Elearning! March/April 2018

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March / April 2018 Volume 14 Issue 1 • www.2elearning.com

>> 2018 Learning!

Champions Honored pg 14

>> How to Cultivate a

Evolution of Learning:

People, Process & Technology pg 25

Learning Culture pg 30

>> Getting a Seat at the Table pg 34

BIZLIBRARY IS PROUD TO PARTNER WITH THESE 2018 LEARNING! CHAMPIONS CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR CLIENTS

MARY FEIERABEND

JORDAN WILCOSKY

CRIS HATCHER

Rookie of the Year, MarksNelson

Trail Blazer, Garney Construction

Trail Blazer, Watco Companies

ANDREA JONES

KRISTEN DAVIDSON

ANGELA DAWSON

Innovator, Comer Holdings

High Performer, Consumers Credit Union

Innovator, Event Network

BizLibrary offers the partnership, support, and resources needed for managing a successful employee learning program. By providing best practices and guidance on gaining leadership buy-in, developing marketing and communication plans, and executing flawless program management, we help growing organizations truly overcome their business challenges.

CONTENT LIBRARY

LMS

LEARNING REINFORCEMENT

Contents

MARCH / APRIL 2018 VOLUME 14 NUMBER 1

>> Special Section: Evolution of Learning: People, Process & Technology

This special edition focuses on the changing needs of learners, enterprises and the platforms that support them. Enterprises are embracing automation and Artificial Intelligence which is disrupting the workforce. See how L&D can take the lead on this evolution starting on page 25.

>> Features 14 2018 Learning! Champions:

Third Annual Awards Honor 17 Leaders

Learning! Champions embrace hard work, dedication and creative thinking. This year’s winners are honored for exceptional contributions to the learning community.

Elearning! Magazine names 17 professionals across six categories from innovation to thought leadership.

30 21 How to Cultivate a Learning

Culture in Your Organization Strategy cannot always ensure success. The learning culture of an organization can be easily overthrown by even the most formidable learning and development departments. There are 17 ways to cultivate a highly successful learning culture for any organization. Start with taking professional development seriously.

By Sarah Cordiner

34 Getting a Seat at the Table: How to

Transform L&D into Business Partners The challenges facing the learning organization when moving from order-taker to business partner are numerous.

Our internal customers often don’t realize how long good learning design takes. It’s imperative that we build strong relationships and partner with stakeholders, so they understand the value we can bring. How do you get in the door and get to the table? To start….

By Ronda Feague

25 Re-imaging the Learning Ecosystem at

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Over the last two years JPL has embarked on an innovative journey of self-discovery with the aim of enhancing the quality and quantity of learning opportunities while significantly enhancing the user experience. The approach is characterized as a shift in the learning ecosystem. JPL’s learning evolution is shaped by the ability to influence cultural norms and successfully navigate barriers to change.

By Anthony Gagliardo

38 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms

Buyers’ Plans Revealed As technology evolves so do the learning solutions that grow talent. Discover how the learning ecosystem is evolving in Elearning! Magazine’s 10th Annual Learning & Talent Platforms Buyers Study. The study reveals buyers’ platform needs, brand and product awareness, system satisfaction, ‘must have’ features on the next platform, as well as insights into the decision-making process. The topline findings are revealed here.

By Catherine Upton

43 Spotlight: What’s New & Next in Platforms Approximately 52% of study participants plan to add, change or replace their learning or talent system to get more features and flexibility. Investing over $500,000 each on the next learning platform, these discerning buyers want more. Preview these new and renewed brands, feature sets and pricing models before purchasing your next system.

Elearning! March / April 2018

3

14

30

>> Essentials 8

8

10

11

Automation to Displace 375 Million Jobs 76% Say AI is Critical to Their Enterprise Final Look: Platforms Buyer Study Focus on Engagement

>> Management 7

L&D Crucial to Future Workforce Development Automation, engagement and technology challenges emerge.

But, L&D will serve an essential role in retraining displaced workers, improving engagement and evolving learning systems to impact performance.

By Catherine Upton

12 Leader’s View The Impact of Strengths-Based Management If there is one area of focus with the potential to transform entire organizational cultures and deliver improved business outcomes, it is a strengths-based approach to management.

By Steve Crabtree

14 17 Learning! Champions

Honored Learning! Champions embrace hard work, dedication and creative thinking. Meet 17 leaders who have made exceptional contributions to the learning industry.

30 How to Cultivate a Learning

Culture in Your Organization Strategy cannot always ensure success. Here’s 17 ways to cultivate a highly successful learning culture for any organization.

By Sarah Cordiner

50 Unlocking Your Super Power What is it about superheroes that we love so much? Is it their ability to overcome tremendous obstacles?

With a little practice, we can all unleash the superhero within.

By Tony Bridwell

>> Tools & Practices 13 Science of Learning The Efficacy of Team-Based Online Learning Simply put, learners in teams are more engaged according to Stanford University research.

Students in teams are 16 times more likely to pass a course and 5 times more engaged with online content.

By Chuck Eesley, Ph.D.

38 2018 Learning & Talent

Platform Buyers’ Plans

Revealed Discover how the learning ecosystem is evolving in Elearning!

Magazine’s 10th Annual Learning & Talent Platforms Buyers study.

By Catherine Upton

43 Spotlight: What’s New &

Next in Platforms Investing over $500,000 each on the next learning platform, buyers want more from their systems.

Preview these new and renewed brands, feature sets and pricing models before purchasing your next system.

>> Business 7

Publisher’s Note L&D Crucial to Future Workforce Development

By Catherine Upton

12 Leader’s View The Impact of Strengths-Based Management

By Steve Crabtree

13 Science of Learning The Efficacy of Team-Based Online Learning

By Chuck Eesley Ph.D.

43 New Products Spotlight: Learning Platforms

50 Last Word Unlocking Your Super Power

By Tony Bridwell

4

March / April 2018 Elearning!

You...

Create learning programs that deliver results!

Innovate, collaborate and outperform your competitors!

Master budget woes to woo your employees, customers and partners.

Now let us honor you and your team’s excellence.

Apply at: www.2elearning.com/awards/learning-100-awards Application open 1.1.18 to 4.15.18.

Government, non-profit and educational organizations can apply free.

March / April 2018 VOLUME 14 ISSUE 1

Online@

2elearning.com Trending Topics What’s New & Next in Learning Platforms http://bit.ly/2FN3HpI 13th Annual Best of Elearning! Named http://bit.ly/2FGDOVA The Most Unusual Interview Mistakes http://bit.ly/2IqJftq

Most Popular Web Sessions Learning Platforms Powering Organizations http://bit.ly/2FGMuLz

Catherine Upton Group Publisher >> cupton@2elearning.com Jerry Roche Executive Editor >> jroche@2elearning.com Adam Weschler Manager Digital Programs >> aweschler@2elearning.com Jim Upton Vice President >> JW@2elearning.com Kim Mabon Art Director >> production@2elearning.com Ed Tetter Production Manager >> production@2elearning.com Maria Perkins Event Manager >> operations@2elearning.com Contributors: Tony Bridwell, Partners in Leadership Sarah Cordiner, Main Training Steve Crabtree, Gallup Chuck Eesley, Ph.D. Stanford University Ronda Feague, Choice Hotels International Anthony Gagliardo, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Best Tools to Use in 2018 http://bit.ly/2FOxBtD

Events Business of Learning: Strategic Approach to Impactful Learning April 5th 10 AM- 11 AM PST http://bit.ly/2FFhcEO Celebration of Excellence 2018 Sept 10th-11th, 2018 http://www.2elearning.com/ events 6

March / April 2018 Elearning!

Elearning! Media Group is the property of B2B Media Company LLC 44920 W. Hathaway Ave. #1794, Maricopa, AZ 85139 USA • 888-201-2841 • 951-547-1131 www.2elearning.com Elearning! Magazine is published bi-monthly by B2B Media Company LLC, 44920 W. Hathaway Ave. #1794, Maricopa, AZ 85139. Application to mail Standard Class is filed with Denver, Colorado Post Office.

POSTMASTER: Send all address changes to: Elearning! 44920 W. Hathaway Ave. #1794, Maricopa, AZ 85139. Subscriptions are free to qualified professionals in the USA. To subscribe, visit 2elearning.com. Elearning! Magazine is a trademark of B2B Media Company.

Publisher’sNote Learning & Development Crucial to Future Workforce Development

L

Automation, Engagement & Technology Challenges Emerge

earning and Development plays a crucial role to organizations as the future workplace evolves. A recent study from McKinsey reports that 375 million jobs will be displaced by automation. Last month, an InfoSys study revealed that 75% of organizations will replace workforce resources with Artificial Intelligence (AI). Yet, 80% of these organizations plan to retrain or redeploy displaced workers (See page 8).

This isn’t the only challenge to organizations and L&D teams worldwide. As millennials dominate the workforce, so do their workplace preferences and learning styles. In a recent Gallup study, 85% of the global workforce is disengaged versus 67% of U.S. workers (See page 11). Sixty-one percent of respondents cited “work at what they do best” as a top engagement driver. And, 45% of millennials say, “a job that accelerates career development is very important.” L&D is crucial for building new competencies, identifying strengths, and career development.

Catherine Upton Group Publisher, Elearning!

Media Group

NOW IS A GREAT TIME TO BE IN L&D. CEOs have placed employee engagement as a top organizational priority and are investing in these initiatives. Plus, technology to drive performance and engagement is readily available to organizations of all sizes. In the 2018 Learning and Talent Platforms Buyer Study conducted by Elearning! Magazine, record investments are reported in platforms that improve engagement and performance, skills development and personalization. (See page 38). While the list of ‘Must Have’ features are long, they align to the business drivers of engagement, personalization, performance and collaboration.

The transition to a new learning ecosystem to support next gen workforce and knowledge transfer is not an easy one. Learning! Champion Anthony Gagliardo of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory shares JPL’s roadmap from traditional learning to a modern learning ecosystem- coined ‘Destination 2025.’

Read about JPL’s journey on page 25.

It’s time for L&D to take their rightful seat at the C-suite table. The success of the business depends upon it. Yet, there is a discipline required to earn that seat. Ronda Feage, Director of Strategy, ChoiceU, Choice Hotels International, (a 2017 Learning! 100 winner), shares the steps to take that seat. It all starts with ‘Yes’ (See page 34).

CONGRATULATIONS TO 2018 LEARNING! CHAMPIONS Many of L&D’s top performers are being recognized here as 2018 Learning! Champions. They have launched new corporate universities; Developed effective global learning programs; Created awardwinning learning programs and content; and, continue to drive our industry forward as key thoughtleaders. Get inspired by the best of L&D and discover how their contributions are moving our industry forward on page 21.

Keep on Learning!

– Catherine Upton, Group Publisher

Elearning! March / April 2018

7

News

Automation to Displace 375 Million Employees

AI’s Impact on Jobs Sixty-nine percent of organizations are using Artificial Intelligence in IT functions today says Infosys study. While 75% are currently or planning to replace workforce resources with AI technology, 80% of organizations will retrain or redeploy displaced employees.

According to McKinsey Global, 32% of U.S. jobs will be replaced by automation by 2030. This is a small percentage across the global front. McKinsey estimates that 400 million to 800 million people will need new jobs as automation and machine learning creep into industries all over the world. Of that number, McKinsey suggests 375 million will have to switch occupational categories entirely.

Number of workers needing to find new jobs due to automation

How Companies Are Preparing Staff Increased training in functions most affected by AI deployments

53% Redeployment of employees to new functional areas

50% Hiring of new employees with different skills

49% 37% McKinsey & Company claims that AI can automate as much as 45 percent or more of any particular job – allowing workers to focus on higher level, mission-critical activities.

With 76% of senior executives saying AI is fundamental to their organization’s success, AI will only grow in adoption over the next 3 years.

Source: http://infy.com/2CT3CLG https://www.infosys.com/aimaturity/Documents/amplifyinghuman-potential-CEO-report.pdf

How HR Needs to Prepare for AI HR needs to put proper foundations in place first before implementing to AI. “We’ve gone from the mainframe to DOS to Windows to clientserver to web,” says Jason Averbrook, Principal of LeadGen. In five generations of technology, I’ve been really doing the same things, only on a new piece of technology. This [AI] isn’t that. This is not doing the same thing on a new piece of technology. This is actually changing the way work is done and doing things completely differently.”

HR must step up to the mark with digitization and AI by: >> Constructing solid data sets >> Creating a great user experience >> Shifting focus from automation to digitalization which changes the work experience “The danger is that HR will be caught napping when the executive team comes knocking and wants to know what HR’s plans are for this new way of working,” concludes Averbrook.Source: https://diginomica.com/2018/02/26/ready-hr-ai/

March / April 2018 Elearning!

China

% of 2030 workforce 102

13

54

US 38

India

32 6 46

Japan Germany

Removal of redundant positions

8

Workers (millions)

Mexico

12 7

33 10

“It’s going to take a shift in mindset,” says Susan Lund, a leader of the McKinsey Global Institute. “People need to expect they may not only have entirely different employers, but entirely different occupations. We talk about lifelong learning, but in the next five to 10 years, we’ve actually got to make that a reality—it will require changes from employers and policy-makers, but also individuals, on how we think of jobs.”

Contingent Workforce to Triple by 2020 Americans are eager to work but no longer for somebody else.

The number of Americans working for themselves looks to triple—to 42 million people—by 2020, according to Research Now. Millennials are driving the freelance trend. Of the 27 million independent workers, 42% will be millennials.

The study also finds Americans who already work for themselves are very content to keep doing so, with 97% of them (up from 10%) reporting no desire to return to the traditional workplace. These findings are consistent with Intuit’s 2006 study on the topic.

“Given these trends, companies need to proactively create what I call approved workplace ecosystems that will likely include the corporate campus, home office… or any place with a decent Wi-Fi or 4G signal,” claims Jeremy Neuner, CEO, NextSpace.“A real ecosystem is about more than just a collection of places. It’s about the norms, the culture, and the vibe that knit [us] together,” concludes Neuner.

Source: https://www.freshbooks.com/_themes/ freshbooks/brand-assets/freshbooks-survey-2017.pdf

Learning! 100 Call for Applications The annual Learning! 100 award program honors public and private sector organizations for innovation, collaboration and learning culture that drives performance. Applications can be submitted at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Learning100 “The Learning! 100 award winners are an elite team of high performers. From small to large enterprises, this award honors those that push the limits of learning and development, to over achieve by exceeding performance expectations,” says Catherine Upton¸ Group Publisher, Elearning! Media Group. “Learning is at the core of their success.

Every Learning! 100 winner inspires us with their innovation, passion and performance.”

Previous Learning! 100 honorees include: T-Mobile, Amazon Web Services, American Heart Association, Salesforce, NASCAR, Defense Acquisition University, and Scripps Health to name a few. Application deadline has been extended to April 15th.

Learn More: http://bit.ly/2FjrEon

“A real ecosystem is about more tha just a collection of places. It’s about the norms, culture and vibe that knits [us] together” –Jeremy Neuner, CEO, NextSpace

Diversity & Learning Lab Launched

Diversity, inclusion, and belonging are unique areas of both challenge and opportunity for learning professionals.

To address these topics, Elliott Masie has partnered with international learning leader Jayzen Patria to produce The Diversity & Learning LAB Experience. Sessions will be held at the MASIE Center in Saratoga Springs April 10-12, 2018. Jayzen will host and facilitate a small group of learning colleagues in the lab as diversity, inclusion, and learning leaders from around the world interact with participants by video throughout the program. Participants are encouraged to come prepared to share, learn, and design with fellow learning professionals and thought leaders, as well as their own board of stakeholders back at the office (via connected technology).

Learn more: Masie.com

Deals SAP buys CallidusCloud for

$2.4 billion and expected to close in the second quarter of 2018. Litmos, the learning division of Callidus, will move to SAP within in the Hybris cloud group. Management teams will transition to SAP. Educational AI pioneer KIDAPTIVE closes $19.1M in Series

C funding led by Formation 8 and ThinkBig. The investment will enable global expansion for its big data analytics, machine learning and AI in adaptive learning solutions.

round of funding. The provider will invest the funds in making its first acquisition (a mobile application called LookUp), building its management team, and fueling growth.

BOOMWRITER MEDIA, a collaboration tool for crowdsourcing writing content in schools and colleges, closes $4.1 Million

VOLVO launches a VC fund to

invest its way into the future.

Working with an undisclosed amount of money, Volvo Cars

Tech Fund will look to invest in startups it believes could help it keep pace in a shape shifting auto industry. Rather than try to develop everything with its own R&D team or buy components from suppliers, Volvo hopes to take an active role in shaping new ideas— and bring them into their fold.

Elearning! March / April 2018

9

FinalLook

Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study The 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study conducted by Elearning! Media Group via an online survey of learning professionals reveals the current trends and purchase plans for 2018. These findings were tabulated from 441 responses across corporate, government, education and non-profit organizations. The study was conducted industry-wide and includes Elearning! subscribers and community members.

88% Own LMS

24% Own

57% Are Cloud Based

31%

LCMS

Own TMS

23% Open

23%

Are Cloud Based

(Behind Firewall)

Source

Who Learning Platform Serves?

83%

TMS Deployments

83%

Support external learners (channel, customers, suppliers)

40%

Deploy to employees

Increase Employee Engagement

49%

Personalize Learning

Plans to Add Change or Replace TMS

89%

Novice

31%

30%

39%

40%

Drive Sales & Profits

824,000*

$

$

New Investment to Acquire Learning System

*Average per buyer

Discover Must Have Features, Brand Ownership & Awareness, Buying Process and Roles in 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study Download Free Report at: http://bit.ly/2tDfzWH March / April 2018 Elearning!

12%

Buyers TMS Expertise (Self Reported)

558,000*

10

32%

Serve global locations

TMS owners plan to add, change or replace system

8% Non-owners plan to acquire a TMS

Top 3 reasons for investing in learning & talent systems:

70%

27%

Are supporting one Deployed across location (department multiple U.S. locations or enterprise)

Plans to Add, Change or Replace LMS

LMS/LCMS owners plan to change systems

31% Non- owners plan to purchase a system 6% Buyers are purchasing LMSs

Purchasing LCMSs

32%

9%

Are OnPremise

Expert/Very Familiar

Somewhat Familiar

New Investment to Acquire TMS Sponsored by

Trendlines

Talent Turnover

Focus: Engagement in the Workplace Gallup released the State of the Global Workforce Study revealing engagement trends across 115 countries. Here’s some telling statistics that every manager should know.

85% 67%

of employees worldwide are not engaged or actively disengaged.

of U.S. employees are not engaged or actively disengaged.

Global Productivity Hinges on Human Capital Development – Gallup 2018

1 OUT OF 5 1 OF 3 61% 45%

Employees who say their performance is managed in a motivating way.

Employees say they have the opportunity to do what they do best.

of employees want to work at what they do best

of millennials say a job that accelerates career development is very important to vs. 31% of genXers and 18% of boomers

Engagement Drivers What Employers Should Do

What Employees Want

1. Use the right engagement survey

1. To do what they do best at work

2. Focus on engagement at the local and organization level

2. Work life balance

3. Select the right managers

3. Job stability & security

4. Coach managers and hold them accountable for engagement

4. Increase in income

5. Define engagement in realistic everyday terms

5. Work for great brands/ reputable company

Source: http://bit.ly/2oMI7XN http://bit.ly/2yFebB7 http://bit.ly/2tdp6U5

51% 91%

of employees are looking for their next job.

of which will be with another employer.

When your best employees are not engaged, they are as likely to leave as low performers.

Voluntary Turnover Rates Per Group National Financial Services Provider HIGH TALENT 6% Engaged Not Engaged LOW TALENT Engaged Not Engaged

10%

5% 11%

Regional Healthcare Provider HIGH TALENT Engaged Not Engaged LOW TALENT Engaged Not Engaged

11% 14% 9% 14%

Download summary of study at: http://bit.ly/2yzs6rO

Elearning! March / April 2018

11

Leader’sView The Impact of Strengths-Based Management

A

s organizations reorganize for speed and agility to stay competitive, authority is becoming less centralized than in the past. Teams constantly form, disband and reform according to the needs of specific projects and customers. Information and communication technologies have helped make it possible to stay coordinated as people become more mobile and their job descriptions are less permanent. But these changes also place different demands on employees.

Employees need to be more adaptable and self-directed, better able to identify teams and projects that would allow them to excel and maximize their value to the company. In turn, employees need a higher level of selfawareness to navigate their careers amid organizational environments that are more fluid than ever before.

Steve Crabtree, Analyst, Gallup

67% Engaged

employees with a manager who focuses on their strengths.

–Gallup

12

March / April 2018 Elearning!

STRENGTHS-BASED MANAGEMENT DEFINED If there is one area of focus with the potential to transform entire organizational cultures to help meet these needs — and deliver improved business outcomes, too — it is a strengths-based approach to management. Don Clifton pioneered the study of strengths in the workplace, affirming through decades of research that employees who use their strengths on the job are more likely than others to be intrinsically motivated by their work, simply because it feels less like work to them.

Among a host of benefits individuals experience when they know and use their strengths, employees who say they use their strengths every day are 8% more productive and 15% less likely to quit their jobs. They are also more likely to strongly agree that they like what they do each day.

The natural talents we all have can be turned into strengths through investing in their development — time spent practicing and developing skills. Focusing on innate talent as a foundation has become increasingly important as the pace of technological change has quickened, because in many industries specific skills and knowledge have a shorter lifespan than they once did.

Employees need continual learning and development opportunities in order to stay up to date. Understanding their strengths gives them a basis for choosing the developmental paths that are most likely to help them sustain a long, successful career. A program that includes coaching and development provides a sense of their “true north” — helping them stay oriented for high productivity amid shifting workplace needs and varying career trajectories. But as more businesses restructure their processes around teambased work, the benefits of a strengths-based culture for group interactions also becomes more important.

Team members who know each other’s strengths more effectively relate to one another, avoiding potential conflicts and boosting group cohesion. Strengths-based development immediately changes their conversations. It creates more positive dialogue, and it boosts the team’s overall engagement and performance.

Gallup analysts recently conducted a study of 11,441 teams in six organizations where at least 30% of employees had completed the Strengths assessment. They determined that team members’ awareness of their own strengths — and each other’s — was more strongly related to higher engagement and performance than was the specific composition of strengths on the team.

MANAGER’S ROLE The manager’s role changes substantially in a strengths-based culture. Namely, they’re the key conduit to implementing a genuine strengths-based development approach and maximizing the potential of their workplace’s talent. Managers become more like coaches, dedicated to helping team members understand and cultivate their talents, thereby achieving high levels of productivity and fulfillment. This change aligns with research by Gallup and others showing that younger workers — particularly millennials — want and expect their managers to work with them on personal and professional development opportunities.

As organizations figure out how best to implement these changes, they need new ways to help teams retain cohesion, and to ensure that the right talent can flow to projects that will make the best use of their skills. As Gallup research has demonstrated time and again, organizations that adopt a strengthsbased culture will have a powerful advantage on both fronts.

– Steve Crabtree is analyst and lead editor of Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report. Download summary at: http://news.gallup.com/reports/220313/state-global-workplace-2017.aspx?

Scienceof Learning The Efficacy of Team-Based Online Learning

S

Dr. Chuck Eesley, Professor Management Science & Engineering, Stanford University

imply put, learners in teams are more engaged. Research Eesley conducted shows that collaboration in online classes significantly improves learning and engagement and course completion.

According to the study, students who worked in teams were 16 times more likely to pass the course. As a baseline, of the 23,577 students working individually, only 2% (501) passed the course. However, 32% of all students on teams graduated- 1500% higher. Of this, 21% of students working in teams without mentors and 44% of students in teams with mentors passed (See Figure 1).

Similarly, students in teams were more engaged in the community and contributed more to class discussions and peer evaluations. For example, students on teams accessed the course five times as often. On average, learners working alone logged in once per week, but students in teams (no mentors) signed in 4.9 times per week, and students in teams with mentors signed in 5.5 times per week (See Figure 2).

COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL ENGAGEMENTS The completion rate of individuals working alone resembles that of most free, open courses on traditional learning platforms. It is clear that basic “social features,” such as discussion boards, messaging, and social network sharing, are insufficient to drive higher engagement.

The benefit of social learning comes when students feel responsible as part of a learning community.

One can achieve this with a combination of team-based assignments, mentorship, reputation systems, identity transparency, community moderation, and the like. This ‘felt accountability” is a powerful intrinsic motivator that is effective at increasing course persistence and learning outcomes. This type of networking drives significantly higher engagement and completion rates.

CONTEXT AND RESEARCH This research was conducted at Stanford University from 26,248 students in Technology Entrepreneurship, an eight-week free course. The analysis utilizes a multivariate regression format, with dependent variables of various engagement and satisfaction measures, independent variables including collaboration type, and control variables for demographics, engagement level, etc.

16x

Fig 1: Graduation Rate by Cohort

More likely students would pass the course

5x

Times students in teams signed in vs individuals

44%

Of all enrolled students with mentors passed the course

Team with feedback 44%

Fig 2: Engagement

by Cohort (times Team signed in) 39%

Team with feedback 44%

Team 21%

Individual 2%

Individual 8%

Elearning! March / April 2018

13

2018 Learning!

Champions: Third Annual Awards Honor 17 Learning! Champions embrace hard work, dedication and creative thinking.

The 2018 Learning! Champion Award honors individuals for exceptional contributions to the learning industry.

Elearning! Magazine names 17 14

March / April 2018 Elearning!

professionals across six categories for 2018.

“Thought-Leaders” are industry experts always willing to share their expertise and are dedicated to bettering their communities and industries. “High Performers” have gone above and beyond, usually in a relatively short time frame to implement new learning techniques in their organizations. “Trail Blazers” forge new processes and procedures in uncharted areas to elevate learning and technology successes.

“Innovators” are technologists or problem solvers who often bring these solutions to market for others to share. “Creative Consultants” have the ability to create solutions to learning problems that scale beyond the current challenge.

“Rookies of the Year” are new to their role or industry and have surpassed performance expectations and are on their way to a successful career in learning.

The 2018 Learning! Champions are...

Defense

Sae Schatz, Ph.D. serves as the Director of the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL Initiative), a research and development program under the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Education and Training. In the role of Director, Sae leads the ADL in thought-leadership, facilitating learning for our nation’s Warfighters, government agencies, and beyond. Through research, development and collaboration, ADL is working on next generation strategies, best practices, and innovations to advance the way we learn.

Sae also supports ADL’s mission to develop and advocate open source software, tools, and specifications; as well as create and accelerate the establishment and utilization of technology-driven learning standards that prepare and enable our nation’s learners, both military and civilian. Innovative learning technologies impact our learners by enabling them to be more mentally agile, expanding their capacity to develop sophisticated competencies and skills, and enabling them to thrive in the most complex situations.

In the last few years, Sae led the authorship and execution of the Marine Corps’ Making Good Instructor Great project and accompanying instructor tool kit. She also acted as chief scientist for the award-winning Border Hunter research effort (sponsored by Joint Forces Command) and, later, for the Joint Staff’s blended learning – training initiative. Sae is passionate about human–systems integration and, in general, about emphasizing human-centered approaches in research, development, education, and training.

Before joining ADL, Sae worked as the Chief Scientist for a small defense contractor as well as a professional development consultant, and prior to that, she was an Assistant Professor at the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Simulation and Training.

Dr. Schatz received her Ph.D. in Modeling and Simulation from the University of Central Florida. She served on the UCF faculty from 2006–2011 (teaching courses in human-systems integration, visual and web design, and web development) and continues to support the Modeling and Simulation graduate program as an occasional adjunct instructor. http://www.linkedin.com/in/saeschatz

THOUGHT LEADER

Sae Schatz, Ph.D Director, Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative, Department of

Anthony Gagliardo, Head of HR, Training & Development, NASA’s Jet

Propulsion Laboratory

Dare Mighty Things Anthony is committed to supporting the technical training and professional needs of the men and woman of NASA and California Institute of Technology in their quest to DARE MIGHTY THINGS. JPL’s office of Technical Training and development is comprised of industry leading learning professionals focused on enabling the knowledge that propels those who accomplish the impossible.

In 2017, Anthony reinvented learning at JPL transitioning it from an event-based training model to a collaborative open learning ecosystem. With the world’s top experts in jet propulsion to tap, knowledge exchange was a top priority. Anthony lead the transition by creating a learning ecosystem that tapped expertise internal and external to JPL. Learn more about this program on page 25.

Prior to joining JPL, Anthony served the Federal Aviation Administration as Director of Technical Training where he guided efforts to modernize and transform training for the FAA’s 20,000 air traffic controllers and 6,000 technicians. He also served in the U.S. Air Force for 10 years as a flight engineer instructor.

Anthony has published numerous articles in the field of technical training and corporate transformation. He has earned a Master’s Degree in Management and Public Administration from American Public University and a Bachelor of Arts in Management from APU. He also holds FAA certifications as a Pilot, Right Engineer and Aircraft Maintenance Technician.

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HIGH PERFORMER

Ryan Waltrip, Ph.D Director of Online Programming, William & Mary University Agent of Strategic, Institutional Transformation and Instructional Innovation In just five years as a Director of Online Learning, Ryan Baltrip has demonstrated exceptional distance education leadership and transformed two different institutions’ approach to online learning. In his first Director role, Ryan served a private institution primarily focused on professional, graduate education that also offered undergraduate programs.

When he first stepped into the position, the school’s online offerings were extremely poor quality. Online courses were little more than correspondence classes. Yet through four years of driven and dedicated work, Ryan changed online learning at this institution and developed it into a recognized leader in online graduate theological education. He built a team that would grow annual revenue from $1.7 million to over $7million. The overall satisfaction ratings and quality of the programs increased. Ryan also developed holistic course, instructor, and program evaluation tools that were used to improve effectiveness.

After four years of success, Ryan transitioned to a new challenge – being the Director of Online Programming at William and Mary. His leadership has expanded undergraduate offerings that generated half-million in new revenue and fostered improved student satisfaction ratings with online learning in 14 of 15 measured categories. He worked collaboratively with schools of law, business, education, and arts & sciences to develop new online initiatives in each; helped develop the law school’s first online program; and assisted the School of Education’s strategic plans to expand online. He has provided the strategic direction that revamped existing e-learning workshops into the current E[x]ploring Learning Design program that generates a teaching and learning commendation for faculty and helped the second oldest college in the country to see online learning not as a threat but as an opportunity. Ryan’s leadership has been a vital catalyst in transforming a historical, highly ranked institution and helping it to offer high-quality online learning that matches its brand expectation.

Ryan holds a B.A. in Theology, Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and is completing post doctorate studies in Business.

Kristen Davidson, VP of Organizational Development, Consumers

Credit Union (Consumers CU)

Kristen has A Passion for Engaging Employees and Fostering Their Growth As Vice President of OD, Kristen supports the learning needs of 300+ employees at 19 offices in southwest Michigan. She is responsible for scoping, developing, and delivering training programs for employees, utilizing blended learning. She is a highly motivated, self-driven team leader with expertise in process improvement, change and transitional management, performance metrics, and reporting. She understands the importance of mentoring and has implemented a formal mentoring program at Consumers CU. She works closely with mortgage sales and operations to ensure training needs are met through various trainings supporting other departments.

Kristen’s impact can be seen in many ways throughout the organization. From the 69 people who have taken Kristen’s Leadership 101 curriculum, 74% have since been promoted with 35% promoted to a manager or supervisor role. After 101, people wanted more opportunity to grow and develop. From there Leadership 201 and 301 were created. These focused on developing further leadership qualities. Leadership 201 is geared toward employees who are looking for the next level in developing coaching or management skills. While 101 may qualify you for a position as a Team Lead or Mentor, 201 will develop skills suited for an assistant manager, like recruiting, credit union financials, and strategic thinking. Leadership 301 is designed to hone the skills of someone who currently leads or will soon be leading a team of people. This class gives participants the chance to connect with the CEO and dig deep into the Integrity Coaching process.

When it comes to employee engagement, Consumers CU stands out from its competitors in the marketplace and Kristen is a huge contributor to that. Another initiative of hers, the Performance GPS, has taken our employee engagement levels up 15 basis points, from 4.34 to 4.48 as assessed by our annual Employee Engagement Survey!

Comparatively, the credit union average is a 3.96. The Performance GPS revolutionized the way performance appraisals were done credit union-wide.

Kristen has earned many honors including HR Professional of the Year from CUNA, Program of the Year and Best Results Finalist. https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidsonkristen

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Leading Training Transformation at Heartland Dental Ciara leads online learning at Heartland Dental, founded in 1997. The organization’s mission is to “support dentists and their teams as they deliver the highest quality dental care and experiences to the communities they serve while providing exceptional careers and creating value for our stakeholders.”

With their network of over 800 dental practices, 1,200 supported doctors, 10,000 team members, and a presence in 34 states (and growing), Heartland Dental has become the nation’s largest dental support organization. Their support services include HR, marketing, supplies, accounting, payroll, patient support, IT, and more.

Under Ciara’s direction, Heartland Dental transformed their fully in-person training program and made it digital while expanding training opportunities at a cost savings, ($18.5 million to be exact), all while growing their business at an impressive rate. This program compliments Heartland Dental’s 5-year Mastery Program. Upon completion graduates can earn a Fellowship to the Academy of Dentistry along with an award of $250,000. Only seven percent of dentists hold this honor.

HIGH PERFORMER

Ciara Daume, Instructional Design Manager, Heartland Dental

Andrea Strong, Manager of Instructional Design, SkillPath Talented Instructional Designer Creates 1,200-Plus Custom Learning Programs Annually Working fast, furious and full of smarts, you’ll find Andrea Strong, a dedicated Manager of Instructional Design. For six years, Andrea has led a team of six talented instructional designers, pushing them to deliver quality content and quickly. Andrea is known for meeting lightning-fast deadlines and going above and beyond for clients, employers in all industries and all countries with varying degrees of wants and needs in learning and development.

In 2017 alone, Andrea and her team designed 1,220 learning programs for public and private companies, federal agencies, medical centers and more. Andrea is a fierce proponent of education and lifelong learning, evidenced by her 20-plus years of tenure in designing, training, deploying and leading learning solutions and her own multiple degrees. Andrea specializes in executive leadership, assessment, education and government business relations – and making learning sing for thousands of learners.

Under Andrea’s leadership, SkillPath has provided training to professionals at 997 of the Fortune 1000, 15 branches of the federal government and four branches of the U.S. military, including work on 226 military bases. Andrea and her team have also trained staff at the headquarters of all four major sports leagues – the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL. Andrea’s intense and extensive work for Komatsu has led to additional opportunities (and more than half a million dollars in revenue) to create learning programs within the global company.

“Andrea Strong’s contributions and the thousands of learners she helps each year is staggering,” said SkillPath President and CEO Cam Bishop. “She is bright, talented and extremely determined to create the very best content, curriculum and custom learning programs for our clients, who benefit immensely from her more than two decades of industry experience.”

Andrea has a Master’s degrees in Public Administration and Education from Park University (1997-1999) and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Public Communication and Speech from William Jewell College (1993-1997). https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-strong-6ba813123/

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CREATIVE CONSULTANT

Matt Chambers, Learning Specialist III, California Coast Credit Union Matt Chambers Creates Unforgettable Learning Videos in Record Time Matt Chambers is an astute, prolific learning and visual design professional who creates advertising-agency quality live and animated videos. His other talents include classroom facilitation, experiential activity design, service measurement, lean process improvement, and knowledge management/Intranet design.

In a span of five months, Matt Chambers created three (3) memorable, inventive, and emotive visual learning videos. He has a film director’s sense of setup and framing, a digital artist’s sense of how to create emotional impact, and a digital designer’s understanding of the tools of the trade. He also has great insights into music selection to create a full cinematic effect. While Matt had previous experience in graphic design and video creation, he had not used many of the effects and animation software tools deployed in the crafting of these projects.

To achieve the delivery of three (3) professional quality, highly engaging videos in five months exceeds the production schedule of visual professionals with more years of experience. Additionally, Matt wrote the scripts, narrated the voice-overs, and incorporated ambient music, providing deliverables that are inspiring, educational, and impactful to many different audiences. He has proven himself to be an innovator and trail-blazer.

Two live videos with effects were created for the organization’s Board of Directors planning retreat and will now be used in the company’s new hire orientation and on the public web site to help recruit new employees and interest prospective credit union members in a profile of what the credit union represents. This placement is the first time the company has ever used in-house videos on the public web site.

The third deliverable, an animated video, was created to launch a corporate initiative in using behavioral competencies (referred to as “superpowers”). This video is essential to the company, tying into the Employer Brand, Member Experience Story, and updated standards as a high-performance organization. This video is being used in company-wide communications and training, as well as in new hire orientation and in management development (e.g. writing performance reviews).

The concepts are vital for the company, driving recruitment and coaching practices, while communicating key messages about the organization’s culture.

As an individual, Matt is humble, creative, insightful, and committed to life-long learning. At 30 years old, he is a powerhouse who will make larger contributions to the learning community as his career progresses. He earned his BA from San Diego State University in Teacher Education, and has been working in learning and visual/graphic design for the past 10 years. Matt is a senior learning specialist at California Coast Credit Union in San Diego, CA. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattcbusiness/

Kim Mabon, CEO, Creative By Design Where Creativity is Born Kim Mabon launched Creative by Design in 2011 after honing her design skills in advertising and marketing for large lifestyle and business publishers: Creative Age, Advanstar, Questex and B2B Media Company. Since 1995, Kim has earned over 60 Maggie Awards in partnership with her publishers. As Creative Director of Elearning! Media Group, Kim has collected 24 publishing awards for Best Cover, Best Trade Magazine, Best Media Kit, among others.

“Kim has the unique ability to take verbal and written words and convert to living color that captures the attention of the audience. And, she does it every day,” shared Catherine Upton, Group Publisher, Elearning! Media Group.

Her skills don’t end in publishing. Kim invests her talents in many volunteer efforts including: Creative Director, My Father’s House Church; Executive Board Director, Corona Chamber of Commerce and Secretary, STARS Network.

Kim is the author of the 5&5 of Advertising program which teaches business owners the top 5 mistakes and 5 essentials of advertising. She has presented in front of audiences both large and small including The Black Chamber of Commerce, Corona Chamber of Commerce, TEAM Referral Network’s Big Event, SCORE, Inland Empire Woman’s Business Center and many more.

Kim holds an Associate Degree in Graphic Design as well as numerous design, software, publishing certifications. https://www.linkedin.com/in/cbdgraphics/

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Creating Partnerships that Last through a Consultative Approach Over the past two and a half years, Alexandra has been instrumental for the Client Success Team at BizLibrary. In her role as a Client Success Consultant, she worked with over 80 clients on their learning and development program. Many of these clients have received industry awards such as Learning! 100, Learning Top 125, Emerging Training Leaders, and LEAD. Additionally, through her work she has helped her clients achieve tremendous results.

Alexandra’s work with her 80 clients is a great contribution to the learning industry. Through her consultation, many clients have gone on to present at various conferences, published articles, and made great strides in their training programs. She has presented at conferences on a variety of topics such as launching a new program, marketing a training program, and setting goals. Her clients credit her and her partnership as a reason for their success.

Through her partnership, Alexandra has helped her clients see great results. Go Solution worked with her to create a program that helped them improve close rates by 7%, and FedBid improved their technical and soft skills through their work, just to name a few. Additionally, the internal impact she has had on the team helped to improve the team of 8 consultants. Each week, she provides best practices and strategy to consultants to improve their work with clients.

Alexandra earned a B.A. in Business and a M.B.A in Human Resource Management. https://www.linkedin.com/in/Alexandramanolis/

Nancy leads the award-winning Simulation Center for Collaborative Medicine at Scripps Health, a seven-time Learning! 100 award-winner. At the center, teams are trained using live simulations and robotic patients for on-boarding, certification and general practice.

“The use of simulated scenarios has increased in clinical pre-licensure education programs,” shared Nancy. “New graduates come to Scripps expecting to participate in simulation exercises. Now we can build on their training and help them become experts with the equipment they will find in their work areas.”

Nancy joined the leadership team at Scripps Mercy Hospital in 2007 with over 25 years of experience in healthcare and higher education as clinician, faculty, and administrator. Now a part of the Scripps Center for Learning and Innovation, she currently manages education and training activities across the Scripps system for staff, volunteers, and students.

Committed to lifelong learning, Nancy achieved a B.S.N. from DeSales University and Master’s and Doctoral degrees in nursing from the University of San Diego.

TRAIL BLAZER

Nancy Saks, Director, Learning Center for Learning & Innovation (CFLI), Scripps Health

CREATIVE CONSULTANT

Alexandra Manolis, Client Success Manager, BizLibrary

How to Apply for the 2019 Learning! Champion Award Presented By:

Mark Your Calendar.

Applications Open 10/1/18

Government

Learning! Champion Award is hosted by Elearning! Magazine, a B2B Media Company. www.2elearning.com

The Learning! Champion award recognizes individuals for exceptional contributions to the industry. Nominees can be innovators, thought leaders, trail blazers, mentors, rooks of the year, creative consultants or high preforming learning leaders that positively impact the learning industry. Nominate a client, leader, mentor or partner for consideration at: http://www.2elearning.com/awards/learning-champion.

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Elearning!

Web Seminar Series

You are Invited!

The Business of Learning: A Strategic Approach to Delivering Impactful Learning Programs

Join us for these engaging free sessions with today’s thought leaders.

Speakers: Catherine Upton, Publisher, Elearning! Media Group & Andra Popescu, Senior Advisory Consultant, D2L Date: Thursday, April 5th, 2018 Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET As the need to deliver targeted training programs increases, learning and development professionals are constantly faced with the challenge of engaging employees while meeting business needs. Join this webcast to learn more about a holistic approach you can use to deliver an engaging modern learning experience in a way that also achieves a significant return on investment.

During the session you will learn how to: >> Develop the vision for delivering engaging learning programs >> Leverage a proven framework to build an internal business case >> Increase learner adoption and achieve on business objectives.

Live session attendees will receive a complimentary copy of the 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Study conducted by Elearning! Magazine, a $495 value.

Register Free: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5474711775885538817

The Best Learning Tools to Use in 2018

REGISTER FREE TODAY HOSTED BY:

Government

SPONSORED BY:

Speakers: Catherine Upton, Publisher, Elearning! Media Group Andra Popescu, Senior Advisory Consultant, D2L Date: On-Demand The 13th Annual Best of Elearning! is the industry’s exclusive Users Choice Awards.

In this session, we discuss learning technology trends, business drivers and the impact technology have on driving performance. Award-winning technologist joins the conversation to outline approaches to engagement, personalization and the future technologies enterprises may encounter.

If you are embracing employee engagement, personalization and performance strategies, attend this complimentary session to discuss: >> State of enterprise learning technologies >> Effective strategies that impact performance >> Technologies that enable engagement & personalization >> Q&A session with technology experts.

Live session attendees will receive the 2018 Best of Elearning! Awards edition of Elearning! Magazine complimentary.

View On-Demand: http://bit.ly/2FOxBtD

Elearning! Web Seminar Series is a product of B2B Media Company LLC www.2elearning.com

Employee Development for Employee-Owners From day one, Jordan has been innovative in her approach to training. With Garney Construction being an employee-owned (ESOP) company, Jordan had to ensure that any training plans/approaches provided maximum value to the employee-owners, as all money and time spent on training was time not spent contributing to the ESOP. Keeping this challenge in mind, Jordan was, and continues to be, forward-thinking in program implementation, as well as continues to be proactive with training and serving as the learning and development subject matter expert for the entire organization.

After joining Garney Construction, Jordan had employee-owners express that the training Garney provided in classroom sessions was not relevant to their roles. Additionally, it was expressed that training was not timely. In some cases, information given was provided too late for implementation. On the other hand, some expressed they had forgotten what they were taught at sessions when it came time to implement. With this feedback, Jordan determined they needed a solution that is multifaceted, allowing employee-owners to access training that is relevant to their role, when they need it. She began to implement a new program, Garney’s first online university.

After deciding to launch an online university, Jordan had three initial goals for the program: • Create excitement within Garney’s employee-owners via a strategic marketing plan that began one month prior to going live and ramped up in frequency and intensity as the go-live date neared.

• Average one course completion per user, per month after product launch.

• Gain buy-in and support from the Officer Team (executive team).

After the initial launch, ongoing goals were made to continue to improve the skills of employee-owners, as well as have a positive impact on the learning culture.

Garney has consistently reached (or exceeded) their initial utilization goal by averaging one course per user, per month, so last year. So, Jordan began calculating the percentage of employee-owners who were completing the Garney University monthly course assignment. She found that while course completion numbers were high, the number of people completing the assignment each month could be improved. In 2016, they averaged 62% completion. By January 2018, Garney averaged 79% assignment completion.

In a year, participation increased 15% while adding 50 new learners.

This initiative has earned many honors including Program of the Year and Best Use of Technology. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanwilcosky

TRAIL BLAZER

Jordan Wilcosky, Employee Development Supervisor, Garney Construction

Cris Hatcher, Director of Training and Development, Watco Companies Inspiring Others through Relationship, Dedication, and Service Since joining Watco, and the Watco University Team, Cris has taken a hands-on approach of building relationships, listening to understand what customers need, and offering ideas or possible solutions to the needs of his customers as the core of developing initiatives related to learning and development.

Cris focuses on providing initiatives that spark an ongoing interest in continued learning by providing initiatives that meet the needs of multiple people at the same time, but also caters to specific learners, so they can get both what they need and want. Additionally, Cris maintains a direct connection to the Watco Customer First! Safety Always Foundation Principles of Watco which are: (1) Value Our Customers, (2), Value our People, (3) Safely Improve Every day.

A new online system, Watco U Online (WUO) was launched under Cris in 2015. Since its launch, Watco U Online has seen constant growth in the use of the system, and now supplements instructor led training initiatives, and many other initiatives. WUO offers a proactive approach to working safer for our Customers through consistent weekly training. It also sparks engagement from the top down to the frontline at our locations as managers complete the training, and then pass on what they learned to the team members they serve by teaching them. These programs have forged working relationships among several different divisions of Watco. They have further led to other groups recognizing the ability to use Watco University as a business partner, which leads to continuous value being added as new programs are created and added Watco University has impacted the business. Over the last two years there has been a reduction in turnover at Watco.

Watco ended 2014 with a turnover rate of 35% with an estimated turnover cost of $14 million. In 2015, they reduced turnover by 7% to 28% and reduced the financial impact to $11 million, which translates to a $3 million savings. In 2016, Watco reduced turnover rate by another 6% to 22% and reduced the financial impact $9.3 million which relates to $5 million in savings since 2014.

In 2014, Watco did not have any online training. In 2015, they had 2,008 online completions after launching. In 2016, it improved to 4,704 completion. And, in 2017, online completions grew to 11,679, almost tripling 2016. This is over a 581% increase over 2015.

“This is a great return on Watco’s investment,” says Chris. When you provide a resource and show team members how it can help them, it gives them the chance to grow.

You get some much more value.” https://www.linkedin.com/in/crishatcher/

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TRAIL BLAZER ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 22

Andrea Jones, Director of Organizational Development, Comer Holdings Creating a Culture of Learning and Excellence from the Ground Up As a team of one, Andrea Jones has taken Comer Holdings/IMA from having non-existent training culture to an environment that embraces and craves new learning opportunities. After a much-needed analysis of their employee culture and engagement, Andrea created marketing and training engagement campaigns to take learning beyond compliance and engage every member of the organization, from hourly employees to senior leaders. With her creative, blended training program, Andrea has helped to take learning from a “nice to have” to an essential part of the organization’s culture and ongoing commitment to employees.

Andrea has implemented and incorporated several initiatives as the sole learning and development professional. These initiatives include: • Incorporating ethics/harassment training starting in 2012.

• Conducting a training needs analysis for IMA, followed by aligning their HR goals to the company needs in areas of finance, operations, and leadership.

• Developing campaigns to continually increase the level of leadership engagement, including developing graphical aids such as word clouds, timelines, and creating a voice for learning and development.

• Building recognition programs and marketing strategies to create excitement and increase LMS usage to achieve organizational goals. Examples include producing a training newsletter, ongoing email blasts, seasonal contests, a publishing a “honors list.”

• Building custom certifications for IMA/Comer that incorporate both off-the-shelf and custom content.

• Coordinating with the HR team at IMA to ensure alignment and develop best practices/strategies for Notable results of these training programs have included a reduction in harassment incidents, greater collaboration in management across locations, a 15% reduction in IMA’s turnover rate, and a culture shift from low morale to one of excitement and appreciation for the company’s investment in its employees’ development. Plus, people are proactively asking for training. Plant managers are requesting training for not only themselves, but also their employees to enrich the workforce. https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-jones-33434295/

Mary Feierabend, Talent Development Program Leader, MarksNelson LLC Solving Business Challenges with Development and Fun The rapid pace of change, competition for talent and continuing education requirements for accountants are pressures MarksNelson faces every day. With only 11 months of experience as Talent Leader, Mary had to construct a strategy to combat these challenges.

In Jan 2017, Mary launched MarksNelson’s talent development program called MarkNelson University. At its foundation is a competency framework Mary assisted in creating that ensures skill mastery and promotion readiness. The competencies are tied directly to the firm’s mission and core values and are formatted into Success Profiles for each position. The profiles help employee’s answer the question “when am I ready to be promoted?”

Mary used the profiles to create learning tracks for each position that help to teach the skills needed by employees to be successful in their careers. Other tools in MarksNelson University include a career coach program and a voluntary mentor program. Mary promotes a culture of learning through creative and innovative programs. She created an Excel Ninja certification to raise Excel knowledge among the staff, a virtual scavenger hunt to educate staff on the tools available through MarksNelson University, used Kahoot (a free game-based learning platform) to engage staff in learning, and markets her learning program regularly. She makes sure to take advantage of all free resources and shares various how-to guides, competency guides, and articles with the staff. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-feierabend-83835197/

March / April 2018 Elearning!

IN LOOKING FOR THE IDEAL RESUME, YOU’VE IGNORED THE IDEAL CANDIDATE.

LEARN HOW TO FIND, TRAIN AND CULTIVATE A GREAT POOL OF UNTAPPED TALENT.

ACLYUPP4006_Mag_FullPage_v1c.indd 2

9/3/14 10:18 AM

INNOVATOR

Russel Sarder, CEO, NetCom Learning & Sarder TV Russell is known as the CEO of Learning. Sarder’s portfolio includes the production of learning media, an educational channel, award-winning learning software and cloud learning companies. Sarder owes much of his success to his passion for becoming a lifelong learner.

Under his leadership, NetCom Learning – a managed learning services, training, and talent development company - has become a multimillion-dollar business. Among many awards, Inc 5000 Magazine listed NetCom Learning three time as one of the fastest growing private companies in the USA. NetCom Learning has also been recognized by Microsoft as Learning Partner of the Year and has been rewarded four times as Top 20 IT Training Company by Training Industry.

He shares his expertise in his books and speaking. Sarder is the author of, “Learning: Steps to Becoming a Passionate Lifelong Learner” and “Effective Learning Methods: How to Develop the Most Effective Learning Method.” He has been featured in Yahoo Finance, CNBC, Daily News and the New York Times. Sarder is also a business practitioner and mentor for MBA students and alumni at Columbia University. Sarder was named Top Ten Asian American Business Awards and 50 Outstanding Asian Americans in Businesses. https://www.linkedin.com/in/russellsarder/

Angela Dawson, Training and Development Specialist, Event Network Guest Experience & Culture is Job One Angela oversees training for store team members. She develops and maintains curriculum for many training programs including the “1-2-3-Floor!” program (onboarding), succession planning, lunch and learns, peer to peer program, and “Momentum” (elective training incentive program). She also works on marketing and communication for training, launching a marketing initiative called “Third Space.” She supports approximately 500 store facing team members throughout the United States with training and training support for the entire organization, which is approximately 1000 to 1500 team members.

To drum up interest and participation in training, Angela creates many catch ad campaigns to promote training. She is extremely innovative in her themes, making sure they are always timely – relating to the season, world events, and company events. Some examples include marketing around the Olympic Games and being “hungry” for learning (Snickers spin off).

She enlisted the help of other team members to go beyond typical flyers and create interactive campaigns to show on TV screens throughout locations.

With the “1-2-3-Floor!” program, she created a new onboarding program with the goal to extend and elevate the guest experience at their partners’ attractions to achieve their maximum retail potential. The name “1-2-3-Foor!” is the goal of the program; new employees are trained and working on the floor on the 4th day of employment. This allows employees to spend 3 days fully immersed in the company culture and training before stepping onto the floor, ensuring they are fully prepared for the job at hand. This program increased revenue, decreased turnover, increased productivity and speed to competency. Angela faced many challenges in creating this program, including a multi-generational workforce and a dispersed workforce. She was able to overcome these challenges with ease and grace.

During Angela’s tenue, Event Network has been named a Learning! 100 and a Top 125. Angela has won numerous program awards. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications from Xavier University and a Master’s degree in Organizational Communications from DePaul University. https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-dawson-579a0512/

Dr. Nurkhamimi Zainuddin, Deputy Director, Centre for Global Open Access Learning & Lecturer, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia.

Nurkhamimi is Deputy Director at Centre for Global Open Access Learning, Immersive Technology and Quality Assurance (GOAL-ITQAN) and staff at the Faculty of Major Languages, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM). His research focus is on Teaching Arabic as a Second Language and Technology Enhanced Pedagogy. Nurkhamimi is actively involved in research on open and flexible learning. He coined the phrase for FLOOC (Foreign Language Open Online Course) by adapting the concept of “Learning Buffet”. He has developed e-learning courses and Online Education Resources for lifelong learning. Students from all over the world have benefited from his MOOC and OER. Nurkhamimi believes, ”teachers will not be replaced by technology, but teachers who do not use technology will be replaced by those who do.” Nurkhamimi holds a Ph.D. from International Islamic University Malaysia; is a member of The Malaysian e-Learning Council for Public Universities (MEIPTA) and editor of International Young Scholar Journals of Language, Video Journal of Innovative Pedagogies, Malaysian Journal of Educational Technology and Journal of Technology and Information Education. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nurkhamimi-zainuddin-63398539/

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Learning!

Champion Profile:

Re-imaging the Learning Ecosystem at Jet Propulsion Laboratory

BY ANTHONY GAGLIARDO

Do you believe in the science of evolution?

At Caltech and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), we do because we’re witnessing it.

Over the last two years JPL has embarked on an innovative journey of self-discovery with the aim of enhancing the quality

and quantity of learning opportunities while significantly enhancing the user experience. The continually evolving approach is referenced in many ways but is often characterized as a shift in the “Learning Ecosystem.” As in nature, evolution constantly changes and relies on innovation; such is the case at JPL. Another similarity exists in that evolution in nature

relies on the ability to effect change among the norm. JPL’s learning evolution is also shaped by the ability to influence cultural norms and must successfully navigate barriers to change all the same.

Change management involves difficult and complex processes, and precisely – it is inevitable. To effectively implement change on individual and organizational levels

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jetpropulsionlaboratory requires a new model for change, new thinking, and a new framework to ensure smooth implementation of the desired change.

WHAT IS A LEARNING ECOSYSTEM? Rosenberg and Foreman comprehensively describe the learning ecosystems and the interrelation of people, processes, tools and outcomes in their paper titled, “Learning and Performance Ecosystems.”

As Rosenberg and Foreman point out, “learning ecosystems provide value by enhancing individual and organizational effectiveness by connecting people, and supporting them with a broad range of content, processes, and technologies to drive performance.”

The key characteristic of today’s ecosystems remains in their ease of use; technology is transparent to the user and facilitates user interaction and communication. Moreover, an ecosystem provides access to a mentor and allows the learners to apply their newly acquired skills and knowledge in real-time.

JPL’S NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES The continuing mission of JPL is to lead as the U.S. center for robotic expansion of the solar system, earth science, and spacebased economy. The JPL human resources (HR) and learning and development (L&D) team serves as the primary JPL organization responsible for satisfying leadership, organization learning, and development as well as technical training needs of over 6000 JPL personnel and 7000 contract affiliates.

Like many technical organizations, JPL faces challenges in managing the transference of deep technical and institutional knowledge while experiencing an unprecedented growth in JPL mainline mission and a drastic shift in its multigenerational workforce. JPL must address the changing learning styles of new and existing individuals and the constant employee expectation of a commercial-like learning experience.

Prior to embarking on its learning renaissance, JPL provided training and employee development utilizing an experience-based apprenticeship model.

The legacy model was extremely successful and enabled remarkable achievements in space exploration. While the mentor and 26

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experiential model historically served its purpose well, it wasn’t designed for today’s world of exponential information, and technology torrent. While the legacy model may not remain the primary mode of professional development, one cannot discount the result and would be ignorant to discount its role in future training. The reality remains that JPL had a pressing need to transform the training model to a technology-based model that uses technology to develop skills and knowledge that connects communities’ efficiency.

The new approach can reduce the learning content development time between 25% and 60%.

DESTINATION 2025 BEGINS In 2015, JPL’s Chief Human Resource Officer Cozette Hart formed the “Destination 2025” working group dedicated to exploring and advancing the future of working and learning at JPL. Over the course of the following year, JPL’s business case for modernization of learning was contextualized. The primary areas of learning modernization were identified as: >> Modernization of the JPL learning environment; consistently improve on the availability and quality of training while enhancing the learning experience. >> How to significantly modernize talent acquisition and management in the most technically advanced place on Earth.

Change awareness was raised among stakeholders through early communication related to JPL’s needs for change in learning technology and its rapidly evolving capabilities. At JPL, the scope of change was full employee development and a

new training ecosystem. The change team provided support and resources and set the direction for various efforts to increase value in specified business areas.

To bring resources together, integrate processes, and communicate effectively, goal-oriented change management was designed to guide individuals and organizations at JPL. The desire for change was reinforced through employee engagement and participation with the aim to overcome resistance through a crossfunctional sponsorship program.

NEW LEARNING ECOSYSTEM The proposed learning approach was designed to provide flexibility and support which compliments the capabilities of JPL’s unique workforce. The learners of today expect a digitally rich learning environment, and implementation of new technology enabled a personalized learning experience to JPL employees anytime and anyplace in real-time. The HR team and its laboratory partners prepared to shift and integrate resources by focusing on the new learning ecosystems in terms of the operational support, technology and curriculum. Each pivot area evolution was based on application of advanced technologies and approaches such as: >> Use of a learning portal that provides personalization and support of individualized learning styles. >> Migrating from formal to informal learning environment resulting in collateralized credit for learning and experiences. >> Embracing self-paced learning and personalized learning environment so that learners choose when and where they learn. The classroom of the future was developed virtually, supporting personal exploration and providing an interactive environment in support of continuous lifelong learning. >> Development and integration of a robust framework of learning systems, tools and capabilities which remain transparent to the user, thus ensuring a streamlined and positive user experience. >> Development of a knowledge capture and transfer system designed to support the transference of critical knowledge and expertise during normal Lab business. >> The ability to scale the learning environment and its offerings commensu-

rate with the increase in project work and competing personal priorities. >> Development of digitally rich learning and implementation of in-house and contract augmented learning content production. >> Introduction of a wide array of live and virtual training methodologies.

NEW PROCESS, SYSTEM AND STRUCTURE To support the new concept and change design, new process, system, and structure were deployed. To provide the right training to the right employees at the right time, our team worked on several key activities including the implementation of a new organizational structure, internal processes, pilots of learning technology and overall modernization of the learning framework. Through organizational analysis and input from stakeholder groups, we determined the best approach to enable success within a decentralized organization was with enhanced processes,

The new ecosystem was based on SCORM and Experience API standards. offerings, and services such as: >> Restructuring technical learning, improved design, development and delivery of learning capabilities. >> Investment into user experience tooling (i.e. Degreed learning portal). >> Streamlined business processes to reduce redundancies (annual call for training). >> Virtual classrooms. >> Creation of hybrid online/ physical learning cohort utilizing virtual classrooms technology.

NEW TECHNOLOGY AND RESOURCES The new learning environment was based on the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM), and XAPI standards.

These standards reflect the current and evolving best practices for developing, sequencing, and packaging learning contents. For learners, the easy access to learning content was made through a common repository and portal. The new portal became the one stop knowledge shop where learners can search, find, and utilize learning objects. Moreover, trainers were able to publish learning content using a multitude of delivery formats (e.g., micro-learning, curated, custom built, instructor-led, case studies, eBooks, wikis, podcasts, video snippets, case studies, etc.)

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IMPERATIVE Knowledge management is a systematic creation, acquisition, integration, distribution, application, and transference

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jetpropulsionlaboratory

The new portal became the one-stop knowledge shop where learners can search, find and utilize learning objects.

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March / April 2018 Elearning!

of knowledge used to drive behaviors which support organizational objectives.

Knowledge management captures and transfers both existing and newly created information and knowledge.

The JPL process of knowledge management was based on the aggregation of institutional knowledge which can be distributed, shared and accessed by all employees when and where needed to perform assigned tasks, solve problems and engage in innovation.

Embracing knowledge management and becoming a modern learning organization requires a culture change across JPL. To mitigate loss of critical institutional knowledge because of employee retirement, JPL focuses on every employee contributing to the body of knowledge at individual and organization levels. The explicit and implicit knowledge capabilities

facilitated resources coordination and enable deployment of state-of-the-art institutions and technical learning. Better communication across the organization improves stakeholders’ understanding of training requirements. Therefore, increased coordination refines the development and execution of training requirements, ultimately creating better contents.

BENEFITS OF NEW SYSTEM The introduction of a new learning model has shifted the learning environment from a directive inflexible model to one that empowers and provides individualized learning and development capability.

In addition to greater flexibility, today’s best practices models reduce the cost to train while increasing the ability to scale resources to meet a larger workforce’s personalized learning needs.

Advanced learning content management approaches introduced new methods of curriculum development and deployment.

JPL’s HR L&D piloted enterprise learning content development efforts within their own teams while harnessing the experience and resources of the greater decentralized JPL learning and development workforce. Studies have indicated that new approach can reduce the learning content development time between 25% and 60% while enabling self-paced and individualized learning approaches.

With a mix of live, virtual and constructive education and training, an optimum mix of virtual e-learning environment enables live training and optimizes content delivery. We leverage the use of new technologies to supplement and, where appropriate, replace handson training to maximize availability and scaling. However, certain aspects of JPL training cannot be performed virtually due to the high degree of complexity associated with lab-based scientific training.

In the context of growing demand for training resources and the speed at which knowledge is being created and evolving, the learning ecosystem enhances the effectiveness and efficiency of the training and provides flexibility to deal with the ever-increasing velocity of changing procedures, systems, scientific methods and equipment at JPL. SAVINGS GENERATES INVESTMENT The technical training organization’s formula to create an effective organization has changed over the years, but the fundamental ingredients include the right organizational structure and processes, technology and infrastructure, and people to develop the best workforce at the lowest cost possible. This approach enables JPL to invest cost savings derived from efficiencies in its training system into the future of scientific and engineering training. JPL experienced major cost savings by contracting many of the training developers and have reinvested back into the training program. The JPL L&D learning plan is comprised of multiple approaches designed to elicit outcomes which create positive results in the areas of individual growth and flexibility, opportunities for experiential learning, and

a greater efficiency which allows expansion of learning offerings.

FUTURE CHALLENGES The new learning ecosystem has and will change the context of how learning takes place. Learners experience real-time and pushed recommendations for learning. The information available is dynamic, technically applicable, visually engaging and easy to locate. In response to the growing training needs, the L&D shift has enabled and empowered self-directed learning.

CONCLUSIONS HR and L&D enables and empowers learning. The aim was to develop resources, sustain people, processes using tools and technology to provide individualized training content to the right employees, at the right time using contents of the highest technical quality.

Resulting, JPL workforce maintains a world-class level of technical competencies and on-the-job performance. >> The new learning ecosystem ensures individual and organizational compe-

“JPL focuses on every employee contributing to the body of knowledge at the individual and organizational levels.” – Anthony Gagliardo, JPL JPL must sustain easily accessible systems for learners to access information from a myriad of sources. The additive value of the learning organization of tomorrow will be in the identification, validation, and creation of high quality technically accurate learning content. JPL L&D will still be responsible for the production of high quality, engaging learning material. As the need for information and the number of JPL employees expands, L&D must refine its ability to scale its training development and support services.

Training development and support services will take on many forms in the days ahead ranging from exclusively virtual learning environments to live constructive hybrid and instructor-led environments augmented with technology-based presentation and subject matter interactive channels.

WANT TO LEARN MORE? View Anthony Gagliardo’s Keynote titled, “Breaking the Rules: Reinventing Learning at JPL” available at ELC On-Demand. Visit: www.ELCESHOW.com

tencies for technical workforce while focusing on people. >> Greater availability and access to learning opportunities at the existing funding levels. >> Reduced cost of training and re-distribution and reinvestment of training dollars. >> Reduced time spent with curriculum development and delivery through repository. >> Enhanced opportunity for employees to experience advanced simulation and made training technology available both inside and outside the traditional classroom. >> Preservation and focused use of instructor-led and hands-on training and less time required to fully develop early career hire employees —Anthony Gagliardo is a Learning!

Champion award-winner for thoughtleadership. His program to re-imagine the learning ecosystem at JPL inspired this honor. Gagliardo is head of HR & Technical Training at NASA’s JPL and is committed to supporting the training needs of those at NASA and Caltech Institute.

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How to Cultivate a Learning Culture in Your Organization

BY SARAH CORDINER Strategy cannot always ensure success.

The learning culture of an organization can be easily overthrown by even the most formidable learning and development departments.

Creating sustainable organizational change means having a strong and effective culture around learning and development. But when bureaucracy is expanding, and change is slow - particularly within large organizations - how can we create highly effective learning cultures in today’s modern business world?

There are 17 ways of cultivating a highly successful learning culture for any organization.

1

TAKE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SERIOUSLY Create formal professional development plans for every employee - including managers, senior executives, CEOs, and board members. Document the professional development pathways, skills, and knowledge gaps 30

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of everyone. In doing so, place importance on closing those gaps and advancing employees.

Employees will see how much the development of their professional skills are valued by the organization. It shows them that their learning is important. Ensure that the professional development plans are updated at least quarterly by the employee, reviewed by their direct supervisor on all occasions, and recorded in the employee’s HR file.

2

GIVE THEM CONTROL Allow employees to take control over their own professional development - even to the extent of allowing them a degree of control over the training budget allocated to them. When employees have this level of control over their learning, they will be sure to spend their budget allocation on training and topics that they are truly interested in - instead of being sent on training programs that are of little use, benefit, and interest to them.

One of the key principles of adult

learning is allowing learners to self-direct their learning journey. This adds a sense of responsibility, ownership, and increases the value of organizational learning and development.

3

SET KPIS FOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND MEASURE THEM By making learning and development a performance indicator and criteria that must be met, the organization is showing just how important the development of everyone is. It makes the acquisition of new knowledge, skills, and competencies as important as the job roles and responsibilities themselves. This creates a powerful and positive L&D culture shift.

4

MATCH LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES TO THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES ON EVERY JOB DESCRIPTION. For every function that an employee must

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learningculture perform, have a list of training, education and development activities that could be implemented.

Some elements to consider include: >> Role compliance (what training must be done to be ‘compliant’ in their roles) >> Recommended training for the current state of the industry (training that helps them meet a standard industry benchmark or general norm outside of compliance needs) >> Desirable training (non-essential but ‘good to have’) >> Above and beyond (training that will enhance the professional in their wider career) Documenting suggestions for training and development - from a compliance level right through to ‘above and beyond’ training - will show employees how much importance the organization places upon individual development. It will also make it easier for managers and individual employees to select appropriate learning and development options. These options, in turn, will directly contribute to the responsibilities of each role within the business.

5

RECOGNIZE INFORMAL LEARNING AS A VALUABLE CONTRIBUTION TO FORMAL EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT Recognizing only formal and accredited training can leave out the significant development that can be acquired through informal means of education. Some examples include new knowledge and skills acquired via online learning programs, attending conferences and networking events, reading books and industry magazines, attending webinars, engaging in social learning and participation in online forums.

Ensure that all employee professional development plans contain an area for the documentation and recognition of all informal learning. Use this information to find out what skills and knowledge were obtained from informal learning activities. Then analyses how this knowledge has contributed to the development of the employee’s role within the business. Not only does this show the employee and the company how much developmental progress the employee has made but can give clues 32

March / April 2018 Elearning!

“The learning culture of an organization can be easily overthrown by even the most formidable learning and development departments.”

– Sarah Cordiner, Main Training to existing training gaps within the business - not to mention encouraging ongoing lifelong learning.

6

CREATE A SHARED LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT LIBRARY Provide a learning library that can be accessed by all staff where the sharing of learning is easy for everyone. Enable employees to share videos links, articles, blogs, study notes, books, workshops, webinars, conferences, events, and more with each other within the learning portal. When people see that it is encouraged to share they may be far more likely to.

You could take this one step further by making knowledge sharing a key performance indicator. Set ‘knowledge sharing’ goals which can be achieved in person, face to face, via e-delivery, via contribution to a resource library and so on.

7

ENSURE THAT THE BUSINESS AND ALL MANAGERIAL AND SUPERVISORY STAFF PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH IN TERMS OF YOUR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES Ensure that all initiatives are implemented and followed up on, and that professional development plans are always reviewed during the appraisal period. The informal messages that you and your managers send can significantly influence the learning culture within the organization.

8

SHARE PROGRESS WITH THE TEAM Sharing the company’s strengths, progress, desired

destination, and current position in terms of learning and development, can contribute to the learning culture. When employees can see that the organization has a strategy, their attitude can change dramatically as to how much they feel their development is valued.

An additional bonus to sharing this progress is that employees may come up with solutions and strategies that may not have been considered by managerial staff.

9

CELEBRATE L&D ACHIEVEMENT Just as the old-fashioned mentality of ‘Employee of the Month’ shows that an organization values strong a work ethic and dedication, celebrating the academic and developmental achievements of employees can also be extremely motivating in developing a learning culture. Why not create a ‘Learner of the Month’ or a similar natured award in your company?

The open sharing of workforce development progress also allows the opportunity for employees to contribute to the overall organizational learning and development strategies for each year. Provide all employees with knowledge of the company strategic objectives and the gap analysis and open the training plans up for contribution to by the workforce themselves.

10

MONITOR THE MANAGERIAL AND EXECUTIVE RESPONSES TO ORGANIZATIONAL CHALLENGES AND FAILURES. The way senior staff act in their roles shapes the way the rest of the company responds and behaves in similar situations. If senior

staff within the organization see all challenges as an opportunity to learn, grow, develop and improve on their work, it will foster a culture of learning and development.

11

BE CONSCIOUS OF THE SUBTLER ATTITUDES TO LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT The underlying attitude to training and development can be highly influenced by how resources are allocated to it in comparison to other activities and departments within the business. If management appears to have a negative attitude to learning and development, or places a low value upon it, so will the entire team.

12

CLEARLY DEFINE AND COMMUNICATE HOW ARE YOU TRACK RETURN ON INVESTMENT OF TRAINING ACTIVITIES. If people know that their training has a value, and that the value is being quantifiably measured by senior management, then a learning culture will continue to develop. Conversely if they don’t see this, then they start to get the impression that the company doesn’t care, and they in turn shouldn’t care about their own learning and development either.

This will reduce the likelihood of competition - which causes employees to withhold and hide their knowledge from each other.

15

ENCOURAGE PEER TRAINING SESSIONS Encourage internal buddy days where the team work with employees and colleagues from other departments and spend a few hours of the day conducting a completely different job within the organization. This increases cross departmental sharing of best practice and cultivates improvements made by gaining outside perspective. It also generates wider learning and collaboration within the organization.

16

REWARD BEHAVIORS ATTITUDES AND OUTCOMES THAT ARE MOST IN LINE WITH THE DESIRED CULTURE OF THE ORGANIZATION. Too often it is bad behavior that is rewarded with attention and resources, leaving those who work hard and consistently meet their KPIs feeling unnoticed and undervalued. Ensure that positive behavior is

noticed and given managerial attention far more than negative actions and situations.

17

THE WAY THAT YOU RECRUIT WILL IMPACT ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING CULTURE. Hire internally before you advertise externally. Provide numerous opportunities of promotion from within. If employees can see that their development is rewarded by progress in their career, they will be far more likely to engage in developmental activities as they will be confident that their efforts can bring the reward of climbing higher up the career ladder.

LAST THOUGHTS: Clearly communicate the organizational values and explicitly describe the behaviors and attributes of culture that you desire. If people don’t know exactly what the desired learning culture looks like and how it is measured, they simply cannot model it.

—Sarah Cordiner is CEO of Main Training, Australia and expert in communications, marketing and online education expert. Learn more at: https://courses.maintraining.com.au/

13

ENCOURAGE INTERNAL COACHING AND MENTORING. Valuing the skills that already exist inside the team make people feel valued and encourages the sharing of knowledge.

14

REWARD THE WHOLE COMPANY WHEN KPIS ARE EXCEEDED Part of cultivating a positive learning culture is reducing the risk of employees competing with one another. If one person wins then somebody else must have ‘lost’. To foster a team working culture set personal KPIs and require each person to be effectively meeting the objectives of their job - the expected minimum requirement. Then, have company KPIs that if exceeded offer reward to everyone - recognizing the collective contributions of skills and knowledge from everyone.

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Learning! 100 Profile:

Getting a Seat at the

Table

Transforming the Learning Organization from Order-Takers to Business Partners

BY RONDA FEAGUE

“It’s just training, it doesn’t take long to create.” How many times have you heard that or something similar?

The challenges facing the learning organization when moving from order-taker to business partner are: >> Customers often think it is easy to create training. >> Customers may have a pre-determined solution. >> The learning organization is often backed into a corner in terms of development time. >> Due to cost constraints, the learning organization must deliver more with less.

Our internal customers often don’t realize how long good learning design takes.

We feed this myth, by continually jumping through hoops to deliver the learning solution in time to support a new software, product or program release, reinforcing that we are just order-takers and not partners in 34

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providing the solution. As learning professionals, we know that well designed learning solutions can add value by improving efficiencies, engaging staff, saving money, providing metrics data and showing Return on Investment (ROI) for the business. It is imperative that we build strong relationships and partner with stakeholders, so they understand the type of value we can bring.

HOW DO YOU GET IN THE DOOR AND GET TO THE TABLE? To start, you must assess your team’s capabilities, your larger learning team goals and combine that with a deep understanding of your company’s organizational goals and the operational realities of the business.

Do you have a defined vision (what you provide) and mission (how you’ll provide it)? If not, you need to spend some time reflecting and building out what that is and making sure your team is onboard. You can’t expect anyone to follow your lead if you don’t know where you are going.

While a strong learning design background and understanding of the business is important it is equally important to build relationships. According to Peter Block: “The building of authentic relationship as the delivery system for expertise and busi-

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choicehotels DESIGN PROPOSAL Once you have completed analysis, go back to the business with your recommendations for learning solutions. As you put the design proposal together tie in your recommendations to the answers that the stakeholder’s provided and use their language. Provide reasoning as to why the recommendations landed where they did. Be sure to note how you will track success and when results will be reported back to the business.

For example, we were asked to create a half day in person instructor-led training for a new phone system being installed in five countries over the course of two months. To save money and time we recommended short, engaging e-lessons to introduce the new system followed by a virtual session with an instructor where learners could ask questions.

Tip: Don’t over engineer solutions. ness knowledge. The result is to make internal clients trusted business partners which results in improved business outcomes for companies and organizations.” Building on that philosophy, find your champions and cultivate those relationships. Once you have found them, ask if they see areas where the learning organization can be included.

The answers will help you to narrow recommendations and decide if learning is the solution. Sometimes as you meet with the stakeholder and they answer questions, you may realize that the solution is simpler, maybe a communication or a conversation is all that is needed not a full-blown learning solution.

“Begin with ‘Yes.’ Yes can be disarming that you could build what they are requesting… [but leads] to partnership.” – Ronda Feage,

Choice Hotels International IDENTIFY PROJECT OBJECTIVES You’ve been invited to the table, now what?

When you meet with stakeholders initially, listen first and then ask questions to help: narrow focus, get the project team on the same page and help you decide which learning solutions, if any, to recommend. Then share how learning can help them achieve their goal. Some questions to ask are: >> Who are we impacting (target audience)? >> What problem is being solved? >> What will success look/feel like (metrics)?

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Tip: Use stakeholders time wisely.

Some stakeholders may want to be more actively involved in the process than others. Be proactive; ask them how they would like to be communicated with and how often.

Bonus Tip: Begin with ‘yes.’ Yes can be disarming (assuming it is the truth) that you could build what they are requesting (take their order). But, once you know what they want to accomplish, that may drive the design and you are on your way to ‘partnership.’

STATEMENT OF WORK Once the design proposal is accepted, we follow up with a Statement of Work (SOW). This document has been key in our success, second only to building relationships. This will become the roadmap for the project with the business and should include: >> What learning solution will be delivered. >> Expectations of the stakeholder and subject matter experts during the feedback cycle. >> List any critical items from the stakeholder and promised deliverable dates from them. >> Signature lines for stakeholder and learning solution provider.

How many times have you begun work on a project, sent for feedback and the stakeholder wants to add additional items that were not part of the original conversation? The SOW helps with scope creep.

If the business doesn’t provide critical information or feedback as agreed to, you can pull it back out and remind your business partner where you landed prior to starting the project.

Tip: We stopped giving delivery dates and moved to hours for all projects.

People latch on to dates and remember them. They forget when the software development cycle ran late or critical items needed for learning solution design were not delivered on time.

DEMONSTRATE IMPACT Remember you need to report results back to the business. By building in tracking during the design phase you can track that data at set times and share with the business. This is where your credibility is built. Cool, flashy design will only take you so far. You can have cool, flashy plus impact or lower key design with impact, but you cannot under any circumstances have any type of design with negative outcomes or impact. Sometimes projects miss the mark, better to course correct as soon as a you know the solution is not hitting the mark. Sometimes it can just be a small tweak to set the solution on the right course again. When a solution misses the mark, own it. Reach out to the business and deliver this information and offer solutions.

Tip: If the learning solution is not making a difference, stop and/or readjust.

PITFALLS This sounds great on paper, but the reality is that it isn’t easy. You can’t chase fads or make a project fit a tool that you want to try out. Credibility is at stake, make sure that the solution and tool for delivery match, the solution fits the target and that the learning will make an impact. Look for innovative solutions and don’t over-engineer.

When approached about a project, it is easy to fall back into the order-taker mentality because it is familiar. Take a step back, ask the questions and provide thought leadership to arrive at the right solutions.

Keep your eye on your target audience and put yourself into the “shoes of the learner”.

Would you want to use the solution? Would it engage you, provide you needed information, or is it just checking a box? If you aren’t moving the needle, then why do it?

thoughts prior to them moving forward with a project. This seat at the table feels good.

It took 12 months for us to get to this point, and we continue to hone our story and approach, relationships and outcomes, provide thought leadership and continue to help our stakeholders to start in the “What do they need to know” mode and not jumping to “solution” mode.

Sometimes projects miss the mark, better to course correct as soon as a you know.

Order taking will never go away and, for certain instances, it still makes sense. But for the larger asks, put a process in place. Ask: “What problem are we solving?” “Are the results measurable?” and “Is this the right solution?” The process creates a circle of learning and performance. Success breeds trust, credibility, the ability to make a difference with learners and the business, ensure learning is an active partner of future initiatives.

Celebrate your successes internally with your team. Apply for industry awards and, as you accept industry acknowledgement, share that internally. Your team is now viewed as a value add. Not just because you said so, but because others see it too. And remember that the purpose for learning in the context of organizations is to add value to the business.

–Ronda Feague is Director of Instructional Design Strategy & ChoiceU Operations, at Choice Hotels International. Choice Hotels International is a 2017 Learning! 100 award-winner for culture.

CONCLUSION Becoming a trusted business advisor takes time and effort. You must build and maintain relationships. You must also understand the business and how learning can help. Results should take the form of speed, quality, operational efficiency, cost savings, culture/engagement and other performance related outcomes.

As you start experiencing wins with this process, start sharing those with your team and across the organization. The best feeling is for teams to reach out to the learning organization, not because they have a training need, but because they want to bounce ideas to get your Elearning! March / April 2018

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2018

Learning & Talent Platform Buyers’ Plans Revealed Business Drivers Spur Need for New Features

free at: http://information.2elearning. com/2018lmstmsstudy/

BY CATHERINE UPTON

CURRENT OWNERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS Almost half of respondents operate multiple learning or talent systems within their enterprises (See Figure 1). Eighty-eight percent have a learning system deployed within their organizations. A large uptick in talent system ownership was noted with 33% ownership.

Cloud-based systems continue to rise with 74% of systems running as Software as a Service or in the cloud. Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) have also reported a slight increase to 31%. The most frequent pairing of systems is Learning Management System (LMS) and Talent Management System (TMS) at 18%, followed by LMS and LCMS at 13%.

As technology evolves so do the learning solutions that grow our talent.

In Elearning! Magazine’s 10th Annual Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study, we reveal how the learning ecosystem is evolving. The study conducted November 14th to December 5th, 2017 surveyed 441 learning executives on platform needs, brand and product awareness, user satisfaction, ‘must have’ features on new or replacement platforms, and insights into the decision-making process. We share the topline findings here, and recommend downloading the complete study for 38

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LMSbuyingtrends Figure 1: LMS/TMS Installed

System Ownership Learning Platform

39%

88%

Talent Platform

33%

18% 13%

LMS only

LMS and TMS

14% 9%

LCMS and LMS, LCMS LMS and TMS

5%

2%

LCMS only

LCMS and TMS

1% TMS only

None of the above

Figure 2: LMS Deployment/ TMS Deployment Response Percent

LMS Deployment Deployed for one department

5%

Deployed in one enterprise location

33%

Deployed across multiple US locations

32%

Deployed across multiple international sites

30%

TMS Deployment Deployed in one department

10%

Deployed enterprise wide, one location

30%

Deployed across multiple US locations

27%

Deployed across multinational locations

32%

Figure 3: Internal vs. Extended Enterprise Internal audiences

83% Customer audiences

44% Reseller/channel partners

19% Other supply chain partners

11% 40

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Most learning and talent systems are deployed across multiple locations with multiple US locations and international sites accounting for 2 out of 3 installations (See Figure 2).

The learning systems deployed are supporting internal staff (83%) and external customers, suppliers and partners, (74%) (See Figure 2). Support of external audiences has increased 7.2% from 69% in 2016. Customers account for 44% of extended training programs.

SATISFACTION RATINGS Owner satisfaction scores have steadily improved for learning platforms over the last five years. This year’s overall satisfaction rating was 2.22, a solid B. Much is attributed to movement toward cloudbased systems that simplify ownership and the updates users receive during ownership. However, learning systems still receive lower marks on Flexibility (2.44), Interoperability (2.47), and New Features & Capabilities (2.52).

Surprisingly, TMSs saw a lower overall score than LMSs of 2.36, a B-. Given that TMSs are newer to the market and can leverage cloud’s ease of use, we expected higher satisfaction scores. The sore points for TMS owners are: Interoperability (2.37), Cost (2.39), Ease of Use (2.42), Flexibility (2.42) and New Features & Capabilities (2.42). However, the owners’ lack of expertise may also be a contributing factor to lower satisfaction given only 31% report they are expert or very familiar with the TMS vs. 72% of LMS owners.

THE NEXT SYSTEM Dissatisfaction with system’s features and flexibility is a continuing concern for learning executives. However, now it is a roar heard from the C-suite as focus on engagement, collaboration and performance takes center stage (See Figure 4).

In the 2018 study, Employee Engagement is the number one business driver for investment in learning and development. Meaning, learning and development initiatives will be measured against this objective before, during and after the investment.

Why all the focus? According to Gallup 2017 study, organizations with highly engaged employees have 22% higher productivity and 25% lower turnover.

Today, 67% of the workforce is disengaged.

Figure 4: Business Reasons for Buying New LMS | TMS Improve employee engagement

Figure 5: LMS Planning to Purchase

70%

Personalize learning (adaptive)

28% Learning management system - on-premise installation

46%

Drive sales & profits Increase Employee collaboration

82%

Learning content management system - cloud or software as a service (SaaS)

49%

Improve leadership skills

Learning management system - cloud or software as a service (SaaS)

11%

40%

Learning management system - open source

10%

33%

Learning content management system - on premise installation

Respond to comptetitive environment (war for talent)

3%

31%

Improve collaboration across enterprise

Learning content management system - open source

Increase leadership bench strength (succession planning)

None of the above

1%

30%

26%

Plus, 51% of employees are actively looking for their next job; 91% of which will be with a new employer. Engagement is now a C-suite imperative and learning and development is the key.

According to Gallup, 41% of millennials say “a job that accelerates career development is very important.” Another 61% say “I want to work at what I do best” — a nod to competency. This is a key tactic to improving engagement. As a result, Personalize Learning has skyrocketed from 0.4% in 2012 to 49% in 2018. With digitalization, smart systems and data analytics, personalizing learning is within the grasp of most learning organizations. And, it is now being funded by most organizations.

NEW SYSTEM ATTRIBUTES About one out of three LMS owners are replacing their systems and 6% of those without a LMS, are planning to add one.

For TMS owners, 8% are planning to replace their system, however 12% of nonowner plan to acquire a TMS. These buyers are investing more than ever on their next system at $1.3 million, up from $1.1 million in 2016, an 18% increase.

Sixty-nine percent of buyers plan to purchase their new learning system within 24 months. For TMS buyers, 57% plan to make the acquisition within the 24 months.

Eighty-two percent plan to purchase a LMS, cloud-based solution (See Figure 7).

Buyers value Quality, Price and Customer Service when specifying a solution.

However, their list of ‘must-have’ features is long. The good news is business leaders

11%

Figure 6: LMS Must Haves LMS “Must Have” Features

Currently Have

Must Have

CAGR

Course tracking and completion

82%

81%

-1%

Assessment & testing

67%

78%

16%

Integrated reporting

35%*

73%

108%

Mobile deployment

40%

68%

70%

Personalized learning

39%

64%

64%

Survey management

38%

60%

58%

Software as a service or cloud computing

39%

51%

31%

External training resources (i.e. MOOCs, Lynda.com, etc.)

18%

51%

183%

Virtual classroom

33%

46%

39%

On-demand option

33%

45%

36%

Virtual leaning environments

26%

45%

73%

Course marketing and e-mail

35%

44%

26%

Career development planning

16%

44%

175%

Skills/gap analysis

14%

43%

207%

Integrated enterprise system

20%*

41%

105%

Authoring

30%

40%

33%

Web conferencing

23%

36%

57%

Mentoring/Coaching tool

15%

32%

113%

Social networking tools (Facebook-like, Digg-line, IM/Chat)

12%

31%

158%

Peer/website rating tools

17%

29%

71%

Mobile authoring

9%

25%

178%

Collaborative authoring

18%

24%

33%

E-commerce support for partner/customer training

22%

23%

5%

Embedded training in applications

14%

19%

36%

Augmented Reality Support

5%*

11%

120%

Elearning! March / April 2018

41

LMSbuyingtrends

Figure 7: TMS Must Haves Currently Have

Must Have

CAGR

Performance measurement to goal, metrics

53%

71%

34%

Performance planning

42%

71%

69%

Workforce analytics

32%

64%

100%

Talent reporting tools

38%

61%

61%

Integration with other HR Systems

37%

61%

65%

Succession plans & management

33%

61%

85%

Goal & Objective assignments to staff, roles, departments

54%

57%

6%

Skill gap management and analysis

30%

57%

90%

Mentor/Coaching meetings

17%

57%

235%

Career management functionality

40%

54%

35%

Link competencies to learning requirements

24%

50%

108%

Competency based evaluations (CBE)

18%

50%

178%

Compensation planning & management

33%

46%

39%

Employee rating functionality

38%

43%

13%

Big data analytics

26%

39%

50%

360-degree evaluations

25%

39%

56%

Competency libraries

20%

39%

95%

Employee rating functionality

38%

36%

-5%

Employee review management & scheduling

40%

36%

-10%

Cloud/SaaS functionality

33%

36%

9%

Hierarchy-based reporting & roll-ups for headcount, salaries, etc.

28%

29%

4%

Balanced scorecards

9%

25%

178%

RESPONDENT PROFILE:

67% Corporate sector 33% Public sector 63% Management level 56% Training/

Development/Educator function

$4 Million Average

annual learning budget/ respondent

84% Purchase authority

42

March / April 2018 Elearning!

WANT MORE?

View

the Web Seminar on Learning & Talent Platforms Powering the Enterprise at: http://www.2elearning.com/events/ web-seminars-series

Download

2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study at: http:/information.

2elearning.com/2018lmstmsstudy/

Buyers are investing $1.3 million each on their next system, up from $1.1 million in 2016, an 18% increase. are ready to invest to get the features and capabilities needed to drive the business.

When it comes to the learning system, most expect the standard functionality to be present i.e. Course Tracking, Authoring, Testing, etc. The early majority are now expecting Mobile Deployment (68%), Personalized Learning (64%), and Survey Management (60%). However, only about four out of ten have these capabilities in their current system (See Figure 5).

On the TMS front, owners expect Performance Measurement, Metrics, Planning (71%), Workforce Analytics (64%), Reporting Tools, Integration and Succession Planning (61%) to be in their next system.

They are not generally present in their current system (See Figure 6).

BRAND AWARENESS The study also queried current ownership by brand, awareness and rankings of learning and talent systems by mention. More than 100 brands were named in the study indicating the industry is still quite fragmented. Among owners, the top learning brand only collected 9% share, level with 2016. Among talent systems, the top brand garnered only 12% share. The complete report on brands, awareness and ownership can be downloaded free at: http://information.2elearning. com/2018lmstmsstudy/ SUMMARY As technology evolves, so does the solutions and processes we leverage. Learning and talent systems are wonderful solutions. But, they are only as useful as the experts behind the wheel. The C-suite is investing in your team to move the engagement needle and drive performance. Use this research, your team and partners to design the ecosystem your team needs, wants and deserves. The solutions await you.

ProductSpotlight: Learning Platforms

ISOtrain LMS

Offers Decision Making System ISOtrain’s family of products provide an Ambient User Experience for the Administrative and Employee End Users improving the quality of life in the learning management space with a variety of behind the scene services.

The ISOtrain LMS is a Decision Making/Knowledge Based System focused on appropriate utilization of educational scheduling and intelligent management of resources allowing the Users to focus on essential assigned tasks.

The ISOtrain Ambient User Experience has personalized interfaces with intuitive displays, accurate confirmation and responsiveness to user input; supporting real time interaction that delivers essential training, assessments and reports.

As an Administrator, ISOtrain allows you to make training assignments that comply with your training requirements and the employee’s work schedule reinforced with tools to proactively manage

AMBIENT USER EXPERIENCE

and automate the process.

Employee End Users can perform their job responsibilities concurrently incorporating training requirements from ISOtrain complete with visual aids, prompts and reminders.

Leverage your investment by linking ISOtrain to other products like human resources, document management systems, manufacturing systems, time and attendance for a piece of mind that employee data is current and they are qualified to perform their job.

Take it a step further to incorporate mobile devices and biometric readers across your global enterprise for the ultimate Ambient User Experience that eliminates language and cultural barriers.

Whether you are searching for a replacement or an initial LMS, look at ISOtrain for a platform that provides a secure, compliant, Ambient User Experience to support your Heterogenous User Group. Learn more at: www. isotrain.com

ISOtrain iKAT iLink iMobile

iHR iTrain iRoster

iDoc iMail iRepor t

The experience seamlessly flows across a shifting set of devices and interaction channels blending physical, virtual and electronic environment as the user moves from one place to another.

+1 (786) 204-1161 www.isotrain.com info@softekexport.com 3105 NW 107 Ave. Suite 503B Doral, Florida 33172

Elearning! March / April 2018

43

Where learning happens

The workforce is changing.

D2L’s Learning Experience Platform helps prepare and engage your transforming workforce. It provides a personalized learning experience, leadership development, and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing by leveraging content creation & curation, video and social assessment.

find out how at D2L.com/enterprise

ProductSpotlight: Learning Platforms

The LMS Re-Imagined SKILLSOFT’S PERCIPIO Some stalwart brands are re-imaging their platforms like Skillsoft’s new Percipio.

There are four components of the new Percipio: User Experience, Courses, Reporting and Personalization.

User Experience (UX): The interface is simple, has all content channels available but is prioritized based upon urgency and learner personalization. Benny Ramos product manager, provided the tour of Percipio. Launched in English only, French, Spanish and other languages are to launch early first half of 2018. The platform is an “all you can eat” content model offering 50,000 programs. Users can create a personal playlist from all channelsleadership, project management, etc. Plus, learners can choose to read, listen or view the content.

Content: More than 21 new course modules are launched each week. New content is less than 30 minutes long and viewable in 2-3-minute sections to fit anytime viewing. Consistent characters appear across the programs i.e. Toby as host, Maria the Type A character, etc. There are thousands of new assets aligned to key business needs.

Dashboard: New performance dashboards are available in Percipio for managers, mentors or self-management.

Learning must have impact and the dashboards report value of the learner’s gain as well as the mode of learning improvement i.e. Instructor led classroom vs. e-learning. Business alignment is a goal assigned for each task. Managers can assign topics to different business goals like Employee Engagement by assign

ment and or topic. Content consumption can be viewed via drill downs by team or individual performance.

Personalization: Personalization closely followed engagement as top business drivers for investing in Learning and Development according to the study. Percipio can personalize learning to content, interest or career. Think Netflix for personalization and Amazon for transactions.

If you are on Skillsoft/Skillport, should you change? According to Ramos, Percipio offers the full catalog of courses vs. channel selections on Skillport. The pricing models are slightly different but still rely on the per user per year license model. While some may want to stay with what they know, you should consider Percipio

to enhance the learning experience. If you are ready, make the transition to Percipio.

Visit: www.Skillsoft.com BRIGHTSPACE BY D2L D2L was founded in the education space with a focus on the learner. This perspective gave D2L an early advantage in personalized learning and mobilization. D2L took the best of the LMS for education and reimagined it for Enterprise.

Brightspace Enterprise offers a rich platform with robust feature sets including personalization which taps Artificial Intelligence to predict and present the most relevant content to the learner. They also offer analytics tools to review top line data on usage, time within content, failure points and more. These edge capabilities are built on a platform with a consumer-like UX. The personalized dashboard the learner sees upon login provides a snapshot of the most relevant and timely learning activities.

Collaborative streams are incorporated into the dashboard, quick or important videos as well as updates on ones learning path.

With one click, the learner can access the content now. The experience is also ubiquitous for PC, laptop or iPad users.

Performance Plus (PP)module gives

SOURCE: D2L

A

pproximately 35% of the Elearning! community is sourcing a new learning platform that has more features and flexibility that supports extended enterprise users and external content sources according to the 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study published by Elearning! Magazine. Investing over half a million on the next learning platform, these discerning buyers want more, and are willing to pay for it.

What is new and next in Learning platforms?

Our editors scoured recent trade shows to view marquis brands and new emerging solutions within the learning platform market. Here is a preview of new and renewed brands, feature sets and pricing models to consider before purchasing your next learning solution.

Elearning! March / April 2018

45

ProductSpotlight: Learning Platforms New Entrants to the Learning Platforms Market

organizations the power to improve employee performance through adaptive learning and predictive analytics. The tools in Performance Plus help L&D and business leaders proactively identify and close knowledge gaps, to ensure each employee attains a high level of competency.

PP uses predictive analytics to understand each employee’s performance trajectory in a course and identify those that need additional support or training. The intuitive dashboards transform learner data into easily-identified patterns of performance and engagement. The integrated workflows make it easy for managers to reach out to high-potential employees or provide help to low performers. With a better understanding of which employees need extra support, leaders can ensure everyone finishes the course with a higher level of competency.

Visit: www.D2L.com/Enterprise BLACKBOARD LEARN Blackboard, a top brand in awareness according to the 2018 Learning & Talent Buyers Study, has made some recent changes to their 46

March / April 2018 Elearning!

platform as well. The web conferencing experience was re-engineered and branded as Blackboard Collaborate Ultra. The claim is the new environment makes “learners forget they’re not in a physical space.” The solution features interactive whiteboard, multi-point video (new) with application and desktop sharing (new). While we didn’t get to see it at work, it is nice to see Blackboard Collaborate improve the platform to compete with others in the market given the size of their user base.

Blackboard also launched Blackboard Ally, a new 508 compliant accessibility service. If your organization must be 508 compliant, this new service from Blackboard will make identifying violations early easier. The solution integrates with the LMS and workflows. It will automatically check all course content for accessibility issues, provide alternative formz ats and provide feedback and guidance. The outcome is to provide a comprehensive report and action plan that will aide organizations to be proactive, benefit employees and provide a score on the accessibility spectrum. Visit: www.Blackboard.com

BRIDGE A newer entry into the LMS market, Bridge does not market themselves as an LMS. They are really an LMS Lite, resembling more of an LMS App. A very simple mobile centric learning platform, Bridge does not have the visual or image heavy environment most platforms host. With mobile first being Bridge’s mantra, they focus on organizations with mobile workforce, distributed teams or/and retail organizations where a laptop or PC is not readily available for learning. Built on Ruby on Rails, the user does not see a dashboard upon sign-on, only a list of top priority tasks based upon due date or urgency. The learner can access content from internal and external sources within Bridge. The focus is on accessing, completing the component and moving on - all on the mobile phone.

Bridge also has a rich text editing and authoring tool. Not the robust features of Storyline or Captivate, but it does support video streaming with data tracking on viewer activity. With the recent acquisition of Practice, Bridge users will have access to live video recording of ‘their pitch’ within the LMS, which is saved and viewable by managers and peers for instant feedback and collaboration. This is a plus for field sales teams and managers.

Reporting on Bridge is focused on the learner’s progress; which tasks are overdue, in progress, completed within a date range. Cadence is also measured; how the individual or team is progressing toward a specific goal. For example, at the individual level one can see progress toward a career development goal.

Performance measurements focus on career development goals, achievements and 1 to 1 assessments. These include skills assessments, evaluations, team mentors and learning courses to improve.

Visit: www.mybridge.com

and increase engagement thru digital experiences. Customized courses are drop and drag. Instructional templates and quizzes are available to help create and edit courses.

Performance data and analytics are collected in a visual dashboard to track what learners know and retain. Content metrics provide red flags where adjustments may need to be made. The Knowledge Bank provides insights into individual learner progress as well as comparisons to peers.

All analytics are in real-time accessible via mobile device. Visit:www.cerego.com

SOURCE: CEREGO

SOURCE: NOVOED

NOVOED Developed by Stanford University Educators and ex-EdX staffers, NovoEd was built to improve on the learner experience.

Touted as a Learning Experience Platform built on mobile-first practice, NovoEd has a mobile UI with embedded social collaborative component to improve learner engagements. According to a Stanford University study, a student is 16x more likely to complete a course when engaged within a team vs. 2% if taken alone. The collaboration component is critical advantage with NovoEd. It enables social live interactions within course context, project galleries, and on individual learning profiles that support peer to peer feedback.

NovoEd also hosts real-time reporting and management tools tracking learner engagement and content quality. Unlike other systems, the social engagements are tracked from posts, to active discussion participation to team specific interactions via their native google analytics integration.

NovoEd also integrates with enterprise systems supporting single sign-on, data integration, and system security. NovoEd is SaaS based and priced using a per user per month model. Visit: www.NovoEd.com

tice. Distributed learning is “spacing out learning across time [to] improve long-term retention.”

Retrieval practice, known as “testing effect” is to “actively attempt to recall previously studied materials [thru testing].”

Cerego allows learners to focus on content they don’t know rather than review content they do.

In studies conducted at NYU College of Dentistry, use of Cerego replaced 96 hours of class teaching time while students scored 2.6 standard deviations above the national average on the State Board exam. Fifty-six percent of students said, “using Cerego to review material was worthwhile.” All, 100% of students using Cerego passed the board exam.

How was this accomplished? Cerego’s learning solution incorporates content authoring tools based upon their learning science practices. Content is imported into a PPT like portal to improve effectiveness

CEREGO New to the learning market, Cerego is a personalized learning platform designed based upon brain science principles. They say, “imagine a system that can visualize what employees retain from training and provide insight into their knowledge on any subject any time.”

Cerego’s learning engine incorporates distributed learning with retrieval prac

Elearning! March / April 2018

47

Join Federal Government Distance Learning Association The FGDLA exists to foster professional relationships to further our collective missions in the distance learning space. We:

F G D L A

Facilitate the exchange of information and the implementation of distance learning.

Guide interagency cooperation, economic application of distance learning methods, technology, and research in the Federal sector.

Develop distance learning strategies to support a blended media approach to education and training, foster research into distance learning practices and theory, and promote awareness of distance learning.

Lead efforts to promote interagency cooperation and collaboration and provide recognition of outstanding achievements in Federal government distance learning practices.

Advocate and promote the use of distance learning for education and training within the Federal government and provide a forum for sharing information and enhancing interaction for all government agencies.

Meet learning professionals from key agencies within the Federal government who support distance learning programs by joining FGDLA. Apply for Membership To become an individual member and make your own contribution, indicate your interest by requesting an invite to join FGDLA online at: www.fgdla.us This online community is where the accomplishment of much of our objectives will happen. Please take this opportunity to request an invite today and begin having a voice in collaborating with other FGDLA members.

Upon approval to join the FGDLA, you will have the opportunity to create your profile to inform other members of your interests, create a Group focused on a distance learning challenge you may be having, or contribute to a threaded discussion Forum where you have expertise and insight. We look forward to hearing from you!

Federal Government Distance Learning Association

www.fgdla.us

Do You Make the

PopQuiz Quiz

Grade?

2

Results:

6-7 correct makes you Mensa material.

4-5 correct means you are a skimmer — and can learn oh-so much more.

Fewer than 4? This issue is your Sunday reading assignment. Try again!

1

What percentage of employers using AI will retrain or redeploy displaced workers? a) 10% b) 33% c) 41% d) 62% e) 80%

5

What percentage of learning organizations operate a Talent Management System a) 15% b) 22% c) 31% d) 36% e) 88%

3

4

How many employees are current looking for their next job? a) 20% b) 35% c) 51% d) 60% e) 75% What is the graduation rate of online learners who work within a team? a) 2% b) 21% c) 32% d) 44% e) 57%

At JPL, the new approach reduced content development time how much? a) 5% b) 12% c) 17% d) 25%

6

Which of the following is NOT a way to improve learning culture? a) Recognize informal learning as valuable b) Celebrate L&D achievement c) Give learners control d) Accept external resources

7

How much will buyers invest on their next learning platform on average? a) Less than $100,000 b) 325,000 c) 558,000 d) 824,000

Editorial Index 2018 Learning & Talent Platforms Buyer Study http://bit.ly/2tDfzWH Choice Hotels International https://www.choicehotels.com

Main Training http://maintraining.com.au/

Elearning! Subscriptions http://www.2elearning.com

Masie Center http://www.Masie.com

Elearning! Web Seminar Series pg 20 http://www.2elearning.com/events/ current-events

Diginomica https://diginomica.com

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/

Gallup http://gallup.com

Partners in Leadership https://www.partnersinleadership.com/

Infosys https://www.infosys.com

ADVERTISERS INDEX

Learning! 100 Award http://www.2elearning.com

BizLibrary http://bizlibrary.com

Learning! Champion Award http://www.2elearning.com

D2L http://D2L.com/enterprise

Learning! 100 http://www.2elearning.com Federal Government Distance Learning Association http://fgdla.net

pg 2 Grads of Life http://gradsoflife.org pg 44, 52 Softek Export http://www.isotrain.com

pg 51

pg 5

pg 48 Pg 23 pg 43

Answers: (1) e, (2) c, (3) c, (4) c, (5) d, (6) d, (7) c

Elearning! magazine is published bi-monthly by B2B Media Company LLC, 44920 W. Hathaway Ave. #1794, Maricopa, AZ 85139. Application to mail Standard Class is filed with Denver, CO Post Office. POSTMASTER: Send all address changes to: Elearning! PO Box 1794 Maricopa, AZ 85139. Subscriptions are free to qualified professionals in the USA. Subscribe at http://www.2elearning.com/ registration-step1. Elearning! magazine is a trademark of B2B Media Company. All rights are reserved.

Elearning! March / April 2018

49

LastWord

W

Unlocking Your Super Power

hat is it about superheroes that we love so much? Is it their ability to overcome tremendous obstacles? Their superhuman strength?

We recently asked a small group of employees what superpower they found most compelling. Among their responses: the ability to fly, x-ray vision, and time travel. We then asked that same group if they thought the ability to control one’s own destiny was a superpower–and many of them responded “yes.”

The truth is, each of us already possesses the power to do great things. With a little practice, we can all unleash the superhero within.

Tony Bridwell

IT STARTS WITH ACCOUNTABILITY Accountability is about the personal choices we make to overcome the obstacles in our way. Every time we face a trying situation, we also face a choice: will we be a victim of circumstance or emerge victorious?

The Oz Principle posits that when you assume full accountability for your thoughts, feelings, and actions, you gain control of your own destiny. In this way, we can all channel the superheroes whom we love and admire. The question is, "how can we activate that superpower in our day-to-day professional lives?"

The first step is simply recognizing that a problem exists–and then taking ownership of it. The key here is control: when we obsess over what’s not in our power to change, we slip into victim mode. Instead, we must focus exclusively on factors over which we have some degree of control.

ACCOUNTABILITY IN ACTION As an adolescent, a friend of ours was consistently told he wasn’t smart enough to make much out of his life, and unsurprisingly, his test scores reinforced that belief. For every test he took in school, he would score in the bottom 25%, regardless of the subject. He hated school, felt like a failure and struggled with self-esteem.

As he got a little older, he decided to pursue the one thing he really loved and excelled at–painting. He shared this aspiration with his mom, who supported his vision, but challenged him to consider a path that combined painting with a practical skill more certain to yield a steady income, like graphic art.

The young man reluctantly agreed to give graphic art a try. The next thing you know, he had mastered Adobe Photoshop. While he’d never considered himself smart enough to succeed in such a rigorous field, here he was, excelling in a world that had seemed off limits just a short time earlier.

The next thing you know, someone asked if he had ever considered photography. Again, his old victim mentality kicked in. He was sure he wasn’t talented enough to excel in photography. But this time, he focused on what was in his power–his love of art–and gave it a try. The first time he looked through a camera lens, he literally exclaimed, “I see art!”

Today, this man is recognized as one of the most influential photographers of our time. His art is worldrenowned. All this from a kid who was constantly told he wasn’t good enough. What made the difference?

This young man simply needed to unleash his inner superhero. By focusing on what was within his control, he took a risk and pursued what he loved. While perhaps not the makings of a blockbuster movie, this is a true story of how accountability can lead to great success–and that’s something we can all learn from.

– Tony Bridwell is an international consultant and partner for Partners in Leadership. He penned, The Difference Maker: A Simple Fable About Making a Difference in the Life of Others and The Kingmaker: A Leadership Story of Integrity and Purpose.

50

March / April 2018 Elearning!

Where learning happens

The workforce is changing.

D2L’s Learning Experience Platform helps prepare and engage your transforming workforce. It provides a personalized learning experience, leadership development, and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing by leveraging content creation & curation, video and social assessment.

find out how at D2L.com/enterprise