The Boggs e-Learning Chronicle

Ajax/Flash-based Web Application For Online Presentations

Might be cool to add to your online course development tool chest.......

Empressr

Excerpt from Empressr's web site:

"Empressr is the first Ajax/Flash-based web application that lets you create, share and store presentations online. It goes beyond current presentation applications by enabling you to incorporate rich media features, like streaming video and animation, to create and share the most dynamic presentations possible."

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

Perspectives on e-Learning Tools and Learning Management Systems...

Julie Collareda  has an interesting post,  The Culture of Teaching and Learning . She states,

"Technological change is happening at an alarming rate and it is often difficult for those of us who have not been brought up in the digital age, yet it is my age group (50 plus) who are in large numbers in the VTE system both as teachers and managers.

The result is a lack of understanding and willingness to take up and support the implementation of eLearning. This is changing however with current legislation such as the Skilling Australia Workforce Act 2005 and the worldwide acknowledgement of the increasing cost of educational delivery (Clark 2006; Goolnik 2006). The pressure is now on to be more flexible and to implement innovative eLearning practices. This is coupled with how technology is enabling students to learn in many different ways and arenas and the acknowledgment that this is how they will be learning in the future."

I do think that people who are over 50 can learn how to innovate using e-Learning.  A couple things come to mind, first, one becomes comfortable delivering a topic or set of knowledge a certain way.  For example, and instructor may only really use the testing functionality in the LMS, but not its other features.  Instructors and developers of training programs have to be incented and or motivated in some way to create better training programs using all or most of the functionality in an LMS and the course authoring tool of choice. 

It can be maddening sometimes when I read things on blogs where e-Learning consultants,   instructors,  or training program administrators or developers make comments about learning  management systems   products or someone elses course authoring tool that cannot do XYZ, when it really does and the tool itself is extremely user friendly.  They feel encumbered by the software of choice, and the complaints go on, yad yad yad.

Do the tactics serve the objective, sure they do or to put it another way,  some types of learning activities are better suited for various different techniques.  But, in my opinion, unless the creator is incented and or motivated to use the various functionality provided by the tool, many times they will not;  even if the tool is the most user friendly piece of software ever developed. 

And that's not the  LMS's problem, its a systemic, organizational issue.

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

e-Learning & Performance Management: Walk Before You Run

Below is an article I found on DMReview ,  Performance Management - Making It Work: Where Do You Begin Implementing Performance Management?  by Gary Conkins

"As organizations realize that performance management is really much more about improving performance rather than just controlling and managing it, they begin asking, "Where do we begin to take what we already do to a much higher level?"

Yes, I do believe that is true, but you cannot put the cart before the horse, i.e., of course an a organization is going to start wanting to improve performance after they have been controlling and managing it.

So much of what we see here is,  its a progression for most companies.  They start with a specific e-Learning objective, or training program they want to run, and once they see how it works, i.e. manage or control it for awhile, then they start to see other uses and needs like competency management, etc.  and then setting goals, establishing  objectives, and defining tactics to improve performance accordingly. 

Rarely do most companies start with a grand over arching, all encompassing plan, and if they do, sometimes it can become something different all together than it was to begin with.  Sometimes it may not even get off the ground due to a variety of reasons.  So there is probably some good old fashion wisdom and merit to an "evolutionary" approach.

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

More Standards In e-Learning?....

Here's an interesting perspective, especially with all the blog talk about informal learning /Web 2.0/e-Learning 2.o.; Why We Need More Standards

"But the long tail argument probably doesn’t even go far enough. I would argue that even many of the “core” LMS applications, properly designed, really should be situated software, meaning that the applications should be tailored to the needs of the individuals rather than created one-size-fits-all."

First of all, Michael Feldstein makes this comment from the context of academic e-Learning and not corporate training.  Here at SyberWorks, that is precisely what we do with our learning management system, but in a corporate training context, i.e., we design our system to what our customer needs.

He also makes come comments about LMS's being used as discussion boards, well, maybe in academia, but NOT with the corporate customers with which we work.  Our customers have very difficult learning management problems they need solved.

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

Book About Monetizing Training and Development

The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning: How to Turn Training and Development Into Business Results (Hardcover) by Calhoun W. Wick, Roy V. H. Pollock, Andrew McK. Jefferson, Richard D. Flanagan, Kevin D. Wilde

Book Description
  The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning presents an innovative approach that accelerates the transfer and application of corporate learning. The Six Disciplines provides the definitive road map and tools for optimizing the business impact of leadership and management training, sales, quality, performance improvement, and individual development programs. This important book presents the theories and techniques behind the approach and includes expert advice for bridging the “learning-doing” gap. The authors’ recommendations are illustrated with dozens of real-life examples from successful companies on the cutting edge of results-driven educational performance.

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

e-Learning Effectiveness In A Corporate Training Context

Here is a good primer for folks not familiar with the benefits of e-Learning / learning management systems and other issues in a corporate training context:

An Assessment of Effectiveness of e-Learning in Corporate Training Programs by Judith B. Strother of the Florida Institute of Technology

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

SyberWorks News:SIRS, Inc., Evansville ARC, Inc., and GCARC Selects the SyberWorks Web-Based Learning Management System

Here is our latest press release.

SIRS, Inc., Evansville ARC, Inc., and GCARC Selects the SyberWorks Web-Based Learning Management System

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

UK Companies Noted More Unproductive Labor Time Than Any Other Region Except Asia

UK's HR Magazine reports, "£70 billion wasted on poor productivity" according to research done by Proudfoot Consulting. 

They go on, "This is the equivalent of 36 lost days per worker per year. The survey of more than 800 senior executives in 19 countries found that over three years, UK companies recorded more unproductive labour time than any other region except Asia. Poor internal communication and inadequate supervision and planning were cited as prime causes of poor productivity."

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

No Ground Breaking Study Here: Lack of Necessary Workforce Skills Hinders Corporate Ability to Succeed, Accenture Research Finds

Accenture recently published its High Performance Workforce Study, finding that senior executives say that the lack of necessary workforce skills hinders corporation's  ability to succeed.  Several of the findings were human resources and training related such as:

1. "Lack of connection to business drivers – Only 36 percent of respondents said their companies tailor their HR and training support to each function’s needs and contributions to the organization."
2. "Failure to measure the business impact of HR and training efforts – More than 40 percent do not evaluate the impact of their HR and training efforts against profitability, and half (50 percent) do not evaluate those efforts against revenues and sales."
3. "Ineffective or non-existent knowledge capture and sharing capabilities – Four in 10 (42 percent) respondents described capturing and sharing knowledge as a challenge or a severe challenge for their companies. The most commonly cited impediments to better knowledge capture and sharing were: a lack of a common business culture across different locations (cited by 38 percent); no knowledge support infrastructure with dedicated people (37 percent); and the fact that knowledge sharing is typically not rewarded in the organization (32 percent)."
4. "The talent time bomb – Nearly two-thirds (60 percent) of respondents reported that, over the next five years, they expect to begin feeling the impact of the aging workforce and the impending retirement of baby boomers. Of those, 28 percent said they are feeling the impact now. Almost one-half (43 percent) of participants described talent sourcing as a challenge or a severe challenge, primarily because of a smaller or shrinking talent pool from which to choose."


5. "Lack of functional leaders’ involvement in people issues – Only a small percentage of respondents said the heads of customer service, finance, sales and strategic planning at their companies are highly involved in human capital management initiatives (reported by 29 percent, 31 percent, 34 percent and 37 percent, respectively)."

Lack of Necessary Workforce Skills Hinders Corporate Ability to Succeed, Accenture Research Finds

I think of all of these things are true.  I would suggest the root of these things gets back to how senior management itself is evaluated.  i.e., (1) senior management may or may not see clearly how training  or e-Learning relates to impacting the bottom line, and, they just may not have time or want to have time to make sure that training is related to the bottom line.  There can be lots of reasons why training is not focused on impacting performance, but you can bet, a senior executive is more concerned about achieving their performance in the way they are measured, so if its not related to their compensation or bonus plan to make all the ducks line up in a row, they probably won't.

(2) Senior executives probably do not see why they should measure it.  Many of them probably feel that is why they hired a VP of HR or Director of Training'

(3) What incentive is for them to share information?  Is that formulated i.e. tested or monitored in some way through senior executive's compensation plan?  Probably not.

(4) Talent Time Bomb--I agree and  I have had several posts on this subject:

Workforce as it Effects the Government, Oil and Gas, Mining, and Utilities Industries

(5)This is a trickle down problem.  Senior executives probably feel that this is for the department heads to handle and since there is no link back to the senior manager's compensation, well, you know what I am going to say.  Many times, the department head is compensated on how productive their department is, i.e., how they manage and push through the work -- and not being involved in people issues.

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks

Satisfaction and Learner Performance Do Not Always Draw A Parallel

Here's some food for thought in regards to your e-Learning program,  Initial Satisfaction vs End Result in e-Learning by Gray Harriman

Dave Boggs
SyberWorks