June 23rd, 2010 by Robin Green

The benefit of a learning management system (LMS) isn’t only the time and money saved, but the potential for creating a team learning experience that fortifies your staff unity and efficiency. But how do you train employees for continuous improvement and team thinking? Moreover, how can you create a group learning experience for your staff?

First, incorporate Kaizen into your company philosophy, and explain and demonstrate the concept in your training. As I mentioned in my previous post, Kaizen, the Japanese business philosophy of continuous improvement, is a philosophy which involves all employees, of every rank. It is quite different from outdated hierarchical improvement programs of “command and control”. Under Kaizen, all employees are encouraged to make suggestions to improve all processes of a business.

During LMS training, instill your trainees with the idea that they are not only valuable employees, but a team who works together to improve the company product and image. Staff don’t work for your company–they are your company.

Second, use your LMS to establish clear training goals and objectives for your staff. Let your LMS do the dirty work of tracking your students’ progress during training. An LMS is able to take care of many things including content management, agendas and announcements, collaboration methods, assignment management, and learning path developmet. An LMS plays a critical role in its ability to track staff progress–both individual and collective.

Third, create a team learning experience using your LMS. Try a strategy that serves two purposes. For example, introduce your staff to a new product or service, and allow them to practice developing strategies and solutions for that product or service. If the trainees are in sales or customer service, use your LMS to introduce the new product, deliver training on the product, and prompt trainees to work together to develop strategies and solutions to given situations when dealing with clients, and so on. These are just three among many ways you can reap the benefits of LMS training for your company–beyond the more financial and practical ones.

Coggno is now offering a free trial for training program creators on its learning management system. Create an online course for free, either for internal use,  for inclusion in Coggno’s E-learning Marketplace, or for outside syndication on hundreds of websites.

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Coggno.com offers world-class online education.

June 17th, 2010 by Robin Green

There’s been a lot of buzz recently about Kaizen, the Japanese word for “improvement” or “change for the better”. It’s a business process that was first implemented in Japanese businesses after World War II, and has since gained worldwide popularity. It’s been adopted by enormous corporations (like Toyota) and now smaller businesses are catching on. After it was mentioned in a March 2010 “This American Life” episode, it’s been appearing increasingly in blogs and forums.

What is Kaizen, and why should you consider teaching it as part of your learning management system training? Here are five facts about Kaizen that might help you decide whether or not to adopt it for your company.

First, Kaizen refers to the Japanese business practice that emphasizes continuous improvement of processes in manufacturing, engineering, supporting business processes, and management.

Second, Kaizen creates efficiency. It also eliminates waste–and not only material waste. Kaizen helps to create efficiency in a business and eliminates the waste of time.

Third, Kaizen is a day-to-day behavior that extends beyond simple productivity improvement of a business. It’s a process that humanizes the workplace and eliminates overly difficult work. According to Bunji Tozawa, “The idea is to nurture the company’s human resources as much as it is to praise and encourage participation in kaizen activities.”

Fourth, Kaizen refers to activities that continually improve ALL functions of a business. It’s a philosophy that involves all employees, from the CEO down. This makes it vastly different from the “command and control” improvement programs of the mid-twentieth century. Kaizen methodology involves a company-wide practice of making changes and monitoring results, and then adjusting. Large-scale pre-planning and extensive project scheduling are replaced by smaller experiments, which are able to be rapidly adapted as new improvements are suggested. Who can suggest? Anyone.

Fifth, A pay-per-use learning management system allows for the same continuous improvements–updates and upgrades, content and tool addition, etc.–to the actual training program that the Kaizen philosophy allows to happen on a daily basis on the ground level of a company.

Coggno is now offering a free trial for training program creators on its learning management system. Create an online course for free, either for internal use,  for inclusion in Coggno’s E-learning Marketplace, or for outside syndication on hundreds of websites.

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Coggno.com provides world-class online training.

June 10th, 2010 by Robin Green

For staff members beginning new positions, or for those learning a new skill, strong training is a hugely determinative element. If your staff starts off on the right foot, they’ll have a much better chance of staying there long-term.

As a trainer, how do you ensure that a short-term element is transformed into long-term one? How do you transform short-term knowledge into practice and ultimately, habit?

Using learning management system training courses, transferring knowledge from the short-term memory to long-term is a process easily facilitated. One of the most effective ways to help learners absorb course material is through repetitive review.

Here’s an analogy. Although you have probably parked your car in hundreds of places throughout your lifetime, you probably remember easily enough where it is each time you go to find it. And you just as easily forget where it was parked after you no longer need to find it there.

However, if one day you parked your car in a specific place in the parking lot, and then walked by it several times throughout that particular day, you might remember for days or even weeks where it was on that day.

This is a simple strategy for helping learners put course content into their long term memory. When your trainees learn something new, try to review the main points on the same day. Ask them to take notes on the learning management system material, and allow them to refer back to them as they practice.

Throughout the training course, ask your learners to complete activities, quizzes and case studies to test and practice applying their knowledge. End each module with a quiz which helps students remember all the material included in that section, and upon completing the course, include a final exam to prompt further practice.

Coggno’s features combined with the robust applications integrated with Coggno’s LMS, such as BB FlashBack screen recordings and Rapid Intake Unison, provide a powerful course development toolkit packed with simple and versatile options for making learning stick.

Coggno is now offering a free trial for online course creators on its learning management system. Create an online course for free, either for internal use, Coggno’s E-learning Marketplace, or for outside syndication on hundreds of websites.

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Coggno.com offers world-class LMS.

June 4th, 2010 by Robin Green

As a homeschool parent, you will become a pro in management. What kind of management? Two kinds–time management and learning management.

Time management will become second nature to you as a homeschooler. Although learning management systems and other online learning materials are relatively mess-free, you’ll be doing all kinds of projects (including art and science) that will inevitably cause clutter. And lesson-planning and clutter-cleaning are on top of the regular house chores.

If you’re a real neat-freak, you should probably think long and hard about homeschooling in the first place. But just like finding alone time, time management will save you. Take advantage of <<learning management system>> time or other low maintenance activities to tackle laundry and other household chores.

Learning management can be greatly aided with a learning management system and other online tools.Home educators have a great deal of work to do, and a learning management system can help with things like grading, record-keeping, and lesson planning. With a learning management system like Coggno, you can also create quizzes, tests and videos.

A world of tools is available to homeschool students, including LMSs offered by Christian academies and other institutions to suit the religious beliefs of the families who use them. Homeschooling should never be a solitary enterprise. Take advantage of the support and educational tools available online and in your community.

Coggno’s free courseware system syndicator allows you to upload your course content and publicize it on Coggno’s marketplace. Coggno equips you with all the tools–including easy-to-use text editor, assessment , quiz and video tools–to create a unique and completely customized courseware design. You have total control over both the creation and the maintenance of your courseware system.

Time and learning management will be key for you as a homeschool parent, not only practically but financially. Homeschool parents usually aren’t able to work outside of the home, so a family which is accustomed to two incomes may need to adjust accordingly. However, homeschooling itself–especially integrated with a learning management system or other online supplements, can be done very inexpensively.

Coggno is now offering a free trial for home educators on its learning management system. Create online courses for home use, or for syndication.

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Coggno.com provides world-class LMS set of features and benefits.