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Mackenzie Bartz 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

Implementation of Training Manuals in the WNU Employee Portal 

Proposal For: Western National Property Management Division at 

Western National Group (WNG) 

By: Mackenzie Bartz 

November 12th, 2019 

 
 

 
  
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

THE PROBLEM 
The current LMS (learning management system) that is in place for training 
purposes at Western National Group does not include the manuals that are all 
currently printed out as hard copies in binders. By the end of the training week, and 
after other sessions that employees come back to later on to receive additional 
training, they are left with a large stack of binders that are hardly used again, and if 
they are used, the information is difficult to find.  
 
THE OPPORTUNITY 
1. There is already an LMS in place for training employees, but the excessive use 
of paper and binders in an industry where paper is already so prevalent 
increases the amount of unnecessary waste produced.  
2. The training modules that are currently in hard copy format can be 
transferred online in order to reduce overall waste while also giving 
employees a resource to easily access the information online. 
 
THE SOLUTION 
The streamlined process of putting the training modules all online will allow the 
company to reduce expenditures and paper waste during the first main week of 
training and employees will be able to access all of the information online later.  
 
PROJECT OUTLINE 
● During the week of training, employees will be introduced to all of the 
different learning manuals that are accessible online. The manuals will be 
divided up into different modules, and should have features that make it 
easily accessible to find information.  
● Reducing the use of so much paper and binders will not only be more 
cost-effective, have a greater return on investment, but will have a sustainable 
impact. 
 
- Western National Group is a private company that specializes in three different areas: property 
management, construction, and investing in properties. Their mission is to provide exceptional service to 
the multifamily properties they own and manage that are located in California. The first week of training, 
also known as Week Of Welcome (WOW), is applicable to all new employees who are working for any of the 
divisions of the company, but examples mentioned later on refer to those working for the property 
management division.  

 
 
 

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INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM 

 

THE IMPACT OF REDUCING WASTE 

The amount of paper that is used in the office for a property management company 
on average is already an astounding amount, especially in an industry that is reliant 
on paperwork for things such as large resident files at their properties, where hard 
copies are required. An important study by Gartner, Inc., found that “​the average 
office worker uses 10,000 sheets of paper a year. It is also concluded that 50% of the 
waste of businesses is composed of paper.​”​1 As
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WNG owns and manages hundreds 
of properties in California, the amount that is actually wasted every year probably 
matches or exceeds this statistic. In another​ study done by Tufts University alongside 
a non-profit called ForestEthics found that, ​“Paper itself may not be expensive, but 
the costs spent on storage, copying, printing and postage add up expenses. Studies 
estimate that associated 
paper costs such as these 
total to roughly 30 times 
the actual purchasing 
cost.”​2​ So, not only is there a 
great amount that is 
wasted, but the purchasing 
as well as storage cost is 
likely spending money that 
WNG could be utilizing 
elsewhere. As seen in the picture above,​3​ almost 50% of 1,000 small-medium sized 
businesses have expressed interest in reducing printing costs since it can be such a 
drain on a company’s budget.  
 

1​[Link]
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2​[Link]
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- 3​[Link]

 
 
  
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION 
 
 
WHAT CURRENTLY EXISTS 
While there is already an LMS in 
place at Western National 
Group, many of the training 
modules are still given in 
binders. These modules are 
crucial in understanding the 
many new programs that are 
necessary to know for the 
industry. Throughout the course 
of five days we are given at least 
one or up to three binders a day. 
All of the information that are found in the binders could be put online in the 
Western National University portal that is already implemented (pictured above).  

WHY THIS WILL BE SUCCESSFUL 

As heard from other employees who went through the same training program that I 
did, I found that many of them shared the same sentiments. While there are many 
new programs to learn and the manuals are laid out in an efficient way, broken up 
by section and explained thoroughly, it was hard to refer back to those ideas if an 
employee needed to reference them while on the job. Since most of the work we do 
at our jobs is on the computer, having an online resource to access all of the 
information will make it easier to find, and will help with the transition with learning 
all of the new programs. Proven in other companies, putting information online 
“gives a good ROI, lowering training costs over time... moving your training online 
not only allows you to allocate valuable resources to other areas of your budget, but 
also makes the training process even more effective.”​4 

 
 
- 4​
 
[Link]

 
 
 

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COST ANALYSIS 
 
AVERAGE EMPLOYEE TRAINING EXPENDITURES 
Western National Group uses Staples for office 
supplies and any large printing projects. The 
estimated cost below of printing was found on the 
Staples website. Cost/page: $0.52. Each binder 
given to each employee going through training 
has about 150-250 pages. The total price of one 
binder is $2. With colored copies in each binder, 
the total is about $78-$130. So, the total ranges 
from $80-$132. Copies can be made at the office 
but paper and toner still has to be purchased from 
Staples, and there are a few binders with packets of 
information that are printed professionally at 
Staples. Employees are given about nine binders 
over the course of the week of training.  
 
On average, the cost to implement new additions to an existing LMS for a certain 
number of users is about $5 depending on the number of learners, but this has been 
found to be the best option for small-medium sized businesses.​5​ For the cost of 
adding an element to the LMS for the sake of this cost analysis, I included the 
average number of employees at each training session, which is 35.  
 

Description Quantity Unit Price Cost 

Estimated Cost/Binder 1 $80-132 $80-132 

Number of Binders/Employee 9 $720-1,188 

Cost of Adding an Element to LMS 35 $5/mo $175/mo 

Total Estimated Cost of printing: $25,200-$41,580 
Total Estimated Cost of adding LMS feature:  $175/month 

 
- 5​​ [Link]
 
 
  
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ASSESSMENT STRATEGY 
Intended Outcomes 
● Reduce the waste produced during WOW on the training manuals and the 
cost of making the training manuals by eliminating the paper aspect.  
● Ease the transition for new employees to a new industry by providing an even 
more accessible learning platform.  

Measuring Outcomes 
● To measure the success of this program, it will be crucial to review usefulness 
with employees. There is a mentoring program that is implemented after new 
employees go through training, and this is something that could be 
acknowledged when the trainors are helping the new employees/trainees.  
● It will also be important to measure the amount of paper that is saved during 
the transition online.  
● Cost measurement, such as long-term ROI will also be a key measure in order 
to under the financial returns and financial savings with this program.  

CONCLUSION 
- The reduction in the use of paper will have an impact on the planet, 
helping make the company more sustainable. 

- The training program that WNG has already implemented is a very 

helpful tool for new employees, but since there are many programs to 
learn, especially for people new to the industry, referring back to them 
later on will be a utilizable resource.  

-​ Not only does the elimination of all the binders and paper reduce 
waste, but it will also help reduce the cost of the training program 
overall. A lot of money is invested to each individual, and this could help 
save the company money that is spent on training.  
 
 
 
 

 
 
 

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APPENDIX 

 
To: Training and Development Department at WNG 
From:  Mackenzie Bartz 
Subject: Training Program Restructuring 
Date:  November 12, 2019 
 
After going through orientation as a newly hired employee and going to your 
property to begin your first couple of weeks at your new job, was there ever a time 
where you had a question about a function in OnSite and were unable to find it 
anywhere in the training manual because there was so much information to search 
through? With the training manuals implemented online, you will be able to sit right 
at your desk and search for the information in a module located on the Western 
National University Student Portal. Since there is quite a lot to learn during the first 
week at orientation, putting all resources online will make it easier to refer back to 
information. 
 
Even if you are an employee after a few years and become more seasoned with the 
practices of the industry and the binders seem to become arbitrary to you, if there is 
ever a moment of panic and you need a quick solution or shortcut to help solve a 
problem, the information will all be easily accessible at any point in time during your 
duration at the company​.

After all of the hard work that has gone into the recently improved training program 
for all Western National Group associates, I believe that implementing all of the 
training manuals online has proven to be beneficial in a couple of ways; The amount 
spent on each employee during WOW has been reduced, and it has helped ease the 
transition for employees who are new to the property management industry.