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7/31/2019 ELMS Trends

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Blended Learning: What Works

Blended Learning: What Works?

By Bersin & Associates

Abstract:

After nearly 2 years of research in blended learning, and detailed interviews withmore than 30 companies, we find that blended learning is replacing e-learning asthe next big thing. Our research finds that blended learning programs are perhapsthe highest impact, lowest cost way to drive major corporate initiatives. Companieshave discovered unique and powerful methodologies for selecting the right mediato solve a given business problem. The biggest challenges companies face includetechnology and the change management and business processes required to roll outmajor programs. Results: Blended Learning solves the problem of speed, scale, andimpact and leverages e-learning where its most appropriate, without forcing e-learning into places it does not fit.

Blended Learning is the latest buzzword in corporate training. It sounds so simple mixing e-learning with other types of training delivery. But now that internet-training is sowidespread, where does it fit? What are the best ways to blend delivery types? Will theterm blended learning replace e-learning?

In 2002 and 2003 we set out to understand these issues and conducted a very large studyof more than 30 corporate blended learning programs to understand what works. Someinteresting findings we uncovered:

1. Blended Learning IS the next big thing.

In the late 90s everyone jumped on the e-learning craze. In reality the promise was a littleimmature. Internet-based training grew up in the IT world where people are used tospending hours in front of their computers.

Now we know that different problems require different solutions (different mixes of mediaand delivery) and we believe that the key is to apply the RIGHT MIX to a given businessproblem. Hence blended learning is effectively replacing e-learning.

Unlike traditional education, corporate training exists primarily to improve businessperformance. We are not in the business of making employees smarter, but rather in the

business of increasing revenue or reducing costs.

We deal primarily with adults people who want and need to learn just enough to becomemore effective at their jobs. The science of how to teach adults through the internet isstill being developed. We know that people learn in different ways, and different mediaapplies to different people.

Bersin & Associates 1 May 2003


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Blended Learning is really the natural evolution of e-learning into an integrated programof multiple media types, applied toward a business problem in an optimum way, to solve abusiness problem.

I believe that every successful e-learning program is or will become a blended learning

program.

2. Blended Learning optimizes your resources.

As we talked to companies embarking on blended learning, we found them asking the samequestions. What combination of tools and media will give me the biggest impact for thelowest investment?

In some cases, like Ciscos reseller certification program which must reach nearly900,000 people, the audience is so large and the problem so complex that a major web-based curriculum is needed. In others, like Siemens global change in accounting practices,

the audience was nearly 10,000 financial professionals and a simulation-based solution wasneeded.

These projects cost $Millions to develop and are cost-justified based on the largeaudience and huge business drivers required.

In other cases, however, when a company like Kinkos rolls out a new product to their fieldsales offices, a conference call and series of job aids will do the trick.

>>> The key to blended learning is selecting the right combination of media that willdrive the highest business impact for the lowest possible cost.

So how do you decide the mix?

We found a variety of methodologies. One of the simplest approaches is to createelectronic content and surround it with human, interactive content. This approach ofsurrounding e-learning with human enables you to create high interest, accountability,and real assessment of the results of the e-learning program.



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Bersin &Associates12 Blended Learning: What WorksBlended Learning: What Works

The Simplest ApproachThe Simplest Approach

InstructorInstructor

LedLed

IntroductionIntroduction

(or conference call)(or conference call)

EE--LearningLearning

CoursewareCourseware

Or Online ProgramOr Online Program

InstructorInstructor

LedLed

ExerciseExercise

or Assessmentor Assessment

This approach was used by many companies when rolling out ERP application training.An initial conference call and series of meetings was used to explain the project and whythe new system is so important then the users took an online course then there was a

follow-up meeting and evaluation by the manager before the system was actually rolledout.

3. Each media type has its own strengths and weaknesses.

To make blended learning more powerful, you can start looking at all the media as options:classroom training, web-based training, webinars, CD-ROM courses, video, EPSS systems,and simulations. Other media which is less exciting but just as important includes books,job aids, conference calls, documents, and PowerPoint slides.

One lesson we learned is that the highest impact programs (such as the training program

provided for new sales reps at British Telecom) blend a more complex media with one ormore of the simpler media. A web-based course for introduction followed by a realhands-on interactive class is an obvious mix.

Some of the questions you should ask when selecting media are shown below:



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Bersin & Associates11 Blended Learning: What WorksBlended Learning: What Works

Findings: How to Select the Blend?Findings: How to Select the Blend?

AudienceSkills

Time availableMotivation

Scale

Audience sizeNeed to update frequently?

Business Application

Need to assess learners?Need to certify?Need to track completion?

Impact of not learning?

TimeTime to develop?

Time to roll out?Time to complete?

The Right Mix is2 or 3 of.

Classroom Instruction

Web-based courseware

CD-ROM-based courseware Live virtual classes/Webinars Onsite labs

Conference calls

Virtual labs Text-based job aids

EPSS Portals Communities of practice

Mentors

ContentAre SMEs available?

Shelf life of content?Simulation/labs available?

ResourcesBudget?

SMEs?Content developers?

In fact, from this research we developed a media selection guide which can helpcompanies identify which media to use for a given problem.

Blended Learning: What Works Checklist page 3 Bersin & Associates, 2003 www.bersin.com

Media Type InstructionalValue

Scalability Time toDevelop

Cost toDevelop

Cost toDeploy

AssessmentCapable

Trackable

Classroombased training

High Low 3-6 weeks Medium High Medium Low

WBT Course-ware

High High 4-20 weeks High Low High High

CD ROMCourseware

High High 6-20 weeks High Medium High Low

ConferenceCalls

Low Medium 0-2 weeks Low Low No No

Webinars Medium Medium 3-6 weeks Low Medium Low Low

Software /Online Simu-

lations

Very High Medium 8-20 weeks High Medium High High

Lab-basedSimulations

Very High Low 3-6 weeks High High Medium Medium

Job Aids Low High 0-3 weeks Low Low None None

Web Pages Low High 1-8 weeks Low Low None None

Web Sites Low High 1-8 weeks Low Low None None

Mentors Medium Low 2-3 weeks High High Low Low

Chat-Discussion-Community

Services

Medium Low Medium 4-6 weeks Medium Medium None Low

Video (VCRor Online)

High Medium 6-20 weeks High High None Low

EPSS Medium Medium 8-20 weeks Medium Medium None Medium

How to

DesignandArchitectyour

Blended

LearningProgram

Media

Selection

Guide



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4. Blended Learning forces you to think about the business problem.

One of the big things we found was that once you have to make media or blenddecisions, you are essentially doing portfolio management. Just like the problem ofbalancing your 401K account, people need a methodology to help decide when to use a

webinar, when to use a conference call, and when to build a complex simulation or onlinecourse. When you create a financial portfolio, you start with your goals factor in risk,time, and budget. In blended learning, the factors are similar:

Specifically what is the business problem or goal? (Need to increase sales revenuefor a new product)

What is the learning problem which you believe is creating this business problem?Can you be sure it is a learning problem or a problem of distributing newinformation? (Need to train sales reps on value proposition and pricing of this newproduct)

What are the characteristics of the audience? (How much time will they have to use

the content? What connectivity will they have? What kind of learning style andeducation level do they need? What do they respond to? How motivated are they?)

What are the characteristics of the content? (How long before it goes out of date?Are we informing, developing skills, or creating competencies? We developed a

paradigm describing the 4 types of corporate training which helps with this

located athttp://www.bersin.com/tips_techniques/Breeze2.htm , Where is thiscontent? What SMEs do we need to use? How much time will be able to get with

them?)

What kind of measurement do we need? And how much? What amount ofmeasurement does the business problem justify? (Measurement is expensive what do we really need to measure in order to solve this business problem?

Completion? Scores? Certifications? Nothing at all?)

http://www.bersin.com/tips_techniques/Breeze2.htmhttp://www.bersin.com/tips_techniques/Breeze2.htm


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The Blended Learning ProcessThe Blended Learning Process

IdentifyIdentify

BusinessBusiness

ChallengeChallenge

DefineDefine

LearningLearning

ChallengeChallenge

CharacterizeCharacterize

AudienceAudience

DevelopDevelop

Learning PlanLearning Plan

DevelopDevelop

MeasurementMeasurement

StrategyStrategy

ImplementImplement

InfrastructureInfrastructure(see infrastructure(see infrastructure

Diagram)Diagram)

DevelopDevelop

OrOr

BuyBuy

ContentContent

LaunchLaunch

ProgramProgram

TrackTrack

ProgressProgress

MeasureMeasure

ResultsResults

11 22 33 44

Each of these questions can be thorny. But you cannot hope to answer these questionsrationally without understanding what business cost, benefit, and processes you need to besuccessful.

5. Technology is not as easy or ubiquitous as people think.

Here is an amazing fact. Nearly every company we talked to told us about manytechnology hurdles they had to overcome. In the process diagram above, in step 3 weidentify how companies implement infrastructure. Infrastructure is very problematic inmost corporations.

Some of the places which can trip you up include:

Some learners do not have high bandwidth connectivity because they are in foreigncountries or remote locations therefore some content will not run.

PCs each have different browser versions and plugins, so content standards mustbe set which specify browser version, plugins, bandwidth, memory, and cpu speed

needed. LMS systems are expensive and complex to implement, and if you rely on LMS-

driven features for your program you may find that some are missing (i.e.Assessments for example)

When you deploy a large program you have to be ready for massive throughput in ashort period of time.



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Measurement is difficult if you havent thought about what metrics you want tomeasure up front, because LMSs have fairly unsophisticated reporting systems.


Blended Learning InfrastructureBlended Learning Infrastructure

SAPSAP

TrainingTrainingCiscoCisco

TrainingTrainingISO 9000ISO 9000

TrainingTrainingSalesSales

TrainingTraining

Learning ManagementLearning Management

System (LMS)System (LMS)Content DeliveryContent Delivery

SystemSystem

LCMSLCMS

Content DevelopmentContent Development

SystemSystem

33rdrd PartyParty

Hosted ContentHosted Content

((NETgNETg,, KnowledgeNetKnowledgeNet ))

Portal: Catalog, Login, LaunchPortal: Catalog, Login, Launch

Development ToolsDevelopment Tools

Simulation ToolsSimulation Tools

(Macromedia,(Macromedia, InfoPakInfoPak))

Target AudienceTarget Audience11

22

33

4455

6. Think Deployment Processes!

The single biggest issue we found which companies spent time and money on is the

marketing, launch, and deployment process. In order to be successful you must develop anintegrated go to market plan for your program. This must include:

Executive support so that line managers give workers time to take courses

A launch program (webinars, phone calls, email blasts) so that people understandthe importance and urgency of your program

Education to local coordinators so that line managers and line training people cansupport your program. You cannot launch a company-wide e-learning programalone, nor can you get it done from your corporate office.

Rapid feedback. You will find problems immediately. They must be addressed inhours, not days. If someone cannot get content to work, they are likely to leave andnever come back.

Business process integration. You have to think about how this training integrateswith your companys existing business processes. For example, in one companythe sales people were not given time by their managers to take training becausethey were too busy. How are you going to incent people to take time for training?Do you need to integrate training into peoples performance plans? Are you goingto give out certificates? Bonuses?



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Marketing. Too much is made of marketing e-learning. The real marketing isall of these steps. Sending out emails alone will not do it. You have to make surethat you have answered the question: why would a busy worker stop what theyredoing to take this course or program? Whats in it for them? Once you know that,how do you communicate that to them and their managers?


Deployment and SupportDeployment and Support

Every possible deployment method is needed:Every possible deployment method is needed: CDCD--RomRom

Conference CallsConference Calls

Performance AidsPerformance Aids

WebinarsWebinars

WebWeb--based coursesbased courses

Do NOT assume that learners have access to theDo NOT assume that learners have access to theinternetinternet

Do NOT assume that learners have high bandwidthDo NOT assume that learners have high bandwidth

Do NOT assume that learners PCs are readyDo NOT assume that learners PCs are ready

Deployment processesmake or break

the program.

7. Blended learning does not have to cost Millions. You can build your own content.

Another interesting finding. Many companies outsource major e-learning projects andsometimes spend millions of dollars. One of our research companies spent millions ofdollars creating a business simulation which trained financial professionals how to use newaccounting principles. In this particular case, the problem was global and the cost offailure was very high so it was worth the cost. If you have a very large audience and avery big problem, you can cost-justify a lot of money on content.

(The simple cost equation for blended learning is the tradeoff between development costand delivery cost. For web-based training, for example, high development costs can beamortized by low delivery costs if the audience is large. For classroom training, lowerdevelopment costs and higher delivery costs are justified when the audience is small.)

However in most cases what we found was the opposite. Companies are now developingweb-based content for $100s per instructor hour (we used to charge $30-70,000 perinstructor hour in my prior life!). How do they do this? They often hire a vendor to teachthem how to build courseware then they get a small team together (3-4 people) and buildthe content internally. This appears to be a major trend.



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One company developed a major SAP upgrade program which was business critical acrossmore than 10,000 employees for a total development cost of $75,000. This is less than$7.50 per employee for development cost the cost of lunch in most big cities.


Development ProcessesDevelopment Processes

There are no standard toolsThere are no standard tools

InIn--house development is house development is --1/5 the1/5 thecost of outsourced developmentcost of outsourced development

Develop In House:Develop In House:

Content with short shelf lifeContent with short shelf life

Disposable contentDisposable content

Informational contentInformational content

Outsource:Outsource: Highly instructionally richHighly instructionally rich

Very longVery long--lasting contentlasting content

SimulationSimulation--based solutionsbased solutions

You can drive content developmentYou can drive content developmentcosts below $1000 per course hourcosts below $1000 per course hour

$4,000$4,000--22,00022,000Cost per courseCost per course

hourhour

$35,000$35,000Minimum costMinimum cost

Development Costs

Companies are bringing contentdevelopment in-house with

excellent results.

There are nostandard tools

used overall.

8. Huge Impact is Possible

The most fascinating of all findings from our work was that Blended Learning in fact hashuge and measurable business impact. Most of the companies we studied told us that theblended learning programs they built solved problems which were impossible to solve inany other way.The biggest business benefits of blended learning which we found are:

Scale: You can roll out a new initiative or program to global audiences and reachmore people than ever possible before. This is the promise of e-learning and it istrue.

Speed: If you need to train people within months, you can reach thousands ofpeople simultaneously. Although there is a fixed time to develop content, the timeto deploy is fast. If the business problem is NOW and the content will becomestale, blended learning is the answer.

Throughput: If your training problem is bottlenecked (one telecommunicationscompany had such a backlog of training that technicians were driving around intrucks drinking coffee for weeks waiting for new-hire training slots), you caneliminate that bottleneck and improve training throughput by orders of magnitude.



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Complexity: many training challenges are just too complex for a single web-basedcourse or PowerPoint based webinars. If the material is complex and your businessneed demands that people internalize and change their behavior, using multiplemedia will get much higher completion and results.

Cost: I believe that many companies have found that e-learning may not really save

as much money as they thought. By the time you buy and LMS, implement theLMS, buy tools, buy a content catalog, and start building lots of web-based courses you may find that the total cost has just shifted from instructors to infrastructureand web development. By using the blended approach you can avoid thisexplosion. One of our research companies starts with job aids first, and then movesup the scale to more expensive media only if the problem demands it. By thinkingabout every problem as a blending challenge, you can select the lowest costmedia which solves the problem.

Bottom line: Blended Learning is here to say. I believe it is the natural evolution of e-

learning understanding the business problem and selecting the right portfolio oftechnologies and processes to drive impact. As companies focus on understanding theprocesses of blending media, they will find that e-learning is more powerful than they everthough.

Appendix: companies included in the study include:

Co m p an y Bu siness C h allen g e In d u stry Aud ience S ize L M S M ajor V en d ors M ix

S iem ens C om pany T ransfo rm ation M anufac turing 10 ,000 No LM S A ccentu re S im ulations

T e llabs E R P A pp lica tion R ollou t M anu fac turing 450 D ocent R W D W B T, C onf C a lls

R oche E R P A pp lica tion R ollou t P harm aceu tica ls 1,800 I-A cadem y R W D W B T, ILT

W W G rainger E R P A pp lica tion R ollou t D istribution 5,000 S aba R W D W B T, Lab, C onf C alls

E n t S o f tware C o . F ie ld S ales Training S oftware 1,100 S aba S aba W B T, V C , ILT

B ritish T elecom F ie ld S ales Training Te lecom m 260 D ocent A ccentu re W B T, ILT , Con f C alls

R oyal S un F ie ld S ales Training Insuranc e 1,500 S aba S aba W B T, ILT

K inkos F ie ld S ales Training R etai l 20 ,000 S aba S aba W B T

C isco F ie ld S ales Training M anufac turing 860,000 In te lli ne x K n ow le dg eN e tW BT, Labs, ILT, Assessme

E M C F ie ld S ales Training M anufac turing 1,000 S aba K nowledgeN etW BT, Con f Ca l ls

V erizon F ie ld S erv ic e T ra in ing Te lecom m 100,000 H om e G rown N E T g W B T, ILT , Hands O n

N CR F ie ld S erv ic e T ra in ing - C ertif ica tionS erv ice 370 E dcor N E T g W BT, Labs, A ssessm ent

C hip M anu fac tu re r M anu fac turing T ra in ing M anufac turing 25 ,000 Home GrownKnowledgeNetW B T , L ab

Bel l Canada E nterpr isesR educ e C ost of T rain ing Te lecom m 42,000 Technom ed ia N E T g W BT, ILT

P eopleso f t S a les and E m p loyee T ra in ing S oftware 5,500 H om e G rown N E T g W B T, D iscussion Groups

N ov e ll C hanne l S a les T rain ing M anufac turing 5,600 N o L M S M a cr om e d ia P o we rP o in t B a se d w ith A ud

About Bersin & Associates

Bersin & Associates is a leading provider of corporate and vendor consulting services in e-learning technology and implementation. With more than 20 years of experience in e-learning, training, and enterprise technology, Bersin & Associates provides a wide range ofservices including product development, product marketing, industry research, corporate



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workshops, corporate implementation plans, and sales and marketing programs. Some ofBersin & Associates innovations include a complete methodology for LMS selection andapplication usage, an end-to-end architecture and solution for e-learning analytics, and oneof the industrys largest research studies on blended learning implementations. Bersin &Associates can be reached at www.bersin.com or at (510) 654-8500.


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