Q: Where are the course outlines and syllabi?
A: On many software training companies’ Websites you will find course outlines and syllabi. You won’t find them here. I don’t use them. Why? Simple: The needs of real world workflows don’t follow a pre-written syllabus.

A syllabus or pre-written course outline forces learners into working toward the instructor’s goals, not their own. Every client has its own needs and goals; every creative and publishing workflow operates differently in some way from other workflows. I build a course specifically for your workflow, your personnel, and, most importantly, targeted squarely at reaching your goals.

Before arriving on site, I will coordinate with you through telephone and e-mail to build a crystal clear picture of your goals. I will ask you about your current workflow, what works, what doesn’t, and how you feel it can be improved. Along the way I’ll listen for what you don’t say, for the questions you may not know to ask, and the possible solutions and options you may not be aware are available to you. I will present your options and my recommendations, and together we will finalize the goals for the engagement. This will become the foundation for the curriculum by which your personnel will be trained.

Once on-site, the instruction and consultation will flow fluidly, adapting to any revised or newly discovered goals or needs. Because of my expertise with the processes, concerns, and tools of a wide variety of design publishing workflows, I can turn the plan on a dime, adapting it on-site without pause.

Every consultation and training class I deliver is customized specifically to the needs, goals, and unique work of the client. Whenever possible, the client’s own projects are used to dramatically improve learner comprehension and retention over other types of examples and learning aids.

Q: Does Pariah offer Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced courses?
A: Yes, and no. I teach people with all levels of experience, but I don’t use those words to describe either instruction or the people learning.

In formal linear education, when one starts out with no knowledge of a tool and no specific goal other than to learn the tool, and then progresses toward mastery, drawing such distinctions in skills and ability levels makes sense. On the job, however, with real world projects to complete and paying clients to wow, all that matters is being able to get work done creativitely, productively, and with minimal confusion and frustration.

In the middle of a project, racing toward deadline, no designer has ever uttered the phrase: “Holy cow! I’ve just completed an intermediary level InDesign task!”

I teach your personnel everything they need to do their jobs and reach your goals—be those so-called beginner, intermediate, or advanced skills. Once I’ve accomplished that, once they know how to get their work done with a maximum of creativity and productivity and a minimum of frustration, I’ll teach them everything else they want to know—all the cool tricks and techniques that might not be directly related to your workflow.

Q: What about after sale support?
A: That’s a very important question.

You will receive two years of complimentary support following an on-site engagement, either training or consulting. If the development of custom plug-ins, scripts, or applications is part of my work for you, you will receive three years of complimentary support on those custom developed components.

All members of your team will be able to contact me for support via e-mail, and team leaders, IT, and management will also be able to telephone for support.

Depending on the products and systems improved or introduced into your workflow, you may also receive manufacturer’s warranty support. For example, as of this writing, Adobe offers complimentary technical support on the current and most recent previous version of retail software such as InDesign or InCopy. In addition to support from me, you will receive any warranteed support available from the manufacturer, even if I purchase the products on your behalf.

Q: Who owns software purchases?
A: You do. As a convenience to my clients I am available to make software and hardware purchases on your behalf. If you ask that I purchase products on your behalf, I do exactly that, on your behalf. The money is yours, so the products it purchases will be yours. You will own the licenses and be entitled to any warranties, manufacturer support, and/or future upgrade incentives that accompany the products. In the future, when it’s time to upgrade, you can go directly through the manufacturer or other available sales channels without the need to involve me—unless you want to (I’ll probably be missing you by then, too, and would welcome the chance to help again).

Q: Does Pariah offer open enrollment classroom training?
A: I don’t offer open enrollment training or maintain my own training classroom. My singular focus is on improving real world creative and publishing workflows on-site at your offices.

In an open enrollment setting, every student brings different goals, needs, and skill levels into the classroom. When all three of those factors vary—and they always vary in an open enrollment class—it becomes impossible for an instructor to fully meet the goals and needs of every student while engaging each student. Such classes are ideal for helping new software users develop an overall education about a product and for freelancers and others seeking to improve their marketability and job prospects. But for those with specific needs and goals, those with jobs and projects already, open enrollment education achieves only a minimal return on investment.

From time to time, I do teach open enrollment classes on behalf of other training companies. Although I enjoy the classes and target every student’s needs and goals as much as possible, I know that no one with a job to do can walk away from an open enrollment class fully prepared to work more creativitely and productively in a specific workflow.

That is the key difference between software education and workflow-focussed training and consulting: Is the educational focus on the software or what you will do with the software?

If you would like to arrange to attend an open enrollment class please contact me. I work with many of the best training facilities, and would be happy to recommend one in your area.

Q: Who should make Pariah’s travel arrangements?
A: Typically it’s easier and more efficient if I make my own travel arrangements, but if you have someone to take care of such things, I’m happy to work with that person.

Q: Don’t you work for…?
A: Probably. The software training community is small and rather nepotistic. Most of the better instructors and consultants know each other and work together on some projects and at some times even while they compete on other projects and at other times. Because servicing clients is the overriding goal for us all, we tend to send our overflow work to, and even hire, our competition. Additionally, independent consultants like myself are often brought in by larger training companies to service their most important clients, lead teams of trainers on large engagements, or fill-in holes in training firms’ service offerings.

For instance, most contemporary firms offer InCopy training and consulting, but few actually have experts on staff to deliver the InCopy training they sell. Most of the time, these companies secure the assignment and then call me to teach it (I’ve earned the moniker of “that InCopy guy”).

While you can request me as the instructor from any of the companies with whom I subcontract, by hiring me directly you enjoy not only the same experience, expertise, and adaptability, but you also get me at a much lower rate—whether for InCopy or any other professional creative tool.

Q: Where can Pariah travel? Is his training and consulting limited to the US or North America?
A: Oh, no. I teach and consult anywhere in the world. However, because I only speak English, I require that all students speak fluent English. (I can count up to 10, say please and thank you, and ask for directions to my embassy in nine other languages, but that won’t get us very far toward optimizing a non-English-speaking workgroup.)

Q: How soon can Pariah get to your office?
A: Let’s find out.