April 30, 2019
eLearning On a Budget – A Guide to Cost-Efficient Corporate eLearning
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(2)
April 30, 2019
eLearning On a Budget – A Guide to Cost-Efficient Corporate eLearning
(2)

There are a number of organizations that offhandedly dismiss eLearning because (their own words) “It is a costly one-time investment.” They’re happy to bleed their L&D budget dry month after month on a failed learning program, but will not willing to invest in an eLearning program which will likely get results as well as give them an amazing ROI. But, hey, everyone’s entitled to their opinion, however uninformed it might be. Keeping in mind the grievances of such organizations against eLearning, this article will discuss certain tips on how they can switch to eLearning to train their employees, while cutting down on the big one-time investment they so dread. Let’s have a look.

  1. Determine Who Needs eLearning and Who Doesn’t

Although it is our opinion that every individual working at an organization can and should be trained and upskilled, not all organizations may agree with this, especially if they wish to work with a tight L&D budget. Thus, organizations should identify which employees require corporate eLearning, and which ones don’t, which will help them allocate their eLearning budget a little more effectively. Also, certain departments might require more training than others, which is something that organizations should bear in mind. For example, the sales department might require extensive training on a number of technical as well as soft skills, while the front desk staff only requires communication and customer service training.

  1. Buy an eLearning Authoring Tool with Built-In Resources

There are many amazing authoring tools on the market, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. If you wish to save money on buying any external media such as stock photos, audio, video or eLearning templates, buy an eLearning authoring tool with a built-in library with lots of high-quality resources. That way, you don’t have to pay for external media to put in your courses when creating them, nor spend time searching for them on the internet. Even if you do require external media, try to use free online resources, which will require some searching, but will save money. They are various online resources for free images, audio, video and templates.

  1. Research!

Most disappointments arise as a result of improper research. Organizations get learning management systems, eLearning authoring tools and other eLearning tools without much consideration as to what would be suitable for them and regret it later on. Research thoroughly about every eLearning tool you buy and consider all its features as well as its cost to ensure that you get all that you need within a price you can afford. Try to test out every tool before you make the decision to buy it. Map them with your training goals and the number of employees you’ll be training.

  1. Get Off-The-Shelf Free eLearning Courses

Although it is advised that your corporate eLearning program does not entirely consist of free off-the-shelf eLearning courses, you can integrate some of them (ones which seem useful) into your program. This will save money on creating and developing courses or buying them. Building your whole corporate eLearning program with free eLearning courses is not recommended, as such courses are usually highly generic, and don’t target in-depth and unique employee needs as well as a course built keeping in mind an organization’s and its employees’ needs. Use free eLearning courses when ready-made content completely meets your organization’s training requirements for certain skills, and training is limited to few learners. Don’t use free eLearning courses when training is being given to fulfill the organization’s high-priority business objectives.

  1. Outsource eLearning to an eLearning Solutions Vendor/Provider

By outsourcing the creation of eLearning courses instead of creating it yourself, you will save the time and trouble of having to purchase software and hire additional team members, such as full-time Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) or graphic designers. But this should be done after thorough consideration that you are, in fact, saving money. Not all eLearning solutions providers offer the same rates, and hiring some can be more expensive than creating your own eLearning courses. Invest some time on market research and then settle on one which offers you quality eLearning courses while being within your budget.

2 Comments
2019-05-06 15:14:37
2019-05-06 15:14:37

Great tips. Thanks for sharing!

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2019-05-03 07:14:46
2019-05-03 07:14:46

Since I focus a lot on Captivate (personally still the most versatile eLearning authoring tool) I miss in this course any step related to the tool. This comment is based on my experiences as consultant and trainer. Too many developers do not use at all the Captivate features which allow to spare time in a company situation, which means reducing time and budget. Several of these are also valid if you outsource development:

  1. Use the company’s style sheet (which often exists for print etc) to create one or more solid custom themes, including a theme colors palette, object styles (with company fonts), master slides. Take into account the type(s) of projects wanted, responsive or not. Provide this theme to the developers when outsourcing.
  2. Set up a table for naming of projects (versions), for objects in Captivate for all items.  Require that developers respect this  convention.
  3. List up wanted quality for audio, video, use of graphics.
  4. Create external libraries with assets used throughout projects: graphics, audio, logos, not to forget shared actions which will automatically lead to creation of user variables.
  5. ….

Just a few tips.

 

 

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