E-Learning has become popular because of its ability to increase human capital in less time and at a lower cost when compared to traditional instructor-led training. Multiple studies conducted by the U.S. military and experts like Brandon Hall show consistent increase of knowledge by 50%, reductions in time by 50%, and cost savings by nearly 50%.

You may have heard the term e-learning in the past, and wondered what it really means. Some people immediately think of the computer room in their child’s middle school, while others may think of a certain video tape that they ordered on how to construct an outdoor deck. E-Learning is really an all-encompassing term to describe electronic learning in all forms, but today’s version of the evolving term is typically more focused on web-based learning in corporations and higher education. If you work in a corporation and your manager asked you to go to a certain website or intranet page to access training, you have probably experienced e-learning. Many college students today are taking classes or entire degrees via the internet, and almost all students are now getting their syllabuses, course schedules, and grades through the web. While higher education is considered to be part of e-learning, we will mainly focus on the corporate market.

Business e-learning is growing lately, but there have been some tough times. In its infancy, e-learning suffered from the lack of multimedia capabilities available in PC’s. Also during this time, electronic training was delivered mainly through CD-ROM, which can be difficult to update when information and requirements change. Furthermore, costs were high because the software, hardware, and technical expertise were new and commanded a premium price.

When the web came along, a second attempt at online training was made, touting the ease of updating info, but it too suffered from a lack of retention-aiding multimedia, due to bandwidth (internet connection speed) limitations. As broadband connections began to increase in 2000-2001, the technology industry took a big hit, but e-learning stayed relatively strong due to its ability to decrease air travel after 9-11. And once adopted, corporations began to see tremendous return on investment from the reduction in travel expenses and increased availability of training. Now, according to the latest surveys by Nielsen, over 80% of business users have high-speed internet connections, enabling interactivity and media usage, and the floodgates are opening.

In the following weeks, we will discuss real-world strategies and practical uses of e-learning to increase human capital and workforce performance in our local economy and beyond. Specific topics include lessons learned, developing strategies, implementing technology, and marketing programs, to name a few.

Sheldon Murphy
E-Learning Consultant
Solid State Learning
www.sslearn.com
sheldon@sslearn.com
724-452-6945