Elearning for Business: Convincing Statistics

Elearning has been growing by leaps and bounds for years. Even so, there are still some who question the value of training their employees with this method. They think that serious games and gamification are frivolous and without real benefit, or that virtual learning is a waste of time and resources.

They couldn’t be further from the truth. The statistics tell a story about how valuable elearning can be. Examining the numbers provides an unbiased look at the effects that elearning is having on businesses and their employees.

A look back

Before diving into the numbers, it’s helpful to take a look at the evolution of what is now considered modern elearning.

The 1960’s saw the first virtual classroom. This was accomplished by linking computer terminals.
In the 1970’s, learners were being trained with the assistance of computers, although they had to be used at the school or place of work.
The 1980’s brought about the emergence of the first online-only courses. Businesses even started to use some online tools to reduce software costs.
In the 1990’s, students started to use an online college program for all of their degree coursework. It’s worth noting that 1998 saw the advent of the term, “elearning.”
The present day situation is an explosion of online learners with numbers reaching well over 6 million.

The numbers

The statistics are more than encouraging for a business that is questioning implementing elearning strategies into their corporate training program.

Not surprisingly, tech-savvy companies are leading the way in the field of elearning. According to a workforce.com study, 73.6 percent of technology-delivered training in Fortune 500 companies is coming from an online provider.
Corporations save between 50 and 70 percent when they use elearning in place of their traditional methods. (IOMA 2002) Productivity also increases when employees don’t have to spend as much time and/or travel for training.
Retention is one of the keys to an employee being able to successfully apply what they have learned in a real-life situation. Elearning has been shown to increase retention rates by 25 to 60 percent.
A high rate of turnover is costly for a business. A study by The National Research Business Institute shows that 23 percent of the employees who leave their jobs do so because they lacked adequate training and development options.
Another example of how elearning can benefit the workplace is in the area of change. One survey of 600 companies showed that 72 percent reported that elearning and mobile learning helped their business better adapt to change.

The bottom line

What do all these statistics mean? They show that implementing a well-designed corporate training program for educating employees is a sound investment that is worth making. A company must depend on their workforce to positively represent the business in order for it to thrive. Well-prepared employees are more likely to care about their company and will strive to do their best.

Designing Digitally, Inc. can help your organization to incorporate eLearning into your training program. Our experienced and award-winning design team will develop a program that will enhance employee engagement, increase productivity, and improve the bottom line results.