I’m compiling notes for an upcoming webinar on how to develop a successful online learning strategy. I’m not one for industry hype and I like to take a more pragmatic approach when offering advice as it tends to align with the reality of the organization as opposed to what they think it should be.
I’ve been thinking about the promise of e-learning and everything you read in books and on the internet and hear at conferences from leaders about what effective e-learning should be.
E-Learning Thought Leader
There is a disconnect between thought leaders and the reality of the eLearning industry. I think that disconnect happens because many of the thought leaders are also consultants and course vendors who are hired to build training.
Their perspective is different.
They are brought in by senior management with business goals that require some sort of training intervention. That manager usually has a healthy budget that can influence the development of the right type of training. Because they spend real money, they are also responsible for real results.
Because of this, the outsourced supplier has an organizational commitment and an opportunity to do the level of analysis necessary to build and implement an effective training program. Additionally, most of the courses they produce are mostly performance-based courses linked to performance metrics.
Builder of e-learning courses
On the other hand, many people who create eLearning courses on a daily basis do not have the same luxury.
In my experience, internal eLearning teams often have no seat at the table and become order takers without access to the business intelligence (if that’s not an oxymoron) that determined the need for the course in the first place.
Which means they create a lot of content unrelated to measurable performance goals. Therefore, many of the courses they create are informational or compliance courses unrelated to applicable skills.
Also, there are many individual teams that must do everything from content development to instructional design to graphic design to course writing to publishing to LMS administration. And they do it without a significant budget. That’s a lot different than a vendor getting the right kinds of resources to build effective eLearning.
In that world, you can see how a vendor with access to different resources and types of capabilities has a different perspective on the effectiveness of eLearning.
Build better eLearning
But how can any organization that does not engage vendors build an effective eLearning program?
Here are some of the things I will talk about in the webinar:
- Focus on production efficiency and effectiveness as measures of success
- Understand the tools you use and develop a strategy around which ones to use and when
- Create a strategic content model to identify the type of course being built, the right goals, and the implementation of the right performance support
- Train your eLearning developers so they are equipped to create the courses you need
- More 🙂
If you are just getting started with e-learning or want to build a more effective online training program, join the webinar. If you can’t make it, that’s okay. Sign up and you’ll receive a recording that you can watch whenever you want.
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