Studies
have shown that e-learning can significantly increase the return on investment
for training. Technology based training (e-learning):
·
Saves time
without decaying learning benefits (Fletcher; 1999) (Hall, 1997) (Hemphill,
1997). We estimate that training &
education periods are reduced by 25% to 50% on the average when employing a
computer-based, interactive multimedia delivery model. In a 1990 review of over 40 different
studies in industry, education and the military, Fletcher (1990) found that
across all studies, approximately 31% savings in time was achieved when
multimedia training was compared to equivalent classroom instruction. Many of
the studies he reviewed demonstrated over 35% savings in time.
·
Adams (1992)
reviewed six "controlled" studies that directly compared traditional
classroom instruction to equivalent multimedia instruction at Xerox, IBM,
Federal Express and other companies. He found "learning compression"
rates of 38-70%. Union Pacific experienced 35% and 50% reductions in learning
time for two critical courses delivered to several hundred employees (Cantwell,
1993). In Multimedia Made Easy, Bradley Associates report a summary of 30
studies that places learning compression at 50% (1994). Kulik (as reported by
Hofstetter, 1994) found that across several years and hundreds of studies in
education over
30% reduction in instructional time was achieved.
·
Hall's in-depth
review (personal contacts with over 100 companies involved with multimedia
training, meta-analysis of over 30 other studies, and several detailed case
studies, 1995a, 1995b) found that "there is very strong evidence that
computer-based training requires less time for training compared to
instructor-led training," and that "the amount of reduction ranges
from 20-80 percent, with 40-60 percent being the most common.
Ø
Minimizes travel costs. (Hall,
1997)(Hemphill, 1997)
Ø
Minimizes time away from work.
(Fletcher, 1990)
Ø
Is more cost effective. (Hall,
1995) (Allen, 2000)
Ø
Meets the needs of a geographically
disperse employees. (Adams, 1992)
Ø
Provides consistent course
delivery. (Adams, 1992)
Ø
Offers more individualized
instruction. (Adams, 1992)
Ø
Produces consistently higher
learning results than traditional training. (Fletcher, 1990)(Wright, 1993)(Adams,
1992).
Ø
Employees receiving ongoing
training are more productive than those who do not (Forman, 1994).
Ø
Ongoing training results in less
employee turnover (Corporate University Review, 1999) (McNamara, 1999).
Ø
Ongoing training significantly
increases customer satisfaction (Forman, 1994).
The 2002 ASTD Learning Outcomes Report combines the data collected from 1998 through 2001 on benchmarkable measures in workplace training and provides an overview of what has been learned when measuring and valuing these training investments. Investments in education and training are rapidly increasing, and the returns on these investments can be linked to overall business strategy and success.
ASTD reports that from 1998 to 2001, a total of 19,938 courses were evaluated, including 456,000 individual assessments of learning outcomes. The courses covered a wide range of subject areas, ranging from basic skills to interpersonal communication to technical processes and procedures, about 30 percent of which were delivered electronically.
Initial Evaluation of Courses
Initial evaluations of the utility (or usefulness) of what the respondents
learned over four years of data shows that respondents gave the highest ratings
to sales and dealer training, new employee orientation, product knowledge
training, and information technology (IT) skills.
The lowest initial evaluations came from participants that attended courses on quality, competition and business practices, basic skills, and occupational safety/compliance.
The data suggests that learners' self-assessment of how much they learned is highly associated with their prediction of the usefulness of what they have learned.
Evaluation of Performance Gains
Across all courses, learners reported that their performance on the objectives
of the course rose 36 percent and their overall job performance rose 31 percent.
From the learners' perspective, the types of courses producing the greatest gains in terms of course objectives, as well as the greatest increases in overall job performance, were those on product knowledge, sales and dealer, IT skills, and technical processes and procedures.
The least effective courses with lower-than-average performance gains on both measures were those on quality, competition and business practices, managerial/supervisory skills, and interpersonal communication.
Supervisors reported that new employee orientation and product knowledge
courses produced the greatest performance gains on their course objectives,
and that product knowledge courses yielded the greatest improvement in overall
job performance.