Every company needs to commit assets to long-term education and training of their workers to stay ahead of the development curve. Research company Bersin by Deloitte reports that in 2012, businesses upped their training budgets by 12%, only a year after hiking their spending by 10%. Not all training platforms, however, deliver the same results. For many companies, a social learning management platform can provide the most efficient means of training mass numbers at the same time while ensuring successful retention of the material.
What’s In A Name
Anyone who has worked in an environment that requires training, whether it involves Internet protocol or keeping power tools clean, likely has used a Learning Management System (LMS). William Watson of Indiana University released a report on these platforms, noting that they incorporate the goal of the company, contain all content of the training, measure the benchmarks of success and produce the data that managers can use to modify policy as necessary. Today, LMS can be found at nearly any Fortune 500 corporation as well as medium-sized businesses looking to train employees on new eLearning platforms.
The Advantages
Perhaps the greatest argument in favor of instituting LMS comes down to the ability to disseminate a message to a mass audience. A company that needs to hire new workers in large volume annually would commit a massive amount of resources and manpower to individual training or traditional classroom training. Sasha Corporation has studied the cost of employee turnover and new hires, noting that a company must invest thousands of dollars to hire a worker who earns as little as $8 per hour. LMS cuts down on these costs by offering an all-in-one platform to give to any employee, regardless of educational background or expertise or experience, the necessary training.
Challenge
For medium and small businesses that cannot afford to invest large amounts of capital in new ventures, the question of utilizing an LMS can give pause to ownership. Tagoras’ study on the cost of LMS installations reports learning platforms can cost between $20,000 and $100,000 depending on the features you need. A good solution for small, growing businesses and associations of any-size is to look for learning management solution with no user fees.
A small company needs to consider finances, but preventative measures like Internet security may provide a pound of cure at the cost of only an ounce of prevention. After all, small businesses without a comprehensive online security plan face threats from hackers and phishers, who can drain a company’s finances if no protocols prevent their cyber attacks. This a good reason to review Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) learning solutions that are hosted and delivered remotely. Not only does this enhance security, it also reduces the IT burden internally for personnel and hardware.
Trends
What does the future of LMS hold? For one, the cloud will soon provide all of the instructional materials for many companies. Instead of needing to connect to a central hub or a specific computer, employees can process non-traditional learning on their own schedule and own computer, perhaps even from home. Companies may choose game-based learning rather than instructional efforts in order to better connect with employees and ensure retention. Ambient Insight reports the game-based learning market already exceeds $1.2 billion and shows no sign of stopping. Finally, interactive training could help talent acquisition by creating educational pathways for specific task-oriented new workers who demonstrate superior skills and enhance the retention and progression of existing employees.
5 Reasons Companies Choose eLearning
*Guest Blog*
If you’re hesitant to adopt eLearning tools, just look at other companies. You don’t need to switch every training session to an online one, but incorporating some eLearning education or training programs is a step in the right direction. Investing in new technology and eLearning can yield a significant return for employers, as well as help strengthen computer literacy skills for employees.
Here are five ways that eLearning tools can benefit your company. Check out the statistics that have proven the value of online training.
Adapt to change more easily
The proof: 72 percent of companies viewed learning technologies – the most widely used being eLearning courses – as a way to help employees adapt to changing business conditions.
Whether your company has switched to new software, swapped employees’ roles or has an entirely new business model, eLearning can help. Organizational adjustments can often times lead to less productivity; with eLearning, your business can move forward, even in changing times.
Save valuable time
The proof: eLearning saves time by up to 25 to 60 percent when compared to classroom training, according to studies by Brandon Hall.
What does this mean for you? It might not be the most effective to have 100% of trainings online. Incorporating even a small percentage can save your company and your employees a lot of time over the course of a year.
Save money
The proof: Companies can save anywhere from 50 to 70 percent when classroom training is replaced with eLearning.
Costs are cut in every way with eLearning. Employees don’t need to travel for seminars – they can be engaged from home on their laptop or at the office. Because eLearning can take place anytime and anywhere, employees can spend a couple hours per day training instead of missing entire workdays. Also, less money is spent on an instructor’s time, travel expenses, etc.
Plus, some learning platforms are available for a flat fee with no user fees. This allows you training and development to grow, without growing your costs.
Increase employees’ retention rates
The proof: An employee’s rate of retention can be enhanced by 25 to 60 percent with eLearning courses.
In fact, IBM employees learned almost five times more information in the same amount of training time with eLearning. And to go along with saved money – this training was just one-third the cost of what classroom training would’ve been.
Decrease the company’s turnover rate
The proof: 23 percent of employees leave a company due to a lack of opportunities and training for career development.
Not only do you lose talented employees to other companies, but you’ll need to invest more money into recruitment and training. Allowing employees to guide their career paths and providing proper training along the way will ultimately grow your business.
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