Don't confine IT training to the classroom
Should employees be taught in the classroom,
on the web, or both? With one quarter of businesses introducing
e-learning, what opportunities does it hold for IT?
With its potential to cut costs and streamline staff training,
e-learning has obvious attractions for cost-conscious companies.
According to research company IDC, 25% of European businesses
have plans to introduce e-learning, and technology training
is one of the most widely implemented forms of e-learning.
Enthusiasm from the UK government has encouraged public sector
involvement. The Ministry of Defence, which spends £2.2bn
a year on training, aims to deliver 30% of training materials
electronically within two years, said Keith Scott, director
of training at LogicaCMG, one of the companies bidding for
the contract.
The main selling point of e-learning is the potential for
greater efficiency. According to analyst firm Meta Group,
e-learning can provide 30% more learning content in 40% less
time at a cost 30% below traditional classroom-based learning.
Training budgets
However, e-learning still has a long way to go before it
replaces classroom-based training. According to an IDC report,
only 6% of corporate training budgets are currently being
spent on e-learning, compared to 70% on classroom-based learning.
Business has modified its expectations of e-learning since
the boom of the late 1990s. The naive conviction that every
skill for every employee could be delivered more cheaply and
efficiently by switching from the classroom to the PC meant
many companies took a big-bang approach.
Today, however, fewer businesses are investing huge sums
to implement in-house training platforms. Projects tend to
be smaller and focused on a particular training requirement.
E-learning encompasses many forms of technology-based training.
Content delivered through a dedicated software system for
delivering learning content and tracking employee progress
is known as a learning management system. Companies that write
their own training material use a learning content management
system.
E-learning can also be done through a combination of conference
media such as instant messaging, company intranet sites and
face-to-face meetings.
Some of the bigger suppliers in the e-learning market include
Teknical, Saba and Docent and experts predict that leading
enterprise resource planning and customer relationship management
suppliers will offer their own e-learning products.
There are also plenty of companies bidding for the expanding
outsourcing business, about 50% of e-learning programmes are
outsourced to companies such as LogicaCMG and Thomson NETg.
Cost savings
Insurance firm Royal & SunAlliance is currently rolling
out an enterprise learning management system from Saba to
50,000 employees worldwide. The benefits include cost savings
and compliance with regulations that stipulate a minimum level
of training for each employee.
"Our cost/benefit analysis shows clear gains where e-learning
has replaced the classroom in terms of opportunity cost, less
need for travel, accommodation and facilities and savings
in course development costs and materials," said Andy
Wooler, manager of learning management systems at Royal &
SunAlliance.
When the systems are in place, the insurance giant plans
to gradually introduce other e-learning projects, ranging
from industry-specific skills such as underwriting and claims
through to broader skills such as desktop applications. With
time the system may be extended to deliver training to key
brokers outside the company.
More sophisticated e-learning content comprises video, sound
or games and is available on PCs, laptops, personal digital
assistants and 3G phones.
Warning bells
This will ring warning bells with the IT director, given
the capacity for extra devices placing unwanted strain on
the network, but upgrades may not be necessary and projects
can be matched to capacity, said Vaughan Waller, chairman
at the eLearning Network, an association for users of technology-based
training.
Some subjects lend themselves better to e-learning and one
subject all experts put top is technology. Experts stress
that online learning works well where training is closely
tied to the job. This could mean guiding a call centre employee
through the procedure for taking a call while they are on
the phone.
There is also the potential for more timely e-learning. Scott
gives the example of a bomb disposal expert using "just-in-time"
information from a PDA.
In order to be successful, e-learning schemes should also
involve the human factor. The key to successful online learning
is that the student wants to learn in a new way. It will not
work if employees suspect that "anytime anyplace"
learning is a management plot to get them to work in their
spare time.
However, for some organisations, the classroom is still the
preferred option, particularly for communication-based skills
such as commercial negotiation.
But most experts are not convinced that either the classroom
or e-learning is better. They advise combining the two in
"blended learning". And nobody suggests that e-learning
is easy. "E-learning works best where customers do not
expect miracles and where there has been a lot of planning,"
said Waller.
Tips for e-learning success
An e-learning project is more likely to succeed if:
