Using Social Software to Make Blended Learning a Success
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The document discusses using social software to make blended learning successful. It describes Brandon Williams' background working for The Educe Group implementing learning management systems. The objectives of the presentation are to discuss blending social learning with industry examples, the Educe solution through a case study, using social software for employee onboarding and beyond, and key elements of blended learning success. Case studies of blended learning implementations at companies like TELUS, Virgin Media, and Bechtel are provided. The presentation encourages participation through Twitter using the hashtag #blendlrn.
Using Social Software to Make Blended Learning a Success
- 1. TH306 - Using Social Software to Make Blended Learning a Success ASTD TechKnowledge 2014 The Educe Group #astdtk14 #blendlrn
- 2. Introductions Brandon Williams is an Associate for The Educe Group, where he is currently guiding learning management system implementations for organizations varying in size and spanning multiple industries. While he has spent time evaluating new learning technologies in the space, he has also worked extensively with collaborative learning strategy and the technology to execute this strategy within Educe. Prior to joining Educe, Brandon coauthored and produced a training program that affected national compliance and sales audiences at Amerigroup Corporation. Brandon has also served as the system administrator for cloud-based Customer Relationship Management platforms for seven years in addition to implementing hosted learning and performance software. Over the course of his career, he has supported recruitment programs for internships, leadership development programs, and full-time employment positions. He has extensive experience in cloud technology and the strategy required to implement and maintain that technology. He has gained valuable experience both through business development for professional services organizations and as a consultant working directly on HCM strategy and system implementations. He has focused on learning management and social/collaborative technology within companies ranging from 2,000 - 55,000 employees, but he has also consulted organizations on a variety of other critical business processes (system localization, performance management systems, mobile workforce issues etc.). Brandon grew up in a remote region of the Appalachians and graduated with honors from the College of William and Mary; he currently lives in DC and works in Bethesda. 2
- 3. Introductions I’ve always been a nerd and love learning, so now I implement systems that help people grow and develop in the workplace. 3
- 4. Objectives for Today Follow @BdotW and/or tweet your questions to #blendlrn “Online Portion” Blending in Social Learning (industry examples) “Instructor-led Portion” The Educe Solution (case study) Social software for employee onboarding and beyond Process identifying, implementing, adoption, metrics Key Elements of Blended Learning Success “Post-Class Assessment” Wrap / Qs & As 4
- 5. Blended Learning at 40,000 Feet Web-based/online training or pre-recorded session 5
- 6. Case Studies TELUS Virgin Media Bechtel Kaespersky Poll 6 Follow @BdotW and/or tweet your questions to #blendlrn
- 7. Success Stories: TELUS TELUS is a leading national telecommunications company in Canada with 13.2 million customer connections. TELUS provides a wide range of communications products and services including wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, television, entertainment and video. Source: Dan Pontefract, Sr. Director and Head of Learning and Collaboration at TELUS* 7
- 8. Success Stories: TELUS • TELUS – Switched from 90% instructor-led to 60/40 for the year • High costs for hiring external trainers • 20% savings in flipping model – Model supported learning through formal, informal, and social • Included networking, blogs, wikis, videos, communities, and collaboration sites to foster knowledge sharing • Flip cameras for field techs 8
- 9. Success Stories: Virgin Media Virgin Media …provides fixed and mobile telephone, television and broadband internet services to businesses and consumers in the United Kingdom; it owns and operates its own fiber-optic cable network, the only national cable network in the United Kingdom. They service approximately 4.8 million cable customers. Source: http://gigaom.com/2012/02/13/the-lessons-ofvirgin-medias-flexible-working-initiative/ 9
- 10. Success Stories: Virgin Media • Pilot of 5,000 users aimed to increase productivity/agility and decrease email overload/inconsistent materials • Notable gains for B2B provisioning group – touches many divisions for certain processes, so creating a community to share the information more effectively in one place served to “break down divisional silos.” • Unintended results: Participants in the pilot showed a six percent higher engagement-index in the firm’s annual engagement survey 10
- 11. Success Stories: Virgin Media • Adoption of system itself involved blended learning – Not all people are primed to adopt certain technology the same way or at the same rate – Their approach included 1:1 training, videos, and peer to peer assistance through communities • Identified evangelists to engage the rest of the organization – In line with best practices to encourage adoption of social software organization-wide 11
- 12. Success Stories: Virgin Media “One of the big successes during the pilot…was the amount of people who started to self-help and help others.” 12
- 13. Success Stories: Bechtel Bechtel is the largest construction and engineering company in the United States; as a global leader in engineering, construction, and project management, it operates five global business units and executes projects around the world (including the Hoover Dam, BART, and the largest airport in the world in Damamam). Source: Aniruddh Mukerji, Manager of Learning Technology 13
- 14. Success Stories: Bechtel • “Boots on the Ground” CoP for safety/compliance – Piloted with two members at a single location and grew to 500 across 50 • Access to relevant content at time of need; immediate value and compelling content on day one – Calling/emailing “experts” only helps a single person • “Experts” get bombarded • Marketplace of questions and answers – Practitioners from project sites and experts together – Share knowledge to be stored for later use 14
- 15. Success Stories: Bechtel • Mobile access to consume/develop • Objection: Community Moderation – Most platforms have ability to flag inappropriate or inaccurate content • As of report, Bechtel had only taken down 2 posts out of 300 • Adoption encouraged by specific planning – Safety is a core value, and the responsible group is highly engaged 15
- 18. Success Stories: Kaespersky Kaespersky is a Russian multi-national computer security company that develops secure content and threat management systems for over 300 million users worldwide and more than 250,000 corporate clients globally ranks; they rank fourth in the global ranking of antivirus vendors. 18
- 19. Success Stories: Kaespersky • Objective: “constant learning” – Needed also to be able to measure collaboration and engagement among team members – Traditional LMS: monitor compliance through certification • Benefits: Decreased travel costs (virtual classroom and blended learning) – Also able to eliminate unnecessary/duplicate training called out by community 19
- 21. Questions For You… Follow @BdotW and/or tweet your questions to #blendlrn Do you have an official on-boarding process? If so, is all training web or document based? Or, do you have an instructor conduct all of the training? If so, is your instructor in person or do you conduct virtual training? 21
- 22. Blended Learning Recap: On-line Web-based/online training or pre-recorded session • Accessibility – New hires provided access to content on day 1 – Current employees can self-pace based on full time work – Spans time zones/availability; engages and decreases cost • By tracking in your LMS you can… What are some pros and cons of training online? – Prevent ILT registration until completion – Add background/supplemental materials to ILT – Create follow-up after instructor interaction 22
- 23. Blended Learning at 40,000 Feet Web-based/online training or pre-recorded session Instructor-led training or face to face interaction Knowledge assessment and evaluation 23
- 24. Educe Case Study • Company Background/Challenges • Our solution – Process • From assessing organizational readiness… • …to encouraging adoption… • …to maintaining an effective solution. – “The Blend” 24
- 25. Educe Environment implement HR technology adopt performance content development plan small business social networking talent = employee locations 25 consulting services develop vendor selection learning
- 26. Educe Environment commercial regulated retail health care small business global financial pharmaceutical government compliance = employee locations = client locations 26 hospitality US-based manufacturing
- 27. Challenges: Onboarding and Engagement • Week-long boot camp with Partner or Principal Expertise Dispersed Office Locations • Document repository of past projects and product information • Product knowledge sessions: Geographically Dispersed • Periodic deep-dive • Twice yearly meeting including • OJT experience Client Travel • “Educe All” emails Limited “Connectivity” • Vendor WBTs • Mentorship Program 27
- 28. What really got the ball rolling… In 2012, we got our first batch of new hires straight out of college. A year later, we began growing at a more rapid pace than ever before in our 10 year history. No longer were we able to build on prior consulting or implementation expertise. With a growing virtual team of experts combined with a fresh batch of bright young Jr. Consultants, the we knew we would have to do something different than traditional training modules launched from an LMS or boot camp sessions. We were going to have to focus our strategy and software on creating an open, collaborative environment for all employees regardless of geographical location or level of experience. 28
- 29. Educe Objectives: Not Social Speed of response + empowerment = “Accelerate the effectiveness of our team” • Improve access to organizational knowledge • Reduce use of email as a method of knowledge exchange • Reduce dependency on “experts” • Reduce new hire onboarding time • Improve onboarding experience 29
- 31. Implementation Steps 1 2 Seed Data 3 Consider Search Strategy - use lessons learned from other initiatives 4 Find Your Experts - enables everyone to be a contributor - changes as employees gain experience 5 31 Understand Organizational Readiness Deploy a Soft Launch - set achievable objectives - understand challenges - consolidate existing data - provide examples to be followed - ability to make corrections
- 32. 1: Understand Organizational Readiness Things to Consider: Start with a group that already collaborates, and secure buy-in with the experts in that group Launch with a limited set of functionality. Add on as adoption takes hold. Understand your organizational challenges This has me written all over it. 32 - History of collaboration - Comfort with technology I hope she’s not looking this way…
- 33. 2: Seed Data Things to Consider: Drive initial system use with a library resources that can’t be accessed in any other system Demonstrate how the system will consolidate disparate information repositories Set an example for how you want data to be entered and tagged I have no idea when I last backed up my laptop… 33 - What data has no home? - What repositories can be replaced? My email is over the limit again. We’ve got to get this thing going.
- 34. Why will employees use it? • • • • • • Saves time Reduces rework Lessens dependence of geography Lessens dependence on standard work hours Lessens learning curve for new employees Motivates members Call me when I can find something useful on this thing… 34 Wow. She really just said that.
- 35. Informal Learning Activities + Methods Activity Method Problem Solving “I’m receiving an error message – anyone know what to do?” Discussion, Chat; Workspaces; Issues Requesting Information “Does anyone have the most recent SoP template?” Discussion, Chat Seeking Experience/Advice “Has anyone dealt with this situation?” Discussion, Chat Creating Knowledge Repository Sharing links, files, tips and tricks Resources; Discussion; Skills; Impressions Vetting New Ideas “Check out the new mockups. All feedback welcome!” Ideas; Ratings; Discussion Networking 35 Example “I’m going to ASTD TK14. Anyone else?” “Following” People; Profiles; Workspaces
- 37. 3: Consider Search Strategy Things to Consider: - Company Terminology - Existing Applications Structure/ tag information to allow users to quickly locate what they need Think about SharePoint, document repositories, or other past experiences Avoid creating silos of information Consider pre-populating tags for people to select Think about how and when different audiences will use the system Vendor, year, document type, client…we need as many tags as possible… 37
- 38. Tag Strategy User Search Filters Access Experts and Assets Simultaneously
- 39. 4: Find Your Experts Things to Consider: Ensure all experts are findable Require all employees to complete their profile Employ competencies, certifications Encourage experts to post resources using various incentives or establishing contribution goals Expert 39 - Who are your “experts”? - Can this definition be expanded? Expert Expert
- 41. 5: Deploy a Soft Launch Things to Consider: - Early Adopters - Current Company Initiatives No need to “create” activities, use the real thing Focus on evaluating your process, not the technology Use the first phase to solicit feedback before structure becomes more complex Initial group will naturally aid the data input process This is one of our top priorities this year. 41
- 42. Adoption Process Newcomers explore the site and peruse existing resources and discussions 42 Make connections by “following” others; build own profile Add links and files; leave ratings and impressions Establish appropriate level of governance
- 43. Existing Employees and “The Blend” • Advanced product knowledge sessions/deep dive – CoPs can track info added over time/software versions – Able to limit group access to segment product lines etc. • Reduce use of email as a method of knowledge exchange – Allowed individuals to share and comment on best practices organization-wide for the benefit of others • Full search capability increased adoption • SME feedback = “informal” experts – Immediate feedback across all levels increased adoption 43
- 44. Assessment • Completed online courses or read and acknowledged documentation • Conducted ILT to provide additional face to face information and clear up questions • Last step: assess to ensure learning has taken place – In our case, we value our reputation far too much to have this come through in the form of client commentary • Vendor Certification • Mentor/Manager Checklists 44
- 46. New Hire Program and “The Blend” Before… • Read/understand product documentation without Q&A Everyone • Vendor training andcontributes assessment • Email exchange b/t multiple senior team members and interested consultant Wherever, whenever (based on availability) • OJT training 46 After • Can discuss product documentation w/ experts and follow Extensivecurrent IRL scenarios • profile through issues Walk encountered during vendor training among cohort • Review discussions of lessons 1st day learned access for by those who came before new hires as well as • …able to post questions and get feedback in real time
- 47. Outcomes 1 Understand Organizational Readiness 2 Seed Data 3 Consider Search Strategy 4 Find Your Experts 5 Deploy a Soft Launch 47 - consolidated multiple systems into 1 application - designed a phased approach - provided guidelines for creating ideal entries - prepopulated tags to select from - allow employees to create new tags - everyone set up as a contributor - new hire onboarding - client-specific sites
- 48. Measurement Resourcing Response Administrative Tasks Time to Deployment Product Questions RFP Information Contacts Opportunity Response Client Satisfaction Client Issues Templates Time to Fly Solo Time to “Expert” 48 Document Examples
- 49. Metrics Speed of Response Employee Empowerment External Internal Average client response time decreased from 2-3 days to less than 1 hour Elimination of email distribution lists 49 Educe Group Confidential Employee retention – still engaged from home office Time to deployment reduced from months to weeks Increase in overall collaboration
- 50. Questions For You… Follow @BdotW and/or tweet your questions to #blendlrn Do you use both web based/written and instructor-led sessions? Do you track any of this activity in an LMS? Do you use social/collaborative tools to facilitate interaction during this process? 50
- 51. Blended Learning Recap: ILT/Assessment Instructor-led training or face to face interaction • Face to face interaction could be… – Lunch and learns/brown bag lunches – Yearly gatherings/“State of the Union” • Or more traditionally… – Internal instructors/facilitators – External instructor-led courses What are some pros and cons of face to face training? • Assessment of knowledge/understanding 51
- 52. Blended Learning at 40,000 Feet Web-based/online training or pre-recorded session Instructor-led training or face to face interaction Knowledge assessment and evaluation 52 Social/informal interactions or mechanism for continued interaction
- 53. Questions for You… Follow @BdotW and/or tweet your questions to #blendlrn To the Twitter machine! Have you seen this in the upper right corner of previous question slides? 53
- 54. Takeaways: Key Elements for Success • Recruiting – Collaborative, self-directed, and eager to learn – Millennial generation and tech expectations • Cultural Assessment – “Blended” learning requires a blend – Shift happens, but it doesn’t have to be negative • Instructors who otherwise would have had to fly around the country can find new ways to interact online (virtual/WBT/social) 54
- 55. Takeaways: Key Elements for Success (con’t) • “Creating the Blend” – tools of the trade – WBT/online • Instructional design tools – ILT/VILT • Basic • Standard • Advanced – Assessment • Can be inserted at any point for knowledge check – Social/informal • CoPs, PLNs, etc. 55
- 56. Blended Learning at 40,000 Feet Instructor-led training or face to face interaction Web-based/online training or pre-recorded session Knowledge assessment and evaluation 56 Social / informal interactions or mechanism for continued interaction
- 57. Questions for You… Do you think social is core to the success of a blended learning project? As you’re going down that path, how many are going to consider social components? 57
- 58. Q’s and A’s #blendlrn if we don’t get to chat Educe Group Confidential
- 59. Thank you for your interest! Contact Us Brandon Williams Email: bwilliams@educegroup.com Twitter: @bdotw Your Feedback Counts! Your feedback helps ASTD continue to provide top-notch educational programs that help you stay on top of a changing profession. Evaluation forms for this session are available via the mobile app and at the following link: www.tkconference.org/attendees 59
Editor's Notes
- #8: *microsoft 2010 case study as well as D. Pontefract’s blog and talk at Training Magazine 2011We started writing about this for the interactive technologies conference in 2009 using research that spanned from ‘96 – ’09Even in ‘09 62% of orgs recruited using social – 71% for onboardingIn 1996, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that 70% of the learning that happens in the workplace is informal.http://educegroup.com/resources/white-papers/2011
- #9: Confluence, Sharetronix, SharePoint 2010, SAP, Cisco Telepresence, Lync, and Jive for some of Telus’ external facing actions.employees are allowed to explore by themselves and figure out the potential of social software to help them improve both their individual and group productivity“This is not a scenario in which we can flip a switch and have everyone change their work habits overnight,” notes Pontefract. “Going from expert-led instruction to a more casual, pervasive model of team member–led social learning represents a major adjustment for a telecommunications company that’s been around for 100 years.”Thus far, however, the concept has been met with enthusiasm from team members. Internal surveys returned positive results, with 99 percent of the 7,000 team members surveyed reporting that they understood the three categories of learning—formal, informal, and social—and 97 percent agreeing that learning can successfully take place in all three ways. “Team members definitely grasp the concept, so it’s our job to make them feel comfortable participating in and contributing to the culture of collaboration,
- #10: 2012
- #11: 2012
- #12: 2012
- #14: AniruddhMukerji* and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bechtel
- #15: AniruddhMukerji* Defined CoP as group of people who share concern/passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly (www.ewenger.com/theory/)
- #16: AniruddhMukerji* Defined CoP as group of people who share concern/passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly (www.ewenger.com/theory/)Worried about moderation? Even though there are failsafes built in so the community can moderate,!Chose a core group that could be very engaged (safety is a core value at their org).http://www.brandonhall.com/awards/excellence-in-learning/winners-of-the-2012.html
- #17: AniruddhMukerji*
- #18: AniruddhMukerji*
- #23: Narrate that they just went through the virtual session –there is a method to my madness
- #26: Work in HR Tech – primed for this – founded in 2003Business is knowledgeAssets are people
- #27: To further complicate our situation, we have clients across the US – in the North and South (Candada/Brazil) and limited European presence, so not even if the experts responsible for training/developing/mentoring new hires were located in the Bethesda office, they may be travelling at critical moments when new hires needed assistance
- #28: This dispersion of experts/connectivity during the week during client interactions is important to us b/c we’ve always prided ourselves on our expertise.-
- #30: We looked at a number of different solutions. OUR OBJECTIVE WAS NOT to find a social solution.Stuck with 2 main objectives – speed of response / employee empowerment. THOUGH TECH AND NON-TECH solutions.- Everyone can contribute; can reuse/find info in the system easily; first day access for new hires (ppl wouldn’t have to sit with them all day)When we started out, we were hiring a lot of people who already had industry experience, and they already felt empowered – as we hired new ppl with less experience or coming from different industries – in order to maintain growth and level of expertise our customers expect, we needed to empower people- Empower employees to be able to find knowledge on their ownEmail is an ineffective method of exchange (At the end of a busy day, you didn’t want to have to read through 200 educe all emails when only 20% may pertain to you)New hires (and others) may be constantly going to a Sr. team member b/c they are unaware of SMEs who may be able to assistThe sooner we could get people out and billable in a consulting engagement, the better – especially given our high standard of excellence
- #32: 5 specific steps. 1. how would population receive? What were we ready for?
- #33: Not just WIKI/BLOG and other technology, but WHAT IS THE CULTURE TO COLLAB ANYWAY?
- #34: 20 MINUTES- test
- #35: Saves time: Can quickly search for and find answers to questions.Reduces rework: By sharing knowledge, content is reused.Lessens dependence of geography: Experts can be found anywhere; employees have wider access to experts than they otherwise would.Lessens dependence on standard work hours: Employees can use the system wherever, whenever.Lessens learning curve for new employees: With resources in a consolidated location, onboarding time for new employees is reduced.Motivates members: Employees are motivated to participate through organizational incentives, intangible returns and social opportunity.
- #37: Here’s a type of description and sample tags.
- #38: We’d been creating silos – projects in healthcare or manufacturing were in those silos. We wanted to get rid of this to have a searchable solution.
- #40: Goes back to our goal of REDUCING REQUESTS that came to our most Sr. ppl.Changed definition of expert (in SOMETHING). In LMS, or Recruiting, or performance, but that needed to be public.
- #41: Huge – different engagements listed or certifications pursued – contributions are directly linked to profile.
- #43: As a new hire, what is the path we’re hoping you follow. Usually expect LURKERS -> then build network -> then add resources and take leadership role moderating a group
- #44: We already had a “blended learning” program set up, but when we added our social component
- #45: I’d love to use an example from our own system, but I’ve completed all of my open training and don’t have admin access (rightfully so b/c we also wrapped performance in starting last year)… but here’s one from a course in a system I’m implementing.
- #46: I’d love to use an example from our own system, but I’ve completed all of my open training and don’t have admin access (rightfully so b/c we also wrapped performance in starting last year)… but here’s one from a course in a system I’m implementing.
- #48: In the process, they witnessed an almost instant increase in social collaboration, improved process consistency, and faster issue resolution.
- #52: Asynchronous learning is a student-centered teaching method that uses online learning resources to facilitate information sharing outside the constraints of time and place among a network of people (1997!) ^ Jump up to:a b c d Mayadas, F (March 1997), "Asynchronous learning networks: a Sloan Foundation perspective", Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks
- #54: 55 min
- #56: 1. Web-based training can come in many shapes and sizes, and most of you are probably familiar with the design tool/LMS optionsa. If you have questions about these, post to the “discussion” board that we have created for this course a. Basic: simple recordings and email/phone conferences; b. Standard: Use screensharing apps like JoinMe/Google Hangout/Skype (free) GTM/WebEx/Saba Meeting/Adobe Connect (paid)c. Advanced: SMART technologies (interactive whiteboards etc.); conference webcams; mobile devices