Teaching the Tough Stuff

Helping Injury Reps Navigate Complexity and Reduce Litigation Risk

By Jill Brown
Senior Learning Experience Designer, FōKUS Group

When I was asked to lead a learning program for representatives who handle complex personal injury claims, I knew it wouldn’t be simple. 

Leadership was concerned that too many claims were going to litigation—something that’s expensive and often avoidable with the right skills and information.

The stakes are high, the conversations are nuanced, and the reps themselves are some of the most experienced people in the organization. This is the top-tier group—people who’ve been in customer-facing roles for years before stepping into this position.

The Challenge: Closing Performance Gaps in Senior Professionals

The work these reps do sits at the intersection of legal nuance, medical understanding, policy interpretation, and human empathy. 

They need to know how to read medical coding and crash reports, how to interpret policy language across different states, and—most importantly—how to have calm, empathetic conversations that avoid escalation.

When you're working with a team that has so much experience, designing training isn’t just about content. It’s also about credibility. You need buy-in from people who’ve seen it all (and who will let you know if what you’re building doesn’t meet the mark)!

The Approach: A Blended Learning Experience

We started from the ground up with a full gap and task analysis. Every task was rated by importance and difficulty, and that helped us prioritize where to focus. 

We knew negotiation skills were a key issue, and that soft skills training couldn’t be generic—it had to be specific to this role and these conversations.

We built a blended learning experience, organized into:

• Core eLearning modules

• Short, focused microlearning

• Crash scene visuals and high-production animations

• Conversations with coaches and peer mentors

• Empathy and negotiation scenario training

• Touchpoints for long-term sustainment

We included high-quality design, visuals, and video clips that elevated the entire experience. 

The Outcome: Buy-In and Engagment

We were working with a group that doesn’t sugarcoat. Their response was overwhelmingly positive.

They told us it was relevant, respectful of their experience, and easy to navigate. There was buy-in from the SMEs because they were involved from day one, and they became internal champions for the learning.

Even other departments noticed. (Some teams were legitimately jealous of the polish and thoughtfulness of the content.)

Lessons Learned: When Training is Done Right, Even the Toughest Audiences Become Your Biggest Supporters

Takeaways from this project:

• Credibility matters. Experienced learners need to see that the training reflects the complexity of their work.

• Design matters. When content looks and feels high-quality, people take it seriously.

• You can’t fake empathy. Teaching negotiation and empathy isn’t about lectures—it’s about building space for practice and reflection.

• Sustainment starts early. We didn’t tack it on. We built follow-ups, peer coaching, and microlearning into the plan from the beginning.

When training is done right, even the toughest audiences become your biggest supporters.

Ready to Train Your Team on the Hard Stuff?

Whether you need to upskill seasoned professionals or tackle complex service interactions, we’ll help you design a training experience that earns buy-in and drives results.

From Two Weeks to Two Days

How a Targeted Training Revamp Improved Customer Service and Cut Onboarding Time

By Steven Linley, Ph.D.
Learning Strategist and Leadership Development Consultant

When I was brought in to help a mid-sized distribution company improve its customer service, the ask was simple: “Can you teach our call center staff how to be nicer on the phone?” 

But as is often the case, the real problem wasn’t what it seemed.

The Challenge: Frustrated Customers and Lots of Complaints

The company’s call center supported a large-scale warehouse and delivery operation. Their team was getting hit with complaints—lots of them. 

Customers were frustrated by long wait times and by staff who couldn’t provide answers. 

The call center supervisor described it as a “chronic issue,” and the VP’s marching orders to me were clear: fix the customer service problem.

At first glance, this looked like a classic “soft skills” training opportunity. But rather than jumping into course development, I started with a proper analysis.

The Underlying Problem: Inability to Find Critical Information

I spent time observing the team and reviewing their current onboarding program. What I found was surprising. The team was made up of incredibly friendly, helpful people. The issue wasn’t attitude. It was difficulty with internal systems.

They had a two-week onboarding program that covered everything from systems navigation to company policies. 

But despite all that time, new hires were struggling to find the information they needed—basic things like order details, shipment statuses, and inventory levels. 

When customers called, staff were forced to say, “Let me call you back,” because they couldn’t locate answers in real time.

The result? Frustrated customers. Overwhelmed staff. And a huge opportunity for improvement.

The Solution: Streamlined Training on the Top Issues

Instead of teaching “better customer service,” we focused on job functionality. 

I started by analyzing the call data. Over 80% of the calls were related to just 10 repeatable scenarios. That’s it. Ten questions made up the bulk of the workload.

I worked with the supervisor to create a streamlined training program that taught new hires how to resolve those top 10 issues—quickly and confidently. 

We built short, practical modules that focused on:

• Navigating the system to find key information

• Step-by-step resolution for each scenario

• When and how to escalate less common issues

We reduced the onboarding time from two weeks to just two days. 

By zeroing in on what really mattered, we helped new hires get productive faster—and eased the burden on supervisors and senior staff.

The Results: Shorter Wait Times, Fewer Complaints, Faster Onboarding

The impact was immediate:

• Customer complaints dropped significantly within the first month.

• Wait times improved, thanks to faster call resolution.

• Staff confidence increased, with new hires reporting they felt better prepared and less stressed.

• The company saved time and money by shortening onboarding and reducing repeat training needs.

All of this came from aligning training with actual job performance—not just generic skills.

Lessons Learned: Ask the Right Questions Up Front

This project reinforced a lesson I’ve learned over and over: the best learning solutions come from asking the right questions up front. 

It’s tempting to jump into content development, but real value lies in discovering the actual problem and designing training that solves it.

In this case, the issue wasn’t a lack of soft skills. It was a lack of access and clarity. And with a focused approach, we turned a struggling call center into a high-performing team in just a few weeks.