A friend of mine  works as a ‘Customer Success Manager’ at Yammer and he invited me along to the Yammer On Tour event in San Francisco on Tuesday this week. It was a really   well organized event and there were a whole load of people in attendance for the Keynote, Product Announcements, Case Studies, and Customer Panel in the main room.

Yammer Founder and CEO, David Sacks (@davidsacks), kicked off the keynote with the product announcements which includes some exciting new features like Premium groups, Universal search, Activity Stream Aggregation, and Integration Partners.

This was followed up by a few brief case studies from Westfield and Super Saver and then the big case study from Deloitte. Finally, a rather impressive customer panel ended the event and then it was onwards for some socializing. I was happy to catch up with my friend Steve Nguyen and I was even more surprised to see some of the learning regulars there – Clark Quinn and Jay Cross. Thanks Yammer!

@Schnicker

It never fails. As a lover of technology, I am always lusting over the latest tech gadgets, only to find that after I purchase something, a newer version comes out six months to a year later. Thus, I try to tell myself to not jump the gun and make do with what I have until the next version. This time around, I’m happy to announce that I am patiently waiting for the iPad 3. Yes, I said it. The iPad 3. Apple has announced that they will be holding an event in San Francisco early March to debut the successor of the iPad 2. Although there is no release date on when it will be available, the buzz on the street believes it will be out a week or so after the event.

How will the new and improved iPad differ? Sources say it will have a  much faster chip, sporting an improved graphics processing unit, and featuring a 2048×1536 Retina Display. Although Apple has not confirmed the rumors, I’m excited nonetheless.

What will the new version mean for eLearning? Well already the iPad has proven itself as a great tool for learning on-the-go.  Not just because you have a larger screen size when compared to a smartphone, which instantly makes content more appealing – especially things like HTML5 SCORM modules (which Litmos now supports)! But then you have a super user-friendly interface that everyone is familiar with too. So when you couple that together with the  Litmos LMS mobile version you have a seriously powerful mLearning combination there that I think the iPAd 3 will only further enhance! Plus, delivering content to learners even faster than before can only be a good thing.

Now if you are one of those individuals that has procrastinated on getting your loved one or significant other a Valentine’s Day gift, have no fear, an IOU for the new iPad will be sure to melt their hearts. Plus, it is a gift that keeps you learning!

- Jacqueline Barnes

The ASTD’s Tech Knowledge conference is fast approaching next week on Jan 25 – 27 at the Rio resort in Las Vegas. It’s not too late to get a ticket, or just come along to stop by the expo and check out the vendors. I will be there on Wednesday 25th, so let me know if you would like to meet up to talk about the Litmos LMS or just have some general chit-chat – I’d love to meet you!

@Schnicker

One of the huge benefits of using a lite learning management system like Litmos is that we’ve made the process of uploading course content and delivering it out to your learners so quick and easy that it’s a snap for anyone to manage. I’ve seen small independent, non-technical trainers all the way up to large technology companies brand their account, upload their course content, import their users, and have results rolling in within just a few hours. Now that’s efficiency :-)

This kind of efficiency is especially useful when it’s your job to bring a large, geographically dispersed group of resellers up with the play on your current product offerings, and new products as they are released. Having a stream-lined, consistent sales process, with accurate information communicated to buyers is a no-brainer when it comes to establishing credibility and growing your brand. One of the most effective ways that I’ve seen technology companies do this is through making short screencast, ‘how-to’ demos of their software products. An added benefit here is the ability to simply update a recording when a feature is added or a process changes.

To create a screencast you just need to decide on a screen recorder – like Camtasia or Captivate (more screenrecorder ideas here)- and then it’s as simple as recording your narration and interactions on-screen as you demo how the piece of software / technology works. Of course you can get a little fancier by embedding video and assessment questions, but in all reality a little how-to screencast might just do the trick. You can always follow it up with a short Litmos assessment and this way your course composed of your screencast video and quiz would all be accessible via mobile too.

Mobile access for learners should be a big consideration moving forward (read here for why), in any industry but especially technology. Odds are your learners already have smart phones and if they can watch a demo video or complete a quiz while they’re on the train or bus to/from work, they will do it. Isn’t it also a ‘win’ for the organization if learners are using their own time to get their product knowledge up to speed?

Finally, you will want to split your learners up in to Teams by geography, product category, brand or department. Why is this so important? Because then you can clearly match up how well a group is performing with their course completion stats, and if someone isn’t pulling their weight you can drill down in to the reports and figure out if it’s a training problem or maybe you have just discovered a managerial trouble spot that you need to further review.

If you’re thinking of moving your reseller training online and have a question for us, please email our friendly team on: support@litmos.com

@Schnicker

A few months ago we were lucky enough to have Saasu, a leader in online accounting software make the move to online learning via Litmos. We asked their marketing exec a few questions about their search for the ideal learning management system and here’s what they had to say:


Which industry does your organisation operate in?
Saasu makes online accounting easy for business owners and their accountants. Essentially, we’re a SaaS provider (hence the name), and our product is used by businesses across all industries. In light of this, our LMS had to be easy for anyone to use – regardless of their technical expertise.

How did you find out about Litmos?
We researched several learning management systems and stumbled across Litmos as part of that process. Not only that, but half the world seems to be following your ‘happy blogger‘ on Twitter, so you must be doing something well!

What were you using to manage learning prior to Litmos?
To be honest, we hadn’t attempted anything like Litmos before – we didn’t realise it could be so easy! Usually our training system simply consisted of a series of online webinars or on-site meetings. Both were time-consuming, sometimes inefficient and didn’t really let us accurately assess an individual’s learning.

As a result, this is the first time we’ve run a training programme in this way, and it’s definitely making for a richer learning experience.

Why did you choose Litmos as your learning management system?
Litmos is straightforward to use and gives our training team plenty of control. It also eliminates tedious admin work such as marking tests and chasing up clients to re-sit these. Oh, and it’s cost effective (which is always a bonus)!

Another important consideration was that we’ve got a great partnership with the team at Acclipse (in New Zealand) who we run a lot of training for Accounting Partners through, so it was really important the system we chose to work with was simple for anyone to set up, as we knew communicating complicated ideas from our office in Sydney wouldn’t be easy.

How has Litmos improved the way that you manage learning within your organisation? i.e. the benefits now and in the future
We use Litmos alongside our original training webinars to make sure our customers have really taken on the message. It’s great, because if they can’t make the webinar, we have a presentation in Litmos ready and waiting for them. In fact, our very first presentation to clients and staff makes it clear that webinar attendance is completely optional, and that their Litmos results are what we’ll be monitoring.

Although we mainly use Litmos for educating customers, it’s also the perfect tool for training Saasu and Acclipse staff (we have a lot, and they’re all over Australia and New Zealand), as we can track who’s making progress, and keeping up to date.

Now that our system is set up – the hard work is done! Of course we’re always tweaking the content and adding new sections, but doing this is a breeze.

- Thanks Saasu!
@RichChetwynd

We love hearing great feedback from our customers about our Learning Management System and last week we received this wonderful comment that’s definitely worth sharing:

“Using Litmos as our online training host provider has been a wonderful experience. Your responsiveness to all of our questions has been outstanding.  An even greater surprise has been your migration to a SCORM compliant format in advance of us expressing that secondary need.  The total experience (system offering, support, responsiveness) has been outstanding.”

Willie Anderson, Partner LIM LLC, www.LIMglobal.net

Leadership in Management LLC: LIM’s Mission is to develop leaders and teams so that they better understand themselves and others, and as a result make a positive impact on their businesses, organizations, society and environment. The LIM network includes over 35 trained Learning Coaches with license relationships in Mexico, Singapore and the Philippines with alliances in the USA, Sweden and Venezuela.

@Schnicker

Telnet, New Zealand’s largest privately owned outsource call centre, is using Litmos, an online training tool/system to train its call centre agents. Online training, as opposed to paper learning, is invaluable in that it allows staff training to be ongoing. Online training modules are updated regularly and eliminate the necessity for endless paper printouts which can be lost or discarded. Telnet’s Staff Trainer Diane says, ‘Litmos is easy to use, requires no special training, is not hard to understand and ‘looks familiar’. Agents can find their way around Litmos in less than an hour, and it is easier to use than many other e learning applications. The most important features of Litmos are its reporting and assessment functions. Diane explains that when dealing with paper learning, work must be marked which is time consuming and is ultimately hard to measure. Comparatively, once an agent has completed a Litmos training test, an email is automatically sent to the trainer for assessment. The trainer then has an immediate record of who has completed the test successfully. Needless to say, this feature sits nicely with Telnet’s managing director , who works on the premise that ‘what’s measured gets done”.

With Litmos online training systems there is no ‘downtime’ a problem which is associated with classroom training. Agents now enjoy learning. Those who previously read magazines or newspapers to fill in quiet periods are now keen to keep testing themselves, or updating their product knowledge using Litmos training modules which improves productivity.

With readily available, up to date training modules it is easy for agents to find answers to any questions they may have. Agents have a strong sense of achievement in completing a training module, which has the effect of boosting their self esteem, and promoting a confident workplace. Diane says that ‘training has turned into something that does happen’ and adds ‘we don’t have to plan it and then postpone it which is what used to happen with classroom training’. With all training being carried out online, staff training is extremely easy and efficient. ‘Litmos turns training into enjoyable experience- agents actually want to use it’ reports Diane.

And, client satisfaction has improved with the introduction of easy to use Litmos training programmes. With the flexibility that Litmos provides, Training manager Diane is able to update a client’s programme, or get reports, at any time with a minimum of fuss. Using Litmos training systems has to be a win/win situation for both Telnet and the client.

Learning online is now a worldwide phenomenon. Many companies have moved towards having either all, or part of their staff training programs online. The ability for employees to study in the office and not spend precious company time away from the business is attractive to employers.

New employees are able to experiment with technology without fear of making a mistake. Online training programs allow them to keep practicing until they ‘get it right’ so that when they formally start the job, they are confident and well informed.

In New Zealand, leading outsource contact center provider Telnet is using Litmos, an Internet based online training program to train their customer service representatives. It has become an integral part of their business. Telnet’s training manager, while not at all technical herself, has found Litmos a very easy tool to use in developing training modules. Given that Litmos operates on the Internet with simple monthly licensing, Telnet was able to bring Litmos into full production without any support from Telnet’s IT department. Elearning, and Litmos Programs have changed the way Telnet looks at educating and training its staff.