blended learning
Igniting a spark V
aillant Group is an international organisation which started in Germany in the 1800s and is still owned by its founding family today. The UK is one of its largest markets. The company’s culture focuses on innovation and always thinking ahead to support its
reputation for performance, quality and reliability. (Its products can even be found in Royal homes). The boilers are installed by independent engineers who often work for themselves but who must be certified in order to install heating and hot water solutions. To encourage brand loyalty towards Vaillant, the company operates a well-established training and loyalty programme to support installers in their quest to keep up-to-date on the latest installation techniques and products as well as then benefitting from being part of Vaillant’s recommended installer network.
A training challenge However, persuading people who work for themselves to attend training that effectively costs them money in potential lost earnings, as well as taking up their time, presents a real challenge. So Vaillant wanted to take a new approach. The aim was to minimise disruption and costs to the individuals, whilst still covering all the relevant material and maintaining high standards of learning. The training team was aware of the potential of e-learning. But, having experienced poorly produced content in the past, were reluctant to create the online equivalent of ‘death by PowerPoint’.
What happened next… The answer lay in combining the strengths of its effective hands-on training, with the benefits e-learning has to offer in a blended programme. Vaillant selected Mind Click as its e-learning partner and created a solution that included: n Online pre-assessment n Core face-to-face training n Hands-on performance support n e-learning reference materials
140 year old, family business revolutionises its approach to training. Richard Hyde picks up the story
… persuading people who work for themselves to attend training that effectively costs them money in potential lost earnings, as well as taking up their time, presents a real challenge.
Lessons learned The impact has been dramatic. Vaillant’s installers can now learn in their own time, which means they no longer have to spend time off the road if they do not wish to. And despite anticipated challenges around engaging the installers, the feedback is excellent. Key lessons have been learned by both Mind Click and the Vaillant team. n Know your audience: Vaillant’s installers are often from an older demographic who are not office based and don’t generally use online technology as part of their daily role. There was a real fear that if they introduced e-learning, usage rates and engagement would be low. But understanding their working behaviours and technical abilities helped create content that is pitched at the right level. n BYOD: Vaillant’s installers can access e-learning from home or on the job via their own devices. This has been critical in their engagement with the programme as they spend a lot of time on the road. In our increasingly always-on society, it makes sense to make e-learning available on learners’ own devices… n …And go where the people are: Totara LMS has been integrated with a single sign-on to the Vaillant Advance platform, which is where over 7,000 installers go online anyway to access the benefits of their loyalty scheme. Don’t hide e-learning and support materials somewhere that learners won’t find them or think to visit. n Incentivise learners: Putting content on the Advance Platform positions the e-learning as a bonus – learners can even earn credits for accessing it which they can then spend on real items that give benefit to the installers’ businesses. This isn’t appropriate in all organisations of course, but with the advent of gamification, points and prizes can be highly valued by learners as reward for doing their bit. n Don’t re-invent the wheel: Vaillant’s hands-on training involves installers taking apart boilers and getting stuck into the components. That’s something e-learning didn’t need to try and replace. So we kept what worked and supplemented it with supporting information that’s accessed via e-learning. Vaillant Group has won awards for Best Manufacturer Training and Best Support Department for its training team thanks to the blended learning initiative, and is excited about applying their new e-learning expertise in future projects. Steve Keeton, marketing and technologies director, said: “This blended
approach has worked so well that we are already converting other courses into a mix of e-learning, classroom training and hands-on, practical elements. We’ve done very little e-learning before and are delighted with how well it’s turned out. It’s really vital that as a business, we’re seen to be using the latest technology to engage and support our installers and obviously help attract a new generation of loyal installers who will be familiar with online learning.”
Dr. Richard Hyde is CEO of Mind Click 34 e.learning age september 2015
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