e-learning across the enterprise the benchmarking study of best practices

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1 e-learning across the enterprise the benchmarking study of best practices by Brandon Hall, Ph.D. and Jacques LeCavalier Web site: W. Fremont Ave., Suite 10 Sunnyvale, CA Ph Fx Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com

2 e-learning across the enterprise: a study of best practices What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools Rich, Full-Bodied Learning Blends Blended instruction has come of age and is here to stay As Cisco notes wisely, e-learning is neither about using the latest technology to replace the classroom, nor is it about posting content on the web to be downloaded or read. E-learning provides a new set of tools that can add value to all the traditional learning modes from classroom experiences to learning from books. E-Learning breaks the cycle of same time, same place, one size fits all learning, making possible a new and powerful model combining the best of traditional delivery methods with internet-enabled anytime, anyplace learning. Implemented four or more years ago by half the organizations in the study all are currently doing it blended instruction fits in nicely with speedy-yet-effective ISD and learning object strategies. Its advantages are clear: The closer the learning vehicle is aligned with a particular competency objective and learning style, the more effective the educational experience will be. Media and technologies have greater impact when combined (and complemented with a human element) to deliver a message. Ernst & Young s e-learning team also sees integrated learning environments as key to implementing their vision. Such environments provide optimal blends of: High-touch and high tech approaches. Group-based (e.g., classroom programs, Desktop Channel sessions) and individual (e.g., Web-based learning, performance support) interventions. Synchronous and asynchronous learning channels. Formal and informal learning processes. People-to-people, people-to-content, and content-to-people interactions. E&Y has even specified clear objectives for the overall make-up of their corporate learning blend: Namely, that by % of all learning should be Web-based and asynchronous, 30% should be synchronous distance-learning (webcasts, satellite, etc.), and the remaining 20% should be classroom-based. Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com 55

3 What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools Integrated sales learning solution at Verizon Verizon Learning Systems has very successfully blended e-learning with classroom training, mentoring programs, and access to the company s internal Knowledge Management system (the knowledge bank ) for new hire sales training. The Web-based training portion provides basic, level-setting training about products and services prior to sales people attending classroom training to practice selling skills. After the classroom experience, a mentor is assigned to a group of new salespeople to guide them along their curriculum plan and to provide access to subject matter experts. The workload for a mentor is estimated at hours per week, to support 12 to 20 salespeople in the program at any one time. The salespeople learn to access needed information such as pricing data and product specs from the Knowledge Bank. They can also practice the sales skills learned in the classroom by interacting in an online simulation with tough customers who raise objections to a simulated sales pitch. In this Integrated Learning Solution, technology plays a key role in providing basic information and also reinforcing skills. Results from the initiative included a reduction in overall training duration from 18 weeks to just 8 weeks for new hire sales people. In addition, an initial sample comparison of performance with counterparts who received traditional training only showed that the salespeople with the blended experience: Booked their first sale 25% sooner, this first sale being on average twice as large. Sold more products that are complex and more services Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com

4 e-learning across the enterprise: a study of best practices What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools IBM: A Four-Tier e-learning Model for Management Development IBM Management Development has adopted an e-learning model that incorporates the blended delivery of curriculum. The new approach uses four tiers of delivery, in the tradition of a learning hierarchy. Each tier builds upon skills developed at a lower tier, beginning with simple information transfer and progressing through person-to-person interaction. The four tiers comprise a continuing process of learning, instead of mere learning events. The model has been improved continuously since Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Management QuickViews Interactive Learning Modules and Simulators Collaborative Learning Awareness Knowledge Skill in practice Tier 4 Learning Lab Applied skill and advanced development Tier 1 Management QuickViews Read, See, Hear Information transfer Performance Support Pre-workplace application and skills practice (Try it, Practice it) Virtual group workspaces Discuss and practice with others Face to face, in-class learning labs supplemented by coaching from each participant s manager (Pull it all together, Give it a workout) Tier 1 has just-in-time performance tools and information available anytime, anywhere, via template-developed Webbased or CD-ROM objects of the following types: Overview, Steps, FAQ s, Resources, Tips and Tricks, Tools. Their purpose is primarily to address ongoing and immediate management concerns. The manager with a business problem accesses the relevant topic via an index or a keyword search engine, and brings the material directly to desktop for online reading, printing to hard copy, or mailing to an account. Best thinking on over 40 leadership and peoplemanagement topics of concern to IBM managers is available, as well as quickand-easy access to all company Human Resources material worldwide. Printable worksheets and checklists are also available. Links to important external web sites are highlighted. Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com 57

5 What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools Tier 2 Interactive Learning Modules and Simulators Tier Two encompasses Interactive Learning. Managers enhance their knowledge and personal development beyond the awareness level by engaging in immersive simulations of the issues presented in Tier One. The IBM Coaching Simulator alone presents 8 different real-life situations; with nearly 100 decision points and over 5000 screens of actions. The design is sophisticated based on the Institute for the Learning Sciences Goal-Based Scenario model but the implementation is simple, using primarily photos and text (no audio or video). Fourteen other simulations cover Human Resources topics such as Business Guidelines, Multicultural Issues, and Retaining Our Best Talent. Interactive Learning Modules are developed to support the learning process. The ability of learners to apply what they have learned can also be measured. Tier 3 Collaborative Learning At this level, managers interact with other managers in controlled facilitated discussions via e-learning tools, applying what they have learned in tiers 1 and 2. Lotus LearningSpace, Lotus TeamRoom and LotusWorkRoom provide users the opportunity to collaborate with other IBMers in virtual groupware spaces. Here they learn teaming skills, and create and build real-life networks while enhancing IBM s intellectual capital. Collaborative spaces enable a global learning environment, eliminating the problematic issues of time zones and travel. At this level we can test the learners understanding of the content and also measure their ability to apply what they have learned Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com

6 e-learning across the enterprise: a study of best practices What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools Tier 4 Learning Lab Human interaction is arguably the most powerful of learning tools for developing people skills. In-class activities provide immediate responses, are flexible to human needs, and can adapt to different situations. For leadership development, nothing is quite like face-to-face learning. Furthermore, a classroom of peer learners can provide added motivation, inspiration, and a community environment to further stimulate interest and involvement. Learning Lab provides the learner with an opportunity to engage face to face with other learners in advanced learning. At this point the learner is engaged in complex case studies and activities that are facilitated and debriefed. This provides for higher levels of learning. The model in action Awarded three Excellence in Practice Citations by ASTD in 1999, the Basic Blue program for Managers is the year long process through which a new IBM first-line manager hones the skills required of an effective IBM leader and manager. The new manager enters Lotus LearningSpace, along with 23 other new managers, and during the first half-year on the job, completes a series of online activities 27 such virtual learning spaces are managed by six facilitators on a continuous basis. The new manager is supported not only by extensive material contained online, but also by coaching from the 2nd-line manager, who learns the IBM Coaching Model via a Simulator and other online coaching materials. (IBM also uses an on-line mentoring tool that matches people with varying skill levels, an employee can request a mentor with specific experience. No formal compensation is offered for mentoring within the company, but it is part of performance management and reviews.) The new manager also completes a dozen Human Resources simulations to learn how to mine the vast HR database to address any HR issue or concern, i.e., to learn how to fish. The first 6 months of activities provide the foundation for the week long in-class learning lab held at one of IBM s Learning Centers around the world. Here, the new manager joins with peers those with whom he or she has been collaborating in Lotus LearningSpace and the five days are devoted to the following: Establishing peer networks, developing face-toface teaming and collaboration, exploring IBM case studies customized from the Harvard Business Review, and building on the management skills that began with Tier 1. Finally, the new managers return to the LearningSpace, and work collaboratively to delve deeper into leadership skills development. At the end of the year long process, the new manager is awarded qualification as an IBM manager, having done about 50 hours of selfdirected learning prior to the learning lab, spent 5 days in the learning lab and from 2 to 30 hours on additional self-directed learning. Results Basic Blue was deployed to over managers in Level I assessments by Harvard Business School indicate that the new approach was enthusiastically received. Before the program, most said they preferred classroom training; after the program, most preferred the mix of e-learning (for information transfer) and classroom training dedicated to integration activities requiring group participation. Level II assessments show that participants learned nearly five times more material than via previous interventions without impacting managerial time with customers. At the end of the program, managers clamored to maintain their access to program materials, their new network of contacts and to virtual group workspaces. Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com 59

7 What Works: Tactics, Models, Content and Tools Just media selection at a finer level of detail While not a new challenge for instructional designers, selecting optimal e-learning blends adds a certain level of complexity to the old instructor versus CBT decision. Current blends at Cisco include: Basic e-course: E-book + practice + virtual labs E-course + coach support/e-mentor + virtual classroom E-course + coach + peer support Integrated e-course, coach, virtual classroom, community of practice More sophisticated blends of course require more planning, infrastructure, scheduling and managing, but come with expected better results in terms of learning. Critical variables for selection of blends remain what they have always been: Audience learning styles, constraints, etc. Objectives to achieve knowledge, performance, team solutions, etc. Resources available: time for development, learning expected, money for development, infrastructure, etc. The classroom keeps its spot on the beach E-learning will not, as some employees fear, replace donuts and a friendly face with a PC screen. Classroom-based training will continue to play an important role, both because it is the best delivery approach for certain types of high-level learning and because this is the way some people prefer to learn. Organization US Navy Cisco Rockwell Collins Classroom training The Navy s emphasis is to use e-learning to prepare trainees for classroom training, reduce overall duration of training and offer more training at different points in people s careers and offer it to them where they are, when they need it. Schoolhouse training will continue to be supported, even enhanced. The military environment is especially unique, and education is tailored to every individual who comes to the Navy. The socialization ( sailorization ) process also requires a human interface, which cannot be replaced. On the Cisco Partner E-Learning Connection, individuals can still find and register for instructor-led training that Cisco s Learning Partners deliver around the world. Repurposing some classrooms as learning labs or hubs Do Not Reproduce v brandon-hall.com