Unprecedented times mean an unprecedented need for eLearning and online training. Discover who needs eLearning today and how to benefit from remote learning.
How convenient would it be to never have to go to work training again? No travel and crummy hotel stays? No full week blocked out of your schedule? Just learning what you need to do your job from the comfort of your office on your time?
It might seem like a crazy thing, but this type of training is actually becoming more and more prevalent in numerous industries, thanks to the growth of online or eLearning.
Online education is most commonly associated with online coursework in colleges - which is a major player - but nowadays companies are incorporating it to reach employee training goals like never before.
With the education industry leading the way, we can expect to see a growing number of industries looking to adopt eLearning techniques.
This is especially relevant with the COVID-19 pandemic keeping people at home and away from the office and any large training events they may have been planning to attend.
Education Leads the Way
Though traditional brick and mortar buildings for education still exist and likely aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, online education opportunities are growing at a profound rate.
For many majors that don’t require lab equipment such as English, economy, or mathematics, online education can be the much cheaper and more efficient way to go for many students.
For educators, this can mean making some substantial changes to how the coursework is delivered and taught. It can be challenging, but online education provides greater opportunities for students who may not be able to physically be in the classroom as well as to those students who learn at different rates.
As new technologies are implemented - take virtual reality for example - more and more high-value education can take place online at all levels.
From a business perspective, online education can be a very lucrative move for the education industry in general. Though universities are missing out on tuition funds accrued from students physically being on campus, such as room and board, these losses can be turned into cost savings, such as less need for dorm rooms. Universities stand to make a lot of money on non-traditional students including those looking for new careers later in life who aren’t willing to uproot their lives and move to a college town.
See what eLearning success looks like for educators right here:
- Assiniboine Community College Doubled its User Base and Reduced Annual Costs by Half [Case Study]
- Rutgers University Develops Unique Moodle Instance to Deliver Healthcare Training [Case Study]
Incorporating eLearning in HR
In other industries, eLearning has quite a promising future. Many companies are deeply interested in incorporating online educational training into their onboarding new employee process. On-boarding is a powerful means of helping new employees build a sense of company understanding and feel more connected to the overall goals of their employers.
Online training can help employees feel more comfortable learning about and working through sensitive topics because they don’t feel required to put themselves out there in a room full of strangers or co-workers. Likewise, with learning tools like gamification, online training can be a lot more interesting and engaging for some employees.
Grab this free eBook for a detailed guide for utilizing eLearning to Attract Star Talent (And Keep Them!): Learning Paths for Employee Retention
Businesses can gain a lot from online learning as well. For instance, there are a great deal of cost-savings associated with moving some training courses online. Online courses also offer greater flexibility and scalability. For example, a pre-recorded online course could be viewed by employees of a large company from anywhere across the country at any time rather than in one specific place.
Master The All-Important E’s of eLearning: Engagement & Effectiveness with this eBook designed to help you get the most from your eLearning investment.
The Industry of the Future
Going into the future, one could expect that more and more onboarding and human resource-related learning will begin to take place online. Even things you wouldn’t normally think of like learning how to work on a car at the mechanic shop or learning how to use the cash register at the local shopping mall are likely to move online. New apps and technologies will continue to make online learning easier and easier.
Experts anticipate that the eLearning market will grow substantially over the next decade. Some suggest that the total value of the eLearning industry will be near $300 billion by 2025! Whether we are ready for the change or not, they are coming and we are likely to start seeing them in our offices if we aren’t already.
Every day, new apps and technologies emerge that are propelling online education further along. Certain specialties have developed apps that allow novices to gain baseline training. For example, botanical experts are rapidly developing online floras for their regions that allow those untrained in the technical identification of plants to narrow down what is growing in their backyards or on their hikes.
Want to learn more about the growth and opportunities in the eLearning industry? Grab your copy of What is an eLearning Business? Examining the $200 billion eLearning Industry today!
Online education is a powerful tool, not just for colleges and universities but for nearly every industry. The benefits in education are obvious as more people are able to access education at a cheaper rate than attending school physically. Most companies can benefit from incorporating eLearning into their onboarding and HR-related training requirements. Moving into the future, we can only expect a greater transition into more online training as the industry grows and newer technologies are implemented.
Disclaimer: This article was contributed by guest blogger Beau Peters. Beau is a creative professional with a lifetime of experience in service and care. As a manager, he's learned a slew of tricks of the trade that he enjoys sharing with others who have the same passion and dedication that he brings to his work. The views and opinions expressed belong to the guest blogger alone, and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or opinions of Lambda Solutions
