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KNOWLEDGE ENABLEMENT AND THE EXTENDED ENTERPRISEHOW A NEXT-GENERATION LEARNING PLATFORM CAN ENGAGE AND EDUCATE
ACROSS AN EXTENDED ECOSYSTEM OF LEARNERS
ABSTRACTWithin the global business landscape, no company
operates as an island. Organizations today are made up
of a complex network of partner relationships–customers,
vendors, suppliers, and distributors, who come together
to design, build and bring products and services to market.
Having a learning management strategy that keeps this
extended enterprise current and engaged in your
business’s brand is a top priority for most industry leader
Extended enterprise learning can help businesses reduce
training costs, improve awareness of products and
services, and increase sales–to name just a few benefits.
s.
But how should that learning be delivered in an extended
enterprise scenario? The traditional enterprise learning
management system (LMS) was designed to help workers
stay abreast of the knowledge, skills and abilities required
by the business, and comply with regulations and laws.
However, in the dynamic extended enterprise learning
environment, the formal hierarchical design and
architecture of a traditional LMS quickly becomes
a barrier to adoption.
Partners around the globe, representing thousands of
diverse approaches to learning, need a more flexible,
adaptable platform designed from the ground up for
dynamic learning. They need a next-generation LMS
that delivers dynamic content in bite-sized chunks,
offer anywhere, anytime, any device learning, and
most of all–engages and captivates to keep
partners coming back for more.
In this whitepaper, entitled “Knowledge Enablement and
the Extended Enterprise” we look at the characteristics
that define the extended enterprise, and examine how
next-generation learning needs to be redefined in order
to help organizations engage and educate stakeholders
across the broader partnership relationship network.
1Benzo, Jeff. BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 2"What Is Extended Enterprise? Definition and Meaning."BusinessDictionary.com. WebFinance, Inc., n.d. Web. 3Lahey, Zach. Extended Enterprise Learning: Educating the Channel to Improve Results. Rep. Aberdeen Group, 24 Mar. 2014. Web.
LEARNING FROM THE OUTSIDE IN“There are two ways to extend a business. Take inventory of what you’re good at and extend out from your
skills. Or determine what your customers need and work backward, even if that requires learning new skills.”1
–Jeff Bezos, American Technology Entrepreneur
In this world of digital connections and globalization, no
company is an island. Enterprises today are dependent
on a network of partner relationships representing
customers, employees, suppliers, franchisers and/or
distributors who come together to collaborate on the
design, development, production and delivery of
products to market.2
Ensuring this diverse network of stakeholders is trained
to represent a company’s brand is a high priority for most
organizations. According to a 2014 survey by the industry
research firm the Aberdeen Group, 86% of companies
indicated learning as critical to extremely critical to their
organizational ability to execute business strategy.3
Traditional learning management solutions were built to
help workers stay abreast of the knowledge, skills and
abilities required by the business. Training programs
delivered by an LMS may be oriented to help employees
advance their careers, demonstrate a particular
competency, or pave the way for succession planning.
Often, an LMS is used for records tracking and to
prove organizational compliance to laws (such as the
Occupational Safety and Health Act) and regulations
(for instance FDA 21 CFR Part 11). An LMS and the
content it delivers is typically built around the
hierarchical structures that exist and must be
maintained within a large organization.
But the learning needs of the extended enterprise
are different. In this scenario, we are talking
about reaching a large, diverse group of
stakeholders–dealers, franchisees, suppliers, partners,
and customers–scattered all over the world, representing
many different demographics and learning styles. For the
delivery of learning to the extended enterprise, the
formal hierarchical design and architecture of a
traditional LMS becomes a barrier to adoption.
4Schawbel, Dan. "Why You Can't Ignore Millennials." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 4 Sept. 2014. Web.5"Mobile Millennials: Over 85% of Generation Y Owns Smartphones." Newswire. The Nielsen Company, 9 May 2014. Web.6Schrader, Brendon. "Here's Why The Freelancer Economy Is On The Rise." Web log post. The Future of Work. Fast Company & Inc, 10 Aug. 2015. Web.7Carroll, Jim. "Trend: The Future of Knowledge." Web log post. Jim Carroll. n.d. Web.
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE EXTENDED ENTERPRISEIt’s not necessarily about tracking
While it is important for companies to monitor employee
understanding and adherence to laws and regulations,
compliance is not always the primary driver for learning
across the extended enterprise. An automotive original
equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) dealer network wants
to stay current on latest product offerings. A retailer’s
franchisees want to access mentorship, best practices,
and tools to help them grow a successful business and
drive more revenue.
The workforce is getting younger
One in three workers is now a millennial
(individuals born between the years of 1982 and 1993),
and this group will make up 75% of the workforce by
2025.4 Over 85% of millennials today own a smartphone
or other mobile device5 and use it as their primary source
for information and learning. This younger stakeholder in
the extended enterprise won’t have the patience to
navigate heavyweight content delivered by an LMS in a
hierarchical format. They don’t want to wade through
manuals and documentation. They want learning to be
dynamic, social, and collaborative. In addition, they want
multi-media learning experiences with content provided
in actionable, bite-sized chunks.
A good number will be freelancers and contractors
We are heading headlong into the freelance economy.
By 2020, 40% of the American workforce will consist of
independent contractors, freelancers or temporary
workers.6 This shift in workplace composition will
further define the extended enterprise as billion dollar
organizations capitalize on the business value
independent workers bring to the table. Contract
employees have different learning demands, but may
still need to comply with the same laws and regulations
governing traditional enterprise workers.
Lean, mean and oh so flexible
Some experts predict that by 2020 the workforce
will be centered on just-in-time knowledge, with the
most valued professional skills focused on the ability
to get the right knowledge for the right purpose at the
right time.7 While the LMS leveraged in the delivery of
content needs to be powerful, it also needs to be easily
deployed and accessed by stakeholders scattered
around the globe; and provide reliable support for
individuals located in low bandwidth areas. An LMS for
the extended enterprise also needs to be adaptive;
supporting personalized learning paths for the many
diverse learning styles of individuals in hundreds, if not
thousands of partner organizations.
8Benavides, Melissa. "Delivering Learning across an Extended Enterprise: A Case Study / Brandon Hall Group Member Center." Brandon Hall Group, 29 July 2015. Web.
Engagement is the name of the game
The main driver for eLearning in corporate environments
is often regulatory compliance for risk mitigation. Within
the four walls of an organization, employee adherence
can be tracked and enforced. Compliance training
already exists in the extended enterprise–there are third
party companies who deliver compliance-based training
to partners. However, these external providers need to
offer their “customers” a more compelling reason to visit
the online learning portal and engage. In the external
enterprise, a certification engine is not enough.
Stakeholders need to have a positive, engaging
experience so they come back for more. Beyond
compliance, eLearning in the extended enterprise needs
to engage and even entertain to attract and retain users
who are not obligated to take part. This means learning
must be collaborative, personalized, leverage tactics
such as gamification, and for that growing population of
millennials, offer support for mobile access, social
channels, and multimedia content.
Benefits of Extended Enterprise Learning8
1. Reduce training costs
2. Reduce training travel time
3. Increase awareness of products/services
4. Meet compliance requirements
5. Increase user engagement
6. Improve customer relations
7. Meet or exceed corporate objectives
8. Increase sales
9. Maximize client retention
10. Reduce turnover
9Key Technologies Enable Extended Enterprise Learning Success. Rep. Aberdeen Group, Nov. 2010. Web.10Ibid.
MOVING BEYOND LEARNING ‘MANAGEMENT’ TO LEARNING ‘ENGAGEMENT’
40
According to industry research, organizations that focus
their learning methods solely inside the corporation
experienced a revenue increase of 5% per full-time
equivalent (FTE) year-over-year (measured over 12
months). Conversely, those organizations that extended
some sort of learning to customers and partners saw a
40% greater increase in revenue per FTE at 7%
year-over-year. Organizations with a formal learning
program for the extended enterprise saw an even
greater increase at 9% per FTE year over year.9
Given the immense value provided by an organization’s
extended enterprise, providing these partners with
ongoing knowledge and training is a no brainer. What is
ripe for disruption is the way that learning content is
delivered. To captivate and retain all partners in a
learning strategy, enterprises should strongly consider
replacing (or supplementing) their traditional LMS with
a next-generation system that better supports and
addresses the needs of the extended enterprise. This
means that the LMS should no longer just be about
managing learning. It should be about engaging learners
at every step. Within the context of the extended
enterprise, this would require a platform designed from
the ground up to be cohesive and flexible, easily
deployed to users around the globe, and one that
supports interactive content while meeting the
anywhere, anytime, any device demands of a diverse
population of workers. This next-generation LMS would
also gather robust analytics along the way, allowing
enterprises to precisely measure the participation
(engagement) of this diverse population, the
effectiveness of content, and allow organizations to
connect partner learning back to business goals and
objectives (such as revenue generation).
Organizations that extended some sort of learning to
customers and partners saw a 40% greater increase in
revenue per FTE
Top Drivers for Extended Enterprise Learning10
1. Business growth strategy and revenue
2. Business changes requiring re-education
and realignment
3. Lack of key skills in the marketplace
4. Changing customer needs and expectations
%
NEXT-GENERATION LEARNING CAPABILITIES FOR THE EXTENDED ENTERPRISEIntegrated and adaptive Learning should be easy for everyone, regardless of an
individual’s preferred learning style. An extended
enterprise’s network of customers, suppliers, and
franchisees represents thousands of individuals with
diverse learning styles and demands. And as we learned,
by 2020, 40% of those individuals will be millennials. A
next-generation LMS serving the extended enterprise
should be architected from the ground up to support
this adaptive style of learning, providing workers with the
flexibility to embark on their own personalized learning
paths, view content in multimedia formats, collaborate
with others for a more social learning experience, and
move quickly through course content as they
demonstrate mastery.
Mobile-friendlyBusy partners are on-the-go and have their own
responsibilities and jobs. They want to learn on a plane,
on a train, or at home and have made their mobile device
the preferred platform for learning today. The extended
enterprise knows no geographic boundaries and the
proliferation of mobile devices around the world today
means that any next-generation LMS needs to be
mobile-friendly with a responsive interface and include
dynamic, interactive content.
Social and collaborativeFor a working population that is far flung around the
globe, traditional learning delivery methods, such as
user/partner conferences and training events are not
financially prudent or even possible. That said, partners
across the extended enterprise still find value in
connecting with mentors, industry experts, and each
other. A next-generation LMS should provide ample
opportunities for partners to connect via social
channels, share knowledge and experiences, and
collaborate in their learning.
GlobalizedIn order to deliver knowledge and learning to a global
partner network, a next-generation LMS must include a
multi-lingual interface, deliver content in a wide variety of
languages, and support partners engaging across many
time zones. Finally, the next-generation LMS should offer
cloud-based delivery that is easily deployed, supported,
and accessed even in remote parts of the world with low
bandwidth access.
GamifiedGamification makes learning more fun and engaging
for all. A next-generation LMS offers workers the
opportunity to earn badges, points, and other rewards
help to attract, engage and retain extended enterprise
partners so there is continued participation in an
organization’s learning strategy.
Measurable
At the end of the day, offering learning across the
extended enterprise is about making that network
of suppliers, distributors, dealers, franchisees and
others more productive and valuable.
A next-generation LMS should provide powerful
reporting and business analytics, so enterprises can
track partners’ learning progress, compare and
contrast methods and directly tie extended
nterprise learning to business goals and objectives.
NEXT-GENERATION LEARNING AND THE EXTENDED ENTERPRISEAn extended enterprise learning strategy, realized
through a next-generation LMS, can serve as an
agent for transformation for companies seeking to
get the most out of their global partner network. The
financial returns realized by companies who embrace
this broader approach to learning speak for themselves.
However, the key to this strategy is understanding that
partners are not employees. They don’t abide by the
same hierarchical structure that exists within the
organization. They don’t necessarily care about
compliance or want their performance tracked.
What they want is to be drawn into the learning
process, and sufficiently engaged so they’ll return
time and again for more.
Organizations seeking to “light up” learning within the
extended enterprise need to realize that a one-size-fits
all LMS will not work in serving the needs of this broader
network of relationships. What is needed is a disruptive
new learning platform, built from the ground up for
flexibility, adaptability and engagement, capable of
captivating and retaining all partners in an extended
enterprise learning strategy.
So are you ready to move beyond management to
engagement, and knowledge-enable your extended
enterprise? The time has never been better–or the
technology more ready–for you to make the change.
ABOUT D2L
D2L is the software leader that makes the learning experience
better. The company’s cloud-based platform—Brightspace—is not
a common one-size-fits-all learning management system (LMS).
It’s easier to use, more flexible, and smart. With Brightspace, you
can personalize the experience for every learner to deliver real
results. The company is also a world leader in learning analytics:
its platform predicts learner performance so that you can take
action in real time to keep them on track. Brightspace is used
by learners in higher education, K–12, and the enterprise sector,
including the Fortune 1000. D2L has operations in the United
States, Canada, Europe, Australia, Brazil, and Singapore.
CONTACT USPhone: 1-519-772-0325 (Worldwide)
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Email: [email protected]
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Web: www.D2l.com/enterprise | www.D2L.com
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