Elearning blog: Learning re-imagined

Mobile learning: Increased personalization?

By Margot Cook, Skillsoft Learning Strategist and Program Manager

I was amazed this morning as I watched my 5-year old daughter use my smartphone. She happily sat down, played a math game and when she was done, found a video to watch. I’ve had conversations with colleagues and friends, marveling about how our children would rather watch a video on a smartphone screen than on the big screen. Growing up in a world of ever increasing TV screen sizes, I’ve always wondered what the appeal is. Five minutes later, I had my answer when my 3-year old son attempted to sit with his sister to watch the video, and the screaming started. Watching the video and learning from the mobile device was her experience, and, at that time, not one she wanted to share. The small screen provides a more intimate setting, and is targeted just at her. It was highly personal.

That being said, mobile learning can also be collaborative. The night before, when we were discovering how to cut a pineapple, the 3 of us huddled around the small screen together. While I was cutting, my daughter re-watched the video and my son gave me other pointers and ensured I followed all of the steps. We were truly collaborating in the battle of the pineapple, and eating the yummy pineapple together was our reward.  

Throw Back Thursday: performance reviews

We receive so much valuable content from our customers, partners and internal subject-matter experts. On Thursdays, we thought it would be fun to do a “throw back” and bring back an older post that was valuable to our audience. Today’s throw back is on mobile resources that support performance reviews.

Mobile Learning Support for Performance Reviews

By Ann Gebreselassie, Learning Consultant, Skillsoft

As the end of the year approaches, you may be deep in the performance review process. Skillsoft offers many tools and resources to assist your organization during the performance management cycle, as several of my colleagues have recently written about on this blog. Skillsoft also offers mobile learning solutions to help support managers as they prepare to conduct performance reviews.

As technology continues to evolve at breakneck speed, has your life-long-learning strategy kept pace?  Certainly there is still value in face-to-face learning interactions.  Both formal, as in a classroom setting, or informal as in mentoring, traditional methods of learning are not going to disappear.  With the globalization of business, and the advanced technologies that support it, the need for quick and agile learning opportunities has risen as a priority.  In particular, the more senior your role within an organization, the more necessary it becomes for your learning and development to gel with hectic schedules.

Here are some examples of ways that Skillsoft supports continuous learning on-the-go for leaders at every level of an organization, including solutions to help managers prepare for performance reviews:

• Skillsoft® Books24x7® ExecSummaries™: These 8-page summaries provide a synopsis of some of the top business books.  Written by the authors themselves, ExecSummaries are perfect for a quick read on a tablet.  Some of my personal favorites include: The Truth About Leadership, Multipliers, and Win: The Key Principles to Take Your Business from Ordinary to Extraordinary.

New Skillsoft IT and Desktop Video Collections

Skillsoft today introduced two new collections of on-demand IT and desktop performance support videos. The Skillsoft IT and Desktop Videos are captivating, 3-5 minutes of targeted learning experiences, covering a variety of desktop and IT topics. The videos, which complement other Skillsoft content and are available on Skillport® Skillsoft’s Learning Management System, highlight specific tasks and features, and cover nearly 1,000 topics. In order to support busy professionals, Skillsoft has made the videos so that they are available on mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones.

The Skillsoft IT and Desktop Videos are the latest additions to Skillsoft’s dynamic portfolio of video based learning assets. Skillsoft has been incorporating video into its learning solutions since 2006, initially with the introduction of its media-rich Business Impact and Challenge series products, and most recently with the addition of video in hundreds of its Business Skills courses. The Skillsoft Leadership Development Channel™ and 50 Lessons offers over 2000 videos, featuring world renowned business and global thought leaders.

Join Skillsoft at Technology Enabled Learning

Melynda Hilliard is the Events Marketing Manager at Skillsoft.

By Melynda Hilliard

As an e-learning provider, we’re pleased to participate in the upcoming HR.com virtual conference, Technology Enabled Learning on June 6 & 7. The conference will feature several thought provoking webcasts including Maximizing Training ROI Through High-Impact Learning: A Case Study and Creating Mobile Learning, Yourself, Today!  

Skillsoft will have a virtual booth at this event – stop by to learn about Skillport® 8, our new cloud-based LMS - a revolution in learning. In addition, visit the Skillsoft booth to view helpful resources and interact with our team!  As a company that supports collaboration and the sharing of information, we encourage you to attend.  A critical part of the learning experience involves informal learning by connecting with your peers in person or virtually via social tools.  inGenius® perhaps? J

If you’re not already a member of HR.com, you should join to attend this conference at no cost. The free HR.com membership includes several benefits, including the ability to network with your industry peers, watch live webcasts and events, browse for jobs and more.  

View the latest event details
Visit our events page for updates on webinars, tradeshows, regional events and conferences that Skillsoft hosts or attends.

Decrease Time and Increase Impact with Targeted Learning

The amount of e-learning content available to learners grows every day. There are books, videos, courses, articles, and case studies that go on at length on hundreds of relevant workplace training topics. It’s no wonder that learners become overwhelmed at the variety and volume of information available to them. According to Bersin & Associates, today’s professionals, otherwise known as the “next generation” of e-learners, need targeted materials that closely align with their business goals.

SkillSoft’s New Infographic Helps Companies Develop a Mobile Learning Strategy

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To learn more about SkillSoft’s Mobile Learning solutions please visit http://www.skillsoft.com/solutions/mobile-learning.asp. To download the Mobile Learning infographic visit http://www.skillsoft.com/infographic/mobile-learning-strategy-infographic.pdf

 

Mobile Learning Support for Performance Reviews

By Ann Gebreselassie, Learning Consultant, SkillSoft

As the end of the year approaches, you may be deep in the performance review process. SkillSoft offers many tools and resources to assist your organization during the performance management cycle, as several of my colleagues have recently written about on this blog. SkillSoft also offers mobile learning solutions to help support managers as they prepare to conduct performance reviews.

Learning at the Point of Need

We are pleased to bring you a guest blog post today from Gary Woodill, a Books24x7 BusinessPro Collection author. He is an independent emerging technologies analyst, who works for a variety of clients in researching and planning for their use of new tools for learning. Woodill is coauthor of Training and Collaboration with Virtual Worlds (McGraw-Hill, 2010) and is the author of numerous articles and research reports on emerging learning technologies.

Gary Woodill, Ed.D., CEO and Senior Analyst, i5 Research

The development of computer hardware over the past 30 years from desk-size minicomputers to luggable and portable suitcase-size computers, and then to smaller and smaller laptops, tablets, and smartphones, has allowed us to build a new approach to corporate training called “mobile learning.” Starting in the mid-1990s, mobile learning was first developed in universities, but by the early 2000s, was being advocated for use in training departments of large corporations. However, like many new technologies, the first attempts to develop mobile learning were to try to stuff presentations and lectures onto very small screens. But, as mobile learning developed, we learned that there are many new ways of using smart phones and tablets as sites for personal learning.

Why So Low?

By Kieran King

When KnowledgeAdvisors measured SkillSoft’s scrap learning rate (the percent of learning that is not applied to the job within six weeks) at such a low level (14 percent), the question of “why so low?” naturally arises.  This is especially so when most learning efforts result in more than half scrap.

Why, well it comes down to two primary aspects of the SkillSoft solutions:

 

 

When it Comes to Mobile Learning, There are Bigger Questions to Ask Than “Do You Have an App for That?”

By Tim Hildreth

With smartphones and tablets becoming the new norm in the workplace, organizations are seeing the potential for mobile learning. However, many of them are asking themselves if now is the right time to take the plunge or if they should wait for a more stable mobile landscape.

Several factors play into an organization’s decision making process for mobile learning, including speed, security, economics, and the multiple platforms and shifting standards. The state of the market is still in flux, and there are many unknowns that make it difficult to create a long term strategy. However, mobile learning does appear to be here to stay, with Train­ing & Development magazine listing it as one of the six trends that will change work­place learning forever, so more and more organizations are making the decision to incorporate mobile learning into their learning programs.

When making that decision, there are five basic questions that organizations should ask themselves to decide next steps:

1. What does “mobile” mean?

• While some assume that mobile learning is delivered on a mobile phone or tablet, others associate it with portability. By broadening the discussion to overall portability, the devices and approaches are more diverse, and often more attainable. Additional portable devices include laptops and media players, such as iPods.

2. What problem are you trying to solve?

• Mobile is still only a component of an overall learning strategy. It is important to keep the audience in mind, as well as what types of learning you want to focus on. Based on most mobile devices’ capabilities, they lend themselves well to performance support, reminders and notifications, and assessments and surveys.

3. What devices will you support?

• Based on the lack of standardization between device platforms, it is impossible to cater to the needs of every device’s operating system. Once you understand the capabilities and limitations of various devices, you are likely to conclude that your mobile program needs to be focused on limited number of devices or even a single device. It is important to evaluate the various strengthens and weaknesses of each device.

4. Do you have the necessary organizational support?

• Your mobile learning strategy needs to be aligned with overall organizational strategy and informed by a thorough understanding of the company’s IT approach. To be successful, the program needs to be built on a strong partnership between the HR/Training group and the IT department. In addition, the strategy needs to be built around your company’s policy on providing mobile devices to employees. At the outset of your planning, it is wise to sit down with senior leaders and understand what their views are on mobile devices, and if they envision a time in the near future when the organizational approach may be changing.

Interested in the fifth question to consider when evaluating next steps with mobile learning? Check out our white paper: Five Calls to Make When Developing a Mobile Learning Strategy!

Free download: Download the complimentary 8-page white paper that details the five basic questions that organizations should ask themselves when evaluating next steps with mobile learning.