationship management (CRM) and client administration; product analysis and advice; insurance advice; modelling and strategy advice; data feeds and reviews; client engagement; and practice and licensee management.

Midwinter said users will also be able to choose their preferred method/s of training, which include webinars, online courses, video tutorials, paperless training manuals and software updates.

The firm's chief of technology and executive director, Andrew McClelland, noted that a major hurdle faced by licensees and large practices transferring from one software solution to another is the training of staff for the new solution.

"The Midwinter Academy was created as a result of identifying this issue, ensuring that software training undertaken during a transition is done with minimal disturbance to advice businesses," Mr McClelland said.

"Sometimes it is just not feasible to send your staff out of the office for a whole day and, for those planners in regional areas, it can be very hard to undertake regular face-to-face training."

The modules have been constructed to offer users rewards and incentives for completing each part of their training, Midwinter said.

This increases engagement with the training process, while tracking the level of knowledge the user has reached, the statement said.