E-learning – Significant Results Without a Significant Investment

By Steve Gluckman –

Get this… In 2009 33% of learning and development budgets across industries were dedicated to “tech-enabled learning,” including e-learning, learning management, mobile learning, and other such resources. That’s one dollar out of every three spent on some kind of technology-based learning tool or solution—a big number to be sure. However, by 2013, that number jumped to 67%! Organizations today are driving two-thirds of their training through digital content, mobile devices, video, and other new media sources. (Source: Corporate Learning Factbook 2013, Bersin & Associates). That’s a big shift in a short period of time.

What’s driving this shift? Learning preferences, for one.   A significant portion of today’s workforce (not just the 20-somethings) prefer to learn in “spurts” and exactly at the point of execution. That is, they prefer to have brief, targeted learning resources available on-demand and at their fingertips right when they need it.

Don’t get me wrong, the need for classroom and in-person training is alive and well and will remain a critical part of any firm’s learning and development solution. However, we must consider additional and blended approaches to the presentation of important learning topics as well.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when thinking about how best to accomplish:

1. Keep your e-learning modules brief and targeted. Rather than a 4-hour “Introduction to E-Discovery” class or 2-hour video, consider dividing the content that would make up such a program into multiple, smaller “chunks”— each addressing a specific and targeted topic area. Perhaps one 15-minute module could address “Why is E-Discovery Important?” and another, separate 20-minute module could address “Preservation Best-Practices.”
2. Leverage what you’re already doing.   You’re already putting on live programs with great content. You may also be video recording them as well. If so, take the next step to take that content and divide it into a series of targeted, self-paced e-learning modules.
3. Make them easy to find.   Anyone in your firm should be able to state exactly where they should go when they are in need of just-in-time learning resources (i.e., they shouldn’t have to dig through intranet pages or SharePoint sites to locate them). Once there, on-demand learning resources should be organized by topic area (perhaps aligned with a competency model and/or by practice area) and searchable.
4. Make them engaging. Adding supporting elements to your modules – such as speed-whiteboarding, animation, exercises, and video – help to make them “Engaging, Entertaining, Enduring, and Effective” (I call these the “Four E’s of E-Learning”).
5. Add community elements. When learning on their own, learners still want the option to reach out to peers with questions or comments. They may also want to reach back to the original instructor(s) for clarifications. Adding social and supporting elements to your modules is fairly straight-forward and can greatly enhance the learning experience.

The great news is that this is all doable without a huge investment. And the returns can be significant.

We’ll explore that – and each of the tips above – in more detail in future blog posts.

Blog Author

Steve Gluckman is the Founder of Law Firm E-learning, LLC. He is also the author of the ABA and Amazon.com best-selling book, “E-Learning for Law Firms” (published by the American Bar Association) and has advised scores of AmLaw 200 firms regarding their online learning efforts.