View e-learning video here.

Here’s what you’ll find covered:

* What it takes to make online training effective
* 10 key methods to optimize online training for maximum impact
* Working with technical material
* Engaging learners and measuring impact
* Key elements in selecting a Learning Management System

To download this valuable research white paper, click here.



* The key challenges preventing e-learning success
* How e-learning benefits organizations (hint: your compensation might depend on it)
* What not to do when it comes to choosing a vendor – cost does not equal quality.
* Simple strategies for implementing eLearning in your organization

Download now, click here.

For an example, let’s say your Marketing Department wants you to produce a promotional lesson on performing a radiological analysis of decreased peritoneal opacity and how to distinguish between intraluminal and extraluminal gas accumulation. You are given an article from a veterinary medical journal that purports to describe the process, however it’s filled with medical terms you can’t even decipher, let alone pronounce. They need it in two weeks for a trade show.
No problem! Your organization specializes in manufacturing veterinary radiological equipment so you should be able to find a subject matter expert that can help with this assignment. After all, a couple of animated slides, some background music and a short script ought to do it. Surprise! None of the design engineers in your group has even heard of the process. They suggest you contact a member of the company’s Board of Directors, Dr. Roberta Thornton, who is a leading expert on radiological analysis in dogs and cats.

Your subject matter expert, Dr. Thornton is, in fact, a renowned university professor and a pioneer in the radiographic profession. You know she’s going to be quite busy but there is that deadline, so you’re determined to complete your assignment on time. How do you approach her to enlist her assistance with your project? What do you need to know about working with an SME?

Here are some points to consider:

1. “What’s in it for me?”
As you’ve already recognized, SMEs are very busy folks. How else would they get to become an SME? Since Dr. Thornton’s time is very limited, you first need to sell her on why she should assist in creating this course. So outline a proposal; tell her why you picked her as an SME, what’s in it for her and, importantly, exactly how much of her time you will need. Be prepared to completely open your schedule so that you can be available on her first pick of a time.

2. Prepare a storyboard.
Even if there is a lot of blank space, an outline of the standard format of your presentation will be indispensible so that when you meet there is already a template that you both can work with. You might show a title slide, an objectives slide, a content slide….seven or eight topic slides a summary slide and, perhaps, a bibliography (all blank of course).

3. Give credit and focus to the SME, not yourself.
Be sure to include her name right up front, on the title slide. You’ll want to do this not as a suck up but to ensure that she doesn’t downgrade the importance of the presentation. Everyone will recognize her name and she will want to work to her highest standards. It will also demonstrate her commitment to the company to other board members.

4. Work collaboratively.
Don’t be intimidated or sell yourself short. You are the expert in course development. Work with your SME on an equal level. Be prepared to provide a very brief explanation of how your process works, including the precise timetable and your expectations for review. This helps to avoid friction…each of you should know your respective roles in the process. The focus must always be on teamwork and your reliance on one another to make the program successful.

5. Communicate.
Ask questions and request explanations for material you don’t understand fully. The old carpenter’s adage holds true: Measure twice, cut once. Better to rely on getting it right the first time than having to redo a poorly constructed slide after a review. While you are likely not expected to produce a perfect program on the first try, it certainly helps your relationship with the SME to get as close as could be expected from a person not working in that particular field. Remember, too, how busy the SME is and how frequent interruptions for questions and explanations can sour an otherwise good relationship. Also, so far as you can, consolidate questions and put them in an email with a stated date by which you need answers. Allow at least a couple of days for response.

6. Final Review.
When you have incorporated the answers to your questions into the course, send the final version to the SME for review. If you were diligent in your initial conversation, the SME will be expecting both the questions noted above and the need for a final review. By now, you may be down to the wire as far as time goes, but never skip this process…it’s asking for disaster. If necessary, go over again the timetable and the need to be ready on time. The event you are working for is going to occur at a specific date so there should be no surprises regarding the deadline.

7. Publish and Distribute.
The most effective way to work collaboratively with your SME throughout the development process is by leveraging the capabilities of an online Learning Management System. The eLeaP Learning Management System (www.eleapsoftware.com), for example, enables the developer to create the training course in real time, publish it and then immediately share it with anyone. This dynamic process allows the SME to view the course as it will actually be seen by students, then approve it or suggest changes. Using the eLeaP system can significantly reduce the time and expense of developing technical courseware since it eliminates sending drafts back and forth. And, perhaps even more importantly, it involves your expert in the development process, shares ownership and creates immediate buy-in.

These are the keys to successfully working with a subject matter expert. Remember to sell the need for assistance and its benefits, set expectations, stay organized by using a storyboard, give the credit for success to the SME, work collaboratively, and be sure to communicate when there are questions. If these steps are followed, the final review will go smoothly and you will have produced an outstanding program on a difficult and highly technical product.

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Using eLeaP: Creating a course is just one of several essential first steps that we address in our Show Me interactive video demonstration.
Join our next live session, and watch our Education Team as they walk you through setting up your account, creating courses, setting up quizzes, accessing reports and managing your e-learning training program.

Sign up at http://www.eleapsoftware.com/getonlinedemo.html

So you are asking why invest over $16,000 per employee to train these people when the training is not even job related? What gives?

Well, Defender Leadership Advantage training is instead based on helping employees manage and improve their personal finances, set and achieve goals and develop overall healthy habits. Wow! Talk about upsetting the proverbial training industry cart. However upon closer inspection, what makes A++ employees? Well do you really want employees to rush from one financial catastrophe to the next? Do you want employees who are so unorganized that they require constant supervision and help? Do you want employees who are unable to take on projects and deliver clear objectives an meet milestones.

I think that is what we can learn from the innovative folks at the Defender Direct.

Perhaps you too want to start a “non traditional” training program? Learn how you can get started at www.eleapsoftware.com.

It will be interesting to see if this election season changes anything in this regard.

According to Diversity news:

If then the goal of the LMS or training software system, is to serve your business and education needs, does the vendor you are dealing with understand this basic requirement in a fundamental way? Yes the LMS system or training software should be the best in terms of the technology – after all you don’t want a crappy system which breaks down every other day. Having said this, you and your vendor should display an alignment of vision in terms of understanding the business needs, the teaching and learning objectives and methodologies and the design or content creation and management interface that is needed to accomplish your needs.

I can’t tell you how many times I have had to caution potential customers about this one. KNOW THY COSTS — ALL OF THY COSTS. Many organizations have plunged into e-learning and web-based training with a zest not seen since the tech bubble of the 90’s. Don’t get me wrong. This is all so exciting. However, one needs to pause and ask all the right questions. Ask about the costs for setup. How about maintenance and support? Inquire about costs to upgrade or have special features implemented. If the vendor’s pricing is based on usage license, you need to ask about overage charges. Are you charged extra if you decide to create extra classes? These are critical questions you need to ask and get answers before you plow into vendor selection. Trust me, you don’t want any surprises.

Do me a favor and ask your vendor if the system is designed to be run or operated by regular folks…erm I mean educators or only the IT department has the resources and skills to manage your learning management system or training software program? Why you might ask? Because this is a big deal. IT departments are becoming woefully understaffed or even worse outsourced. Do you really want to depend on IT for every single thing you need done in your e-learning software? Another way of looking at this question is. How simple is your training software to operate? If you a PhD in computer science, you are probably not talking with the right vendor.

The last question you might want to consider is support and reliability. Many simply assume this or worse get the standard vendor spin. You need to take the free e-learning software trials some vendors offer and test drive the whole system including the support and technical help functions. If you can’t get support before they have had a chance to take your money, believe me, its going to be a whole lot more difficult after you have paid them. So, do your home work and take the system for a spin. Utilize the phone, fax, email, online support system etc and make sure your vendor has passed the test.

View from the window:

eLeaP and MedSenses announce partnership,
giving access to a complete e-learning solution for both individual
nurses and their healthcare organizations

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY & NEW BRUNSWICK 11/01/2007: Telania,
whose expertise range from e-Learning Management Technologies
(eLeaP™) and Healthcare Training Solutions to Custom
Software Development and MedSenses, an emerging eLearning
company that focuses on all things nursing, announce a partnership
in delivering web-based healthcare content through the eLeaP
Learning Management Platform.

The co-founders of MedSenses, Trisha Coady and Lynn Casey,
combine their invaluable nursing experience with a real passion
for continuing education to develop some of the most clinically
relevant and interactive content for nurses worldwide. “We
are thrilled to see the MedSenses content in the eLeaP system,
a very easy to use, yet intuitive learning management system.
We know our peers in healthcare who want the choice to purchase
either individual licenses or a corporate package will enjoy
embarking on their journey of learning with this combined
solution”, says Trisha Coady. MedSenses hopes the payoff
will be nurses with greater job satisfaction and sense of
value, attributes that both nursing and hospital administrators
can readily endorse.

The American Journal of Nursing reported that offering training
and educational opportunities to hospital personnel is increasingly
recommended as a retention and recruitment incentive. The
combination of content from MedSenses and the LMS platform
– eLeaP by Telania will provide hospitals with the ability
to efficiently and effectively train and educate their healthcare
staff.
“Telania is passionate about building robust and easy
to use software applications. MedSenses delivers rich, instructive
and quality nursing education. The combination of the eLeaP
Platform and MedSenses courseware presents a unique and powerful
educational tool for hospitals and healthcare providers.”

About Telania & eLeaP:
eLeaP™ LMS/LCMS is one of the first e-learning platforms
to deliver easy to use web-based training in a totally secure
128-Bit encrypted environment. eLeaP™ is designed to
allow any company training manager or supervisor, consultants
& other training professionals to quickly & painlessly
manage all of their online training needs in one secure, easy
to use web platform. You get your own unique learning portal
or URL. The eLeaP e-learning plafform enables anyone to easily
and quickly create, manage and track training and e-learning
programs.. You don’t have to spend time and huge investment
of money to have your own unique training system. eLeaP™
does it for you. And it is totally secure! Additional information
is available at www.eleapsoftware.com or www.telania.com

About MedSenses Inc.:
MedSenses Inc. is an emerging content provider focused on
building courseware BY nurses FOR nurses. Having developed
a proprietary method for building educational content for
the nursing community, MedSenses offers a variety of titles
in the following sectors: Medical-Surgical, Cardiac, Critical
Care, Compliance, Pediatrics, Newborn, Neonatal, Emergency,
Ground Transport and Flight Transport. The courses integrate
solid medical and technical information with insight and stories
from real-world clinical experiences; complimented by medical
animations, interactivities and 3D graphics. Healthcare organizations
can now offer a high quality, cost-effective solution for
their continuing education programs. Additional information
is available at www.medsenses.com.

Contact:

MedSenses Inc.
Lynn Casey, VP Marketing
506.384.7033
lynn.casey@medsenses.com

Telania, Inc.
Don Weobong, President
(502) 291-4650
donatus@eleapsoftware

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Don Weobong, President of Telania, Inc. a provider of training software solutions and learning management systems said of this issue, “the problem with non-secure learning systems and unencrypted web training software programs is a real threat to companies and organizations. Serious steps need to be taken to address this unsustainable situation”.

If your organization is deploying sensitive training materials or proprietary company information over a web-based training software application, you have to ensure that the wrong kind of people do not have access to it. While learning management systems can provide server-side software encryption, you need to also ensure the integrity of the user-side management interfaces. Does the system provide SSL (secure socket layer) encryption? Is the application hosted in-house or do you an external hosting partners hosting your learning management system? Does the application server use anti-virus, anti-spyware software or data encryption and firewalls to protect against unauthorized access and intrusions?

If all this sounds a bit confusing, then its time to get a learning management system partner who specializes in secure online learning systems. One of the few reliable companies in this space is Telania, Inc. with the eLeaP Learning Management System platform.

Because eLeaP is a hosted secure training solution, you don’t need to worry about the nuts and bolts of all the security concerns outlines above. Of course you still want to make sure the wrong people in your organization don’t get access to your secure content.

So to recap:

How secure is your online learning system?

• Make sure the solution employs anti intrusion software such as firewalls, anti-spyware or anti-virus applications.
• Make sure your online learning management system utilizes SSL encryption to ensure the integrity of your content
• Get a hosted learning management solution partner who specializes in secure online learning systems

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