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Preventing the “Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome”

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Corporate Training, Human Resources, Uncategorized

There is a mysterious phenomenon that plagues organizations of every size and stripe. It affects major strategic initiatives, large scale change management projects, merger and acquisition integrations, joint venture endeavors, supply chain collaborations, and new company start-ups. It strikes out of the blue just when prospects are improving and looking really good. And puzzlingly, it strikes organizations that appear to be collaborating well.

After many years of helping organizations break loose from its clutches, I identify the culprit in my book “Power through Collaboration: When to Collaborate, Negotiate, or Dominate!” I label the phenomenon the “Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome.”

In this failure syndrome the people involved often openly espouse collaboration. They accordingly sacrifice and work hard to make their project, endeavor, or business successful. However, just when the corner is turned and success is in sight, the key players turn on each other. They go to war over power, control, and money. The ensuing battles can destroy the project, endeavor, or company, and wreck the careers and finances of all involved.

For example, a biotechnology company was launched with much enthusiasm, a sense of great promise, and adequate venture capital funding. The principals and senior executives were knowledgeable, competent, and had proven themselves during their careers. They had successful executive track records at major companies, and degrees from prestigious universities.

They discussed how they had witnessed firsthand the problems of companies operating via domination and onerous control, and emphasized that they could and would do much better. They all espoused operating their company utilizing a collaborative approach.

And indeed, at the start of their new company, they sacrificed and worked well together for little immediate reward. They had their eye on the larger rewards down the road. As is typical for start-ups, the early period was full of setbacks, delays, and disappointments. But the capable cast of key players began to make things happen. Customer relationships were built and sales gained traction.

Then, the company landed several enriching and game changing contracts. That weekend was spent popping the champagne corks and rolling out the toasts. But, early the following week a peculiar thing occurred. With the financial feast laid out before them, some of the principals became shark-like. They tried to make secret deals to enrich only themselves, and even tried to exclude the very people who brought in the contracts. Like piranha they literally devoured the ‘goose that laid the golden egg.’ Trust was demolished, customers scared off, investors panicked, and the company destroyed. Principals and investors alike lost large sums of money.

Did some troubling event precipitate the backstabbing, free-for-all, and all out warfare? No. There are always suspicious looking developments that look like possible triggers, but such are not the primary causes. The fatal ‘Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome’ is not caused by new or unexpected developments or conflicts. Rather, it is just a common pattern preordained from the very start of the company, endeavor, or project.

Many collaborative endeavors are undertaken based on routine cooperation, or even pseudocollaboration, and thus are at a higher risk of failure. However, the elevated risk is masked by an initial veneer of cooperation. Potential problems are not apparent upfront, or get minimized so as not to ‘rock the boat’ or present an obstacle. Thus, problems only emerge or become undeniable later on at crucial junctures.

My book’s Power through Collaboration (PtC) model reveals that the fundamental cause of the “Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome” is the particular PtC types and PtC motivations of the key players. What can appear at the start to be collaboration motivated by Shared Values or Shared Mission, or even Common Goals, can turn out to be ordinary cooperation or pseudocollaboration motivated by Achieve Own Goals or Survival. The principals of the ruined biotech company initially acted collaboratively because they could achieve their own interests more by working with others than by going it alone or using non-cooperative methods. At the beginning there was nothing to gain by not appearing to collaborate. But, they were not truly interested in working with their fellow principals in achieving common goals, only with achieving their own goals. They were socially skilled enough to give the impression of caring about each other’s goals, but they really were only concerned with getting as much as they could get for themselves.

The bursting into the open of the true motivations of the principals triggered the tendency for disagreements, friction, or conflict to push PtC Motivations toward the less collaborative end of the spectrum. Less collaborative PtC Motivations seem more natural for most people. Under pressure, Common Goals will move backward toward Achieve Own Goals rather than forward to Shared Mission or Shared Values. Thus, the combatants’ own motivations fed the conflict and engulfed them in a deadly downward spiral.

PtC Type is also a factor in this syndrome. Those principals whose PtC Type was actually
Predator, Enslaver, or Competitor shrewdly talked the language of collaboration even while focused only on their own goals. But, as soon as there was more to gain by not collaborating, the game changed. They just lunged for as much as they could get, and everything and everyone else be dammed. They did not care if they upset the entire apple cart or how many others got hurt.

Even if they can gain more from a fair distribution, Predator types in particular are unable to control themselves and share when a meal is set before them. In the absence of temptation they can lay in wait like a camouflaged hungry lion. But once a meal is in sight they lose self-control and cannot help but pounce. Similarly, the Enslaver types are so focused on gaining control over the company that they escalate the stakes to the point where they risk losing more than they can gain just to achieve that control. And the Competitor types are so driven to win that they become ensnared in playing a lethal game of ‘chicken’ well beyond any reasonable balancing of the prospects of winning versus losing, or calculation of risks versus rewards.

The company principals were talented, capable, powerful, connected, smart, educated, skilled, experienced, and well-funded. They were also very hardworking and put in considerable time and effort to succeed. But these qualities were not enough to insure the success of their company.

All came to naught because their PtC Types and Motivations destroyed their company upon the brink of success. The “Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome” can be prevented by early diagnosis and preparation. When launching new companies, critical projects, or collaborative endeavors, obtaining a clear picture of the PtC Types and Motivations of key players needs to be part of the due diligence process. Designing a realistic strategy to work with the key players’ actual PtC Types and Motivations optimizes the likelihood for success.

This article is an excerpt from the book “Power through Collaboration: When to Collaborate, Negotiate, or Dominate!” (© Stephen Willis, Ph.D. All article rights reserved. For more information see www.willisllc.com.) The author can be contacted at steve@willisllc.com.

The book is an advanced, professional, and high powered “how to guide” for dealing with collaboration in complex, frustratingly difficult, and complicated situations.  Book testimonials and information about workshops based on the book are available at www.willisllc.com/book.

Tags: “Failure at the Brink of Success Syndrome”, “Power through Collaboration: When to Collaborate, collaboration, Negotiate, or Dominate!”, Ph.D., PtC Type, Stephen Willis

Read more | Comments (1) | Jan 20, 2013

Tin Can: Caution, may make aggravated reading!

Posted by Admin QL | Filed under ASTD, Better eLearning, Learning Resources, Learning Trends

By Neil Lasher

So what’s all the fuss about? You think I am going to tell you that you need a new management system or some expensive upgrade to the one you already have? No, actually I am not, unless of course you care about the work you are doing as a learning professional.

For all the years I have been involved with eLearning we have skirted around the truth, which is that the vendor has always failed to deliver what he promised. Before the web we had CBT and we told our clients that we had this fantastic system to deliver training at a fraction of the cost. No, not true. In those days, the cost was about $25-40k for an hour of learning. Historically when we look back and see how many people actually attended this learning, and if we are honest to ask ourselves how many came away with a changed behaviour, we have to own up and say it was pretty expensive and the delegate did not have a very good time! That early CBT was bordering on awful.

Since then we have seen many new promises with something new being offered with a latest buzzword every year or so. 15 years’ worth!

So why would I expect you to believe me when I tell you that the latest, newest, biggest, greatest, most spectacular thing to come out of eLearning is happening around you right now? Well, you believed all the other ideas, so why would you not!

But to be truthful, I am not a vendor, I have no product to offer and like you I have been duped too. However, this latest and greatest is so exciting I am struggling to contain myself.

For me it began back in about 1994, when I started to import the first systems we called authoring tools from the USA to Europe. I got screwed a couple of times on the way by greedy manufacturers and took the decision a few years ago to drop the sale of all product, to concentrate on being a knowledgeable consultant in the industry with many years of experience. I dedicated myself to the design of learning and helping other people understand how to create great learning. I made a name for myself along the way as one who is not scared to say it as I see it and who will work to break as many rules as possible to ensure success for the learner. I think you may have already got that idea.

Once we moved online and the web learning we know became known as eLearning (C.2000), the new game in town was the management system. It was simple in the early days; it told us who did what and when, and if we gave them a test, we knew whether they had passed or failed.

So what happened? We gave it to the DOD and we created a behemoth of a system that tells us everything and nothing. We actually can store who clicked what, record how long it took, capture metatags of information including….. Well, including what? If the truth be told, we still only care about who did what, and when, and if they passed or failed. By default we can tell who didn’t do what!! A whole set of useless numbers that gives us a history in metrics.

The challenge was, and is, how can we make this better? How can we get some data that tells us something we can use? OK, I hear you screaming we can use these metrics, we can show our boss how well we did, that we got all 1500 staff through a course and we ticked the boxes. If this is you, please stop calling yourself a learning professional—you don’t deserve the title!

What we need is a way to see who does course B after being prompted to do so by course Z. We need to watch where people go and the decisions they make, what prompted those decisions and the consequences of those decisions. We need to see who goes where after our course, what makes them decide to do so. And we need to see if there are patterns of groups of employees all doing the same and decide if we need to change these patterns to create a change in behaviour.

We need to create material not called a course–I call it an Environment–one that mimics our workplace where people can test their ideas in safe areas and see the consequences of their behaviour. We need to understand that courses go from A-Z and we need to discard that idea of isolated courses or even curricula and replace it with a free-form flow of information and decision-making. But to do this we need to be able to watch the paths the user takes, where they go, from which point to which and understand where they are likely to go next.

How does this work? Well, ask 10 designers who understand XAPI and you will get 10 answers. But the bare bones are that at points decided by you, a set of data called a statement is sent to the database in XML. This data contains a set of verbs (that you designed) and the data that goes with them. Collate enough of these and you will begin to see patterns. The term is Analytics.

Amazon is pretty good at recommending books and other items to buy based on this type of analytics. Based on who you are and what you have done before, they can predict what you are likely to buy next. So, using the same type of data and based upon who you are, what your role is and what learning you already undertook and the decisions you made whilst doing that learning, we should be able to predict what you are going to next. If that prediction says you are about to make a mistake that is going to be costly to our organisation, we can intervene—a good old intervention by a training professional who is going to create better value by changing your behaviour.

Simple to implement? No, not at all. To do so, you are going to need a new set of talents in designing learning content that creates the data you know you can use and want and need. Reuben Tozman said, “SCORM technology tells us here is the data we collect and here’s how to build web content that spits that data into our buckets. Tin Can is, what data points do you want to create, how do you want to collect that data and you decide how that data is meaningful.”

If that is not an exciting prospect in the world of learning, then you are never going to hear one. This is not a pipe dream; it is real. During 2013 it will be at every conference you attend, you will find it in all the magazines and in all the blogs and forums. Get on board early; understand what is coming and how the design of your learning is about to have the biggest shake up since you got that job.

Neil Lasher
neil@neillasher.com
@neillasher

Neil Lasher is a leading light in both the eLearning and ‘mobile’ industry. One of the pioneers of both of these methods of delivery, Neil has pushed the envelope at every opportunity and always challenges the existing rules of learning to forge new methods so that the end user takes away the very best content and has the most engaging experience. A lively speaker, Neil has been sought by many conferences around the world to present in his entertaining manner. Neil has published many new papers on Instructional Design and mobile learning techniques and creates high voltage learning events, all in plain speak and easily understood.

Neil sits on the advisory board of UK’s Learning and Performance Institute (LPI), is a past president of ASTD (UK Network) and past vice chair of eLearning network. Neil hosts a mobile ‘technical stage’ each year for the eLearning Guild’s mLearnCon (the world’s premier mobile conference) in the USA. A very experienced consultant, Neil ensures his clients can create the very best experience for the most discerning of professionals. His LinkedIn recommendations speak for themselves.

In the summer of 2012, Neil worked for London2012 Olympics helping to roll out 1 million hours of learning to 200,000 people. Events do not get more high profile or mission critical than this. Can Neil help you design your learning events?

Tags: ASTD, CBT, eLearning, Neil Lasher, neillasher.com, Reuben Tozman, SCORM, Tin Can

Read more | Comments (7) | Jan 4, 2013

Smart Employers Turn to Video Games for Digital Training

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Corporate Training, Human Resources, Learning Trends

Using interactive software and video games as tools for employee training and development makes a lot of sense for the modern job market. Online interaction and technological know-how plays a vital role in business success and professional growth. Using video games to train and develop new and old employees can have several key benefits for employers, employees, and business—take a look:

Attracting the Candidates

Using video games and interactive tools does more than just successfully develop employees’ business skills. Many employers are using video games and interactive technology to entice the candidates they really want to apply for positions. One software option allows job seekers to download a three-dimensional video game that gives “players” a better understanding of the company’s office, interviewing process, and actual business projects. This can be a great way to encourage individuals to join your team. While this may sound like overkill to some, tools like this can help candidates differentiate your company from your competitors. The military uses similar techniques, setting up military videogame centers in malls to help recruit people to join. This first-hand look into the company from the outside can be extremely beneficial for the potential employee, but also for the employer. Employees who gain some understanding of the company through interactive gaming technology can more easily decide if they are a good fit.

Engaging Employees

Employee engagement is a vital aspect of maintaining a successful business and successful employees. Some employers are using gaming suites to help their employees better understand company goals, procedures, and business. By giving employees a more immediate look into the ins and outs of business, they can feel more involved, better educated, and more in-line with the company as a whole. Engagement, involvement, and synergy among all employees are very important to overall morale and productivity. Gaming objectives like this one also help employees with knowledge retention. They are able to interact with business material in a real hands-on way, helping them to retain the information they learn. When employees feel like they are part of the development and under-workings of a project, they are more invested in its outcome.

Retaining Happy Employees

Video gaming in a professional context has also been shown to help employees relieve stress, refocus their energy, and avoid burnout and boredom. While this can mean setting up a game room full of popular video games and distractions, it doesn’t always mean that. Thinking beyond setting-up a break room with fun toys for employees, using video game technology that actually pertains to the material and projects that employees are working on works better to refocus and re-energize. Retaining employees means finding ways to help them relieve stress and avoid burnout. Work with them to find new ways to explore old subjects or common projects.

Lenore Holditch is a freelance writer and blogger for www.toponlinecolleges.com. Lenore loves writing about education and current academic trends. She uses blogging as a way to educate students and student-hopefuls in the best academic choices for their needs. You can reach Lenore in the comment section below.

 

Tags: Employee Engagement, training, Video Games

Read more | Comments (6) | Oct 9, 2012

Going the Last Learning Mile with LINGOs

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Global eLearning

The “last mile” concept originated in the telecommunications/cable industry. The “last mile” is the final leg of delivering connectivity from a communications provider to a customer.  This last mile is a logistical challenge because mapping the final destination wires and cables to remote rural areas without an existing structure of connectivity is physically rigorous. The “last mile” idea also applies to serving areas in need of humanitarian relief. Aid supplies are sometimes able to reach a central transport hub in an affected area but need the additional planning and networking to get resources transferred to those pockets of need without waste, loss, or misdirection. With LINGOs’ Last Mile Learning, educational resources reach those critically in need, capitalizing on existing intellectual capital, goodwill and efficiencies of scale.

The objective of LINGOs’ Last Mile Learning Initiative is to increase availability and access to capacity-building resources appropriate to the needs of professionals working in development, relief and conservation sectors.  This calendar year, the program will develop 24 courses, falling under four key learning tracks: Self-management, Team management, Strategic Management and Project Management, as seen below:

Plans are currently underway to develop content in additional learning tracks, including Information Technology, Small Enterprise Development and more.  Last Mile Learning will provide course facilitators with dozens of course titles that can be immediately made available for use in both the face-to-face and on-line contexts.

Development teams are actively working on 19 of these courses.  Last Mile Learning is currently seeking to match volunteer teams from the eLearning community with an additional 5 course titles, including:

• Stress Management
• Selection Interviewing
• Managing People Effectively
• Strategic Skills for Senior Management
• Professional Negotiation

In Zambia, a nurse explains how to take artemether-lumefantrine for malaria treatment. [Photo from LINGOs blog. Credit: Arturo Sanabria, JSI]

Volunteers will achieve the following:

• Identify learning objectives for the course
• Develop  a 10-15 question assessment for the topic based on the learning objectives
• Design and develop four formats of learning resources, including:
  • A self-led eLearning module
  • Face-to-Face module
  • Blended modules  (curricular resources that allow facilitators to lead blended on-line courses (curricular guides and slide decks) in both Facilitated On-line Synchronous format and Facilitated On-line Asynchronous format:  curricular guides and support materials that allow facilitators to instruct groups via on-line communities and discussion rooms.  This format is most useful in situations where individuals want to learn in a group but only have intermittent access to the internet or are unable to attend regularly scheduled

Please visit the Last Mile Learning website to learn more or contact:  lastmilelearning@lingos.org.

Related resources:

• See video on YouTube, (LINGOs Members and Private Sector Partners share why they got involved).
• See LINGOs blog posts:
  • Three Ways Last Mile Learning Makes Your Organizational Learning More Strategic, by Mike Culligan
  • traveled to Kenya and Nairobi and wrote on the LINGOs blog Last Mile Learning Sneak Preview, by Marian Abernathy, LINGOs Director of Membership & Communications
  • What do members say is the best benefit of LINGOs membership?
  • Engage in the dialog at the dynamic LINGOs LinkedIn group and partake in Virtual Coffee Breaks.
  • Follow LINGOs on Twitter
  • Try a sample LINGOs course, CARE – Personal Safety and Security Awareness, viewable online by members and nonmember alike:
    

 

Tags: Last Mile Learning, LINGOs, Marian Abernathy, Mike Culligan

Read more | Comments (5) | Aug 14, 2012

eLearning Development: A How-To Primer

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Better eLearning, Corporate Training, Learning Resources, Uncategorized

Guest Post by Ruth Kustoff

How to Begin to Create an eLearning Program

Once the decision has been made to develop elearning, the next question becomes, now what?

If your organization is planning to develop eLearning internally, or will be contracting with an eLearning vendor, this decision can seem daunting. However, if you understand the foundation from which eLearning is designed, you’ll be on your way to planning a successful project.

This article outlines what considerations need to be made when beginning a custom eLearning project. It will be helpful if the project is developed internally, or if working with a development partner.

The first step is to identify the criteria for a successful custom eLearning project. This includes:

In order to create a realistic development schedule for an eLearning project, you should work backwards from the desired completion date. A determination of when the training program must be “live” establishes the length of the development process, ensuring all of the above steps are addressed.

Once the completion date is determined, the next most important step is the planning stage.

• First in the planning process is identifying who needs to be included in the project and in what role.
• Next is identification of project goals, followed by requirements identification and documentation.

These steps, and the assurance that all areas of the organization are included in this early phase, will determine how well the project progresses, and its ultimate success.

Project Kick-off

A project kick-off meeting is the official start of a project. At this meeting, the following is completed:

• A project schedule is created based on the required delivery date.
• The project size and scope is addressed.
• Clear expectations of the final deliverable are established.
• Stakeholders are brought onboard and up-to-speed on the project.
• Known risk factors are addressed.

Following the kick-off meeting, the high-level design phase begins, followed by the identified QA, review and approval processes. At this point, the project is well on its way.

The Project Manager

It is important to have an experienced custom eLearning project manager leading the development process to oversee the project’s components and players.

There are two distinct teams of players the project manager must manage in slightly different ways: the client team, and the development team.

The client team includes:

• the project owner / sponsor,
• the subject matter expert(s),
• key stakeholders, and
• external client members who may be required for project signoff, such as corporate communications and legal.

The development team includes:

• instructional designers,
• graphic artists,
• developers,
• editors,
• testers and
• QA reviewers.

In managing both teams, one key factor is to ensure ongoing, open, two-way communication among team members, and between individual team members and the project manager. Also, when scheduling tasks and creating deliverable milestones, it’s important for the project manager to talk with each team member (such as the instructional designer, and graphic artist as well as the subject matter expert, and client reviewers) to gain their buy-in around the schedule to be sure the timeframe is realistic.

Summary

Creating an elearning course is an iterative process. On the development side, it requires many different skill sets to complete each of the tasks, and on the review and implementation side, there are many players who must approve and signoff at various milestone points of the project.

Be Aware of 5 Challenges to your Progress

In order to keep projects moving forward, and not to have anything fall through the cracks, you should be aware of some common challenges during eLearning development.

Having an awareness of these potential issues can help mitigate them before they compromise the project’s development process and timeline, and ultimately its success. There are steps and processes that can be put in place at the start of a project to ensure these issues are managed effectively.

We welcome comments from your project management experiences. If you’d like to discuss an eLearning project you’re considering, you may consult Ruth via email at rkustoff@knowledgeadvantage.biz.

Tags: eLearning development, Instructional Design, project management, Ruth Kustoff

Read more | Comments (10) | Jul 13, 2012

Celebrate Social Media Day – June 30th

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Global eLearning, Social media, Uncategorized

eLearning would not be the same without social media to connect people in the industry and allow us to share ideas, maximize the benefits of onsite events, disseminate content and in short, continue to learn.

This Saturday is a special day for social media, as it’s the 3rd Annual Social Media Day. This annual event was created by Mashable, a household name in social media news blogs,  in 2010. Mashable is hosting Meet-ups in 488 cites world-wide, including:

For other cities, Search Mashable Meetups near you. And there’s a designated hashtag #SMDay.

If you’re not attending an in-person meet-up, you might like to join social media/eLearning authority Jane Hart, as she hosts from London an informal virtual chat for eLearning folk on the Social Learning Centre.  You are welcome to share in Saturday’s chat how social media has impacted, changed or influenced your life.

In addition, if you would like to expand your PLN and do a little online networking, and discovery of people in the industry or your area, note this on your calendar for June 30th. Our eLearning colleague, Christopher Pappas, is planning a day-long connection hub on his large LinkedIn Group Instructional Design & E-Learning Professionals’ Group. Mark your calendar to check back there for a live thread of group members sharing their elearning Facebook pages/groups, Twitter accounts, blog URLs, and geographic locations, as well as a summary of their specialities in the field.

If you know of, or are planning anything online or else-wise, to celebrate the 3^rd Social Media Day, please add it in the comments below. Backchannel notes welcome!

 

 

Tags: backchannel, Christopher Pappas, eLearning, Jan Hart, LinkedIn, Mashable, PLN, Social Media Day, Twitter

Read more | Comments (11) | Jun 25, 2012

Do the new breed of “Rapid” course developers know anything about ADDIE, and should they even care?

Posted by Admin QL | Filed under ADDIE, Better eLearning, Learning Resources

So it’s always easier to have a tried and tested model or methodology to fall back on, and that is the strength of ADDIE (there are other models, but most of these are derivatives from ADDIE).

But following the ADDIE model takes time and effort. Aren’t we trying to get product out quickly? Can we afford to spend time analyzing and designing the course beforehand?

Well, here’s the thing. If we don’t follow the ADDIE model, we will probably find ourselves developing great looking content quickly, but end up with a course that does not meet the learning objectives, enable learning transfer or improve performance. Reminds me of the old saying “Haste makes waste.”

The rapid authoring tool is designed to reduce the Development time, which is always the most time and resources consuming, but be sure to work though all of the steps.

Let’s take a closer look at each step, and the danger of ignoring any of them.

1. Analysis  – define the purpose and the audience for the training. If you don’t have a clearly defined purpose, then how can you set learning objectives? And it goes without saying that if you don’t know the audience is, you simply can’t craft the message and style correctly. Consider this: your course style will be quite different if you are developing a safety course for miners than if you were developing course teaching teenagers how to dance.
2. Design – at this point, you might decide whether to buy off-the-shelf, or develop a custom product. You should also determine whether a rapid tool such as QuickLessons will do what you need it to. Courses that involve detailed simulations for example often need a different treatment (and also need more meticulous design). Bear in mind that rapid tools have a built-in structure which acts as a guide to the flow of the course. This means that the Design phase does not always need the level of detail required when you are building from scratch. Experienced designers will create a storyboard at this stage; this will be a graphic representation of the flow of the course, and perhaps give some indication of the pictures and graphics that will be needed to support the learning. You might even want to use the storyboard to do a high-level walk through with the users or a group of your peers. The reasons for this step should be self-apparent.
3. Development – now you’re ready to get your authoring tool out and get going. You will find this step lives up to the rapid promise if you have completed the Analysis and Design steps adequately.  If you are using a collaborative platform such as QuickLessons, then you might ask the editors, your peers and some users to work through the course, and share comments, before it is published. This will provide you with an opportunity to make changes before publishing the course. And of course if you miss this step, then you will not have a course at all! So no one misses this step, but sadly it is often the only step followed when we are trying to get courses out quickly.
4. Implementation – At this point you make the e-learning course available to the users. The great thing about using a rapid authoring tool is that courses are very easy to change and re-publish in short time and with little cost. So if it’s not quite making the mark, you have the opportunity to improve the course.
5. Evaluation – This is possibly the most involved step, and should measure:
1. learner reaction – did they like the course?
2. learning results – e.g., test scores
3. behavior – has the learner’s behavior changed, and have they been able to transfer the skills back to the job
4. results – these would include increased productivity, fewer accidents, more sales for example
5. return on investment – in financial terms, do the results exceed the investment made in developing the training?

The first four steps known as levels are from Kirkpatrick, and the fifth has been added by Jack Phillips. It’s unlikely that you as the instructional designer or course developer will be involved in all of the above, although you should build the first two levels into the course. The Learning & Development department must concern itself with all the levels of evaluation though. This will help you develop better and better courses, and if the return on investment is positive, it should also unlock bigger budgets for course development.

So it is worth your while to follow the ADDIE model in your development efforts, even if you are using a rapid authoring tool. This will ensure that you produce quality eLearning that engages learners, and meets the instructional objectives.

Tags: ADDIE, Development time, Instructional Design, Jack Phillips, Kirkpatrick, Moira de Roche, rapid authoring tool

Read more | Comments (1) | Jun 11, 2012

eLearning in Russia: eLearnExpo & an Interview with Dr. Anton Ilinsky

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Global eLearning

Anton acknowledges that the name of the company he founded (Advanced Technologies for Business and Education) makes their approach to training more creative, as the team is involved in all touch points of their clients’ business. ATBE consultants essentially work to make the entire activities of their clients’ companies more efficient. Their holistic approach to training focuses on the fundamentals of good management. Anton explains that prior to designing any training, it’s critical for both trainers and management to crystallize their understanding of the goals and mission of the organization and how to achieve them. Read the rest of this entry…

Tags: A.I.Kitov, Anton Ilinsky, Classmates, Company ATBE, Edutech, eLearnExpo, eLearning, eLearning PRO, pedsovet.org, Russia

Read more | Comments (5) | Jun 1, 2012

Christopher Pappas On Social Media & eLearning

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Global eLearning, Social media, Uncategorized

We like to hear from notable people in the eLearning space, especially their views about social media and eLearning. Here we share an interview with Christopher Pappas, who combines the two fields so well. Enjoy some thoughts from Αθήνα (that’s Athens to most of us!).

Ann at QL: You are really friendly, as people quickly discover. Do you remember on which channel we first met and how? Seems like we’ve known each other forever!

Christopher: Although I meet the most professionals via LinkedIn, I am 100% sure that we meet online via Facebook. The truth is that I do not normally use Facebook for professional networking. However, after our online Facebook conversation I realized that Facebook can be used for professional networking as well. Read the rest of this entry…

Tags: Christopher Pappas, eLearning groups, Facebook, Learn-e-pedia S.A., LinkedIn, Social Media, Twitter

Read more | Comments (5) | May 11, 2012

eLearning – Build or Buy?

Posted by ann.shea | Filed under Better eLearning, Corporate Training, Human Resources, Learning Resources, Uncategorized

Guest post by Moira de Roche.

If I had $100 for every time a customer or prospect said to me “We would really prefer custom content, rather than generic “off-the-shelf” material. You see our business is really quite different…,” I’d be a really rich woman sipping brandy on the slopes of St Moritz, rather than slogging away at my desk on a hot day in the Southern hemisphere.

My response goes something like this: As a woman, who loves clothes, Utopia would be having a personal tailor who designed and made all my clothes. They would fit perfectly, be in the right fabric and color, suit my taste and style, but still be at the cutting edge of fashion. But because I’m a simple working girl, I have to buy prêt-a-porter (off-the-shelf) and keep the custom made for the special occasion. For most women, the only time they get a specially made dress is for that BIG day – the wedding! Of course, when I’m feeling creative, I can run something up on my sewing machine, but usually I just don’t have the time. I might be inclined to make a costume for Halloween – this would be quick because I’d probably only wear it once or twice, and so the finishes don’t have to be perfect.

The thought processes for deciding whether to build or buy eLearning, and how much you should be willing to spend, are very similar. You must decide whether you should license some generic courses – with or without customization; do some rapid eLearning development; or engage a content development specialist company to create intensive eLearning full of simulations with top quality graphics and so on.

No company has an unlimited budget, so here’s what you need to consider: Read the rest of this entry…

Tags: “off-the-shelf”, budget, Build or Buy?, content development, customization, generic courses, Moira de Roche, new product training, on-boarding, rapid eLearning development, Simulations

Read more | Comments (4) | Apr 27, 2012

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