Organizations are waking up to the benefits of online learning

Citation

(2001), "Organizations are waking up to the benefits of online learning", Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 25 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/jeit.2001.00325aab.013

Organizations are waking up to the benefits of online learning

Organizations are waking up to the benefits of online learning

Keywords: Learning, Internet skills, Career development

Online learning has the potential to provide a highly accessible and relevant learning medium, whilst at the same time adding significant value to the role of the training professional, claims a new research study.

Xebec McGraw-Hill, the leading multimedia training company, questioned nearly 500 training, HR and IT professionals, in conjunction with Training magazine, in its third annual survey into the take-up and use of online learning.

The resulting report, Corporate Foundations for E-learning Success, highlights the prevalence of online learning, the factors affecting its implementation and the resultant change in role for corporate trainers.

The research shows a virtually unanimous agreement that online learning can make training more accessible, and will result in shorter, more focused courses and a just-in-time approach to learning. However, it also shows that trainers, HR and IT professionals have real concerns about the cultural aspects of implementing online learning, such as interruptions at the desktop and lack of commitment by senior managers.

"The UK is only now starting to see the benefits of online learning", said Michael Smith, managing director of Xebec McGraw-Hill. "While most organizations recognize its ultimate potential for gaining and maintaining competitive advantage, there is still a need to develop a self-learning culture where online learning can thrive."

According to the survey, almost 80 per cent of organizations have a corporate intranet but less than 30 per cent currently use it to deliver training. The main user sectors are communications, media, education, finance and professional services.

However, only 39 per cent of those currently delivering online training rate it as successful which illustrates the difficulty of overcoming the cultural issues. This pessimistic view is offset by increasing optimism over the ultimate success of online delivery. Of those not using their intranets to deliver training, 48 per cent plan to do so within the next three years and almost 80 per cent of all respondents believe online learning will ultimately prove to be successful in the future.

The predominant training currently delivered over intranets includes IT skills training as well as "corporate issues" – such as health and safety, induction and equal opportunities and personal skills including management and professional development. The delivery of management and personal skills over intranets has shown compound growth of almost 25 per cent since 1998.

"The market growth in management and personal skills stems from both an increasing acceptance that these skills can be met using online training and from an increase in online courseware in this area from new and established providers", said Michael Smith.

Training professionals appear upbeat and positive about the opportunities afforded by online learning. Over two-thirds say it will add value to their role, with less than 10 per cent saying it would undermine them.

The key skills requirements for trainers, resulting from online learning, are seen as coaching, facilitation and the ability to integrate online and traditional training activities. The skills which trainers believe will become most important are training data management, analysis and reporting; IT/technical skills; skills in building an online curriculum; skills in evaluating the effectiveness of online training and the ability to select suitable suppliers.

"Trainers should be commended for their willingness to step outside their comfort zone into a relatively new territory, where there are many suppliers with ambiguous product offerings", said Michael Smith. "Online learning success hinges on meticulous planning of the implementation and it is clear that trainers may need help in this area."

Only 15 per cent of all respondents say online learning will become their primary training medium. The majority of trainers see an integrated approach to training delivery, with online learning as a key element, as the way forward.

"The survey shows that online learning will be a very important element in a total training mix integrated with other training approaches", said Michael Smith. "There is still a sizeable demand for interactive learning delivered via CD-ROM and other traditional training formats."

The research shows that use of the Internet to deliver training is relatively under-developed in the UK. With the growth of external portals and hosted sites, the Internet has been heralded as a real alternative for organizations that want to reduce dependence on their overstretched internal IT systems. However, almost half the survey respondents have no plans to use an Internet portal. This finding is supported through anecdotal evidence, which indicates a high degree of confusion and lack of understanding of what portals can deliver.

"Online learning has a massive potential to enable staff to improve performance, but the key to that success lies in a high level of internal commitment allied to a tightly planned and controlled approach to the implementation of what will be a major project for most organizations", said Michael Smith. "Our research results clearly show that the training community wants to meet this challenge and recognizes many of the issues that they need to overcome in order to succeed".

Corporate Foundations for E-learning Success is available from Xebec McGraw-Hill. Tel: 0800 585 889; http://www.xebec-online.com

The survey was conducted via a questionnaire during June and July 2000. The survey sample included individuals from diverse organizations in the chemical, pharmaceutical, engineering, automotive, manufacturing, retail, leisure, transport, communications, media, finance, public, education and consultancy sectors. A complementary survey has been undertaken by the Campaign for Learning, the UK charity working to promote learning. Called Attitudes to E-learning, the survey is a study of current e-learning practice and perceptions among 328 e-learners, providers, employers and purchasers of e-learning (based on responses to surveys carried out by the Campaign for Learning, KPMG, UfI Ltd and Peter Honey Learning). An executive summary of the findings is available online at http://www.campaign-for-learning.org.uk

The full report, priced £6.95, is available from Southgate Publishers, The Square, Sandford, Devon EX17 4LW. Tel: 01363 776888. E-mail: info@southgate publishers.co.uk