What is eLearning and how can it help you win business?
What is eLearning, what are the benefits and how can it help you win business? (Q&A with Alex Wilkins, Head of Business Development at iHASCO)
We caught up with Alex Wilkins, Head of Business Development at iHASCO to find out more about eLearning and its benefits. Alex has been working in the eLearning industry for over 8 years and has seen its progression to become the most popular choice for workplace training.
What is eLearning?
eLearning is a form of digital learning which is completed via an electronic device such as your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. It can be accessed from any location as long as you have Wi-Fi or a 4G connection.
Bite-sized eLearning is becoming increasingly popular as it gives employees greater flexibility to be completed around their workloads in short bursts. We know that one of the biggest challenges businesses face is ensuring that their employees can find the time to complete their required training.
eLearning can either be with an online trainer or completed independent – where off the shelf courses are available for a huge range of topics, including workplace health & safety and compliance.
What are the main benefits of eLearning?
Using eLearning to train your workforce has a huge number of benefits but I’ll go through my top five.
First and foremost it offers a cost-effective solution for training your staff. Traditional face-to-face methods can be costly and require attendees to block out a set time to complete it, including travel time to the set location. With the ongoing pandemic, eLearning has proved incredibly valuable, as it has removed the need for face-to-face contact but has allowed employers to ensure their staff are up-to-date with their training.
Secondly, eLearning is simple to use and practical. We live in a world where things need to be more easily accessible and convenient, which may explain the increasing popularity of eLearning. Employees are able to fit it in around their workloads and when they are ready to learn, which will ensure they get more out of it.
This leads me on to my next point – eLearning promotes learner engagement. Presenter-led footage along with quality animations helps bring a course subject to life. Interactive elements such as multiple-choice questions throughout the learning process and an end of course test helps ensure that key learning objectives have been met. Here at iHASCO, our courses take around 6 months to complete from the initial research phase to launch. The script is carefully written to ensure the information is informative and accurate before filming and animation can take place to provide a high quality and succinct training course.
Penultimately, eLearning is easy to administer and keep track of, through a Learning Management System (LMS). In order to encourage completion of essential training, an LMS can send automated training reminder emails as well as keep track of all completed training. It also allows training to be rolled out quickly and efficiently.
Lastly, it provides consistent training to all employees, and offers equal opportunities to the workforce. And it sets an important message to staff as it shows that an employer is fully invested in their employees, which is extremely powerful and can help build a positive and open work culture. Those organisations that take training seriously can gain a competitive edge.
How can eLearning help you win business?
It goes without saying that an employee who has received appropriate training will be much more confident in their job role. Happy and engaged employees are likely to be more productive too. For example, in the construction industry workplace safety is paramount and appropriately managing safety risks is not only a legal obligation, but it will also help build a good company reputation among employees and customers to help you win business. Creating a safe working environment and educating your workforce will give you a competitive advantage.
What does the future hold for eLearning?
eLearning has evolved a great deal in the last few years. Technological advances have meant that it has become increasingly interactive and engaging. Through many providers it is also accessible to those whose first language is not English (through subtitles), provides closed captions for those who are hard of hearing, and is compatible with screen readers for those with visual impairments. Fast forward even further into the future and Artificial Intelligence will be able to enhance a learner’s individual experience.
The global pandemic has had a profound effect on our lives. If we were undergoing a digital revolution before, we are set to see even further advancements and a world that becomes increasingly more reliant on technology at work and in our day-to-day lives.
What should a business do if they are interested in finding out more about eLearning and how it can fit with their organisation?
We would always recommend setting up a free trial with any eLearning provider you are interested in. That way you can see if the training is a good fit for your organisation and staff. Whilst we recognise that eLearning may not cover every last training need, it certainly has a place in supporting your employees with their workplace training. Discuss your needs with any potential supplier to ensure they can meet your requirements.
Get in touch with our friends over at iHASCO today who can set you up with a free, no-obligation trial and support you with eLearning for: