The Future of Training: Moving from Learner Centric to Business Centric Model

The future of Learning and Development is moving away from Learner Centric, or employee needs model, and moving more towards Business Centric, or business needs model.  The reason behind this trend is that the business needs of the company should be considered when developing a training program.  To have a measureable effect on productivity moving to a Business Centric model is a must.

According to David Grebow, in his article The Future of L&D: Business-Centric Learning, “Before the learners ever see the content, it needs to pass the test of alignment with the business needs.”  

As an example: If one of the goals of the business is to increase and measure customer service; in the Business Centric model, the Learning and Development team would design training to address this goal of the business.  Courses might include: Customer Service Essentials, Retaining Customers, Improving your Customer Service Skills.

In a recent article in Training Industry Magazine, Key Trends 2014; Shifting to Business Centric Learning, Doug Haward stated that the Learner Centric model “missed the mark on the most fundamental principle for success: ensuring that training is aligned to the needs of the business first.”

Learning and Development has been focusing on the skills gaps for some time now.  The trend is to continue to evaluate what your staff knows and what they need to know to align with the business needs of the company.  An important trend to this model is consistency. 

In a rapidly changing industry, training is in fast forward: mobile devices, video integration, digital content, open source and flipped classroom.  Sometimes it’s hard to decipher what content can be used or applied to a specific training program.

Many businesses seeking to maximize performance are using the Business Centric model with a virtual component.  Moving to E-Learning allows companies to create a training program that is across the board for all employees and yet can give that element of Learner Centric while still meeting the Business Centric model.

Training is made more efficient and effective by online education companies like KnowledgeCity.com, that can create custom training paths designed to choose courses for each employee’s skill level and job responsibilities—courses that are most relevant to the work they do or need to be able to do to reach the business goals set by the company.

KnowledgeCity uses a proprietary algorithm and training advisors to choose the best courses, and the employee’s own manager approves or modifies the user’s final course list. By enrolling in the KnowledgeCity Training Need Analysis program, a company ensures that their employees receive the best training for their position in line with the company goals.

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How well is your training transferring to the workplace?

As companies rely more and more on their team’s knowledge, skills and abilities; we have to ask: How well is your training transferring to the workplace?

Here is the scenario:  You have just spent $1200 per employee for learning and development training.  Your company spent time to develop the course, somewhere between 40-80 hours, for one hour of instructor-led training.  

Your team spent time away from their jobs to obtain the training; factoring in employee wages and productivity losses. You send them off into the workplace hoping they learned something they can use in their day to day activities as part of your team.  Was it worth it?

How do you measure the success of the training?  Your employees have a certificate proving they attended the training, a nice addition to their employee file, but did they walk away with new knowledge that they can use?  Did they retain anything that was covered in the training?

The time it takes to develop a training program is often an overlooked factor in training budgets.  However, developing a course and training structure that will enable employees to utilize what they learned in the workplace to increase their productivity, is profoundly important.

With the advent of E-Learning, Social Learning, and MOOCs, training seems to have gone mobile and organizations are using this method at an increasing rate.  According to a report by the Association for Talent Development, technology-based training methods accounted for 39 percent of the training methods employed for learning and development.

The great feature of E-Learning, and a well-developed training program, is the ability to deliver the training anywhere, anytime, and in smaller bite-sized chunks.  The key to retention is delivering engaging training, in smaller segments that can be accessed anytime allowing for repeatability and reference.

When your team is able to go back and repeat a difficult segment of the training or reference that section at a later date during the workday, the retention and utilization of the training is transferred to the workplace.

KnowledgeCity.com is an online education company that specializes in helping businesses stay ahead of the curve by offering online training courses. Our courses are designed with training retention in mind. Take a look at our Business, Computer Software, and Safety courses.  Try the first lesson in any course for free.

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E-Learning: A Solution to the Skills Gap Dilemma

Results from ManpowerGroup's Talent Shortage Survey, conducted last year among 40,000 employers worldwide, revealed that employers find that a lack of available skilled talent and the persistent need to fill vacancies has a negative impact on the performance of their businesses.

Employers cited lack of essential job skills, the technical or hard skills and workplace or soft skills, as reasons for vacancies.  These are skill deficits that have increased since the last survey.  A hard skills deficit increased by eight percent since 2012, to 48 percent in 2013.  The soft skills deficit increased by seven percent since 2012, to 33 percent in 2013.

More than half of employers surveyed reported that skills gaps impact their ability to serve clients to a medium (35 percent) or high (19 percent) degree. Employers also believe these shortages reduce the company’s competitiveness and productivity.  With 39 percent of employers citing a reduced ability to serve client’s needs and 34 percent reporting a reduction in competitiveness and productivity, what are employers doing about it?

According to the survey, 23 percent of employers are developing their existing team by providing training and development.  It makes sense that with the lack of a skilled work force, employers are turning to training, and e-learning is quickly becoming the way to go.

In a recent report, The Value of E-Learning, IBM estimated that 40 percent of traditional training costs were spent on travel and lodging.  Other considerations include: employee salary and business losses from downtime.  The report cites some important benefits of e-learning which are: reduced training costs and impact on business, the ability to provide training to multiple students in multiple locations, exposure to expert knowledge and top instructors, and the accountability provided through e-learning tracking.

If you are facing these challenges, perhaps it is time to consider the e-learning solution.  KnowledgeCity has training courses in Business, Computer Software and Safety Compliance.

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5 Appealing Reasons to Try Distance Learning

Distance Learning has revolutionized the way we train and educate.  According to a report by Global Industry Analysts, Inc., Global E-Learning is expected to reach $107 billion by 2015.  The reasons for this are advancements in technology, as well as, corporations recognizing the need to expand employee training opportunities.  But what makes this method so appealing?

1.  Convenience: E-Learning offers students the flexibility and convenience of training at any time, location and on almost any device.  Students no longer have to try to fit a course into their already burdened schedules. Education is now mobile with 24/7 access.
2. Relevant: Adult learners have already experienced a variety of education.  They want training and education that is relevant to their personal or professional development.  In a report published by the Johns Hopkins School of Education, 83 percent of adult learners cited the need to transition successfully from change as a reason for seeking education.  Whether a job change or a life change, distance learning provides relevant training and education opportunities.
3. Higher retention rates: According to ­­­the report: Corporate E-Learning: exploring a new frontier by W.R. Hambrecht and Co., e-learning has a 60% faster learning curve, compared to instructor-led training.  The reason for this is that e-learning allows more room for individual learning styles.  Students learn at their own pace and can review course material as often as needed, giving students more control over their learning process. This helps students better understand the material, thereby enhancing the retention rate.
4. Cost Effective: Not only does distance learning make life-long learning possible, but it removes barriers that would normally prevent some students from seeking education or training.  Technology has made distance learning more convenient and more accessible.  The higher retention of the course material alone puts a higher value on every dollar spent.
5. Environmentally friendly: Key findings in a study conducted by Britain’s Open University found that distance learning courses consumed 90 percent less energy than conventional courses taught in a classroom setting. The study also showed a decrease of 85 percent in CO2 emissions. If you are looking to reduce your carbon footprint, try distance learning.

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Overcoming Challenges to Training and Education

One of the biggest challenges to training and education is: Time.  Our lives are increasingly busy and finding the time to add learning a new skill, taking a course or attending college can seem daunting.  According to a report published by the University of Missouri at St. Louis, 12 percent of adult learners in computer based program courses reported that it was too time-consuming and another 12 percent reported that the technology was difficult to use.

So what is the answer?  KnowledgeCity offers online video training courses in a simple to use format that break the barriers to online learning.  Our courses are broken into short lessons that can be accessed anytime, anywhere.  Students are able to learn at their own pace without the added pressure to make time for attending class and completing course-work.  Just watch and learn.

All courses are taught by university professors, certified instructors, and experts from across the United States.  You don’t need to be tech-savvy to learn at KnowledgeCity, all you need is: a computer, headphones or speakers, and the free Adobe Flash Player to train and learn in a variety of courses offered in: Business, Computer Software, and Safety.

You’re in good company, according to the Online Learning Consortium, the number of students taking courses online has surpassed 6.7 million.  The survey also showed 32 percent of college and university students take courses online.  Education has had to recognize the time constraints of students and adapt new technologies to serve their needs.  In a recent Forbes interview, MIT revealed plans to educate a billion people by 2021 using an online course format.  To date over 170 million people have accessed courses from MIT.

KnowledgeCity is a leader in online education with a goal to provide you with the high-quality training you need to succeed in any aspect of your life or career. Train with us today.

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Online Learning: Is it for YOU?

Just type "online education" or "online learning" into your Internet search browser and you'll see the same conclusion pop up everywhere: the number of people taking online courses is increasing.

This makes sense, considering our current economy where universities and colleges are cutting back on staff and increasing tuition costs. Why pay all that money to get expertise you can find elsewhere (and for lower cost)? (Granted, many people are enrolling in online programs through their universities, so costs are still high, although students are able to enjoy the benefits of learning online).

If you aren't looking to obtain a degree, or you're thinking of taking a few courses to supplement your degree, or even just want to enjoy learning about a specific topic that you've always been interested in, then learning online outside of the university structure may just be the perfect fit for you.

Besides low cost, one of the great benefits of taking a course online is the ability to learn individually and at your own pace. This is difficult to achieve in a classroom setting, where teachers instruct 30, 60, or even 100 students or more in some university courses, all with varying levels of proficiency.

How many times have you been frustrated by a teacher who is moving through the material way too fast? Or bored by an instructor who stays on the same concept for hours, one that you are already familiar with?

Plus, online courses outside of the university allow you to leave a course and come back to it, days, weeks, or even months later (and you can retake sections as well—that's right, rewind, pause, and fast forward your learning). No time constraints! You are accountable only to yourself.

So keeping all that in mind: What do you think of learning online? Is online education right for you?

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Online Training: 5 Reasons Corporate America Favors Online Training Courses

It’s no surprise why corporate America fancy’s web based e-learning over traditional universities. According to an article featured on USA Today, “Online Courses the Rage in Corporate Training,” employers spent $57 million to train their workers. There are numbers or reasons why corporate are trending away from the traditional university model, the top five being:

1. The current economic situation necessitates the need to economize—any discovery to decrease expenses are welcomed by most corporate companies and with so many e-learning platforms that offer affordable monthly subscription based services, distance corporate training and development programs can help companies save millions of dollars each year.

2. Companies perception of training employees as an unredeemable cost has changed—unlike before, corporate do not view expenditures to develop the human potential a wasted investment anymore, but a worthy cause with infinite potential in return. The return on training improves performances and attitudes from employees necessary to achieve organizational growth.

3. Online training allow learners to learn at their own pace—Whether learners are required to learn technical work related training, complete full degrees or certification programs, web based e-learning allows learners to work at their own pace without having to wait for others.

4. Corporate training institutes has removed the need to travel—by removing the need for learners to join together to learn and study reduces a significant amount of cost in lost time and opportunity for companies by not having their employees away from their responsibilities for extended periods of time.

5. Online training is learner-centered—online corporate software training can deliver the concept of group learning and collaborative problem solving right to the employee’s home. Allowing learners more control with course pacing, sequencing and styles, online training is learner-centered.

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