Online learning, E-learning, or ‘electronic learning’, is a rapidly expanding global industry based on easy training access. Expected to reach a value of almost $400bn by 2026, it meets a growing need for individuals and organizations to resolve essential knowledge and skill gaps. With the continuous disruption of the Digital Age creating a need for qualified candidates and future-proof strategies, e-learning has proven an excellent solution for some of the most successful businesses in the world.
The term ‘e-learning’ refers to any training available through PCs, phones, tablets, and other electronic devices. Elliott Masie initially coined the phrase in 1999, long before the Internet’s growth unlocked the industry’s potential. Whereas previously, it was all about mail-ordered CDs, candidates can now go online and access anything from introductory course trials to complete university programs in just a few minutes!
The changing shape of the business world has further supported the growth of e-learning. For example, the need for digitization has seen industries like Healthcare and Finance rely heavily on online training to ensure staff have the required skills and awareness. Changing circumstances have also prompted employees to update their knowledge to adapt or earn qualifications to advance their careers. At the same time, establishing several key frameworks in general areas like project management, cybersecurity, and IT literacy has raised the value of professional certification. Companies need specific skills, and certified candidates can benefit from being far more likely to stand out.
So, how exactly does e-learning work, and what are the perks offered by online training? In this article, we aim to answer all your questions about e-learning!
Why invest in professional training?
Individuals and organizations can opt for corporate training for a variety of reasons.
For a company, it can be about:
- Getting candidates up to speed with ways of working used by the organization
- Educate candidates in key areas like cybersecurity and IT literacy
- Update current ways of working to take advantage of new technology, practices, and markets
- Utilize previously unused practices such as enterprise architecture and DevOps
- Investing in employee enrichment for the sake of long-term retention
- Meet requirements for having qualified staff in specific positions
For individuals, professional training can help them:
- Learn new skills for current or prospective job roles
- Earn qualifications to advance their career
- Qualify for new responsibilities
- Study emerging practices or technology
- Learn to better contribute to and collaborate with qualified team members
What are the perks of online learning?
Despite the recent growth of e-learning, professional training itself is hardly new. Many companies even prefer traditional-style learning over anything that relies on electronic devices.
So why is online training becoming more popular? In truth, e-learning offers several potential benefits that cannot be matched with classroom learning:
- Costs – Online learning does not require travel, printed materials, venue rental, or in-person instructors. This can significantly lower the cost of training, making it far more feasible for individuals and companies.
- Flexible scheduling – Traditional training with set classroom times can be awkward for students with busy schedules. In contrast, e-learning courses can be accessed anywhere, at any time, and from any geographic location. As many of these courses also come with months of access, employees find it far easier to schedule training around other commitments.
- Value – The misconception of e-learning not being as worthwhile as traditional training is pretty much extinct at this point. With the market growing so much, employers and business partners place much more value on online certifications, especially those relating to popular frameworks and ways of working.
- Variety in training – Online training offers a broader variety of learning resources and exercises than classrooms. Many employ interactive design to boost retention, with standard options including gamified quizzes and instructor-led videos. This keeps students engaged and helps trainers cater to a wider variety of learning preferences.
- Scalability – When a company enjoys a successful training program, the next step is often to scale it up regarding course options, the number of candidates, and so on. This is much easier with online training programs supported by a Learning Management System (LMS). Regardless of the number of candidates involved, the quality of online training courses remains consistent.
- Productivity – Online learning with set times and dates can take employees away from their desks at critical moments (or skip sessions that must still be paid for). Businesses don’t have to worry about this with online training! Accessing learning materials at work can even give employees valuable experience applying new best practices.
- Turnover – Employees thinking about their career path want to know whether staying in their current role will be worth it long term. Online training offers a cheap yet sustainable way for candidates to increase their earning potential. If a business provides training and advancement opportunities, it will be better able to retain staff in advantageous positions. This can be critical for ensuring long-term success.
- Availability – Depending on an organization or individual’s location, traditional training may not be feasible. E-learning courses are not only accessible from anywhere, but there is also a much wider variety of training topics to be found online. For companies or candidates in specific locations, e-learning offers an ideal solution for enjoying the full benefits of professional training.
How did e-Learning become popular?
Several factors have contributed to the growth of e-learning as an industry:
- Digital Age – The last few decades have seen the Internet permeate professional and everyday life. Access is widespread, with potential students finding courses through smartphones, laptops, PCs, tablets, and so on. Rather than having to buy dedicated software or hard copies of courses, potential users can access and purchase training in seconds.
- Awareness – It is easier than ever for professionals and businesses to share ideas and experiences on the value of certification training. There are conferences set around popular topics like enterprise architecture and DevOps. With the advantages of e-learning being no secret, why wouldn’t more people and businesses be taking advantage?
- Multimedia experiences – Online training is not just about endless slideshows and PDF documents. E-learning can incorporate a variety of resources, such as graphics and videos. This can significantly help course engagement and knowledge retention and make the prospect of online training far more attractive for prospective candidates.
- Price – Most people already have access to digital devices, which are much cheaper than in the 90s. With e-learning also removing costs such as hiring teachers and travel, getting certified via online training is getting cheaper all the time!
- LMS systems – A ‘Learning Management System’ or ‘LMS’ is a dedicated learning platform. It provides easy access to courses and performance metrics, enabling training while also making it easy to manage enrichment programs. This makes e-learning far more feasible on a corporate scale, especially as it allows managers to be proactive in providing help to struggling learners.
- Providers – Some companies that can benefit from e-learning are put off due to the prospective price of training employees. However, there is no reason for a company to develop its courses. Even rapid e-learning can be a poor choice for organizations lacking training expertise. However, the industry’s growth has come from several world-class training providers delivering fully accredited courses across all professional topics. Companies can even offer a bespoke experience by rebranding courses for corporate training programs.
What is Good e-Learning?
Good e-Learning is an award-winning online training provider. We offer diverse courses, including accredited certification programs for the world’s most powerful corporate frameworks and industry topics. We have worked with everyone from individual learners to international blue chips to deliver online, blended, and virtual training programs.
We create courses in-house with our team of training specialists. We also work with subject matter experts to deliver relevant, unique, and practical insight into how training can be applied in daily work. Our world-class support team is on hand to help with course content and technical questions, and we also provide a free exam voucher and resit for every student!
Good e-Learning also specializes in corporate training programs. We work with blue-chip clients worldwide to deliver market-leading training with our award-winning Learning Management System (LMS). Not only does this make an access and scaling simple, but it also offers dynamic reporting to make it easy to track performance metrics. Our support team can also use this to provide proactive assistance to corporate candidates, helping them achieve training targets much more reliably.
Are you interested in exploring the benefits of the online training industry? You can also join our Reseller Program to offer your clients fully prepared and accredited e-learning courses. We even provide course rebranding and can set up your new online sales platform.
Want to find out more? Contact a member of the Good e-Learning team today!
