The Ask: Empowering Personnel for Advanced Data Reporting

In 2014, Lightetech Consulting was engaged by one of the largest Clinical Trials companies in the world to support a Data Management expansion initiative. The company needed to enhance its data reporting capabilities, ensuring that personnel could generate custom reports for top management and stakeholders.

Initially, database administrators (DBAs) and support teams handled these requests, but as the volume and complexity increased, a dedicated custom reporting team was formed. However, this new team lacked the technical training and infrastructure to effectively fulfill their responsibilities.

The Challenges: Skill Gaps & a Fragmented Training Infrastructure

The company faced multiple obstacles in training its personnel:

• Untrained Personnel – Many team members had little to no technical background.
• Lack of a Proper Training Environment – The company had no dedicated environment to test and apply new skills.
• Team Discrepancies & Conflicts – Live support teams and the newly formed reporting team had clashing opinions and poor communication, often leading to heated disagreements.
• Fear of Live System Disruptions – Management hesitated to allow unqualified personnel to interact with production systems.
• High Licensing Costs – One of the required live systems had a license cost close to $1M, making an additional installation in training environment financially unfeasible.

Without a structured training methodology and a safe training platform, the company risked operational inefficiencies, delayed reporting, and interdepartmental friction.

The Solution: A Tailored Training Program & Infrastructure

When Lightetech Consulting stepped in, we conducted a comprehensive assessment, engaging with all teams to understand their concerns, needs, and fears. Our strategy involved two key solutions:

1. Establishing a Proper Training Environment

•  We leveraged the company’s existing licenses to set up a dedicated training environment for one of the required systems.
•  The second system, requiring a $1M license, presented a challenge. Through negotiations with the vendor, we secured permission to install a limited-functionality training version of the system—at no additional cost. Moreover the vendor assisted in installation for free being themselves curious of this Proof of Concept
•  We implemented on-demand production data porting, ensuring realistic training scenarios using a copy of production data

2. Creating a Structured Training Methodology

•  The company already had training documentation, but it was limited to certain modules and was a general system use type of manuals. We expanded it to cover backend operations and data reporting workflows.
•  We introduced progressive training modules, allowing personnel to gradually build expertise before handling live reports.
•  We facilitated collaborative training sessions, bridging the gap between the reporting team and live support teams, fostering mutual understanding and respect.

What Happened After: A Long-Term Training Success

• Fully Operational Training Environment – After more than 10 years of struggle, the client had the first end-to-end training system, established in 2014, remains in use today, providing continuous training for new personnel.
• Reduced Errors & Improved Reporting – Personnel now have a controlled space to develop expertise, preventing costly mistakes in live systems.
• Peace of Mind for Management – With proper training infrastructure, management no longer worries about unqualified staff disrupting production environments.
• Stronger Interdepartmental Collaboration – The structured approach eliminated team conflicts, aligning all stakeholders toward a common goal.

By implementing a scalable training program and environment, Lightetech Consulting helped this global clinical trials company enhance reporting efficiency, minimize risk, and foster a culture of continuous learning.