In today’s digital era, it isn’t surprising that eLearning is rapidly replacing traditional classroom-style training. The eLearning industry has grown over 900% since 2000 and only continues to grow exponentially.
The rise in its popularity is linked to the numerous benefits that extend to both the company and its employees from this mode of learning. With 90% of companies using eLearning, it’s worth considering the benefits of eLearning. So what are these? Why are so many companies jumping on this bandwagon?
By moving from physical classrooms to corporate eLearning tools, Dow Chemical saved almost £27 million and reduced their training course cost from £75 per learner to £9 per learner.
The significant cost difference between traditional training and eLearning becomes clear when we break down the expenses associated with organising traditional training. The cost of trainers, study resources, venues, meals, and travel make traditional training cost intensive. In some large companies up to 60% of total training costs are attributed solely to travelling costs.
eLearning, on the other hand, obviously takes place online. This saves the cost of any extra expenses as you pay only for the training. Without the financial burden associated with traditional learning, eLearning will considerably reduce your training costs.
Not only does eLearning significantly reduce costs, but with the power to streamline learning so that employees can train more frequently, some companies have seen eLearning lead to increased revenues.
The value of eLearning is beyond doubt and we’re just getting started…
Businesses are faced with the challenge of finding a way to deliver high-quality training with as little disruption to the business as possible. From a corporate perspective time means money so employees generally don’t have a great deal of time to dedicate towards learning.
This lack of time is the number one challenge facing talent development today. Despite this, the importance of comprehensive training is not forgotten – if only there was a way to deliver high-quality training in a fraction of the time taken to complete traditional training?
eLearning is the solution – typically requiring 40-60% less employee time than learning the same material in a traditional classroom setting.
The vast majority of employees want training to be available anywhere, anytime they need and they also want to choose training schedules that fit their schedule.
One of the most significant benefits of eLearning is that it facilitates learning without time and location constraints. This means that employees can choose where and when they complete their training, removing the stress of trying to organise around the schedules of several different employees and trainers.
Furthermore, eLearning enables individual learning pace, which is considered to be the top motivator for employees. Not everyone learns at the same pace and not all learners will have the same level of knowledge, skill, or experience. eLearning means that employees aren’t put under unnecessary pressure, placing them in the best position to gain the most value they can out of the course.
Not only is eLearning more accessible, cost effective and time saving, but it also increases retention. Due to the highly engaging and interactive nature of eLearning it is often found to increase learner information retention rate. This is crucial for the likes of health and safety training as employees ability to store and recall the information is extremely important.
A key factor in increasing retention rates is the ability to test and fail through eLearning. Employees are unlikely to risk failure in a traditional classroom setting, whereas eLearning facilitates an environment where employees feel comfortable in testing what they have learned. This is even more important in health and safety courses where in-the-moment feedback helps learners correct their mistakes in the safest way possible.
In the world of work, a key goal for many organisations is to maximise productivity by working as efficiently as possible. eLearning is an important step towards this goal as it can increase efficiency in a number of ways.
First, eLearning provides more control over the learning environment, meaning we can ensure that no important information is missed and that no resources are wasted on useless information. This kind of tailoring isn’t available for traditional training as it is impacted by inconsistences in trainer personalities, learning styles, and learner engagement.
Moreover, in today’s fast-changing environment, training courses can become redundant almost as soon as they are created. eLearning content can be modified easily and quickly to adapt to changing regulations and feedback. This ensures employees receive the most up-to-date information.
Additionally, data and analytics can be tracked easily and automatically in eLearning, such as course completion rates, engagement levels, and assessment grades. Measuring the effectiveness of employee training courses is important to ensure efficiency.
The implementation of an effective training matrix allows companies to keep track of their employee’s training needs, cutting hours of tedious administrative work. This is a service we offer here at PHSS, so please contact the team on 0141 471 6266 or email info@projecthss.co.uk for more information.
Finally …
We would like to stress that despite the extensive benefits, the purpose of any eLearning course is the learning. It is important to note that some skills and types of knowledge do not lend themselves to a virtual platform.
However, the benefits of eLearning make it clear that it is a vital tool for any forward-thinking business. After all, who wouldn’t want to enhance retention rates, save on costs, and increase efficiency?
Here at PHSS we offer a wide range of comprehensive eLearning courses to cover your business skills AND health and safety needs! Find them here.
Reaping the benefits of eLearning is just a click away …
Use code ‘BLOG10’ at checkout to get 10% discount on any of our eLearning courses!