In recent years, the workplace has seen dramatic transformations. As a result, we have seen an exponential increase in corporate e-learning. A survey by consulting company MarketsandMarkets forecasts that the eLearning market will grow from $8.4 billion in 2020 to $33.2 billion in 2025.
However, before we delve deeper, we need to ask the following questions; what precisely is eLearning? And what benefits does it provide to both learners and businesses? Continue reading to find out more.
What Is E-Learning?
E-learning is an acronym for electronic learning and refers to training information supplied electronically, whether by computer, tablet, or smartphone, in a business environment. This enables students to learn at their convenience and from any location.
Different Types of E-Learning
The following are the many forms of e-learning available:
Asynchronous Courses (Self-Learning)
The learner is in charge of his or her education. According to their schedule, learners may pick when, where, and how they learn in this environment.
Blended Learning
These programs blend instructor-led classroom instruction with online instruction (e-learning).
Mobile Education
Courses are explicitly designed for mobile devices (phones and tablets).
Synchronous Courses
They are real-time online classrooms in which students log in simultaneously from anywhere.
The Corporate World’s Role in eLearning
Over time, eLearning has evolved into a critical component of the modern workplace. It has been effectively adopted in various areas throughout the years, including retail, pharmaceutical, telecommunications, and financial services.
Since COVID-19 began, more businesses have embraced eLearning to distribute information to various audiences at any time and from any location.
Whether used to educate staff about corporate regulations or assist customers in better understanding their products, eLearning technology has several benefits.
Several Factors Have Aided In the Adoption of E-Learning in Businesses
A Changing Work Environment
According to surveys, 90% of employees want to continue working from home in some capacity. Nearly half of respondents to these same polls indicated a desire to continue working remotely for most of their time. With more employees requesting remote work, organizations’ embrace of e-learning will become even more critical to provide greater flexibility and accessibility.
Generations of Newcomers with Distinct Needs and Expectations
According to eLearning Industry, 89 percent of employees want training to be available wherever and whenever they need it, and 85 percent prefer to establish their training schedules. Additionally, 80% of workers agree that regular learning opportunities are more valuable than formal training delivered face to face.
How Does Online Education Work?
E-learning is provided through applications, cellphones, movies, and other real-time sources of information.
To maximize the benefits of e-learning in the company, a hosting solution that tracks the various learning experiences is required.
Technologies Utilized To Ensure That E-Learning Is Carried Out Effectively
A Learning Management System (LMS)
The platform is frequently used to establish Virtual Universities. An LMS’s primary functions are as follows:
- Organize training sessions, materials, and activities
- Control access, exert control over and monitor the learning process.
- Control evaluations
- Facilitate instructor-student interaction via discussion boards, videoconferences, and other means.
- Manage training, accurate tracking of each student’s progress, course outcomes, resource allocation, and alignment of company goals with training programs.
LRS (Learning Record Store)
It is a data storage system for receiving, storing, and returning learning records. With this technology, you can track your employees’ learning activities and how they engage with your training to enhance it. The LRS’s primary function is to store xAPI data.
Experience API (xAPI)
XAPI has emerged as the new industry standard for offering online training in recent years. The xAPI addresses current eLearning difficulties that prior standards (SCORM) were unable to address issues like tracking offline learning, collaborative learning, teaching through virtual and augmented reality, etc.). xAPI is sometimes referred to as the “next development” of SCORM as it has redefined several core techniques for monitoring learning events. It provides a greater degree of adaptability to the fast-paced world we live in. This system can track these learning activities straightforwardly and consistently, regardless of whether they occur within an LMS or not. xAPI, in essence, gives a complete view of the students’ experience.
How Are All of These Programs Related?
An authoring or course creation tool is used to create an e-learning course based on your material. Once done, the course is packaged in an xAPI or SCORM format and saved and provided to students via an LMS or LRS.
Why Should Your Business Adopt E-Learning?
When compared to traditional instructor-led instruction, an eLearning program has several advantages:
Agility
A training and development department must be agile to adapt to today’s rapidly changing environment, and e-learning enables the quick generation and dissemination of appropriate information. And, perhaps most importantly, information can be readily and quickly updated to respond to new market conditions and/or laws.
Time and Money Are Saved
Organizations pay less on eLearning when they eliminate the expenditures of classroom logistics, travel, instructors, and printing training materials. Additionally, employees devote less time to training. Additional statistics are available here.
According to a survey conducted by Brandon Hall Group, businesses that engage in e-Learning save at least 50% on traditional instructor-led training. Additionally, eLearning often takes 40% to 60% less time to learn a given subject than in a regular classroom.
This is because employees may get online training at their convenience and without interfering with their job.
Learning Experiences Correspond To How Individuals Learn
Modern employees acquire more knowledge more quickly and precisely, at the point of need. Students may access information constantly, from any location, and as frequently as necessary via eLearning.
Data Collection and Analysis In Support Of Decision-Making
The majority of eLearning solutions have sophisticated and accurate monitoring and reporting capabilities. The study of student interactions in an eLearning setting enables the visualization and comprehension of their activities, allowing for the optimization of learning experiences, verification of program effectiveness, and enhancement of student performance. More information is available here.
Standardization of Content
E-learning ensures that every employee has access to the same learning experience, regardless of the teacher. Here are some of the things to focus on.
Accessibility
Information is available 24 hours, 365 days a year.
Low Per-Student Expenses
E-leaning Eliminates expenditures related to time away from work removes travel and material costs and eliminates the need for physical space.
Scalability
It enables you to train a greater number of pupils in less time. It is possible to scale tremendously with eLearning technologies.
eLearning’s Return on Investment
One of the most often asked questions about eLearning is its return on investment. Even though the initial investment appears to be higher, eLearning can be extremely profitable compared to face-to-face programs. There is no better way to evaluate this issue than considering the Return on Investment (ROI).
The overall formula is as follows: ROI = Profit – Costs.
Consider the following factors when calculating the cost of investing in eLearning:
- eLearning course development, involving team members and subject matter experts
- Costs associated with the LMS and/or infrastructure;
- Costs of delivery and upkeep
- Administrative expenses.
Consider the following when calculating the cost of investing in eLearning
- Costs recovered by delivering training in a less agile and scalable manner (person-hours generated by students and trainers not quitting their jobs for instructor-led training)
- Increase the number of persons trained on the same subject at the same time
- The cost savings associated with travel and administrative expenses
In the long term, you will see that Earnings are far more than Costs—the numerous benefits of adopting training via eLearning that we outlined previously.