Incentivised eLearning and Self Accreditation A case study travel industry

1
Incentivised eLearning and Self Accreditation A
case study travel industry

• 27th May 2004
• Martin Black, Development Director
• Objective Computing Limited

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Agenda

• The Case Study
• The Problems and Issues
• How to motivate staff to undertake eLearning in
  naturally resistant business areas and markets
• How to source course content provision of a
  sufficient quality
• How to administer and manage large volumes of
  Students and Certifications
• The Solution
• Incentive driven programme
• Joint venture
• Effective Software framework
• The Results
• Q A

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The Case Study
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RBI, Travel Weekly, Academy

• Existing strong publishing product, with online
  and printed mediums
• Niche, bible status for travel industry agents
• Existing online Academy product from 2001
• 515 students enrolled over 2 years
• Administration required 3 days a week plus 3 days
  at end of month

• Objective Computing were an existing supplier
• Proposed solution to problems and issues in
  spring 2003

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Why Training and why eLearning?

• Anheuser Busch example
• 1.516 million person trips to Florida in 2001
  from the UK (source US dept of commerce, ITA,
  released Mar 03)
• Large percentage of primary attraction tickets
  pre-booked with high first choice status
  leaving secondary attractions to fight for
  visitors
• Improving knowledge UK and OS travel
  representatives is key to improving sales.
• Locations
• Seaworld (Florida San Diego)
• Busch Gardens
• Discovery Cove
• Water Country
• Sesame Place
• Need for effectively training proven - eLearning
  lends to the distant student, both geographically
  and as unkown enrollee

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The TWEE Academy was born
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The Problems and Issues
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Problems and Issues

• Motivation
• Target students are remote, busy and unlikely to
  pro-actively undertake eLearning from an
  external provider
• Blocks of time needed to complete existing course
  did not lend to work environment
• Course Content
• How to source and maintain sufficient course
  content of a sufficient quality was an ongoing
  issue
• How to deliver course to students effectively
• Lack of courses stalled momentum. Certification
  value not realised

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Problems and issues (contd)

• Management Overhead
• Time needed to manage students limited
  effectiveness and capacity
• Certification process time consuming and prone to
  errors

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The Solution
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The Solution

• Incentive driven programme provided main
  motivation
• Technology and content geared to allow effective
  use of sporadic and sometime short periods of
  available time
• Access problems of via very old/basic pcs solved
  with low entry bar, browser neutral software
• Further motivation because courses sponsored by
  provider of industry bible publisher
• Joint venture allowed specialists to provide
  content and publisher to deliver in best manner
• Increased speed of course availability gave
  needed credibility to perceived certification
  value

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The Solution (contd)

• Software Framework - Academy Toolkit
• Individually Branded Courses
• Multiple Modules per Courses
• Self Registration (open of access coded)
• Automatic Marking and Certification
• Prize Fulfilment Triggers
• Centrally/Remotely Managed Admin Centre
• High Level of Automation
• Management Reports
• Content
• Mixture of courseware and test material

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The Results

• Did it work?

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Motivation

• Using Anheuser Figures

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Take up and Reach

• Some access problems due to Intranet setups
• Average certification time has reduced from 3
  months to 14 days
• Of those students who registered for one course,
  over 75 self registered for additional courses
  (65 of those within 2 months)
• Take up improved considerably for new courses
• Early adopters - 18 lt 3 days
• Majority 72 - 14 days
• Latecomers - 10 gt 14 days
• Lagards - unknown as no tests taken!
• 3809 prizes have been awarded since launch across
  2317 students

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Affect of Incentive Level

• Assumption better incentive, better results.
• No mixed results suggesting any incentive works

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Administration

• Self management
• Self test result marking
• Self registration (pre coded)
• Auto ABTA identification
• Prize Fulfilment Notification
• MIS reports
• All leading to estimated 2000 capacity increase
  for same admin footprint with greater capability
• Refocus on communication and management of
  programme, not administration

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Questions and Answers
Full company name Objective Computing
Limited Business addresses Astra
House Christy Way Southfields Laindon
Essex. SS15 6TQ and 4, Royal Mint
Court London. EC3 4QN Telephone
number 44 (0) 1268 541982 44 (0) 207 488
9834 Fax Number 44 (0) 1268 413353 Email
address enquiries_at_objectiveit.com