The advent of the Internet has revolutionized and simplified our lives to such an extent that it makes it difficult to imagine a time where we did not have access to it unless you are part of the iGen and have never had to live without Google. We are able to access and store information at the click of a button and portable devices and cloud computing makes it possible to communicate and conduct work wherever we may find ourselves. eLearning has sprouted from this (r)evolution and has been gaining traction in both classrooms and boardrooms (with a 900% growth since 2000, according to Shift). So, why should senior executives think about eLearning? The answer is twofold: Firstly, because it benefits them and secondly because it benefits their employees. And the added bonus – it is ultimately good for business!

Advantages of eLearning for Senior Executives

1. Faster training delivery: 

Training providers like ourselves, have taken advantage of the cloud for fast, no-fuss, online deployment of training material. This allows trainees, particularly ones such as busy senior executives to access relevant training courses wherever they are, whenever they are able to find a gap in their demanding schedules. eLearning generally lets trainees work at their own pace and does not require face-to-face consultation, thus eliminating the need to book out entire days for training that can often feel like a waste of time amidst deadlines or other work-related activities. Furthermore, research has shown that eLearning requires between 40%-60% less of a learner’s time than learning the same material in a classroom setting

2. Cost-effective

eLearning is cost-effective for many reasons. eLearning training courses tend to be less expensive than traditional methods because they do not need to be printed or delivered by a trainer who has to drive out to a large enough facility to host x-amount of employees. Many eLearning modules are designed to be compatible with a wide range of devices and data capabilities and can be accessed from anywhere where an internet connection can be found – no special software required. This creates a tangible difference in organisations’ training expenditure, as is evidenced by multiple case studies (e.g. see a paper written by Strother as early as 2002 documenting millions of dollars in savings by IBM, Ernst and Young, and Rockwell Collins, and a more recent example documented by Kineo’s case study on McDonald’s).

Advantages of eLearning for Employees

More effective learning medium

Business compliance requirements are always changing and the same can be said for the skills necessary to stay relevant in a modern workplace – this necessitates frequent staff (re)training and makes online learning the perfect solution. Aside from also benefiting from having more time on their hands to focus on their work, eLearning has been shown to be an overall more effective method of learning by:

– Improving learners’ retention rates by up to 60%;

– Allowing eLearners to learn up to 5x more material in the same amount of time as traditional learning;

– Improving productivity, with nearly $30 generated for every dollar spent on online training.

Caters to learners’ needs

The modern learner is someone who can instantly access information from their smart device, someone who consults how-to-guides online to aid in immediately applying solutions, and someone who is bombarded daily with more information than they can process. Effective eLearning platforms understand this and cater to learners’ needs for quick bursts of information (instead of lengthy, overly-detailed material) on platforms that are easily accessible from most devices and that are accompanied by multimedia for a richer learning experience.

It would clearly be an oversight to leave eLearning out of an organization’s business strategy. In targeting the learning pain points of employees at various organizational levels, eLearning creates a more timeous, cost-effective method of upskilling employees on platforms that they can easily access and that caters to their learning requirements.

Check out Coggno’s innovative online compliance training solutions here and stay competitive in an evolving industry!