Tools for Learning Communities

Traditional classroom On-site engagement Virtual online class­room

Live video via satellite or videoconferencing Online coaching and mentoring

Instructor-led classroom via e-mail Online or computer-based training Self-study guides, manuals, texts Online resources and databases

Chat

Instant messaging

Newsgroups and

forums

Collaboration

• Cost savings through minimizing time away from the job and travel, classroom, and instructor expenses

• The ability to create extended communities of practice where peer-to-peer interactions provide a vital learning environment

Table 7.2 presents examples of blended learning form factors, tools, and delivery methods.

In the learning stage, individuals will have the correct materials and learn­ing environments to assist in moving them from where they are to where they need to be. Microsoft Learning moved to a blended strategy by creating a new product family of clinics, workshops, and courses. Each is designed for blended delivery, including multiple form factors (both print and electronic) and a de­tailed blended delivery guide. CPLS partners deliver these products in a vari­ety of settings—in the classroom, on site at customer locations, and online. The Official Microsoft Learning Products family also comprises learning units in digital format, such as Adobe Acrobat PDF and Word documents, PowerPoint slides, and HTML/XML files. Learning units enable CPLS partners to as­semble and sequence the learning units in a customized format appropriate for the customer project. The portfolio of products can be applied as is or cus­tomized for the application.

Table 7.3 shows how a CPLS partner can transform a traditional five-day classroom experience into a blended learning solution through the application of official learning products. In this scenario, only two days of in-class work are required. The impetus for a scenario such as this one can be a need to minimize the time employees are off the job, while ensuring maximum learning. Pretraining assessment is used to determine the optimum mix of learning strategies for the blended solution.

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TABLE 7.3. BLENDED LEARNING SCENARIO.

Apply

CPLS partners conduct a postproject assessment to determine the value of the learning experience and ensure the organization will be successful in achieving the goals outlined during the assessment stage of the project. This analysis com­pares the organization's progress as measured against goals. The assessment may include validation of skills mastery through certification, as well as quantitative measures of improvements to productivity, competitiveness, and customer and supplier relationships. The results of the posttraining assessment are fed back into the next development project for continuous improvement.

Case Histories

The following three case histories illustrate the power of blended learning within the framework of assess, learn, and apply. The first is from the United States, the second from the Philippines, and the third from Argentina. They pre­sent a truly global picture of the impact that blended learning can have.

State of Wisconsin

The State of Wisconsin Technology Leadership Council, an organization of the chief information officers and IT directors from various state agencies, and the Department of Administration, Division of Enterprise Technology, mandated that all state agen­cies consolidate server and e-mail services. The goals of this multiyear project were to have a single source or state agency that would house or control all of the state's thousands of servers and to perform upgrades using a host of products from nu­merous suppliers in order to standardize on Windows Server 2003 and Exchange Server 2003 by the first quarter of 2005. Furthermore, a significant number of personnel had to be trained and ready to fill vacancies left by the growing number of retiring senior employees.

The Handbook of Blended Learning

Microsoft training partner Inacom Information Systems played an instrumental role in this project. Inacom specializes in technology consulting, education, and procurement.

Assess

Inacom first analyzed knowledge gaps for key groups and prepared a customized foun­dational training solution to mitigate those gaps. This was an extensive and much needed process because there was a wide range of skill and knowledge levels among personnel.

Learn

The solution required training of two thousand State of Wisconsin employees and con­sultants on the latest Microsoft technologies. The training solution embodied all major training vehicles, including ILT, e-learning, mentoring, ongoing technical telephone support, and architecture design role playing. The training solution not only spanned many training mechanisms but also included important pillars of IT: application de­velopment, office productivity, and enterprise information technologies. Drawing from a host of Microsoft official products, Inacom presented a range of both standardized and customized courses.

In addition, Inacom worked with other well-known providers to deliver the e-learning portion of the solution. Nearly four hundred e-learning courses were hosted on a Web-based learning portal made available to personnel. Courses were offered not only in English but also in a host of languages to support those for whom English was not their first language. The selection of languages beyond English included German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Brazilian, Portuguese, Hungarian, Turkish, Polish, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Arabic. Accommodations were made for hearing- and sight-impaired learners.

Apply

More than seventeen hundred individuals were trained in a twelve-month period. The cost of the IT Core Training Program to Wisconsin was close to $900, 000. The e-learning portion was close to $250, 000. The state estimated it saved more than $1.2 million compared to purchasing standardized training. Content from the courses con­tinues to provide employee and organizational value through an ongoing offering from Wisconsin Employees' Virtual University.

Mary Chandler, enterprise IT training director for the State of Wisconsin, says: " We have trained thousands of information technology professionals, and as a result of continued state-of-the-art training, we have increased job satisfaction and employee retention and built one of the best IT organizations in the country. Inacom has adapted this program to offer each type of learner the optimum experience for learning. We have traditional classroom, private events with intense custom material, e-learning,

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and side-by-side consulting. This solution has allowed the State of Wisconsin to deploy technology with speed and predictable outcomes."

Integrated Solutions Technology, Philippines

Integrated Solutions Technology (1ST), headquartered in Hong Kong with operations in the Philippines, is an industry leader in collaborative apparel supply chain solutions. Its ability to provide knowledge-based services to customers is founded on the re­cruitment, skills enhancement, and empowerment of a world-class development and service support team. 1ST required a training solution that would enable software de­velopers to improve productivity when creating and launching cutting-edge Web services and applications.

Data Base Wizards (dB Wizards), located in the Philippines, led the development of a flexible, highly customized. NET-based learning solution that combines instructor-led training and e-learning for 1ST. The company's main lines of business are train­ing, consulting, and Microsoft solutions sales.

Assess

Assessment focused on determining IST's needs and job competencies. Skill gaps for the ninety developers in the program were identified and mapped to IST's business project needs. dB Wizards identified appropriate Microsoft courseware and developed a learning plan. The plan used a combination of classroom, e-learning, self-paced learn­ing, and supplemental materials. dB Wizards' instructors were involved in the assess­ment from the beginning, working hand-in-hand with sales representatives to understand client needs. This early involvement and understanding helped to produce a customized plan dB Wizards believed would be optimum for 1ST.

Learn

dB Wizards was able to offer a degree of blended learning never before available through the expanded range of official Microsoft products in both print and electronic formats. Overall, dB Wizards used twenty Microsoft courses for developers. In addition, it developed two customized courses and assembled a host of reference materials in print and electronic formats. Blending was key to the success of the project.

For example, a course designed to build developer skills for Microsoft.NET was of­fered in a blended format of instructor-led classes and e-learning with supplemental con­tent available in print and electronic formats. The training was designed to be relevant to personnel possessing a range of skill levels. The instructor-led version of this course typi­cally requires twenty-eight days in the classroom. 1ST personnel obtained equivalent train­ing in just twenty days through blending. 1ST employees trained at their own pace and spent less time away from their jobs while acquiring cutting-edge skills. Blended learning helped 1ST meet its aggressive time frame for implementing new technology.

The Handbook of Blended Learning

Apply

After completing their training, 1ST developers, using new Microsoft software, were able to build and launch new applications more quickly, improving time to market by 20 percent. The blended solution helped to lower the cost of training, sometimes as much as 30 percent per course.

Floyd B. Castro, 1ST program manager, notes, " dB Wizards has gained IST's con­fidence as our training provider. This confidence is based on their capability to deliver quality training to our staff that helped us achieve a high level of technical maturity."

Microsoft de Argentina

Due to slow economic growth in Argentina, IT professionals there have typically lacked access to the latest technology. Microsoft de Argentina wanted to update the skills of IT professionals throughout Argentina prior to the launch of Windows Server 2003 so that the adoption of this new software would be seamless for organizations. At that time, Microsoft Spanish-language training content was not yet available. To respond to customer needs, Microsoft de Argentina turned to one of its principal training part­ners, Buffa Sistemas, Sri. (BS Training), for a solution.

Assess

To be effective, Microsoft de Argentina estimated that more than five thousand IT pro­fessionals needed to be skilled in Windows 2003 quickly. Given the extent of the project, short deadline, and limited budget, BS Training identified a blended solution as the optimum one. It developed a free Web-based course, " Windows Server 2003, Step by Step." Content was customized from the range of Microsoft training materi­als, and the course was mapped to Microsoft certification. Because it was Web based, it could reach professionals throughout Argentina.

Learn

A two-server system was set up that could accommodate twenty thousand users and handle three thousand new registrations per minute. Learners were encouraged to progress through the online course at their own pace. When they paused in their stud­ies, they could begin again later at the same spot in the course for a seamless experi­ence. Exercises and practice exams were threaded throughout the course, and links to additional information were embedded. Commonly asked questions were handled on a Frequently Asked Questions page. Microsoft certified systems engineers were avail­able via e-mail to answer learners' individual questions. A final exam evaluated knowl­edge at the conclusion of the course. The final exam was promoted as the first step for those wishing to continue professional development through Microsoft Certified Professional exams.

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Apply

Microsoft de Argentina judged that training five thousand individuals would consti­tute a success. As it turned out, more than ten thousand were trained. The cost of the blended solution was a fraction of what it would have been for the equivalent class­room experience. Thanks to the success of this program, this initiative was ultimately expanded throughout Latin America.

Ivan Labra, manager of Audiencias, Microsoft Chile, says, " The work on the Spanish content for 'Windows Server 2003, Step by Step' was completed on time and provided an outstanding learning experience. The fact that the course was subsequently made available throughout Latin America is a testament to its effectiveness."

Conclusion

The combined effect of cost cutting and customer confusion has resulted in low training investments overall and a slowed adoption of new learning methods. Dis­cussions about e-learning can seem too focused on technology and standards and miss the point. Training is not an either-or decision between e-learning or ILT. Instead, training must be focused on developing combinations of methods of learning: typically blended, flexible offerings. In addition, more attention must be placed on understanding where the learner is in terms of skills at the start of process. At the same time, efforts to identify the overall project goals have to be ascertained. Assessment therefore becomes a greater focus of the process. New tools such as Microsoft Skills Assessment for Organizations will help automate and simplify this process.

Training organizations must continue the transformation into learning con­sultancies. This is essential if the solutions offered are going to transcend the men­tality of providing off-the-shelf products. Local training organizations must develop their own personnel into experts in assessment as well as the development of blended learning solutions. Trust between training provider and customer is essential for these programs to move forward. Training providers must put the customer first in order to succeed.

Reference

Gelfuso, J., Truax, D., O'Brien, D., Dennis, L., Rosi, I., Weisbeek, M., Caylor, L., Kothari, K., & Church, R. (2005, March). Microsoft learning: e-learning business plan—fiscal year OS^fiscal year 08. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation.

CHAPTER EIGHT