DOES YOUR COMPANY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ETRAINING?

By Timothy Wright, PMP

Has your company taken advantage of eTraining? The National Retail Federation (NRF) published the results of their 2010 retail horizons survey in January which asked the question, “What percent of companies currently use eTraining?” Only 43% of the retailers surveyed have implemented this technology. With over 57% of retailers and other organizations using traditional 'on-the-job training' practices the question becomes, why not implement a system that maximizes your most valuable resource: labor?

eTraining works by delivering educational content over the Internet through a centralized Learning Management System (LMS). An LMS allows a company to streamline video, present supporting documents and customized quizzes establishing a virtual classroom. This method of communication is consistent with the communication channels that exist today (i.e., Facebook, YouTube, etc.). Through this virtual classroom, your company will deliver a consistent, cost-effective and timely implementation approach to training.

Consistent

eTraining provides a consistent training approach by presenting all employees with the same instructional material, through the same channel rather than in different ways, in different locations, or in different ways by different individuals. These virtual classroom materials demonstrate what it takes for associates to properly perform activities and, in turn, be successful. eTraining also allows employees to learn quickly. Within as little as an hour, personnel can become fully educated on companies' customer service, loss prevention and/or sales techniques.

Cost Effective

With eTraining initiatives in place, employees can spend more time assisting and interacting with customers. Training expenses can be greatly reduced. In addition, there is a significant opportunity for increasing sales. The investment in eTraining is returned many-fold. With strong collaboration and focus, a basic eTraining tool can be developed and deployed in less than a month.

Timely Implementation

Custom Learning Management Systems (LMS) can be planned, developed and deployed in a four to five week time period. The first week is spent developing the requirements and assigning the client side project team. Weeks two and three focus on filming, creating and integrating the content into the LMS. During the final week, regression testing and training will be conducted.

Once an eTraining tool has been deployed, it can be accessed over the Internet or at a standalone terminal. Immediately after the system is deployed, employees can begin being trained with the tools needed to help grow the organization.

In short, eTraining is consistent, cost-effective, and timely; it works. Consider the example of a specialty retail chain. The tool was designed to guide employees through the ins and outs of customer service, sales, loss prevention, product knowledge and daily operations. The material was presented in the form of video, text and images, making it a visually stimulating experience. After the tool was implemented, the retailer experienced immediate improvements in employees' knowledge of products carried by the stores and their familiarity with operational procedures practiced there.

The chain's vice president of stores refers to the tool and the manner in which it has changed the retailer's training procedures as "revolutionary." She relates that it has allowed employees to garner the necessary knowledge in less than one hour, increasing productivity and decreasing time spent in training. Associates are able to easily comprehend the videos presented, making the return rapid.

Contact Clear Thinking Group to learn about how you can plan, design and deploy a Learning Management System.

Timothy Wright is a Project Management Professional and Senior Manager for Clear Thinking Group.