Just Do It! - Experiment Strategically With eLearning

Having been in the eLearning field for over a decade, I can't tell you how many times I have heard people say that they were "thinking about eLearning," "exploring their options," "seriously looking into it," etc., etc. When I talk to these same people a year later they are often saying the same thing, but they haven't actually done anything about eLearning.

Why is this? I call it the "deer in the headlights" syndrome. These individuals are so overwhelmed by the choices before them (what training challenge to focus upon?, what eLearning technology to use?, buy or lease?, etc.) that they are paralyzed with indecision. My colleague Mike Grant actually puts it a bit more directly....he calls it "organizationally constipated."

Mike just published a white paper on this phenomenon titled "How to Experiment with eLearning to Determine Value." In it, he explores why some organizations seem incapable of getting beyond the "dabbling" stage in eLearning, or, worse yet, cannot seem to even get started.

Mike suggests that organizations take a more strategic approach to trying out eLearning via a controlled experiment. This way, they can test effectiveness, learn valuable lessons, and re-calibrate if necessary before ramping up to bigger implementations. Or, they may well decide not to pursue eLearning. In either case, a controlled experiment means that you do not have to "bet the farm" on eLearning. You can minimize your risk.

The main point is that you will have real data on which to base your decisions.

The key factors for a successful eLearning experiment are:

• keep it small and manageable
• engage others (particularly skeptics)
• focus on unserviced training needs
• be creative (break out of the LMS "prison" if necessary)
• measure real results

To read the full white paper, subscribe via the eLearn Campus website.