The first thing to look at is the question of quality. Now if you buy a $5 program to teach you something it’s pretty clear you’re going to get what you pay for – not a lot – but professional e-learning products have come a long way from initial attempts that were little more than recordings of live lectures transcribed onto CD. Today there’s a greater understanding of how people react to on-screen elements. It has resulted in interactive content – using rich media and aspects of game play – that people find stimulating, absorbing and actually enjoyable. The specialists who create the programs are frequently highly qualified (often the same people who deliver live classes are involved) and the results are just as effective as traditional teaching.

Of course from a business point of view e-learning isn’t just cheaper, it provides unrivaled flexibility. Personnel don’t have to be unavailable while attending class. They can access tuition as suits their schedule, or you can take a more disciplined approach if you prefer. Either way, a course can be stopped and started as suits the participants. Nobody likes to be disturbed in this way, but with e-learning all you need to do is go over the last section again to refresh your memory before carrying on. Once completed, the lessons remain a valuable resource whether for new members of staff or as reference material.

So there’s flexibility. There’s also the opportunity for remarkable precision. You can take an off-the-shelf course and add elements to it, or you can have content created for you. Incorporate a SCORM-compliant Learning Management System and you have a cost-effective tool that works with pre-set content and also follows a standard that is recognized by consultants world-wide. The money you invest will be a little more than for simple training DVDs but probably not what you would pay for off-site tuition – and you still retain both the “mix and match” flexibility for content and the ability to distribute learning anywhere, at any time.

The final element to look at today is security. It’s not always important, but sometimes your people need business-focused information that is confidential. E-learning gives you that opportunity because you conduct that training to your own timetable and only your personnel have access. Actually, with an advanced Learning Management System you can go beyond your people if you want to, sharing pertinent details with, for example, supply chain or retail. The beauty of a good LMS is that it’s all under your control.

As business becomes more competitive and regulations become stricter it’s clear that there will be an ever-greater need for training. E-learning and Learning Management Systems offer a flexible, scalable, cost-effective answer that provides a rapid return on investment. The alternatives are just going to cost you money.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

SCORM stands for Sharable Content Object Reference Model, and it’s really the training industry’s de facto standard. It’s not about how it appears from the user’s point of view – really we want that side of things to be transparent anyway – SCORM is about how a programmer’s contribution and your LMS talk to each other in the background. Like so much of modern technology it’s the side of things most people never see. It’s a bit like owning a modern car. Used to be you popped the hood, checked the oil, changed the filters, plugs, etc. Now you just take it into the service shop. Likewise SCORM you will probably never be aware of it.

Like many technological developments, it can trace its roots to quasi-military origins: originally it was an idea from the office of the US Secretary of Defense and their Advanced Distributed Learning initiative. Since those beginnings it’s been taken forward by different bodies around the world and has developed into the standard we use today. Put simply, it defines the way e-learning is followed by the user. A pathway if you like, from point A, to B, to C and so on. It allows students to bookmark where they got to so they can pick up easily later on. It also provides recognized, commonly accepted test scoring systems and it defines the Package Interchange Format through which content can be uploaded to the hosts Learning Management System.

In many ways you could look at it like your USB or Bluetooth connections. USB and Bluetooth have become a standard by which numerous electronic products can link together and share content. SCORM is like that for an LMS.

The other international standard that Simplydigi’s Learning Management System supports is AICC. What is AICC? It’s the Aviation Industry Computer-Based Training Committee – although with training professionals involved from all over the world, these days its reach goes much further than the “aviation” the name suggests.

In fairness, the original aim was to help airline operators as they developed a globally accepted set of guidelines for CBT (computer-based training) and interoperability of systems. However, the standard is particularly relevant to aspects of Leaning Management Systems and as a result has become more widely used.

There are in fact 9 different sections – called AICC Guidelines & Recommendations, or AGRs – and AICC compliance means that one or more of these is being followed. In real terms, as with SCORM, it’s an important technical standard for those like us who work “behind the scenes”, but something the end-user need never be aware of.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

One excellent example is the dreaded annual review. I say “dreaded” because, let’s be honest, although they’re a necessary aspect of many businesses there can’t be many that look forward to them – either from the employee’s point of view or that of management.

The main challenges for employers are two-fold. First there’s the time it takes to make the evaluation of an individual’s development over a twelve month period and secondly – perhaps more importantly – there’s the availability of relevant information.

However capable they are, a manager’s memory is not the most accurate source once employee numbers get above a handful. What’s more – and this has been proven by psychological studies – more recent events have an unbalanced bearing on results if memory alone is relied on. If you think about it, that’s only natural.

The larger the business, the wider the discrepancies. It’s no wonder those responsible feel burdened by the process and recipients often feel it’s an unfair reflection of their contribution over the year.

While there’s no perfect answer, it’s immediately obvious that an LMS can make a tremendous difference.

Managers then have an easy-to-use record of each person’s performance. They can see what goals were set and a series of results. Reporting offers numerous ways to monitor progress – a whole set of when, where and what that provides invaluable insight. What’s more, it takes away the pressure to “remember” and replaces it with facts.

So management gets the information they need quicker and it’s more accurate too. Statistics aside, it gives the recipient a feeling that they are valued because a note has been made of their achievements. Positive aspects are reiterated. It just plain makes people feel good. If the review is less favorable, steps can be suggested that can help rectify the situation.

Either way, there can be no doubt that a precise picture has been presented. There’s nothing vague or unconsidered. Everyone knows where they stand. The feedback gathered throughout the year, through various forms of training and assignment, is undoubtedly an accurate reflection of aspects of performance that have a direct impact on the individual’s productivity.

It might be argued that this kind of reporting doesn’t tell you about “the person”. It can’t tell you how they are received among their peers. It can’t tell you about the smile they bring to work every morning…

We would suggest in many way it does exactly that. A well instituted reporting system with a top class learning management system at its core will certainly be able to flag that energetic, motivated personality – to everyone’s advantage.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

As a company that sells one of the leading LMS you can accuse us of bias, of course, and you might think the title of this article a bit flippant, but I’m about to show you an example of where your own learning management system not only provides a remarkably rapid return on investment but can demonstrate that the reference to Xerox paper is surprisingly true.

Let’s look at a realistic example of a business that employs 30,000 people. It doesn’t matter what sector they are in; manufacturing, health, finance, technology, government, etc., there is an ongoing demand for various kinds of training. Regardless of the business type there are always going to be new developments that result in information needing to be disseminated. There will be regulatory changes that affect people. There’s an inevitable turnover of personnel, so new staff need to be brought up to the same standards as their colleagues.

There’s also an increasing demand for accountability related to training – and not just within your company. You need to keep track of who has received which instruction, of course, and you want retrieval of that information to be convenient and accurate, but you also need traceability for legal reasons. In an increasingly litigious society you must have proof that individuals received appropriate instruction whether that relates to their roles, tasks they have been asked to perform or health and safety procedures. When the lawyers come calling, you need to be adequately protected.

So all of this is building a case for the implementation of a learning management system – because it’s a single, completely integrated resource that responds effectively to all those scenarios.

But what about that Xerox paper?

Well of course all of this training has cost implications. Every one of the 30,000 employees in our example is going to have some sort of tuition at least a couple of times a year. Indeed we know from experience that the average is four times, but for the purposes of this exercise let’s underestimate the impact.

Even low-cost off-the-shelf courses will be several dollars per employee – and how often is that kind of self-study approach actually acceptable? Online video courses are the next step up the training ladder: easier to regulate, but the price goes up too.

Let’s say you go the old-fashioned route and distribute copies of learning material you have acquired or developed. If you have thirty thousand employees your bill for Xerox paper for a small booklet can be more than the cost of our LMS. We know, we’ve done the math! Yet with the LMS you can train thousands, on hundreds of different topics, track and monitor progress, provide irrefutable proof of course completion…

There are many corporations of considerable size, but we also provide the same great software and support to companies with 100 or fewer employees. Our Learning Management System is priced from 100 seats to unlimited seat licenses. Give us the opportunity to show you an exceptional learning management system that will help you meet your training needs.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

It’s not that modern DVDs are poor quality recordings of dull old lectures either. With effective teaching methods and rich, immersive media they can offer excellent tuition.

Excellent, that is, as long as your needs conform to their content. The thing a DVD can’t give you – and nor can fixed off-site lessons or even expensive, top-of-the-range boot camps – is teaching that responds accurately to an organization’s own particular objectives. However good off-the-shelf alternatives are, they were conceived and designed to give the widest range of answers to the widest group of customers. Content can never be tailored to address individual requirements.

The investment required for a Learning Management System (LMS) is, of course, considerably more than for a DVD – although perhaps not as much as you might expect. The other important part of that sentence is “investment”. An LMS is an entire mechanism for delivering courses that you develop (or those you have specifically created for you). As such, it’s not a one-hit wonder. You don’t just get one-time usage out of it. You are putting in place a means of meeting the ever changing needs of your business and of your personnel.

There’s no defined period when a Learning Management System will cease to be useful, in fact with increasing regulation in so many areas it’s likely that an LMS will become more valuable over time.

But I’m getting a little distracted. The point of this article is the focus that an LMS allows. You can develop training that precisely targets your goals. You can tailor a basic course to numerous end-user groups who might have different needs. It has virtually limitless flexibility.

They are usually seen as a means of providing effective distance learning, but what does “distance” mean. In this context it could be a team who are spread around the world or it could be those who share your location but who need the ability to access learning when convenient for them. With a Learning Management System you get the advantages of individual design and the convenience of self-study.

If you’re not a trained educator, there are numerous tools to help you put together a professional product. If that’s too disruptive to your schedule, the open SCORM 1.2 standard allows for input from a wide range of independent sources and consultants who can help you create training that fulfills your needs.

There are excellent off-the-shelf solutions available whatever kind of skills you need to deliver and in whatever sphere you work. Learning Management Systems do not try to replace them, they enable you to go beyond them, to finely tune knowledge provision and to be adaptive and responsive to changing environments.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

Today I want to look at stretching beyond the traditional reach of learning management systems, beyond the provision of online lessons and downloadable material, to the immediate impact of live learning – or indeed live interaction for any number of purposes.

Digicast is an add-on for the Simplydigi Learning Management System and it gives the opportunity for that instant responsiveness that defines live interpersonal communication.

As a method of tutoring it allows not just the presentation of material in the same manner as would be achieved in a face-to-face class, but the chance for students to interact with the tutor. As we know, true question and answer sessions are of tremendous help not only to the people involved but to all those around them.

Digicast can bring the advantages of the classroom atmosphere to participants in many different locations at the same time. All that’s needed is a computer, an internet connection and a phone line (for audio conferencing). It can be delivered to a presentation screen in conference environment or to a laptop on a train. It can use audio, video and multi-media and what’s more sessions can be archived for future reference.

Teaching is an obvious role, but there are many others. In fact it’s a system that’s extremely useful whoever you want to reach.

Groups can come together for problem-solving sessions. Sales teams can be given the latest product updates and actually watch new features being demonstrated. Widely dispersed personnel can be brought together in an organization’s decision making processes. Students can share a live chat room. A business could implement a help desk with personnel that customers can actually see.

Anywhere there’s a requirement for provision of information and/or response to that information, Digicast offers an efficient solution.

It can make the learning experience more involving, which tends to lead to higher retention rates. It can help develop relationships because people can actually speak to one another. It can reduce the misunderstandings that occur when people communicate via email.

There can also be considerable financial incentive for employing such a system. People can be brought together from around the world – without actually needing to travel. Those same people can make decisions faster, meaning cost-saving or productivity-increasing measures are put into action more quickly. Indeed anything that clarifies or accelerates understanding is generally beneficial to those involved.

But there’s a price to pay, yes? You can’t expect to get all these advantages and all these possibilities without a hefty bill.

Well while we’re not giving them away, as an add-on to the Simplydigi Learning Management System we think you’ll find it a surprisingly affordable component. Once again we would rather talk investment than cost, because it’s something that we suspect you’ll find increasingly numerous and important uses for.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

We all recognize the importance of training as part of the drive for more efficient and productive businesses – in fact for many progressive companies it has become part of the corporate fabric. It’s not something that’s just thought about in passing from time to time, it’s an ongoing process, constantly delivering new skills and knowledge. However, for those who fall into the category above, arranging traditional classroom lessons has been fraught with difficulty. It can also be expensive and is frequently disruptive to normal working practice. It’s not that traditional learning is no longer effective. Bringing a group of like-minded individuals into the same environment to pursue the same goals is always valuable. It’s just that today it’s often not practical. E-learning offers a cost-effective and flexible solution.

The web seems awash with products to train everyone from budding rock guitarists to nuclear physicists. At one end of the spectrum they are little more than computer games while at the other they can lead to internationally recognized professional qualifications in numerous fields. Of course off-the-shelf lessons can only provide so much, and most enterprise companies soon need to look at a customized or bespoke approach. They may hire consultants, or employ their own specialists in order to achieve this, and those professionals will now be looking at Learning Management Systems for effective delivery, monitoring and reporting.

But it’s not just from the corporate point of view that an LMS is beneficial. The “customer” – in this case the employee – also gains. They can acquire new information without negative impact on their day-to-day tasks. There’s no need to take time out traveling to and from courses – which inevitably leads to the need to catch up afterward. They can learn during “down times” like on train or plane journeys. E-learning produces a less stressful environment so adoption is often more rapid. Even that invaluable person-to-person interactivity is now possible with advanced LMS features that enable video-conferencing technology to bring you live tuition via the internet.

Yet with all these end-user freedoms the business management still retains firm control. They are able to check progress towards pre-defined goals and update tasks or deliver new materials whenever necessary. In fact there’s little that cannot be accomplished with e-learning, and the added efficiency that a fully-featured Learning Management System brings aids long term planning and makes administration, reporting and analysis far easier – all of which eventually translates as a positive impact on productivity and profitability.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

Luckily, many learning management systems now offer vocational programs that can be taken online and from the comfort of your own home. So what exactly is the difference between a vocational program and a traditional degree program? A vocational program is much more specific to the trade or occupation you plan on pursuing. You won’t need to take hours of prerequisite classes and electives that have nothing to do with your actual major and it’s much less based on academics and grades as it is on the skills you’ll need to know. Vocational programs can teach you valuable skills that you use in real-life situations, not just a formal education.

Vocational certifications include areas from hospitality to health care, media and design to construction, IT and even animal care. There are very few fields you that don’t offer vocational programs. While it may not supply you with the “college experience” of football games and attending traditional classes, many high school students are looking at directly entering vocational programs upon graduation. Now that learning LMSs are providing vocational programs online, anyone in any stage of their life can now begin on a new career path. From stay-at-home moms, to full-time employees, right out of college or for those who’ve recently lost a job.

As with any education, there are a couple important things to consider: like did you know that 70% of all technical schools and vocational training programs are offered by private institutions? You will have to wade through piles of advertising and stacks of mailed literature to find the program that’s right for you. Try contacting current and former students to ask if they would recommend the program. Ask if there was enough technical support, since it’s an online programs and ask about the instructors. Were there enough practical and hands-on assignments to prepare you for your field? Did they make any connections through professors or industry professionals? And finally, the big question to ask former students, how was their job hunt after attending the program? Just do your research, know how much you can spend and you can find yourself a credible vocational education from the comfort of your own home.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

The job market is in bad shape, and not getting better. With the recent “occupation” of Wall Street, it’s becoming obvious to the world that Americans are really struggling to find work. Even more disturbing is the number of young people who are unable to find a job and become independent, placing even more financial burden on their parents or guardians. In fact, one recent study showed that an estimated one million young people cannot find work and over half of our 16 to 24 year olds are considered “economically inactive”—not working or attending school.

Online learning courses may be able to fill the skills gap, and may make younger Americans more employable and marketable. The tough job market doesn’t mean there are no jobs available, it just means the competition is much more fierce. Many Americans are taking jobs they are overqualified for, leaving little to no entry-level jobs for young people. Web based learning can now teach some of these skills that young people used to learn through on-the-job training, which can help them fill out their resumes and make them more valuable to a future employer.

Many of these web-based skills training programs can be taught on a learning management system, which many companies are interested in using, if they do not already. So not only can young or unemployed people learn skills for themselves and for future employers, but knowing how to navigate their way around an learning management system can be an equally valuable skill. Some valuable skills to be learned include administrative, marketing, carpentry, automotive, and other technical skills.

Many companies will look for a background in customer service or sales, especially since smaller businesses depend on reputation and clients in order to survive. Educating yourself also shows initiative and dedication. If you’ve found yourself unemployed and discouraged, it may be time to brush up on some important skills, and you can do so from the comfort of your own home.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.

Numerous studies have shown that our online learning capacity is growing at an exponential rate and that we can expect by 2050 to harness the information of every human brain on the planet. While 2050 is still a few decades away, there are plenty of changes we can expect to see in the next five years. Four major changes in learning technology to expect in the next five years include:

Mobile learning will be widely used
Web based learning has always offered the flexibility in time for many learners, but soon that flexibility will extend to both time and place. Learners will soon be able to access small portions of courses at any time of the day, including videos, documents and mini courses. Tablet devices like the iPad will be able to run more information and may very allow public educators to go paperless in the next few decades.

Personal Learning Agents
Personal learning agents will run on a learner’s personal computing device of their choice, and will eventually be able to sync up multiple devices. It will monitor content streams and automatically update you based on personal preferences and workplace conditions. Personal learning agents will essentially be a software that acts as a content mediator.

Learning Management Systems (LMSs) will evolve
Learning management systems will soon manage not just formal learning, but informal and social learning as well. Many learning management system companies are currently monitoring and tracking metrics for the design of a fully blended learning system. Learners will be able to incorporate learning into their informal and social lives.

Non-traditional Teaching Methods
Simulations and games will become a key component in learning in both schools and the workplace. As digital and video game technologies progress, the cost of development is starting to decrease, allowing schools and companies to take advantage of the technology. It’s been long understood that interactive and fun learning techniques can increase awareness and understanding of concepts. Simulations will become valuable for training employees who may encounter dangerous or life-threatening situations.

About the Author: Logan Smith is a Marketing Associate at SimplyDigi.com, a leading learning management system provider. The LMS is a secure, web-based training and e-learning solution that employs a simple user interface. For more information please visit http://www.simplydigi.com.