With plethora of internet applications mushrooming world wide, the best can be extracted for the organization's benefit. The operations of almost all the organizations are carried out with the help of computers. Internet revolution digitized the organizational activities and has benefited the firms by simplifying the complex work processes. While many of the organizations are still practicing off-the-job training sessions, often called class room training sessions, others have taken a smart move by taking ‘learning’ to the next level. Organizations operating in fields like banking & finance, life sciences, retail and IT have integrated the e-learning content with the on going conventional training practice. There are many e-learning companies which are engaged in offering customized e-learning solutions to the organizations.
Internet is omnipresent and its utility is infinite. By integrating the learning process with it, organizations would make the learning activity more collaborative and ensure a deep level user engagement. The corporates get a better opportunity to share and exchange their knowledge with their colleagues. In addition to digital white boards, text chats, and graphics the latest e-learning trends include Pod casting and cloud computing. The cloud computing is basically of three types, which are Platform as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and Software as a Service. For the organizations which are in developing stage and cannot spend much for the e-learning services SaaS is a feasible option. By opting for SaaS, organizations can not only cut down the cost associated with the training process but can also leave the trouble of maintaining the software to the e-learning service provider.
The e-learning companies are coming up with different ways of user engagement techniques out of which social learning and game based learning look quite promising. One must not limit the game based learning with gamification of the learning content. It basically uses the gaming mechanics to trigger the innate desire of competition among the individuals. The reward points, bonuses and badges won by the trainees generate a sense of motivation in them. On the other hand, social collaboration is also an interesting tool as it is far away from the text-heavy content and tiring activities. The accessibility of the social media via mobile has added up to the advantage of the learner. The information is available on the go and it is not time bound.
The quick and bit-sized information is good but many small firms cannot afford it. These organizations can either opt for SaaS or they can outsource their e-learning requirements to the e-learning company, which has a dedicated offshore development center. Organizations, depending upon their needs can outsource the whole or part of their project. Moreover, it is important that organization, before outsourcing the content, must document its needs. This would help the off shoring company in developing better learning content for the client.
Gireesh Sharma is an author writing on Human Resource Management.His expertise includes e learning services, elearning companies and other Learning & Development matters.