Amongst the challenges that Learning and Development teams and Learning Consultants face today, the top 2 pertaining to training would be: 1) How to increase the efficacy of training?, and 2) What learning strategies should be adopted to ensure that the learning and business mandates are met? In this article I will outline 5 tips for innovative eLearning development that will help organizations improve efficacy of training by making the learning stick. Innovative eLearning Development Did you know? In 1885, Herman Ebbinghaus, a German Psychologist defined the exponential nature of forgetting. As you see from this diagram featuring the "Forgetting Curve", we forget 80% of what we learned in 30 days! How can we improve stickiness of learning? By following innovative learning strategies outlined in this article, you will be able to create the required "Chain of Impact". How can we improve stickiness of learning? To create the "Chain of Impact," we need to adopt ways to ensure the learning sticks. Sticky learning is the learning that lasts over time. This can be achieved through many approaches. One of the significant approaches is adopting learning strategies that: Focus on action ("to do" things rather than "seeing" how they should be done) Build on the current schema of the learners (draw upon what they know) Allow exploration (enable self-discovery) 5 Tips to improve stickiness of learning through innovative eLearning development We have a range of solutions that improve learning, recall, and retention. These are rendered through our innovative eLearning development framework. My top 5 tips are: 1. Use Gamification for learning You can use the power of games to deliver specific learning outcomes in your learning and performance strategy. You can opt for: Overlay of a gamification concept on your content to have the whole course gamified through levels, board games, or challenges Partial Gamification of inline checks and assessments 2. Use Interactive videos (particularly for micro-learning) Today, several options are available to convert linear videos to interactive videos that can create an immersive and engaging experience. The passivity of the videos can be overcome by providing learning interactions, knowledge checks, and feedback. 3. Use Decision-making branching simulations You can use branching scenario simulations to move the learning process from mere knowledge acquisition to its application. These simulations can complement the scenario-based approach and should be used when learners need to deep dive into multiple related facets or handle a far more complex situation. This approach helps learners work in a safe environment (where they can practice and also easily recover from the mistakes they may have made). They can evaluate different aspects and get a sense of what impact their choices can have. 4. Use Story based learning (Storytorials) A proven approach, the story-based approach (Storytorial) combines the principles of Instructional Design with the compelling power of a story. The dual impact enhances the quality of learning, resulting in an immersive learning experience. Storytorials are strung together in a fictional narrative and generally have a beginning, body and an end. While a story may have multiple plots based on the content, you need to make sure that the central theme of the story sticks to the content and avoid redundant material that has little or no contribution to make to the training. 5. Use Scenario based learning As per ATD (Association of Talent Development), Scenario-Based Learning (SBL) is a proven method to build expertise in tasks that are unsafe or infrequent in the workplace or to build critical thinking skills. You can use scenarios to create learning activities where learners are presented with a real life situation or problem and they must work through it to achieve their goals. Although most of these interactions help hone learners’ cognitive skills, there is always the option of adding an emotional element for greater learner engagement. An example of this would be simulating a real-life situation where every decision that the learners make has a direct bearing on themselves or their colleagues. I hope this article featuring innovative eLearning development provides the required cues that you can practically apply to create a "learning retention and recall curve" for your organization.The post Top 5 Tips For Innovative eLearning Development appeared first on EI Design.

    The last few years have seen an influx of outsourcing of eLearning to India. This is clearly reflected in the growth of custom eLearning development companies in India who have a focus on international business. In spite of this, the success stories are not too many. In this article I will share the pointers that I have picked up from the evaluation of my own organization by several global companies when they chose to outsource to India. Criteria For Evaluating A Custom eLearning Development Company In India Top 6 criteria for the evaluation (and tips to increase the chances of success) of your outsourcing initiative   Capability and Expertise in Custom eLearning This is the start point to look at the services and product portfolio and how closely this maps to your current and future needs. Tips Do check for the industry-specific expertise that is relevant for you. Do not miss out the review of audited balance sheets to check on the financial stability (more importantly, you must get an understanding of their next 2-3 years’ plan). Match your growth plans with the expertise they currently offer/have plans to add in future. Do ascertain what they "do not do"! Size and capability to scale. While the current team size should be an important factor for your evaluation, it is equally important to understand how they can scale at a short notice, if required. Tips Check on the number of concurrent projects that a typical team handles and the turn-around time. Ascertain how easily they can scale to your ad-hoc requirements. People (particularly talent in Project Management and Instructional Design). The quality of people in the vendor team determines the success of your outsourcing initiative. So, ask for the details on the talent that will be potentially aligned for you. While you start your interaction with the Account Management and Project Management talent first, ask for the details of the next level as well. This information is an important indicator to ascertain how multiple, concurrent projects will be handled. Particularly significant is the check on the expertise from the Instructional Design team. It is vital to determine their expertise in learning design. You also need to get clarity on their Instructional Design methodology. Then look at Visual Design from the range of talent available (for instance, from visualization to illustration capability). Look at the Technology team’s capability to support varied requirements (different authoring tools, adaptive and response frameworks, and Learning Management System support). Last but not least, look at their Quality Management System and specifically check for how they feed the lessons learned to continuously enhance the process. Tips If you are targeting outsourcing as a long-term or strategic initiative, start with the management team details first. Particularly in the early phase of the association, it is risky to work with the vendor’s contractors. It is essential to have their employees working with you. During the evaluation phase, do focus on assessing their working style, communication skills, and flexibility they can offer. Development process. A mature development framework is the second most important factor that would determine the success of your outsourcing initiative. Ask for the detailed work-flow and the supporting assets. Do assess how efficiently the sign-offs will be handled. Ask for the risk management and mitigation measures. Additionally, ask for the communication guidelines and ascertain what measures are in place to ensure timely delivery (with requisite quality). Tips Make sure that you check out the flexibility the development framework offers and how easily it can be tweaked and aligned to your development methodology. What is important to check here is the work-flow and if it is aligned to "continuous improvement". You need to also check for actual assets to assess how they are used practically. In addition to these, check what their focus is on international business and how it can address the dynamics of distributed development. Pricing model for custom eLearning. One of the benefits of outsourcing is cost saving, so this aspect is a crucial evaluation factor. You must ask for a detailed break-down of all components to ensure that there are no hidden or unplanned costs. Tips The project pay-out to the vendor is not the only component of your cost. You need to factor for other aspects, like your Project Management time, tracking for risks, reviews, and tracking how effectively your feedback gets incorporated. Quantify all these aspects to determine your Total Cost of Outsourcing (TCO) and assess your progress against this. Over a period of time, you should be able to use TCO pointers to leverage more from the same budget and be able to manage more projects at the same time. Infrastructure and measures to protect your Intellectual Property (IP). Since the outsourcing vendor would be your distributed development arm, it is vital to ensure that their infrastructure is in line with your requirements. Additionally, you must ascertain the Info Security policies that they have in place to safeguard your IP. Tips While most companies that focus on International business will have the required infrastructure, double check on the bandwidth of communication links. Besides obtaining details on Info Security policies, check how exactly the practices to limit access to your information are applied during development. Aquick summary to use in your evaluation of custom eLearning development companies Credentials. How long have they been in business of custom eLearning? How much has the business grown? How many customers are long-term? Prior work (demos and samples). Ask for a wide range of samples (cutting across varied authoring tools). Ask for samples showcasing innovative learning strategies. Reference checks. Do not depend on email alone to get feedback. Pick up the phone and have a detailed discussion - ask for the pain areas, how were challenges addressed, and so on; do not restrict your questions to what worked, ask for what did not work and how they addressed the challenges. Work-flow. How is it aligned to dynamics of distributed custom eLearning development? How easily can it be tweaked to your specific requirements? Details of the Management team, Project Managers, and Development team. An outline of their HR initiatives to retain talent and what attrition rates they currently have. Their take on what they see as the "future of learning" and how they are aligning to it. I hope this article will add value to your evaluation process and help you in securing a long-term partner who can consistently add value to your business. The post How To Evaluate A Custom eLearning Development Company In India appeared first on EI Design.

    The edge that a bespoke or custom developed course has over off-the-shelf course is well established. In this article I will illustrate the power of bespoke eLearning to create sticky learning through 6 examples. I have picked examples that address varied training needs like compliance, application simulation, and professional skills. What Is Bespoke eLearning? There are two kinds of online courses that you can choose from for your eLearning needs: Off-the-shelf courses (generic). Off-the-shelf courses are ready to use. Bespoke (also known as custom) courses. Bespoke or custom courses, as the name suggests, are specifically designed or tailor made to meet your requirement. Off-the-shelf courses can be deployed quickly, whereas bespoke or custom courses will need longer time to develop and deploy. While bespoke courses may be more expensive on account of initial development costs, they would not have any associated recurring licensing costs. What Are The Advantages Of Using Bespoke eLearning? Bespoke eLearning courses are branded for your organization. They may use the raw content that you have or use content that is specifically created for you. The examples and case studies would be relevant to your organization and the assessments would be specifically designed for you. Their design approach factors for your learners’ preferences, your culture, and is tailor made to meet your learning and business mandates. How Does Bespoke eLearning Fare Against Off-the-shelf Courses? Off-the-shelf courses are quicker to deploy, but have certain inherent shortcomings. By definition, they are generic and may not be able to meet the specific requirements of your organization. Again, they offer standard features that you need to live with and they cannot be customized to suit your specific requirements. Let us see how these aspects are offset in the bespoke approach and what advantages you will get when you opt for it: The courses are developed as per your branding. They feature your imagery and this helps learners relate and connect better to the learning piece. The content is specific to you and your learners. It is presented in a form that will engage them and ensures the required learning mandate is met. The learning experience is customized to your program. It uses a learning strategy that is best suited to meet the required learning mandate. The Assessment strategy is customized and aligns effectively to your learning and business mandates. Looking at your dynamics, the delivery format can be for traditional eLearning or multi-device (the content would run on tablets and smartphones). This enables you to choose an authoring tool that is most suited to your requirements. You can also decide on supplementing your primary eLearning with Performance Support intervention that can lead to better application of the learning on the job. This will have a significant impact on the ROI of eLearning. The Bespoke eLearning Advantage Through 6 Examples Let me illustrate the advantages of bespoke eLearning through 6 examples. I have selected examples that address varied training needs like compliance, application simulation, and professional skills. The first example illustrates an approach that is scalable and can be applied for any training area like soft skills, induction programs, and so on. Bespoke eLearning Example 1: To highlight intuitive and immersive experience. This example is my personal favorite, as it showcases a design that does not have a "Click next to continue" or "Prompt text". The learner can intuitively ascertain (through visual cues provided alongside the content) on what should be done next. It creates an immersive and engaging learning experience. It is a multi-device design that adapts equally well to PCs/laptops or tablets.   Bespoke eLearning Example 2: Gamification in Compliance. We created a simulation-based task-oriented Gamification course, which was interactive and engrossing. To achieve this, we incorporated a real work environment (visually), an element of challenge (bonuses and bombs), rewards for success (caps, badges), and learning through activities including elements of surprise and delight. Do refer to this case study in detail in my earlier article Gamification in Compliance through a serious game concept.   Bespoke eLearning Example 3: Branching scenario and simulations with a progress indicator. This example showcases a complex decision making scenario. While the learners are going through the scenario, the visual indicator (shown on the right) provides cues on how they are faring. This enables them to pause and reflect on their choices and even re-think their strategy mid-course. Bespoke eLearning Example 4: Application Simulation. This is a great example of how we uplifted dry and linear content into an interesting and engaging format. We chose a responsive design (to support PCs, Laptops, Tablets, and Smartphones) and made learning bite-sized enabling learners to undertake a long, arduous journey in short, engaging steps. You can view the "Office 2013 - Application Simulation" under App Simulations section (as part of our Demos).   Bespoke eLearning Example 5: Scenario with a twist. In our suite of Generic Compliance, we chose a scenario with a twist by adding a theme of "Choose the Right Path". While all of us have a sense of right and wrong, this approach added value in the context of the specific compliance mandate in terms of the most appropriate behavior and why the learners need to demonstrate the same. You can view the "Compliance - Introduction to the Code of Conduct" under Compliance section (as part of our Demos). Bespoke eLearning Example 6: Performance Support Tool - Featuring Interactive PDFs as a learning aid to supplement online learning. This is also one of my personal favorites, as it provides a better learning experience through simplicity. Interactive PDFs can be used to convert mountains of boring information into a visually appealing, interactive format. Furthermore, you can integrate videos, interactive demos, and audio to create an engaging learning experience. Do refer to the detailed case study on this outlining the value the Interactive pdf brought to my PowerPoint deck in my earlier article Performance support - Featuring Interactive pdf as a Learning Aid to supplement online learning. I do hope these examples illustrate the power of custom or bespoke eLearning in creating an effective and immersive learning experience. I look forward to your feedback and suggestions.The post What Is Bespoke eLearning? Featuring 6 Killer Examples appeared first on EI Design.

    Choosing the right custom eLearning company is a tall order. The outcome needs to successfully address one or many reasons because of which you began the process of outsourcing. In this article I will build upon the evaluation process and provide tips on how you can choose a custom eLearning company in India using my checklist. How To Choose A Custom eLearning Company In India? In my article How to evaluate a custom eLearning company in India I had shared my insight on top 6 criteria for evaluation. Here is a recap of the key aspects to focus on during your evaluation process: Capability and expertise. Size and capability to scale. People. Development process. Pricing model. Infrastructure and measures to protect your IP Choosing the right custom eLearning company is a tall order. The outcome needs to successfully address the reason(s) that triggered your outsourcing initiative. Just to recap from my earlier article Too Many eLearning Companies in India - How to Find the Best?, your decision to outsource could have been driven by: Scaling (to handle higher volumes). Reducing the time to market. Reduction in cost. Access to talent that you do not have. Addition of more innovative solutions to your portfolio. In this article I will build upon the evaluation process and provide tips on how you can choose a custom eLearning company in India. Choosing the right custom eLearning company in India should be driven by your assessment of qualities they must have and that will ensure that you are laying the foundation of a mutually beneficial and long term relationship. The cost of re-evaluation is high in case your initial choice does not work and often you may not get the required management support to do the exercise all over again. I will provide you a checklist that will help you choose the right custom eLearning company in India. I have mapped each facet to a set of probing questions and how they will have an impact on the success of your outsourcing initiative. The Basics What is their focus? Ask what their focus on custom eLearning development is.Tip: This should map to 50% or more of their revenue. In turn, you get the assurance of the required support in the long run. If custom eLearning is their primary business, they will invest on enhancing skills, portfolio, and continuous improvement. What are their credentials? Ask for their prior record in similar relationships.Tip: Specifically ask the duration of each engagement and assess what percentage of these is long term. You need their longevity record to be more certain of how your relationship will be handled. Talent. Ask for the resumes of the team that will be aligned to you, including Project Managers, Instructional Designers, Visual Designers, Technical Experts, and Quality Auditors.Tip: Check on their talent nurturing and retention plans. This will provide good cues on how likely you are to continue with the team you ran your pilot with! Clear and well-defined process. Ask for the process, supporting assets, and more specifically, how flexible their work-flow is to handle your requirement. Ask for assets being used on some projects to determine how effectively the prescribed processes are followed.Tip: Check for the periodicity of updates to the existing work-flow. Ask about the AGILE practices. Success Factors Approach. Ask what drives their solution architecting. Ascertain if their solutions are driven by tools or learning experience.Tip: Check if their solutions are based on learner performance and how they will create a positive impact on the business. Ascertain if they take a consultative approach to craft the right solution. Meeting deadlines (while sustaining quality). Ask how they manage the schedules. Particularly check on the impact (if any) when concurrent projects happen.Tip: Ask this question during the reference checks. Risk management and mitigation. Ask about their framework and how exactly risks would be communicated to you (including their mitigation plan).Tip: Ask how this learning will be factored in subsequent projects. Collaboration. Ask about their framework for collaboration between distributed teams. Specifically ask about the coverage to handle time zone challenges.Tip: Ascertain the effectiveness of their communication and collaboration during the reference checks. Innovation. Ask if this exists and, if so, how exactly this is driven. Ascertain if this is indeed part of their DNA.Tip: Ascertain the outcomes and some success stories and certainly check this during the reference checks. Pricing model. Ascertain that there are no hidden costs.Tip: I have mentioned this at the end, although it is a very significant factor. This is because you need to weigh all of the aforementioned facets against your basic outsourcing cost to determine if the model will be feasible. I hope this information will help you choose a custom eLearning company in India that will help you succeed in your outsourcing initiative.The post 10 Tips On How To Choose A Custom eLearning Company In India appeared first on EI Design.

    In this article, through a series of questions, I will provide answers on what Performance Support Tools (PSTs) are and why they must be an integral part of your organization’s learning strategy. I will also share my insights on how they help learners and how they can help address a key challenge that Learning and Development professionals face in terms of increasing knowledge recall, its retention, and application. What Your Boss Wants To Know About Performance Support Tools Here are 5 important questions about Performance Support Tools; their answers explain why they must be an integral part of your company’s learning strategy. Q1. When do learners seek learning? Dr. Conrad Gottfredson and Bob Mosher’s Five Distinct Moments of Need© very succinctly captures when exactly learners seek learning. According to them, learners seek support in these Five Moments of Need: When they are learning an aspect for the first time (New). When they want to deep-dive and learn more (More). When they want to apply or remember something (Apply). When they need to solve a problem or fix something that has gone wrong (Solve). When something changes (Change). While formal training does address the first two learning needs, the use of Performance Support Tools is particularly relevant in meeting the subsequent three needs. Please refer to my article Improving ROI in eLearning where I have highlighted how an effective Performance Support intervention can increase the application of learning. This has a direct impact on improving ROI in eLearning. Q2. What are Performance Support Tools and where exactly do they fit in an organization’s learning strategy? Performance Support Tools (PSTs) provide employees with on-the-job tools that make their work a lot easier. Unlike training, these tools are available to support and guide employees as they actually do their jobs. These tools are very easy to find, often directly embedded into the learners’ workflow (Learning Hub) and offer active guidance. These solutions enable organizations to provide the right amount of task guidance, support, and productivity benefits to learners precisely at the moment of need. Q3. How do Performance Support Tools help learners? Performance Support Tools provide an option for employees to learn and work at the same time. They can help an organization to reduce the cost of training while increasing productivity and performance. From a learner perspective, Performance Support Tools: Empower employees to perform tasks with a minimum amount of external intervention or training. Save the time spent by skilled performers in helping the less skilled performers on specific tasks. Help new team members perform quickly and accurately without losing productive time when training is impractical, unavailable, or constrained. Guide new employees through a complex process or task that cannot be memorized. Introduce, upgrade, or consolidate new systems (for example, customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning, or tasks in certain call centers where agents must perform using complex systems, processes, or products). Q4. How can Performance Support Tools offset some of the challenges in learning recall, retention, and application? In 1885, Herman Ebbinghaus, a German Psychologist, defined the exponential nature of forgetting. As you see from this diagram featuring the "Forgetting Curve", we forget 80% of what we learned in 30 days! Added to this is an associated challenge that by investing on formal training that would happen for a few days in a year, we cannot expect learners to gain high levels of proficiency in it although baseline proficiency can certainly be achieved. The real solution lies in creating "Learning as a continuum". A good way to do this is to identify the areas for formal training and use Performance Support Tools intervention to reinforce it shortly after the formal session. You can then create a "learning path" that has interventions like this during the year. A combination of reinforcement as well as new assets that push application of knowledge on-the-job will help you create a high degree of knowledge recall, retention, and application. You can refer to my article Top 5 tips for innovative eLearning development where I have shared pointers on how we can change this curve to "retention curve". Q5. What are the possible ways to offer Performance Support Tools? Mobile Apps These are among the best forms of Performance Support available today and just like any professional for whom "information" is the key, learners could greatly benefit from mobile app solutions. Interactive PDFs You can convert any lengthy document into an interactive PDF with content tagging for easy navigation, richer visual experience, and so on. These make factual and knowledge-based information available to learners quickly and easily. These may include tips, fact sheets, checklists, practical forms, participant guides, processes, and procedures documents. eBooks Any document can be converted into HTML5 compatible eBooks accessible through PCs, tablets, and smartphones. These can also be converted as SCORM packages. Again, these can include key takeaways from a training program, participant guides, processes, and procedures documents. Kinetic Text/Animations If the content is highly conceptual and difficult to illustrate or the message is nuanced, sometimes showing the text is the best approach. That’s where kinetic text comes in - it’s an engaging, and dynamic way of bringing text content to life. With the option of presenting the content accompanied by a music track or audio narration, kinetic text infuses energy into the text content. It also enables us to highlight the key messages in the text - through the use of color coding, font size, and other effects. Whiteboard Animations You can create high impact videos using a creative story with pictures being drawn on a whiteboard along with conceptual graphics and audio. These can be used to teach employees different company policies or demonstrate a new software or product to consumers. Expert Videos, Webinars/Recorded Webinar Learners respect experts. Whether it’s a classroom tutor, eLearning guide, or workplace mentor, we are used to listening to and respecting expert views. These can be made more effective by enhancing them visually. The performance of the learners can be tracked by adding Assessments with SCORM packaging. Webcast/Podcasts These are short episodes of audio or video that can be downloaded to the learners’ own device. Episodic in nature, webcast/podcasts are the perfect example of a resource built for mobile delivery - brief, targeted, and entertaining; to be watched/listened to while in a train on the way to work or to kill time before a meeting. View demos of various Performance Support Solutions. I hope this article addresses the questions you or your boss may have on what Performance Support Tools are and why they must be an integral part of your learning strategy. If there’s more on Performance Support Tools or any other related aspects that you would like to know, do let me know or drop in your comments and suggestions. I shall try to address them and share more insights soon.The post Performance Support Tools: Top 5 Things Your Boss Wants To Know appeared first on EI Design.

    mLearning or Mobile Learning is fast becoming a significant part of training delivery for organizations, as tablets and smartphones are increasingly becoming the preferred mode of learning. What Are The Benefits Of mLearning? In this article I will touch upon the benefits of mLearning, why it is gaining momentum, and why it must be a significant part of your learning strategy. Additionally, I will share 5 examples that showcase successful application of mLearning. Let us start with the benefits: Flexibility to learners. At the top of the benefits list is the flexibility mLearning offers. This includes: Flexibility and choice of device to access learning "anytime-anywhere". Flexibility of learning with more varied formats (videos, podcasts, and so on). Better completion rates and higher retention. The bite-sized or micro-learning approach makes it easier for learners to initiate, complete, and retain learning better. Collaborative learning. It is a great way to engage with peers to share learning experiences and be part of communities of specific practices. Higher engagement. The experiences are more immersive and statistics reveal that more learners complete the courses through mLearning than traditional eLearning. Multi-device support. The same course is available on varied devices ranging from PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Performance Support. mLearning is becoming the preferred approach to provide Performance Support intervention as mobile devices are an intrinsic part of the learners’ work-flow. This facilitates an easy access to information while at work and increases the probability of usage and retrieval. Learning path. Mobile devices can also be used to update learners on their "learning path" thereby facilitating "learning as a continuum". With more people depending on phone-based organizers, integrating links in organizers to commence/resume the courses saves time for learners. What Is Driving mLearning’s Rapid Adoption? Changing learner profiles. The mix of learners in organizations now includes traditional learners, baby-boomers, Gen X, and Gen Y. A significant percentage of learners (particularly Gen Y) prefer using tablets and smartphones for learning. How learners learn. As an extension to the changing learner demographics, more and more learners seek different formats to learn (particularly videos, podcasts, access to bite-sized learning, or micro-learning on the go). They also want learning to be part of their work-flow (that is, self directed). Changing learning device preferences. This is resulting in initiatives like Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) facilitating learning on the device of the learners’ choice. Maturing of tools and technologies. Particularly, over the last three years: Most Learning Management System platforms now offer the required flexibility of mobile delivery as well as platforms for social learning. The range of available mLearning authoring tools has widened. The tools can now be used to create both rapid as well as high-end custom solutions. More options to pick the approach that is most suited for learners have emerged. You can now opt for: Adaptive frameworks. These are designed for a single build to work on PCs, laptops, and tablets. (You can also have a variant called Adaptive+ framework that can provide a supplement of the primary learning on the smartphones. However, the smartphone build is a separate build and is normally a lighter build than the primary course.) Responsive frameworks. These are designed for a single build to work on PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Can You Manage Without A mLearning Strategy Today? Well, the answer is rather obvious; this is a trend that cannot be ignored and the need of the hour is to adopt a two-pronged approach: Migration of legacy courses. You can use this opportunity to redesign some of your older courses toο and also get the multi-device flexibility. This can create a better learning experience and provide the flexibility for learners to access the courses on the device of their choice. mLearning strategy for new development. This should be able to leverage the power of mobile devices to create an immersive learning experience. As highlighted earlier, you can opt for Adaptive or Responsive approaches. Where Can mLearning Be Applied? mLearning is a great fit for formal learning and Performance Support. It can also be used effectively to foster a collaborative or social learning environment. Let me illustrate how it can be used to provide enhanced learning experiences through my favorite 5 examples. mLearning Example 1 Induction Program With Gamification: This is my favorite example that showcases how you can use gamification for an Induction program. We chose the 100 days Induction cum onboarding plan to map to a theme of a mission that needed learners to clear various levels within the stipulated time. It also had leaderboards to enable them to assess how they are faring against the other team members. You can also refer to my article Benefits of Gamification in eLearning to see how it can improve learner recall and retention. mLearning Example 2 Time Management Featuring Immersive Learning Strategies: The difference here lies in the way we engaged the learners with the time management concepts. We removed "Select next to continue" by making the information flow more intuitive. To engage learners further, we brought in a few gamification concepts (interactive exercises) in the learning path. mLearning Example 3 Compliance-Combating Money Laundering: This example reflects how you can enhance a legacy course during migration to mLearning format. The legacy course was text-heavy and as you will see from the screenshots, we relooked at the visual approach in the mLearning format to reduce clutter. We also did extensive layering of content to further limit the on-screen text. mLearning Example 4 Agile Development Methodology Featuring Interactive Video: This example is also one of my favorites as it reflects marrying the Agile concept to an innovative strategy, that is, interactive video (both reflect changing dynamics). The content adapted well to fielding questions that the learners may have had in their mind as the Agile approach is a relatively new concept. We were able to leverage on the power of interactive video to clearly establish the gain in a very short run-length. mLearning Example 5 Industry Vertical (Oil and Gas) Featuring Thematic Visuals: As you will notice in the screenshot, we have used industry specific visual design as the theme for the entire course. I hope this article has given you the required insights to determine how you can use mLearning effectively in your organization. If you have any comments or suggestions, please reach out to me.The post What Are The Benefits Of mLearning? Featuring 5 Killer Examples appeared first on EI Design.

    Today, Learning and Development professionals have an uphill task of providing effective training that would enable employees not only "learn" but "apply learning on the job". With global economic volatility, budget cuts are a reality and they are expected to continuously demonstrate a high ROI on the training investment. What Your Boss Wants You To Know About Learning and Performance Ecosystems Where does the answer lie? One of the approaches is to work with a bigger picture of "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" and drive training through multiple channels (including formal and informal learning, social learning, and performance support). This combination ensures that multiple learning avenues are available to learners, and instead of one-off trainings, the focus shifts to "learning as a continuum". In this article I will address the questions that you may have while evaluating or adopting a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" based approach, and specifically how it can create a better learning environment in your organization. Q1) What is a Learning and Performance Ecosystem? One of the ways to define Learning and Performance Ecosystem is: "A learning and performance ecosystem enhances individual and organizational effectiveness by connecting people and supporting them with a broad range of content, processes, and technologies to drive performance".   "A learning and performance ecosystem introduces new capabilities that integrate learning and performance solutions into the work environment. It minimizes the need for workers to leave work in order to learn, reduces work disruption, and places more learning opportunities directly into the flow of the work". Source here. Q2) Why is it required? Learning and Development professionals today face more challenging performance problems and many of these cannot be met through traditional learning strategies. As we saw in the definition, "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" is people-centric in nature. It offers a framework that you can use to supplement and complement your existing learning strategy. Having finite formal training (of durations that consume about 2-5% of learners’ annual work hours) can at best create baseline proficiency. It certainly cannot lead to mastery and this is another reason why formal training must be supplemented by other forms of learning approaches that are an integral part of a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem". It also helps mitigate the challenge of "The Forgetting Curve" that indicates that there is an exponential decline in our learning after a training session; if no reinforcement is provided. This can be addressed through Performance Support Tool (PST) intervention (alongside your formal training). Most of us are familiar with the 70/20/10 model that indicates that learning happens as follows: 70% from our on-the job experiences (includes handling challenges at work, solving problems, and so on). 20% from feedback and observing others (peers, boss, or role models). 10% from formal training. What this signifies is that formal training contributes to just 10% of our learning. Hence, informal learning (through Performance Support Tools) and collaborative learning (through social learning) can play a very significant role in equipping your employees to reach the desired levels of mastery. This is the core of a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" based approach. Q3) How can it be used practically in an organization’s learning strategy? I will address this question through our own experience. We draw inspiration from Dr. Conrad Gottfredson and Bob Mosher’s Five Distinct Moments of Need©. According to this model, learners seek support in the "Five Moments of Need," which are: When learning for the first time (New). When wanting to learn more (More). When trying to apply/remember (Apply). When something goes wrong (Solve). When something changes (Change). As you will note, the first two moments of need adapt to formal training (eLearning, mLearning, classroom, or blended) and the subsequent three to just-in-time Performance Support Tools (PSTs). You can use this model to band: Formal learning: For acquisition of knowledge. Informal learning: For application of knowledge. In the process, you can also mine your existing knowledge assets and assess if they could be converted to a Performance Support Tool format to improve learnability. Looking at the nature of the learning need, you can also integrate social learning. To see how Performance Support Tools can be integrated into your learning strategy, please refer to my article Performance Support Tools: Top 5 Things Your Boss Wants To Know. To illustrate how this can be designed, here is a quick glimpse of a typical "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" solution. Q4) What are the expected gains? There are following significant advantages that will reflect as gains for your learning strategy as well creating a richer learning culture. Holistic approach. It brings together all elements you should plan for in your learning strategy to help people not only learn better but perform better. This would lead to effective learning and its application will create a positive impact on business. Richer learning environment. Extending the learning from discrete elements to "learning as a continuum" will create a richer learning environment in your organization. Improved ROI on your training budgets. As the focus of a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" is on application of knowledge, this will have a direct bearing on creating a positive impact on business. This will lead to better ROI on your training investment. Q5) What are the challenges in implementation of "Learning and Performance Ecosystem"? Organizations often resist change and see a holistic approach like "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" as difficult to implement. Frameworks like this are often associated with terms like "difficult to apply", "not flexible enough", "cannot be customized", and so on. The reality is far from this. A "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" will add value to your current approach and provide a far more dynamic framework to deliver effective learning. More significantly, this will also equip the Learning and Development team to meet new performance challenges more effectively. I hope this article has helped you understand how adopting a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem" based approach can help you enhance your existing learning strategy. If you have any suggestions/feedback, do reach out to me.The post Learning And Performance Ecosystems: 5 Things Your Boss Wants To Know appeared first on EI Design.

    In today’s environment of economic volatility, increasing calamities (natural and man-made) and changing global dynamics, the Insurance sector needs to adopt training approaches that will help them equip their employees to manage these variables successfully. While the Insurance sector continues to grow, the Learning and Development professionals in this sector have challenges of addressing the external variables as well challenges that are intrinsic to the industry. In this article I will outline 5 of our innovative training strategies that have helped our customers in Insurance meet these challenges. Innovative Training Strategies For Insurance: Featuring mLearning, Gamification, And Performance Support Tools The industry can broadly be divided into two areas: Insurers who provide protection for the risks clients face. Insurance brokers who provide their expertise to ensure that their clients receive the best cover for the risks they face. What are the typical training areas? Broadly, the training needs of the Insurance sector fall into the following categories: Industry-specific. Insurance industry skills training. Regulatory and technical training. Board and senior management training (to enhance their risk-based decision making skills). Generic. Sales and marketing. Business and people skills. Financial skills. Soft skills. Induction and onboarding. What Are The Industry-specific Challenges? As mentioned earlier, while the Insurance needs continue to grow with increase in population, infrastructure, and wealth, the Learning and Development teams in this sector have several challenges that need to be addressed. I am outlining the key Industry-specific challenges here: Regulated industry. This mandates that the required trainings happen across the organization and within the stipulated time. It also requires that attestation of completion and records for the same are maintained meticulously. Ongoing updates. Similar to Finance and Healthcare, the need to ensure that the updates reach all users is very high. Not only does the learning strategy need to have a provision for speedy update, it also needs to ensure that these reach the users and get applied on the job. High volumes of information. Globally spread out workforce. How Can These Be Offset Using Innovating Training Strategies? I believe that going beyond the traditional approach to training is essential to successfully offset the challenges and create a workforce that is agile and can respond effectively to the ever changing industry dynamics. I am listing 3 such aspects that I have seen work well in Insurance sector training: Change the focus: From instructor-led training to blended and online to eLearning and mLearning. This is absolutely essential to mitigate the challenges of being regulated, having work-force that is geographically spread out. It is also the only answer to ensure that the updation happens swiftly and reaches the employees on time. Specifically, offering mLearning enables learners to use eLearning on the device of their choice (tablets and/or smartphones) leading to better completion rates and higher retention. Change the focus: Provide "learning as a continuum". This is often an ignored aspect in learning strategies. The Organizational Training Frameworks definitely map to the gap areas of Training Needs Analysis (TNA) or skill enhancements, but tend to rely largely on formal training. By definition, formal training happens for finite hours in a year and is rarely enough to help learners gain the required mastery. Instead, a holistic approach that uses a learning path that allows learners to create their own learning journey will lead to the required goals. Change the focus: Use learner-centric rather than content-centric approaches. The learning strategy must focus on learner-centric approaches that create immersive learning experiences. They ensure that the learners walk away with a feeling of time well spent and a sense of accomplishment at the end of the session. Are There Any Success Mantras? Certainly, here are the 5 Innovative training strategies that we have used in the Insurance sector: Opt for a "Learning and Performance Ecosystem". Adopt a holistic approach to learning and performance. I am sharing a sample here. Particularly, leverage on collaborative learning by adopting social learning. Here is an example of our Learning and Performance Ecosystem solution that can be adapted for the Insurance sector easily. Adopt mLearning. You will see mLearning‘s impact in improving your course completion rates. Also, learners will spend more time on learning in contrast to traditional eLearning on laptops/desktops. Opt for sticky learning approaches. Use gamification, stories, and decision-making tools (branching scenarios and simulations) instead of boring and predictable instructor-led training or traditional eLearning. Use Performance Support Tools. Supplement or complement your formal training like interactive PDFs, eBooks, and mobile apps as "just-in-time" learning aids that are available to the learners precisely when they need them. This would push them to use these Performance Support Tools to apply the knowledge at work. Add zing to standard instructor-led training programs. Blend it with eLearning/mLearning or interesting Performance Support Tools that engage learners and more specifically push the knowledge acquisition to knowledge application. I hope this article is useful in re-energizing your learning strategy. While I have dipped into my experience in handling approaches for the Insurance sector, most of these innovative training strategies can be applied successfully to other industries as well. Do reach out to me if you have any questions.The post 5 Innovative Training Strategies For Insurance That Work appeared first on EI Design.

    Today, outsourcing content development is a fairly well established practice for several organizations. However, what works for one organization and helps them leverage on an offshore partner may not work for another. So, how can you determine if you should evaluate eLearning content development outsourcing? The answer lies in looking at the pros of content development outsourcing and comparing them against the triggers of your outsourcing need. In this article I will outline the pros of content development outsourcing and how you can use these pointers and arrive at the right strategy to outsource and create a successful partnership that you can leverage on. The Advantages Of eLearning Content Development Outsourcing As head of an organization that has been a trusted offshore eLearning content development partner for several global organizations, I will dip into my own experience to outline the pros of eLearning content development outsourcing. Let me begin with an important input from my earlier article How to choose a custom eLearning company in India? where I had outlined the factors that have a bearing on your decision to outsource. The Triggers For eLearning Content Development Outsourcing Scaling (to handle higher volumes). Reducing the time to market. Reduction in cost. Access to talent that you do not have. Addition of more innovative solutions to your portfolio. Having clarity on why you want to outsource and what gains you seek from each of them is vital in creating an effective outsourcing strategy. Top 6 Benefits Of eLearning Content Development Outsourcing Reduction in costs. This is certainly the first and the probably the biggest benefit of outsourcing. Through outsourcing, you can get access to large talent pools that map exactly to your requirement and yet pay a fraction of the cost that you would incur if you were to hire them in-house. Flexibility to scale the team up and down. eLearning content development outsourcing offers you greater flexibility by allowing you to rapidly scale up and down the required team exactly as per your business dynamics. Access to new skill sets and more varied talent in a given domain. With rapidly changing learner expectations, tools and technologies it is not possible to have all combinations of skills that you or your customers may require. Outsourcing offsets this challenge and offers you the flexibility to have more than one partner to be able to address varied solutions. Reduction in development time leading to a faster turnaround time. Typically, an outsourcing partner will have a dedicated team addressing your requirement including focus on shorter development cycles. This gives you a significant edge in managing a quicker turnaround time for your projects particularly when your internal teams may not be available. Access to best practices leading to optimization of your development practices. Remember your partner will be servicing needs of several organizations and therefore, is more likely to have development practices that are optimized for globally distributed development. You can use these cues to enhance your own development practices further. Additionally, you will get the following business gains: Addition of more innovative solutions to your portfolio. You can leverage on your partner’s skills to enhance your portfolio to service more varied or more complex needs. Enhanced focus on your customers. Leveraging on the partner’s development strengths enables you to bring higher focus on customer interfacing activities rather than day to day execution. Besides creating better customer satisfaction, this may enable you to address new opportunities. I hope this article was useful in reinforcing the pros of eLearning content development outsourcing. Remember to tie these gains back to your triggers or needs to outsource and you will arrive at the right decision. You can also refer to my article Too Many eLearning Companies in India - How to Find the Best? that provides further insight on how you can maximize the success of your eLearning content development outsourcing.The post 6 Pros Of eLearning Content Development Outsourcing appeared first on EI Design.

    The popularity of mobile learning or mLearning continues to grow. Interestingly, integration of mobile devices into corporate learning strategies has been triggered largely by learners who want the flexibility of device they want to learn on. As a result, many corporates worldwide now have Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies in place and have embraced custom mobile learning or mLearning solutions in the last 2-3 years. Yet there are several misconceptions around the effectiveness of custom mobile learning or mLearning solutions. In this article I will outline five of the common misconceptions on custom mobile learning solutions. More specifically, I will share some pointers on how you can address some of these challenges and create an effective custom mobile learning solution that will work for you. 5 Common Misconceptions About Custom Mobile Learning Solutions As I had mentioned earlier, with the increased usage of mobile devices as the preferred device for learning (particularly tablets and in recent times smartphones), mobile learning, and as an extension, custom mobile learning solutions are on an upswing. Integration of Tablets and Smartphones provides increased flexibility to learners as they can access the same course across multiple devices. Technology allows them a seamless learning across devices. In spite of this momentum, custom mobile learning solutions do face certain challenges and this often leads to elusive success factors. I will outline the 5 common misconceptions that I have seen so far and will provide pointers on a work-around for you to overcome them. 1. Mobile learning is eLearning lite. This is probably the biggest misconception and often the reason why custom mobile learning solutions fail to hit the mark. Mobile learning is not eLearning lite and when you opt for custom mobile learning solutions, you need to extensively revamp your learning strategy. 2. One size fits all. I see this as the second biggest misconception and it is related to the first misconception. When you opt for a custom mobile learning solution, you need to identify which devices would be used to access mLearning solutions. Essentially, there are two options: Adaptive. These are multi-device custom mobile learning solutions that support PCs, laptops, and tablets. Responsive. These are multi-device custom mobile learning solutions that support PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. The inclusion of smartphones needs a reassessment of how your custom mobile learning solution needs to be designed. There are certain trade-offs in the overall learning experience when you design for the limited viewing area of a smartphone and this needs to be factored during the learning design phase. If the percentage of users opting for smartphones is very low, I would recommend the adaptive approach rather than a responsive approach. This will ensure that there is no trade-off and the same learning experience that is offered to PC/laptop users will also be available on tablets. 3. Need to factor for technology (HTML5 support), otherwise the same content and same learning strategy would work on all devices (including mobile devices). This is another misconception that often causes a gap in the desired and the actual learning experience. While custom mobile learning solutions factor for the technology (HTML5 output), this alone is not adequate to craft the learning strategy. Mobile devices require bite-sized learning that certainly needs repurposing of the content. Similarly, you need to have user interactions that are intrinsic to mobile devices but they are equally intuitive for usage on PC/laptop. Only then can the learning experience on mobile devices be meaningful for the learners. 4. Tablets and smartphones both support HTML5, so the same learning strategy should work. Yes, from a technology perspective, both tablets and smartphones support HTML5. The need for distinct learning strategies that should be part of your custom mobile learning solutions arises from two factors. The first one is the fact that there is a limited viewable area in a smartphone. There is another associated challenge of providing flexibility in portrait and landscape viewing on smartphones that is not very relevant for tablet users. So, the custom mobile learning solution should be crafted bottom up; that is, begin with smartphone and then move up to tablets and finally to laptops/PCs. This approach will ensure that the learners will get the same learning experience as they move across devices on the same course. 5. A complete learning experience cannot be delivered on smartphones. This is a misconception that is very common. A complete learning experience can be delivered on smartphones provided your custom mobile learning solution factors for their limitations and builds on how learners are likely to use them in their overall learning journey. Summary Like all new approaches, an effective and successful implementation of mobile learning or mLearning needs a different learning strategy. I hope with the clarity on the common 5 misconceptions and, more specifically, my pointers on how you could handle the intrinsic challenges, you will be able to create custom mobile learning solutions that work. Over the last 4+ years, we have crafted custom mobile learning solutions of over 400 hours for both formal and informal learning (Performance Support Tools). We have crafted learning strategies that work for both individual learners as well as for collaborative (social) learning. If you have any questions on how you can successfully integrate mobile learning into your current learning strategy, do reach out to me.The post Custom Mobile Learning Solutions: 5 Common Misconceptions appeared first on EI Design.

    In one of my earlier articles, "Top 5 Tips For Innovative eLearning Development", I had touched upon two significant challenges that Learning and Development teams face today. First is, how to enhance efficacy of learning; second being what learning strategies should be adopted to ensure both learning and business mandates are met. Adopting custom mobile learning solutions for your company could be one of the measures to mitigate these challenges. 7 Advantages Of Using Custom Mobile Learning Solutions For Your Company In this article I will outline how custom mobile learning solutions can be used for primary learning (formal training) and informal learning (performance support intervention and social learning) to provide the required performance gain you seek. The Forgetting Curve Most of us are familiar with the "Forgetting Curve" that defines the exponential nature of forgetting. As you see from this diagram featuring the "Forgetting Curve", we forget 80% of what we learned in 30 days! It is evident from here that it is not enough to have formal training that happens for a short period of time during the year and is expected to lead the learner from learning to application at work and a behavioral change. Instead, the adopted learning strategy must look beyond formal training and identify approaches to create "learning as a continuum". How To Offset The "Forgetting Curve"? Is There A "Recall And Retention" Approach To Offset This? There are multiple approaches that can be used to offset the "Forgetting Curve". One of them is to have on-going smaller bytes of learning instead of one large chunk. If these bytes could be delivered in interesting and engaging formats and made available to learners within their work-flow, they will work effectively in helping learn, recall, and retain. Over a period of time, this would lead to the required application at work and the anticipated behavioral change. Custom mobile learning solutions are a great fit to move from discrete learning events (typically associated with formal training) to learning paths or learning pathways that have additional measures to help learners: Recall. Retain. Reinforce. Apply. What Benefits Do Mobile Learning Solutions Provide? As we know, instead of one big training program, if there are smaller chunks of learning over a period of time we are likely to retain better. While this can certainly be achieved with traditional eLearning approaches as well, mobile learning solutions have a significant edge in achieving this. Let me begin with a list of the key advantages of custom mobile learning solutions from one my earlier articles, What Are The Benefits Of mLearning? Featuring 5 Killer Examples: Flexibility to learners. At the top of the benefits list is the flexibility mLearning or mobile learning offers. This includes: Flexibility and choice of device to access learning "anytime, anywhere". Flexibility of learning with more varied formats (videos, podcasts, and so on). Better completion rates and higher retention. The bite-sized or micro-learning approach makes it easier for learners to initiate, complete, and retain learning better. Collaborative learning. Collaborative learning is a great way to engage with peers to share learning experiences and be part of communities of specific practices. Higher engagement. The experiences are more immersive and statistics reveal that more learners complete the courses through mLearning than traditional eLearning. Multi-device support. With multi-device support the same course is available on varied devices ranging from PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Performance support. Mobile learning or mLearning is becoming the preferred approach to provide performance support intervention as mobile devices are an intrinsic part of the learners’ work-flow. Performance support facilitates an easy access to information while at work and increases the probability of usage and retrieval. Learning path. Mobile devices can also be used to update learners on their "learning path" thereby facilitating "learning as a continuum". With more people depending on phone-based organizers, integrating links in organizers to commence/resume the courses saves time for learners. Can You Leverage On The Power Of Custom Mobile Learning Solutions For Your Company To Enhance Your Learning Strategy? My personal experience in working with several organizations globally is that learners very quickly opt for tablets or smartphones for learning. (As highlighted earlier, studies show that more learners complete the courses when they have an option for Tablets or Smartphones). How do we ensure that we leverage on this higher learner engagement for a more effective learning? This is where custom mobile learning solutions find the right fit. Let me outline how we handle this. We draw inspiration from Dr. Conrad Gottfredson and Bob Mosher’s Five Distinct Moments of Need©. These moments of learning are: When learning for the first time. When wanting to learn more. When trying to apply/remember. When something goes wrong. When something changes. You can use this framework to extend the formal training (for learning needs 1 and 2) and just-in-time Performance Support Tools (for learning needs 3-5). More specifically, looking at the nature of the learning need, you can integrate social learning programs. What Are The Significant Gains For Organizations If They Opt For Custom Mobile Learning Solutions? Let’s take a look at a typical Learning and Performance Ecosystem and see what custom mobile learning solutions are possible for your company: You can use custom mobile learning solutions to achieve performance gain. The application could be for: Formal Learning. Custom mobile learning courses that are available on tablets and smartphones (similarly, you can offer mobile apps for primary learning). Performance Support Tools (PSTs). That is Performance Support Tools in varied forms like mobile apps, interactive PDFs/eBooks, expert videos, webinars/recorded webinars, whiteboard animations, and webcast/podcasts. Social Learning. That is social learning for collaborative learning, sharing, content curation, and so on. You can use creative Instructional Design to meet the learner-centricity objective with innovative learning designs delivered on tablets and smartphones (while retaining the flexibility of offering them on PCs and laptops). Custom mobile learning solutions provide sticky learning through many approaches. Here are my Top 6: Gamification. A gamified interaction to identify time-wasters that would in-turn help team members with effective planning was designed to deploy on smart phones. Decision-making - branching scenarios. An interactive exercise demonstrating a conflict scenario at workplace where the learners could relate him/herself in the situation and make decisions. This mobile-friendly engaging interaction was designed to ensure sticky learning. Story-based. An instance of story-based approach from our multi-device compatible Instructional Design courses. Scenario-based. Learners get a chance to walk through and interact with a series of scenarios in this multi-device course to identify and mitigate conflict situations at work place. Guided exploration. An exploratory navigation through instances where learners can choose among a set of options and evaluate what is right and wrong. Interactive videos. Engaging videos designed for mobile devices that carry the learners through real life situations. The videos are paused at points letting the learners interact and check their understanding. Over the last 4+ years, we have crafted custom mobile learning solutions of over 400 hours for both formal and informal learning (Performance Support Tools). We have crafted learning strategies that work for both individual learners as well as for collaborative (social) learning. If you have any questions on how you can successfully integrate custom mobile learning solutions for your company, do reach out to me.The post The Benefits Of Custom Mobile Learning Solutions For Your Company appeared first on EI Design.

    Particularly over the last 4+ years, most organizations have evaluated mobile learning solutions integrating tablets and smartphones into their learning delivery. Mobile learning solutions are based on HTML5 technology. While it is fairly straightforward to create new courses using HTML5 that are mobile ready, there are several aspects that you need to watch out for when converting Flash to HMTL5. How To Convert Flash To HTML5 In this article I will outline the HTML5 technology advantage, its challenges, and share 8 tips that you can use when you plan the migration of your Flash to HTML5 that will help your business. Background The challenge Over the years, all of us would have created courses that predominantly used Flash for development. With increase in demand to offer mobile learning, you would have realized that Flash courses do not work on most mobile devices. As a result, you need to plan to migrate the existing legacy Flash content to HTML5. The solution HTML5 supports all mobile devices (tablets and smartphones). Additionally, the more recent browsers support HTML5 enabling you to run the mobile-ready courses on desktops and laptops as well. This flexibility now allows a single build to work seamlessly across all devices starting from desktops/laptops to tablets and smartphones. Sounds simple? Not quite, do watch out for the following: Multi-device support While mobile learning solutions are required to provide enhanced flexibility to learners to "learn on the go", organizations do need to ensure that the same course is also available on desktops and laptops. In case they use older versions of browsers that do not support HTML5, these courses would not work on desktops and laptops. Taking a call on upgrading the browser versions (that support HTML5) across the organization needs significant budget outlay. Learning Management System support Your existing Learning Management System may not support mobile learning. Today, most Learning Management System providers do provide this flexibility although there may be some that do not support this right now. As a result, you have two options: Upgrade the Learning Management System to support mobile solutions. Move to another Learning Management System that supports mobile solutions. In either situation, you need to plan for a significant budget outlay as well as a plan to transition your existing courses to the new platform. Security concerns Alongside the mobile learning solutions, there has also been a change in learning delivery that supports Bring Your Own Device or BYOD. This provides the flexibility to learners to use their own device (tablet/smartphone) to access the courses. This needs to be done in a secure manner and planned ahead. Organizations need to identify the required security policy ahead of implementing mobile learning solutions. This too has a lead time that you must factor for as well as the associated costs. How To Convert Flash To HTML5 That Will Help Your business? As you would have noted, HTML5 has great strengths (ranging from universal support to the flexibility to run the same course irrespective of the device). I have also outlined some of the associated challenges that you should watch out for. With these aspects in the background, let’s see how you can plan the migration or conversion of your Flash courses to HTML5 that will help your business. 1. List all the courses to be migrated. Identify various courses that should be moved from Flash or legacy formats to HTML5. Additionally, identify the courses for the pilot phase. 2. Validate that all assets and pre-requisites are in place. Validate that all courses and source files are in place. This will ensure smooth conversion from Flash to HTML5 in a timely manner. 3. Draw up the priority list of courses to be converted from Flash to HTML5. This is very important and needs to reflect the varied approaches that you would adopt for the conversion. For instance, some courses would need only a technology uplift, some need only visual design uplift whereas some require complete re-design. Looking at the overall volume and the nature of upliftment, draw up the priority list that will enable you to do adequate sampling as well. 4. Identify the need: Technology update vs. complete redesign. As highlighted above, the nature of value addition sought in a course or a series can vary. You must ascertain how you should plan the migration. Some of the cues could be: Recent courses These may need technology uplift only (conversion to HTML5 - no Instructional Design and Visual Design enhancements). Compliance courses The migration cycle can also factor for textual updates as well as visual upliftment. Legacy courses You can only reuse the content and then completely re-design (both from Instructional Design and Visual Design perspectives). 5. Focus on retention and performance gain. You must evaluate moving older, longer run length courses to shorter, byte sized mobile learning solutions. You must evaluate a completely different learning design approach that can cater to multi-device support. You should also evaluate approaches to supplement or complement formal learning through innovative Performance Support Tools (PSTs). The PSTs can be delivered very effectively on tablets and smartphones. 6. Select adaptive vs. responsive designs and tools. You have two options: Adaptive. These are multi-device custom mobile learning solutions that support PCs, laptops, and tablets. Responsive. These are multi-device custom mobile learning solutions that support PCs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Authoring tool selection Related to this is the tool selection. Besides offering adaptive or completely responsive design capability, the tools can be further classified into rapid development (Articulate Studio 13, iSpring, Adapt, and so on) or standard mobile learning authoring tools (Adobe CS6 with CreateJS, Adobe Captivate, Trivantis Lectora, Articulate Storyline, and so on). 7. Plan for sampling to test user experience. I have noted that this is often missed out in the conversion of Flash courses to HTML5. Like all new initiatives, a checkpointing is crucial. Post the pilot phase, do this sampling to ensure your approach is valid and the required impact would indeed be created. 8. Ensure readiness of supporting aspects. I have already touched upon these aspects that include the browser support for HTML5, Learning Management System support for mobile learning solutions, and updation to your security policy. I hope these tips will help you craft an effective approach to convert Flash to HTML5 that will help your business. We also have several case studies and demos on successful projects where we have handled large volume migration and how this approach has brought the required value to the organization. Over the last 4+ years, we have crafted custom mobile learning solutions of over 400 hours for both formal and informal learning (Performance Support Tools). We have crafted learning strategies that work for both individual learners as well as for collaborative (social) learning.The post 8 Tips To Convert Flash To HTML5 That Will Help Your Business appeared first on EI Design.

    Localization of eLearning courses to reach the global audience is a well established practice. However, successful localization needs to look at the entire development process (rather than see this as a translation exercise) and plan for several other factors that will help you succeed. In this article, I will outline top 10 tips on eLearning localization that actually add value to your mandate. What Is eLearning Localization? Elearning localization is the process of adapting a product to a particular language, culture, and a desired local "look-and-feel". eLearning localization could be seen as language translation with adaptation for the geographic region in which the product is targeted towards. Why eLearning Localization? The primary reason is to reach out to your geographically spread out audience. I think the value of localization in eLearning can be summed up very effectively through this quote by Nelson Mandela: "If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart." Easier Said Than Done? We have been providing eLearning localization services for over a decade now and have localized hundreds of eLearning and mobile learning courses into 26 global languages so far. What we have noted is that localization should not be an after-thought to your primary development of eLearning. Instead, localization needs processing beyond translation and/or audio integration in another language. What Works? Successful eLearning localization projects need to plan for several unique aspects during each of the following phases. I have added tips that will bring in the required value during each phase. During estimation. During pre-planning. During development of the master course. During translation and audio recording. During integration or development of localized courses. 1. During The Estimation Phase Tip 1. Identify the required deliverables and scope accurately. This includes: Effort for localization. This begins with identifying the languages you have to localize into. Remember the effort will vary for languages with special characters. Scope of localization. This includes: User Interface and its elements. Content. Audio and its transcript. Video or only its transcript. Character images with or without text/graphs/screenshots. Help/Glossary/Resources. Tip 2. Plan for an accurate estimation using the following for each language. Onscreen text word count as well as audio word count (if applicable). Mode of delivery: Single SCO per language or multi-language SCO. Number of review and testing cycles. 2. During Pre-Planning Tip 3: Create a design approach that is localization-friendly. User Interface. Should be learner-friendly and intuitive irrespective of the language. Images and graphics. It should be possible to replace these easily; avoid having text on images. Space for text expansion. Provisioning for adequate space as languages may need extra space for the translated content. These screenshots illustrate how a localization-friendly design approach can take care of handling these aspects: 3. During Development Of The Master Course Tip 4. Watch out for cultural nuances. Validate the selection of colors and other culture-specific aspects as: Different cultures have different meanings associated to colors. Some gestures may have a different meaning altogether in another culture. Certain symbols and icons may convey different meanings in another language. Tip 5. Plan for a neutralized content. Avoid references or phrases that may be difficult to translate into another language or may not convey the same value in the translated language. Tip 6. Identify the components that will not be localized. For instance, you may choose to localize (or otherwise) currency, units of measurement, the date format, and so on. 4. During Translation And Audio Recording Tip 7. Always hire professional translators (native speakers) and voice-over artists. Tip 8. Add a linguistic reviewer to validate the translation. You can also use them for validation of the localized courses. Tip 9. Finalize one language. Once this is completed, ensure the Translation kits reflect the feedback and enhancements and then move on to the balance languages. 5. During Integration Or Development Of Localized Courses Tip 10. Do extensive testing to simulate how different users will be taking the courses. It is better to factor for different devices (if mobile learning is part of your solution) or different browsers or different bandwidths. The latter is an important consideration and some countries may have limited bandwidth. I hope this article is useful and these 10 tips on eLearning localization will actually add value to your localization projects. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or need support in localization projects.The post Top 10 Tips On eLearning Localization That Actually Add Value appeared first on EI Design.

  In today’s world, time is at premium and Learning and Development professionals have to balance the quality of eLearning courses within shorter time spans to go-live and within budgets that are shrinking every year. All of these factors have led to increased use of rapid eLearning development as a necessity vis-a-vis traditional eLearning. In this article, I will outline what rapid eLearning is, as well as its advantages and disadvantages. I will then share cues on where it would be a good fit and some tips and best practices that will help you increase the success of these initiatives. Rapid eLearning Development: What Is Rapid eLearning? While the definition of rapid eLearning varies, the most common attributes of eLearning courses that can be termed as "rapid eLearning courses" are: They can be developed within 2-3 weeks. These projects would be led directly by Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) who have written the source content. Rapid authoring tools are used that typically facilitate an input of the source content in a format like PowerPoint. Notable examples of rapid authoring tools are Articulate Studio’09, Articulate Studio’13, Snap! by Lectora, Mohive, Claro, and Adapt. However, the traditional eLearning authoring tools like Adobe Captivate, Lectora Inspire, and Articulate Storyline can also be adapted for rapid eLearning development. Rapid authoring tools do not require any technical expertise to develop content/courses. Additionally, these tools facilitate an "Easy Publish" of courses into desired standards like standalone (CD/Offline version), SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004, and AICC. Courses can be created through a standard template library of the authoring tools and will have basic levels of interactions and simple assessments. What Are The Advantages Of Rapid eLearning? The key factor for the success of rapid eLearning development has been faster turn-around time. Additionally, this development can be handled predominantly by Subject Matter Experts, minimizing the requirement of other resources such as Instructional Designers, visual designers, and programmers. A summary of the key advantages is as follows: Lower development costs. Better turn-around time (most courses can go live within 2-3 weeks). Design just-in-time training that can respond more dynamically to organizational needs. Opportunities for organizations to leverage on internal Subject Matter Expert talent and use them more efficiently and meaningfully. Better control on on-going updates or enhancements to courses. What Are The Disadvantages Of Rapid eLearning? In spite of several advantages that rapid eLearning offers, "one size does not fit all". What this means is that this approach will fit certain kinds of projects but will fail to be effective in others. The reason for this is that more often than not, Subject Matter Experts do not have Instructional Design capability and this leads to a learning design that may not engage the learners as effectively (despite great content). So like all choices, there are pros and cons as you opt for rapid eLearning development. Specifically, Where Would Rapid eLearning Development Succeed? In my assessment, rapid eLearning development finds a good fit and is successful in the following situations: Projects that need extensive subject matter input. As we know, in traditional eLearning projects, Subject Matter Experts pass the raw content to Instructional Designers, who then develop the storyboards. This is further handled by visual designers and programmers to create the eventual project. It is important to note that most of the development process is controlled by professionals who do not have knowledge of the content and may not necessarily have prior experience with it. So, projects that can benefit from an Subject Matter Expert’s direct and continuous engagement are a good fit for rapid eLearning development. Subject Matter Experts can opt for direct development of the courses or work very closely with Instructional Designers to ensure accurate implementation of their brief. Projects that need to go-live quickly. Rapid eLearning development is a great fit when you need projects to go-live in a really short lead time (within three weeks or so). Clearly, this goal cannot be met through traditional eLearning development. Projects that have limited budget or organizations having limited training budgets. In both situations, rapid eLearning development is the logical choice. What Kind Of Situations Adapt Well To Rapid eLearning Development? Before you select rapid eLearning development, do evaluate if the content falls into one of the following categories. These situations reflect when rapid eLearning development is a great fit and is often a better choice than traditional eLearning: When content changes rapidly. When content has a short shelf life. When you need to provide just-in-time information. Are There Any Tips Or Best Practices That Will Increase The Success Of Rapid eLearning Development Projects? Here are some tips and best practices that will ensure the success of your rapid eLearning development: Identify the time frame to go-live and evaluate if the project (and content) is apt for rapid eLearning development. Authoring tool selection. Confirm if the Subject Matter Expert is familiar with the tool. Otherwise, plan for an associated learning curve and determine if this will impact the planned go-live date. Readiness of the source content. Confirm if the existing raw content needs further processing or it is ready to hit development. Explore the authoring tool and identify the right templates that provide the desired visual impact and will aid learners retain this effectively. Engage the learners through relevant interactions. Use scenarios and pause and reflect templates to help them understand the real-world dynamics. Select an effective assessment strategy. Plan for adequate check-points and end of course assessments through varied templates. I hope this article was useful in understanding the dynamics associated with rapid eLearning development and providing an insight on how you can create successful projects using this approach. At EI Design we have a strong, decade old rapid eLearning development practice through which we provide a dedicated panel of Instructional Designers and visual designers who work closely with your Subject Matter Expert and create stunning rapid eLearning courses that are completely template-driven. This value addition can offset the disadvantages of rapid eLearning development while retaining the advantages of lower costs and faster turn-around time. We have several case studies that showcase how we have increased the success factors of these projects manifold.The post 6 Facts About Rapid eLearning Development That Will Impress Your Boss appeared first on EI Design.

    Gamification in eLearning is fast emerging as an effective technique to engage learners. It has found its place under the sun for serious learning (that is, meeting specified learning outcomes). In this article, I will share 6 examples that outline how we have created immersive learning experiences using gamification for varied training needs like induction and onboarding, professional skills enhancement, compliance, soft skills enhancement, and behavioral change programs. Using Gamification In eLearning Let’s first understand what gamification is and how it is different from playing games. In one of my earlier articles on gamification, Top 6 Benefits Of Gamification In eLearning, I had highlighted both these aspects as follows: Gamification is about more than just playing games (in fact, sometimes it does not involve playing games at all). It can be defined as the concept of applying game-design thinking to non game applications. Wikipedia defines gamification as "the use of game thinking and game mechanics in non-game contexts to engage users in solving problems". What Are The Benefits Of Gamification In eLearning? Again, I will recap from my article the key benefits of gamification: Better learning experience. The learner can experience "fun" during the game and still learn if the level of engagement is high. A good gamification strategy with high levels of engagement will lead to an increase in recall and retention. Better learning environment. Gamification in eLearning provides an effective, informal learning environment, and helps learners practice real life situations and challenges in a safe environment. This leads to a more engaged learning experience that facilitates better knowledge retention. Instant feedback. It provides instant feedback so that learners know what they know or what they should know. This too facilitates better learner engagement and thereby better recall and retention. Prompting behavioral change. Points, badges, and leaderboards would surely make training awesome. However, gamification is about a lot more than just those surface level benefits. Gamification can drive strong behavioral change especially when combined with the scientific principles of repeated retrieval and spaced repetition. Can be applied for most learning needs. Gamification can be used to fulfill most learning needs including induction and onboarding, product sales, customer support, soft skills, awareness creation, and compliance. Impact on bottom line. On account of all these aspects that touch and impact learners (better learning experience, higher recall and retention, catalyzing behavioral change, and so on), it can create a significant performance gain for organizations. Does Gamification Really Help Learners Recall Or Retain Information Better? The answer is an emphatic "yes." This is summarized very effectively in the following statement (as per Wikipedia): "Gamification techniques strive to leverage people’s natural desires for socializing, learning, mastery, competition, achievement, status, self-expression, altruism, or closure.   Gamification strategies include use of rewards for players who accomplish desired tasks or competition to engage players. Types of rewards include points, achievement badges or levels, the filling of a progress bar, or providing the user with virtual currency.   Making the rewards for accomplishing tasks visible to other players or providing leaderboards are further ways of encouraging players to compete." How Can You Ensure Success Of Gamification In eLearning? Success of gamification in eLearning is driven by the power of the concept that it is based on. An effective gamification concept is one that: Captures (and retains) learners’ attention. Challenges them. Engages and entertains them. Teaches them. Gamification In eLearning: 6 Killer Examples While gamification has been applied in several domains, our focus has been on its application in serious learning. The games that we design are therefore geared to meet definite learning outcomes. Our gamification strategies broadly map to: Complete gamification, wherein: Tasks or concepts that are overlaid on the learning content but are not related to the content. Contextual tasks or concepts that are overlaid on the learning content. Partial gamification (notably in inline checks and end of course assessments) In this article, I will share 6 examples that will illustrate how gamification (full or partial) can be applied to your key training needs in: Induction programs. Professional skills enhancement. Compliance. Soft skills enhancement. Behavioral change. Gamify assessments for traditional eLearning courses (partial gamification). Complete Gamification Example 1: Induction Program. The gamification concept: We chose the 100 days induction cum onboarding plan to map to a theme of a mission that needed learners to clear various levels within the stipulated time. It also had leaderboards to enable them to assess how they are faring against the other team members. Reference: You can also refer to my earlier article What Are The Benefits Of mLearning? Featuring 5 Killer Examples, where this example was featured. Example 2: Professional Skills Enhancement (account management fundamentals for project managers and account managers). The gamification concept: An avatar based gamification approach. The highlights of this approach were: Creation of different learner paths. Alignment of the learning and gamification path to the proficiency of learners. Presentation of a mix of questions in each path (mapping to real-life challenges commensurate with the proficiency level of the learners). Non availability of learning aids of theory (lifeline) for higher proficiency learners to make the challenge tougher. (The complexity and the nature of the challenges posed to the learners tested their cognitive proficiency to tackle the situation at hand, thereby resulting in immersive learning.) EI Design Gamification Professional Skills Enhancement Reference: You can also refer to my earlier article Gamification in learning through an avatar-based serious game concept, where this example was featured. The article provides further insights on the concept and its application. Example 3: Compliance. The gamification concept: We created a simulation based, task oriented gamification course, which was interactive and engrossing. The game scenario was mapped to the context of risk management and the incremental learning was provided at each stage of the game as the learners took the challenges and overcame them. To achieve this, we incorporated a real work environment (visually), an element of challenge (bonuses and bombs), rewards for success (caps, badges), and learning through activities including elements of surprise and delight. We provided the learners the choice to seek support while performing the assigned task like in a real life scenario mapping to actual human behavior in such situations. This ensured a true simulated environment to encourage application of knowledge through performance. Reference: You can also refer to my earlier article Gamification in Compliance, where this example was featured. The article provides further insights on the concept and its application. Example 4: Rewards And Recognition. The gamification concept: This too uses an avatar based approach. The learners go through a series of gamified activities that map to the required qualities of a given reward category. The activities simulate and reinforce the qualities the individuals have to maintain to win. The scores lead them to gaining the reward. This approach also features leaderboards. Partial Gamification: Features Gamified Activities Or Gamified Assessments Here are a couple of examples that show how partial gamification techniques can be applied to a traditional eLearning course. This simple value addition can make a standard eLearning course more fun and engaging. Of the two examples of partial gamification techniques featured here, the first one shows a gamified activity while the second one shows a gamified assessment. Example 5: Soft skills / time management - A gamified activity on time wasters. Example 6: A gamified assessment. This can be used to enhance learner engagement in any traditional eLearning course. The power of gamification in eLearning that is aligned to learning outcomes is clearly evident in these 6 examples. I hope this article was useful in helping you understand how you can use gamification in eLearning for almost all of your training needs. At EI Design, we have a very mature gamification practice and we can help you in transforming your traditional eLearning approaches to more immersive gamified approaches. Do reach out to me for pointers on these.The post 6 Killer Examples Of Gamification In eLearning appeared first on EI Design.

    You have decided to adopt mLearning (or mobile learning) and are ready to move your legacy courses to HTML5. Obviously, this involves a significant budget and you want to be certain that you have chosen the most efficient approach to convert your legacy courses into HTML5. In this article, I will share some case studies to outline how you can manage this migration into HTML5 the right way. Convert Legacy Courses Into HTML5 In my earlier article 8 Tips To Convert Flash to HTML5 That Will Help Your Business, I had highlighted the challenge (associated with legacy courses) and the solution (how HTML5 addresses the challenge). Let’s begin with this recap: The Challenge. Over the years, all of us would have created courses that predominantly used Flash for development. With increase in demand to offer mobile learning, you would have realized that Flash courses do not work on most mobile devices. As a result, you need to plan to migrate the existing legacy Flash content to HTML5. The Solution. HTML5 supports all mobile devices (tablets and smartphones). Additionally, the more recent browsers support HTML5 enabling you to run the mobile-ready courses on desktops and laptops as well. This flexibility now allows a single build to work seamlessly across all devices starting from desktops/laptops to tablets and smartphones. In the same article, I have outlined what you should watch out for during the migration of legacy courses to HTML5. Additionally, I have shared 8 tips that will help you create an efficient transition to HTML5. In this article, I will share two case studies that reflect dynamics that will resonate with most organizations and will provide the pointers on what approaches will help you design an efficient and effective migration strategy and convert legacy courses into HTML5 the right way. Convert Legacy Courses Into HTML5: Case Study 1 Background. For one of our customers, the existing Flash courses met the learning mandate (that is, no further changes to content and visual presentation were necessary). So, the look and feel of the existing courses had to be retained in the HTML5 version. The objective of migration was to provide extended access to learners by making these courses accessible on tablets. We had to convert 80 hours of eLearning to mLearning or mobile learning (adaptive approach that includes tablet support) in 4 months. The courses needed to be tested on varied target devices, so that the migrated courses would be compatible with Windows XP and 7, iPad (varied iOS versions), and Android 10" and 7" tablets. Our Approach. Considering the volume, timeline, and complexity of testing with varied devices, we started by firming up the process that would help us in meeting the mandate. We created a team dedicated for this task. The team comprised Solution Architects, Visual Designers, Programmers, and Quality Assurance personnel. The Solution Architects created the adaptive framework using Adobe CS6 with CreateJS, which could support multiple devices and create templates for easy reproduction of screens by the development team. A prototype was prepared and tested across devices in the first three weeks and delivered to the client for review and sign-off. The prototype was signed off in a week’s time. During the development stage, multiple, smaller teams were set up to manage 15-20 courses each. We followed the factory floor approach to bring in efficiency at work. We did group activities within the team members so that the outcome from each team was ready for testing and shipment to the client. This approach helped us to move along the development cycle within the specified time and we completed the project by the scheduled date. The Results. We met the delivery timeline for the project. As a result, our customer could launch the courses on time. Our customer was the first to release mobile courses supporting multiple devices in this domain. It helped them to further strengthen their position as market leaders. Their mobile courses are taken by more professionals now. As a result, they are meeting the project goals very effectively. Convert Legacy Courses Into HTML5: Case Study 2 Background. This customer wanted to redevelop legacy Flash compliance courses (a total of 26 hours of eLearning) to their globally spread out workforce with extended support for tablets. The existing Flash courses had been designed over several years and many of them looked dated. The need was to completely redesign all courses with a modern look and feel, bring in a consistent look and feel to all courses (as the legacy Flash courses had been designed over the years with varied design approaches), provide HTML5 support, and test it for tablets. The entire exercise had to be completed within 6 months. Our Approach. Here too a dedicated team was set up comprising Solution Architects, Instructional Designers, Visual Designers, Programmers, and Quality Assurance personnel. The Instructional Design team began with the analysis of the existing legacy courses and tagged them into what level of enhancement was necessary. This mapped to complete overhaul or partial enhancements (that is, some aspects of the existing courses could be reused). The Solution Architects created an adaptive framework using Lectora and the required templates library that could address both requirements identified by the Instructional Designers. The Visual Design (Product Strategy) team then created multiple design packs for development that could be mapped to each course. This was then used to create key prototypes. On sign off of multiple prototypes, the development process began. Multiple, smaller teams were set up to handle a series of courses. The testing process was less tedious on account of tool selection (Lectora). The Results. We managed the project effectively to create an effective suite of compliance courses with a new look and feel plus the extended access on tablets. The project was completed on time and provided a significantly superior learning experience to the learners. Summary Both these case studies reflect using some of the tips I had outlined in my earlier article 8 Tips To Convert Flash to HTML5 That Will Help Your Business. Specifically, we used the following aspects that helped us convert legacy courses into HTML5 the right way: Identify the need: Technology update vs. complete redesign. Select adaptive vs. responsive designs and tools. Plan for sampling to test user experience. Ensure readiness of supporting aspects. I hope this article provides the pointers that will help you to convert your legacy courses into HTML5 the right way. At EI Design, we have a very strong mLearning or mobile learning practice and we have migrated or developed over 400 hours of HTML5 learning. If you have any specific queries, do contact me.The post How To Convert Legacy Courses Into HTML5 The Right Way appeared first on EI Design.

    Performance Support Tools (PSTs) are increasingly used to extend the discrete, formal training through a learning path that provides these assets within the learner’s work-flow. They are excellent tools to transform learning from a finite number of days to "learning as a continuum". In this article, I will share 5 innovative examples that illustrate how you can boost your workforce performance with Performance Support Tools (PSTs). How To Boost Your Workforce Performance With Performance Support Tools In my earlier article Performance Support Tools: Top 5 Things Your Boss Wants to Know, I had provided a background on what Performance Support Tools are and how they can add significant value to an organization’s learning strategy. I quote from this article to provide the background: When do learners seek learning? Dr. Conrad Gottfredson and Bob Mosher’s Five Distinct Moments of Need© very succinctly captures when exactly learners seek learning. According to them, learners seek support in these Five Moments of Need: When they are learning an aspect for the first time (New). When they want to deep-dive and learn more (More). When they want to apply or remember something (Apply). When they need to solve a problem or fix something that has gone wrong (Solve). When something changes (Change). While formal training does address the first two learning needs, the use of Performance Support Tools is particularly relevant in meeting the subsequent three needs. You can refer to my article Improving ROI in eLearning where I have highlighted how an effective Performance Support intervention can increase the application of learning. This has a direct impact on improving ROI in eLearning. What are Performance Support Tools and where exactly do they fit in an organization’s learning strategy? Performance Support Tools (PSTs) provide employees with on the job tools that make their work a lot easier. Unlike training, these tools are available to support and guide employees as they actually do their jobs. These tools are very easy to find, often directly embedded into the learners’ workflow (Learning Hub), and offer active guidance. These solutions enable organizations to provide the right amount of task guidance, support, and productivity benefits to learners precisely at the moment of need. Let me showcase 5 innovative examples that will provide the required insight on how you could boost your workforce performance with Performance Support Tools (PSTs). Example 1: Interactive PDF. This format can be effectively used to convert lengthy information into a visually appealing, quick and easy to navigate format. The PDFs can be accessed from all devices (desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones). Additionally, you can integrate audio/video elements into the same document. This example shows how a mammoth 86-slide deck was transformed into an engaging and learner friendly format. Instead of linear walk through, learners have control on how they want to navigate and they can drill down to the required point in 4 clicks. Additionally, they have access to videos, if they want further information. You can also refer to my earlier article Performance Support: Featuring Interactive PDF as a Learning Aid To Supplement eLearning where this case study was presented in detail. Example 2: eBook (HTML5 compatible). This format provides identical features as the Interactive PDF but provides extensions of SCORM packaging. Due to this, organizations get the added advantage of being able to track the learners’ usage, which is not possible with interactive PDF. You can also download this eBook and enjoy reading about Creative Learning Design Strategies that you can use. Example 3: Kinetic text/animations. Sometimes simplicity speaks for itself. This approach uses animation of text to convey the message. This example showcases the use of Kinetic text to reinforce usage of the prescribed work flow for Instructional Designers. The use of typography, animation, and simple sound effects or voice over can create an immersive experience. You can also view this demo on our website (www.eidesign.net). Example 4: Whiteboard animations. This is one of my favorite approaches and the example featured here showcases its effectiveness in complementing a compliance course (on conflict management). Simple illustrations (that use real life scenarios) and concise audio drives the message very effectively. You can also look at the course on the same subject from our online suite of courses on Generic Compliance. Example 5: Videos. This example features a video designed through Adobe After Effects on another compliance course on Whistleblowing. As a supplement to the main eLearning course, it recaps the whistleblowing concept and uses a scenario to reinforce when learner action is necessary. To summarize, I quote again from my article Performance Support Tools: Top 5 Things Your Boss Wants to Know: The real solution lies in creating "Learning as a continuum". A good way to do this is to identify the areas for formal training and use Performance Support Tools intervention to reinforce it shortly after the formal session. You can then create a "learning path" that has interventions like this during the year. A combination of reinforcement as well as new assets that push application of knowledge on the job will help you create a high degree of knowledge recall, retention, and application. I hope this article was useful in understanding how to boost your workforce performance with Performance Support Tools (PSTs). At EI Design we have a very rich repository of engaging and innovative assets that you can use to enhance the performance of your team. Do contact me for further details.The post 5 Innovative Examples To Boost Your Workforce Performance With Performance Support Tools (PSTs) appeared first on EI Design.

  This article is triggered by our global ranking in the Top 10 eLearning Content Development Companies For 2015. This recognition coincides with completion of over 6000 hours of custom eLearning development by us and I take this opportunity to reflect on what has worked and what should be our focus areas in the future. Custom eLearning Development: 6 Takeaways From Our Experience In this article, I look back at our journey and share 6 important takeaways from our extensive experience in custom eLearning development. 1. Focus on customers and ensuring that we retain and grow with them. High customer retention is what we are most proud of. Our growth has largely been driven by relationships that began with one-off projects and slowly grew to a strategic partnership. We continue to build from here and every six months we meet our key customers and show "what more is possible". 2. Learners remain our focal point. Through our learner-centric, innovative, and immersive learning designs and solutions, we help learners to: Enjoy the courses. Go through challenges that keep them intrigued all through the learning path. Internalize the learning and practically apply it on the job. Enhance their performance and deliver better results. We focus on efficacy and application of learning to ensure that a clear business gain for organizations is established. We bring our TNA and solution architecting expertise into play to chalk out the path for a positive ROI for our customers. Our mantra is to bring in a culture of "Learning as a continuum" and for this we use a Learning and Performance based Ecosystem approach. 3. Innovation and exploration. We have invested extensively on two enablers, Innovation and Exploration, that help us differentiate our learning and performance solutions. Our Innovation team focuses on: Evaluation of emerging tools and technologies. Evaluation of learner needs and expectations. Determining how these pointers can be practically used to enhance learning experiences. This year, the team has created two innovative products: Online Review Tool (integrated with the course). Digital Workbook (To enhance the ILT delivery). 4. Agile development methodology. We have been using an agile methodology for several years to meet the ever-evolving and changing customer expectations. We are currently in the process of applying the Kanban approach to our Project Management. Additionally, we are in the last mile of our Corporate Quality Certification (CMMi). 5. Our Offshore Development model. As an offshore development partner based out of India and servicing customers over 16 countries across the world, our Offshore Development Framework is one of the most mature and agile one. While it has a strong core of process definition, it is flexible enough to be aligned quickly to meet our diverse customer needs. 6. The power of our team. Last but not the least, what has really worked is the cumulative power of our team that continuously works towards customer delight. Behind every single course that goes on to incite the "wow" response from our customers is a well-oiled team mechanism at work. Right from getting the requirements right to delivering the final product, each and every member of our team brings in that significant value at various stages of the development cycle. What’s next: We are in the midst of a cutting edge research to come up with a predictive Learnability Index for custom eLearning and mLearning development which will be a unique concept in the industry. The distinct effort that our Innovation and Exploration team puts in provides the required pointers for our Solution Architecting team in creating newer and unique Learning solutions. I would like to summarize these takeaways with a quote from Tom Peter’s 7 Steps to Sustaining Success: "You take care of the people. The people take care of the service. The service takes care of the customer. The customer takes care of the profit. The profit takes care of the re-investment. The re-investment takes care of the re-invention. The re-invention takes care of the future. (And at every step the only measure is EXCELLENCE.)"The post 6 Takeaways From Over 6000 Hours Of Custom eLearning Development appeared first on EI Design.

Putting your learners needs first means using a tool that allows you to offer the most effective elearning techniques on the platforms your learners are using, but where do you start?If you’re overwhelmed by the choices on offer you’re not alone, your options when looking for some advice on which tool to choose are limited to reviews of the first release of major applications or more generalized guidelines on different types of tool.When you’re busy building effective elearning it’s hard to keep up with the incremental changes that add up to create important new capabilities in various software, especially if you have your own favourite or a client requires you to work with a single programme.We’re going to look at the very latest updates to the most popular packages and tease out some trends that point towards where authoring tool development is heading, so you can make an informed decision for your next project.Adapt 1.1The open source, responsive framework for developing multi device elearning saw its first authoring tool released in April 2015, Adapt Authoring Tool 0.1.0 still requires some technical input to install but it supports many features that will help L&D developers create and update their courses.Features of the first release include:Fully featured online Adapt content authoringPreview your work as you make changesUpload and use your own custom Adapt plugins within the toolUse a variety of custom menu types and themesSupport for duplicating content within a course, and creating copies of your coursesMedia management using a cross-course repositoryPublish your content as a SCORM 1.2 package, or as non-tracked web contentOne advantage of an open source project like Adapt is the community of developers constantly working to update the tools core functions and create plug-ins to support more features in between the major updates.Adapt differs to other options by being built from the ground up as a tool for creating responsive content, with the core functions allowing you to add many standard course elements and the plug-in friendly structure allowing many more possibilities when necessary.The next milestone for the project will be version 2 of the underlying responsive framework, it’s scheduled for release in the week commencing 20th July and will include improvements to accessibility, native support of right to left languages and several updates allowing more question layouts.Articulate Storyline 2Storyline is one of the most popular authoring tools in the elearning developer’s arsenal, version 2 was released in September 2014 and May 2015 saw the fifth update which introduced several new features focused on accessibility.One of the most common requests elearning developers hear is for editable content, so one thing to be aware of if your client uses Storyline 1 is that it can’t open and edit courses created or upgraded with Storyline 2.Articulate have been improving the course upgrade workflow in each update, making it easier to move your Storyline 1 modules to the new platform, but anyone wanting to edit the upgraded files will need the latest software.Key updates:Cross Platform tablet support - Android, iPad and HTML5 friendly outputInteractive SlidersMotion Path supportMore animations and transitionsNew triggersUpdated text editor with enhanced font supportEnhanced web objects - layer your content over web objectsMore control of video compressionBetter accessibility control - better support for screen readers in particularEnhanced productivity controls - redesigned UI with added toolsEasily import resources - including templates, content and questionsLectora Publisher 12Lectora has been popular with developers who need to offer accessible content across a variety of platforms, and the latest updates have built on these features.December 2014 saw the release of Lectora Publisher 12 and Trivantis have followed up with 12.1 in April 2015 with some extra features, including integrating feedback through ReviewLink 2.0.Key updates:Offline publishing optionsImproved image editing and handlingImproved text editingBetter handling of web window and social media objectsIntegrated feedback through the responsive ReviewLink 2.0 systemNew web based run and preview modesMore Accessible lists with added stylingAccess to the latest Camtasia 8.4 screen capture toolAdobe Captivate 8The last major revision of Adobe’s popular Captivate tool saw the introduction of responsive output, by allowing you to create three different views of your module you can deploy the same content to mobile, tablet and desktop.Since Captivate 8’s release in May 2014 there have been several updates building on the new capabilities, most recently with the October 2014 release Adobe have added the ability to publish the module as an app from within Captivate.Key updates:Responsive authoringGesture SupportUse device specific capabilities like GPSResponsive screen captureNative support for HTML5 objectsNative app publisher for iOS and AndroidTrendsResponsive design - incorporating HTML5 is clearly one of the key features of the major options for elearning authoring. The blended learning approach is here to stay and the improvements and optimisations that software providers are introducing ensures that content for mobile learners will be easier than ever to create.Accessibility - is increasingly important, it’s something that all elearning designers should be aware of and by incorporating the WCAG 2.0 standards into the tools they are using it can only help keep it at the forefront the development process.Flexibility - beyond responsive delivery of the final module, every tool provider has made steps to make the development environment as flexible as possible too. From allowing users to re-arrange the layout of the tools UI to exporting the modules in a variety of formats and even as finished mobile apps, the tools are becoming more and more versatile.What’s clear when looking at the various innovations and incremental improvements across the industry is that competition is helping drive progress in all areas.Most elearning developers will have a good working knowledge of a range of these tools, and with the various strengths and unique qualities of each this will give them an even better chance of offering the best possible elearning for their audience.Author: Alan Bourne, Head of Development, Sponge UKThis post originally appeared on elearning industry, read more from Alan Bourne here.The post Authoring tools - are you up to date? appeared first on Sponge UK.

Sell your training like one of the most successful companies in the world sell their products. Here are some practical tips on how to use marketing techniques to get your employees engaged in training. You might not want to train your employees like Apple store staff, but there’s a lot you can learn from their marketing department. We’re going to run through some ways your L&D team can learn from some of the best marketers in the tech world. Build an L&D brandBuilding a brand, and making the message hit home will help sell your learning. Apple is the fourth most recognised brand in the world.Making people aware of the learning and development services that are available in your organisation is critical. It’s not going to be easy to build the kind of association with quality of a brand like Apple, but there is a simple way to start.Define a core idea that you can build on when you introduce any type of learning, make this your mission statement. Instead of Wikipedia’s definition of L&D: "A function of human resource management concerned with organizational activity aimed at bettering the performance of individuals and groups inorganizational settings." Try an Apple inspired phrase: Learn differently, work smarter Just having something simple and consistent that you can bring to all your marketing efforts helps get the brand ball rolling.Whether you’re offering a new type of training that your staff have never experienced before, or an update to a tried and trusted course, there’s something Apple can teach you.When introducing something completely radical in the field, like the original iPod, you need to explain why it’s something people need. Sell the benefits It’s important to keep the message simple, especially if the training isn’t. Explain what the training can do for the learner as quickly as possible so they can see how it’s going to benefit them. Instead of: The new LMS system allows you to access a huge variety of training courses and incorporates social learning elements. Try something like: Learn more and share your knowledge easily. Log in to the new LMS. On the other hand you might be launching an updated course to cover new legislation, but you still need everyone to be aware of it and to take action.Apple are renowned for the release schedules of their most popular product lines. You can be pretty sure that there’s going to be an announcement in September which includes a new range of iPhones.How do you generate interest in ongoing announcements like this?Make it an event, keep the information coming throughout the development process so people are prepared for it and name a date for the launch of the new course.All your training is going to benefit your employees. You will already have a good idea of the learning outcome that you want, but you need to be clear on how that’s going to translate into real life benefits for the learners in order to sell the course.Take a cue from this iPhone 6 page , there are specifications there if you look hard enough, but the text is selling the benefits to the user of these new hardware features. Instead of: We’re introducing 10 new induction modules for various parts of the organisation. Sell the benefits: New starters in every area can integrate faster with our new induction training. You can really drive home the message of real life benefits using another technique that was pioneered by Apple in the 80’s. Evangelist marketing Guy Kawasaki is often credited with popularising evangelist marketing after his work on the second generation of Apple Macintosh. He started a trend for Apple which continues to the latest generation of smart phones and devices.The most trusted form of advertising is a recommendation from a friend or colleague . It’s clear that getting people on board for your training and having them pass on the positive feedback is going to be key to your strategy.This billboard advertising the iPhone 6 features a user submitted photo which was actually taken with the iPhone. The photographer, Julian Bialowas was thrilled to be chosen and shared the image on Twitter, a perfect example of how Apple advertise the benefits of their products through their customers.Delve deeper and there are more examples of how Apple involve the people who use their products in pushing the message out to the rest of the market.If you can get someone who’s taken your course to explain to others how it’s benefited them in a simple way like this, you’re going to see participation and results improve.Finding the right people can be a challenge, and it’s important to go about in the right way. Be upfront and clear about the goal, you need your evangelists to sincerely appreciate the learning and to want to spread the word themselves.Find the people whose opinion is trusted and valued in your organisation and get them on board with your learning at the earliest stage possible. If you’ve produced something that can offer real benefits for them then you can count on them to pass on the message. Create something your market wantsThere’s a caveat, the best marketing in the world can’t save a product, or elearning module, that isn’t very good.Developing a brand that’s known for quality and results will help you get people in through the doors, but you need to offer quality, just ask Apple fans about the "hockey puck" mouse . We can help create elearning that lives up to your L&D brand, get in touch to talk about your next elearning campaign. Discuss a project Subscribe to our newsletterThe post What L&D can learn from the Apple marketing strategy appeared first on Sponge UK.

Taking a cue from nature on Social Learning, and how to make the most of it in business is the topic of a new webinar, hosted by award-winning elearning provider, Sponge UK.The collaborative event will explore how learning socially is a natural activity and what role technology can play in helping learners and organisations benefit from Social Learning.Aimed at L&D professionals, the free session will cover the fundamentals of what social learning means and how it can be inspired by and benefit from the natural world.aAron Pont, Learning Solutions Architect at Sponge UK, said: "There’s a real buzz about Social Learning at the moment and we’re using this idea and the theme of bees to explore some of the concepts behind Social Learning.  As with all our webinars (and very much in the spirit of Social Learning), we’re hoping people will actively participate in the webinar and share their experience and ideas."Research suggests around 60% of US companies are leveraging Social Learning activities,[i] with nearly 30% of L&D professionals in the UK expecting to see a growth in social in their organisation by 2017[ii].Instructional Designer at Sponge UK, Brayley Pearce, said:"Social Learning is rather opaque and organisations have to be careful not to over engineer the environments in which it’s happening.  We hope to shed light on ways that companies can support and facilitate this natural tendency towards collaborative learning without getting too heavy-handed and stifling the process."   Webinar attendees will also learn about:   The relationship between Social Learning and elearning How social technologies can help learners Benefits of Social Learning to business Barriers to Social LearningA well bee-hived workplace: Learning socially from nature takes play on Wednesday, August 19, 12:30 to 13:00pm (BST). Registration is available via http://bit.ly/1IsiNHO.  [i] Brandon Hall Group, Learning and Development Benchmarking Study 2014[ii] CIPD, Learning & Development 2015 The post Nature’s lessons on Social Learning revealed at webinar appeared first on Sponge UK.

"How do I…?" "Show me how you did that…" "That’s a cool effect, what app did you use…?"If you don’t ask Google, you ask your friends, family or colleagues when you need to learn to do something new.And that’s social learning.Learning begins when you need to solve a problem. To find that solution you’ll explore real life situations, most likely from someone, be it face-to-face, a blog or an article on the net.For example, I recently wanted to learn to code the new Adapt responsive elearning software. So I reached out to a developer with the knowledge I needed and the skills to pass it on to me.  What I didn’t expect was that I’d have to show him how to use my Mac (he’d not used one before), so I taught him to find the equivalent of command (terminal) and numerous other Mac specific commands.This is social learning that can benefit an employer - when staff are learning new skills from each other, not because they have to, but because they want to.It’s in my employer’s interest to give me the time, tools and trust to get on and learn, and in everyone’s interest to make this happen as easily as possible.Relinquish controlBut organisations have to be careful not to be seen ‘hijacking’ their employees’ social interactions, with the aim of benefiting from them.For most employees social means informal, and there’s a real possibility of scaring them off if your efforts to encourage interactions are too heavy-handed.Staff know when it’s forced; for them doing a training course in a group isn’t social learning, its workplace learning with a group of work colleagues.Organisations can’t take control of social learning, but have to relinquish control of it and let it ‘happen’. They have to be mindful not to over engineer the environments in which it’s happening.The trouble with Social learning is it’s rather opaque. Organisations want to find out the answers to questions such as… "How do we measure it? How will it increase productivity? How will we know if it’s just staff having a gossip?" All valid questions, but I feel they are the wrong questions.A better question to ask is "How can we, as an organisation, make it easy for our staff to find the information they require from the people who have it?Support and encourageA group of people who share knowledge about a craft or profession is called a Community of Practice, it happens naturally and it’s responsible for a lot of informal learning in the workplace already.Why?Organisations need to look for the kinds of social engagement that provide them with the most relevant context for learning to take place.So if you’ve got a group of people who naturally bounce ideas of each other to come up with solutions to problems do everything you can to encourage and support it, but don’t try and control it.And this is where the crux lies with workplace social learning - the focus needs to be on what the leaner will gain from participating. Their experience and benefits need to be the focus of your social learning strategy.If you’d like to talk to me about social learning and hear more about how it can benefit your business, register for our webinar. Author: Brayley Pearce, Instructional Designer, Sponge UK Interested in hearing more about social learning? Join us for our specialist webinar: A well bee-hived workplace: learning socially from nature Wednesday, August 19, 2015 12:30:00 PM BST - 13:00:00 PM BST What is this Social Learning that everyone is buzzing about? Join us for this insightful and collaborative webinar, to explore the fundamentals of what social learning means, and how we can be inspired by and benefit from the world around us. We’ll be offering plenty of opportunities for you to contribute to the conversation and have your say, as we cover key areas including: The relationship between social learning and elearning How social technologies can help your learners The benefits of social learning to your business The barriers to social learning Register for the webinar Discuss a project Subscribe to our newsletter  The post Everyone’s a natural at social learning appeared first on Sponge UK.

New rules are moving closer which could see record fines for organisations breaching EU data protection law, no matter where in the world they are based. With so much at stake, data protection is likely to become a top training priority, but meeting this new standard will require a shake-up in compliance training. "Europe must seize the opportunity to be at the forefront in shaping a global standard for privacy and data protection, a standard centred on the rights and the dignity of the individual." - Giovanni Buttarelli, European Data Protection Supervisor. Wide-reaching implicationsThe European Union (EU) has been talking about data protection reform for a good few years now, but in June (2015) negotiations on the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) entered their final stage. Some analysts think agreement might even be reached by the end of the year.When they finally arrive, the new rules will have wide-reaching implications…literally. For the first time, any company in the world will have to comply if it deals with the data of EU citizens.The EU is seeking to set high standards in data protection and the final draft of the legislation is likely to include requirements for greater online privacy and the ‘right to be forgotten’ where people can ask for their  personal online data to be deleted. The general consensus is that the final version of the GDPR will require businesses to implement a greater level of data protection compliance.Coupled with this higher standard will be a much tougher penalty regime - how does a €100 million fine sound? This eye-watering figure could be a reality for the biggest global businesses, as the EU is looking to introduce fines of up to 5% of global annual turnover for serious breaches. The key points: General Data Protection Regulation Faster response Companies must respond more quickly to a data breach and notify customers within a set time frame. The limit could be set between 72 and 24 hours. Wider reach As well as covering EU organisations, the new regulations would apply to all non-EU companies that process the data of EU citizens obtained while doing business in the EU.  Right to be forgotten People will have the right to ask for their personal data to be erased without undue delay, subject to a few exceptions. Privacy by design There could be a clause in the final draft which requires organisations to build in privacy measures such as encryption into their data processes. Heavier fines From a capped penalty, fines will jump to as much as €100 million, or up to 5% of worldwide turnover for organisations in breach of the rules.  A collective sigh Most top performing companies are already doing a great deal to train their staff in data protection compliance, but the truth is they will inevitably have to do more to prepare them for the new standards.Compliance training of any kind has a reputational problem and data protection is no exception. Employees often complain that compliance is the most boring training they have to undertake, so expect a collective sigh from the workforce when they face a new raft of data protection courses.But it doesn’t have to be like that. There are ways to make data protection compliance training less of a chore and ultimately improve its effectiveness by making it easier for staff to absorb and retain what they need to know.Given what’s at stake in terms of money and reputation, the old-style tick box attitude to compliance training is really not an option.    How to revolutionise your compliance training Focus on relevance Explain why the training is necessary and how it is specifically relevant to the learner. Use interactions to help people understand their responsibilities.   Be clear on consequences Spell out the implications of getting it wrong for them as individuals. Use real life examples and video clips to highlight the impact. Use realistic scenarios Allow people time to practice their judgement by tackling challenging realistic scenarios. Use interactive video or game techniques to bring them to life. Keep it bite-size Don’t expect to cover everything in one go, especially for complicated topics. Focus on a few key messages and break the training down into manageable chunks. Play on empathy Try to make an emotional connection using storytelling, images or video. Highlight the human impact of a data breach. Tesco , John Lewis and Boehringer Ingelheim are among the companies we’ve been working with to make compliance elearning more engaging and effective.Here are a few examples to provide some more inspiration on how to revolutionise your approach data protection compliance training.Discuss a project Subscribe to our newsletter The post Why data protection reform needs a revolution in compliance training appeared first on Sponge UK.

Video is a popular choice for induction elearning, and with good reason. It can turn a run-of-the-mill induction course into something engaging and inspiring, and help create the best possible first impression for new employees joining an organisation. People like video.Recent research suggests US adults are spending an average of 5.5 hours using video every day. This consumption of video content happens across a variety of platforms and some of it takes place while doing other activities, but nonetheless video is a big part of the daily routine.This might be cause enough to incorporate video into your induction elearning, but we’ve tried to dig deeper to pinpoint the precise benefits. The Four CsThe world’s biggest HR organisation, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) defines induction or onboarding as covering four distinct areas, known as the Four Cs. At a glance - The Four Cs Cultureprovides new employees with an overview of the organisation including its history, values and ethics Connectionsupports new employees in building relationships within the organisation and getting to know the team Clarificationhelps new employees to understand their new job and where it fits within the organisation Complianceintroduces new employees to the rules and regulations they need to comply with before starting work Video can be used to support all these building blocks of induction or onboarding. Culture Video is an obvious choice here given its ability to bring a story to life. Archive footage can work really well in recounting the history of an organisation. Music can add emotion to help inspire people about their new employer. A video clip of the CEO will help new recruits to understand the strategic vision of the business. Connection There’s no substitute for seeing real people on screen talking about their role. It adds authenticity and helps new starters get a sense of the team and the different departments within an organisation. Clarification Seeing someone doing the job on-screen, particularly if it is a practical role, can really help new employees get a sense of what they will be actually doing. Video footage of staff dealing with customer can help reinforce expected behaviours. Compliance At the heart of most compliance and ethics topics is a human story; what does getting it wrong mean for the people involved? Video is a compelling way to tell this narrative and get new employees interested in a subject they might otherwise find boring and burdensome. Further reasonsSo video can underpin the Four Cs effectively, but we’d like to add a couple more Cs as further reasons for using video as part of induction elearning:   Creative Induction elearning needs to be interesting and offer something special if it’s going to make new employees feel inspired and pleased they took the job. You can really get creative with video (if you have the budget) and add in elements such as hotspots, interactions or 3D elements. Comfortable Back to the statistics on how much video we’re consuming. Over 6 billion hours of video are watched each month on YouTube - that’s almost an hour for every person on Earth. We are comfortable with video; it’s part of how we communicate, relax and learn. With so much video around it may even look odd if you don’t have any in your induction programme.   If you want more inspiration on using video in induction, take a look at the example of global snack manufacturer, United Biscuits in HR Grapevine magazine (Pgs 10-11). We have produced a free downloadable guide on how to integrate elearning into your induction or onboarding programme:Click to download Discuss a project Subscribe to our newsletter The post 6 reasons to use video in your induction elearning appeared first on Sponge UK.