E-Learning for Innovation, Training and R&D

• 4 min read

At a time when change comes faster than ever, a key advantage of E-Learning is that it has a faster delivery cycle than traditional classroom-based education and it is less expensive.

This is especially true because with an initial investment it is possible for training content to reach large numbers of people, including those based in different locations and different time zones, and allow them to work in virtual teams.

This is the key concept in E-Learning technology – the ability to access training content anywhere and at any time.

E-Learning, Online Training

Certifications, Trainings and Qualifications

A general trend in the industry is to start a company E-Learning project comprised of mandatory courses that cover industry standards and certifications. This allows companies and enterprises of any size and sector to meet industry standards quicker. In some cases, law even requires professionals to have certain certified trainings and qualifications. Compliance challenges such as these make it vital for professionals to have access to training that provides the right knowledge and skills.

Another interesting trend in the E-Learning scene is the shift from classroom product training to online product sessions. Whether a company’s workforce is an established group of professionals or some new to the field, trainings delivered through E-Learning give them the required expertise in a specific product or technology.

R&D: Certification, Training

At each new product launch, companies create online courses for their sales force, the pre and post-sales staff and sometimes for all employees. In those courses companies highlight the new product’s key selling points. The key objective is to drive excellence by providing comprehensive product, service and solution knowledge through online training aligned to a given competency framework. This competency framework is supported by clearly defined learning paths constructed for specific workloads.

Induction, Legal and Compliance

An induction program is an important process for bringing staff into a new organization, and can also be delivered as E-Learning. This type of program provides new employees with an introduction to their working environment and their position within the organization. The process will also cover the employer and employee rights and the terms and conditions of employment.

R&D: Knowledge SharingAs a priority, the induction program must cover any legal and compliance requirements for working at the company and must also address the health and safety of the new employee. Modern induction programs are intended to enable the new employee to become an integrated member of the team. They ensure new employees have a smooth transition by making sure they understand how to do their job and how their role fits in with the rest of the company.

The benefits of induction programs are vast, including increased retention of newly hired employees, improved employee morale and increased productivity. A properly crafted induction program includes knowledge management transfer and provokes positive emotions about the story, the vision, the mission and strategy of the company.

These programs can also play a critical role in the socialization of new employees to the organization in terms of performance, attitudes and organizational commitment. In order to fully benefit the company and employees, human touch and empathy are key.

E-Learning can provide the initial part of this course, and also successfully supports additional informal training. The strength of an E-Learning program is that education is not a centralized activity! Anyone who has knowledge to share can become a teacher and can make his expertise available to anyone at anytime and anywhere!

E-Learning for R&D Processes

For example, employees involved in the R&D processes can become content producers with a high impact on the company knowledge base. At the global economic level, this is a necessary step towards creating a knowledge economy.

R&D: E-LearningThe distinctive knowledge of a single unit has a strong impact within an organization once it is shared. Not only does it create loyalty and brand awareness, but it also facilitates communication between departments, units or colleagues that are not always able to have a “helicopter view” of the organization while they are busy working on their day-to-day tasks.

So how can your company create a corporate project like this? You need to build the basement before creating a castle!

The starting point is to share a methodology of distance learning with your workforce. The entire company should be involved, from HR to IT, from Sales to Marketing.

By leveraging E-Learning technologies, anyone can become a teacher of his own online course by creating basic documents, videos, presentations, sharing comments, collecting feedback etc. This goes beyond collaborative tools, which are great but can have several limits. One of the top benefits of this technology is that it integrates SCORM, the industry standard that enables traceability.

Benefits of E-Learning

R&D: E-Learning BenefitsThe ease of use of an E-Learning platform like Docebo’s LMS ensures that trainings and interactions won’t remain just as social moments. Instead, they can be saved and recorded for posterity since everything can be automatically tracked, monitored and reported.

What are the real benefits of E-Learning programs compared to simple web knowledge sharing projects? Within a comprehensive E-Learning environment the LMS is designed to encourage distance learning. Every single function supports the end-user in the learning process and this is done following a precise strategy.

A LMS is not a generic repository of files, but rather a learning environment where every single file becomes a learning object within a course, can be shared with one or more training classrooms, is equipped with synchronous or asynchronous communication tools and can be monitored!


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Valentina Piccioli, E-Learning Analyst in Docebo, has created a dedicated online courses for a client of Docebo’s about E-Learning and Cloud-based Solutions adoption and how to leverage cutting-edge technologies to have a positive impact on the environment. Valentina conceived case studies and trainings on energy saving, corporate social responsibility and business ethics.