This is a nice article on e-learning and its benefits in the workplace.  This topic is near and dear to me because at my last job we had a great e-learning system provided by Smartforce.  I made a Shared Best Practices presentation on e-learning for one of my teams. I even got to help beta test the upgraded system earlier this year.

As the article points out, one of the reasons e-learning is such a great idea is because it causes the learner to spend less time away from the desk.  The learner logs into the e-learning software, selects a class, and studies at their own pace. They are able to spend as much time as they need to master the concept, which may turn out to be less than the time they would have spent in training away from their desk. With Smartforce, we were able to go back and review sections that we had a hard time understanding or come back to the class and review sections.

I love companies that support e-learning.  However, my workplace didn’t. Although they had it available, it was preferred that you went to classes held by the in-house trainer.  In fact, when they upgraded our e-learning software, they removed every class that covered a topic taught by our trainer, which included every single Microsoft Office class.  It was sad, because I had been working toward my MOUS certification and I was nearly finished with my coursework. It was even more sad, because many people had filed complaints about our trainer and were starting to turn toward e-learning as an easier way to learn the skills needed to accomplish some of our job.

So, e-learning is good.  It allows the learner to work in their spare time.  It keeps them at their desk where they can multi-task while learning.  It covers topics from software to business topics with simulations, hands-on exercises and mentoring projects.  It’s a great, non-threatening learning environment.