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Dive deep


At Ziiva, we offer more than a comprehensive, tailor-fit Learning Management System. We are always seeking ways to enrich your company culture and improve the online learning experience that you offer to your students, employees, customers, or users.


Online training in the age of COVID-19

Posted by Erin on Mon, May 10, 2021

Beautiful woman reviewing her lesson with her laptop and book

It goes without saying that the recent COVID-19 pandemic has altered almost every aspect of how we live, and arguably defined 2020. Terms like “quarantining”, “flattening the curve”, and “social distancing” are now used every day, and businesses of all trades have had to alter their policies in compliance with new regulations and change the way their employees are allowed to interact as a response to the threat that the pandemic has posed. The ultimate way to social distance is to move everything online, including and possibly especially training, which has proved to be beneficial in more ways than one. Could this shift to online learning be the new normal?

The COVID-19 pandemic has corporate and professional training organizations scrambling to find ways to make learning accessible and effective and, now that people are spending more time at home, this seems like the perfect time to transition to online learning or give your current LMS a revamp.  You can play a valuable role in offering your clients options and delivering solutions for maintaining training and compliance with your expertise backed up by great technology.

A few different ways to do that are by:

  • Shifting classroom training to live, virtual sessions. Covid-19 made the need for this type of flexibility clear, and even just having the ability to do this will make your business and the training it offers more responsive to and less impacted by whatever challenges may lie ahead.
  • Delivering blended learning programs that incorporate self-paced modules and materials, perfect for those who are balancing a few more things than usual while spending more time at home.
  • Automating learning paths that incorporate follow up training and assessments to measure training effectiveness with less energy spent on doing so.
  • Building a library of digital learning assets for learners to access as needed, whether their training is set-paced or self-paced.

The pandemic has presented new challenges for us all, but we have been working with businesses to develop and support great learning programs for over twenty years.  Ziiva knows online training but what we would love to learn is how we can help you transition to a more flexible way to offer online learning in a time when that is most needed, and ultimately help strengthen and grow your business. 

Schedule a quick consultation call with an experienced eLearning professional.

Topics: learning management system, elearning tools, web based training





Start Small to Go Big

Posted by Kellyann Bryan on Thu, Mar 05, 2020

Tips for Scaling your Training System

Prosperity LMS is synonymous with scalability and flexibility – it’s what we do best. As a client-focused, partnership-based company, our top priority is making sure each customer gets an LMS as unique as their business, along with the right amount of support through each stage and phase of theBusiness man closing a deal with a handshake process.

A flexible and scalable learning management system is a multi-tiered, multi-location business’s best friend. When a large company or corporation decides to employ a learning management system, deciding where to start can seem overwhelming. Could we be your new best friend?  

Instead of creating a complex system that spans multiple locations and departments, we recommend starting small. It is always possible (and unequivocally easier) to scale up -- rather than starting too big and having to re-structure the entire thing. Sooner is better than better. It may seem appealing to map out every thread in the training system web -- but that has the potential to get you tangled up. By jumping in with one objective, you will reduce the amount of time it takes to get value from the system, as well as lessen the overwhelm of creating a complex system all at once.

Here is what we recommend for starting small: 

  • Pick a focus project – Decide on the smallest project that will bring value to your company. Whether that be on-boarding, compliance, safety, quality, or a unique-to-you training program. See the diagram below for choosing a subcategory to start your focus project.
                                                                      scaling-diagram-blog-with-arrows
  • Assess the project as you go – Once you've decided on your focus project, how will you know you're getting value from it? Value can typically be defined in two ways: faster and/or better.  

    Examples of "faster" would be when it takes you less time to do a specific task, such as:

    • preparing and distributing reports
    • scheduling classes
    • handling out-of-compliance learners
    • delivering, scoring, and tracking tests

  • Examples of "better" would be when the results you get are more accurate and/or more detailed than you currently have, such as:
    • tracking the time a student spends reading a course
    • tracking the time it takes for a learner to complete a test
    • automatically assigning training based on job requirements -- instead of leaving the decision up to supervisors
  • Make modifications and scale – Before you decide to scale the project (or how to scale it), meet with your team to gather feedback, see what worked, and what needs to be adjusted so you can feel confident in pushing it out on a larger scale. In fact, this is a great time to consult with your LMS provider for feedback as well. The right LMS partner will have insight into your project and be able to share best practices with you.
    So let's get started!
    The benefits of starting small are many. Save yourself from the pain and suffering of trying to do too much, too soon, and come up with an attainable plan of which you can be sure. From there, scaling up is a cinch.

Topics: lms, corporate learning, learning management system, enterprise, learning management systems, Scaling





An LMS helps close the manufacturing skills gap

Posted by Dan Wheeler on Fri, Sep 28, 2018

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Finding qualified candidates is getting more difficult, and the outlook is that it will continue to be a significant problem for manufacturers.  The cost to a business is significant as positions remain unfilled and recruiting time and expense continues to increase.  A learning management system (LMS) can help human resource managers retain and develop the skilled workforce needed to succeed.

Consider these statistics from Deloitte Consulting LLP and the Manufacturing Institute in their report The Skills Gap in U.S. Manufacturing 2015 – 2025.  

  • It takes 90+ days to hire a new skilled worker
  • Six out of every ten open skilled production positions are currently unfilled
  • By 2025 as many as 2+ million positions won’t be filled as the skilled worker shortage worsens as baby boomers retire
  • 82% of manufacturing executives say the shortage will negatively impact the ability to meet customer demands, innovate and expand
  • 94% of executives said the most effective response is internal employee training and development

 

Schedule a Demo

 

A learning management system (LMS) is a great solution to help overwhelmed human resources staff train and develop employees. 

In addition to providing a training platform to build employee skills, an LMS can automate the administration, tracking and reporting of training and compliance certification.  A few key reasons an LMS can help include:

  • A standardized onboarding program ensures new hires are oriented, trained and engaged. According to a 2018 study by Jobvite, 30% of workers quit a job in the first ninety days.  Compare that to less than 10% if the company has a well-structured onboarding program.  An LMS can help ensure new employees have the information and skills to be successful.
  • Building a strong learning culture increases productivity and worker retention. Businesses that build this type of culture have 30-50% higher engagement and retention rates than those that don’t.  (David Mallon, Deloitte)
  • High-performing managers create high-performing teams. Manufacturers often put too little emphasis on training supervisors, despite the fact that the quality of the boss is a key factor in both worker performance and retention.  An LMS can help you identify and train new supervisors to increase productivity and reduce liability.
  • Provide the information and training workers need, when and how they need it. According to a Brandon Hall study, e-learning takes 40% to 60% less worker time when compared to a traditional classroom setting, and knowledge retention rates are higher.  An LMS makes you and your workers more efficient. 

Your best strategy is to engage and develop your current workforce.

The manufacturing skills gap is only going to increase, as will the competition for skilled workers.  Your best strategy is to engage and develop your current workforce, new hires and supervisors with a comprehensive learning and development program managed and tracked by robust learning management software.

And as Propel notes in their article on How to Solve the Manufacturing Skills Gap, never overlook your current workforce as an efficient and cost effective way to build needed skill sets.

The Prosperity LMS is built to support the needs of manufacturers, and our US-based team has the industry experience to make your training a success.   Use our calendar to schedule a brief consultation  or ask us a question.

And if you already have an LMS but still struggle with tracking employee competencies and skills, check out Skills Mark.  Prosperity Skills Mark is the simple and straightforward solution for tracking and reporting on the job training and employee competencies and skills.

Topics: elearning, training, learning management system, training development, manufacturing





Is on-premise, perpetual licensing right for you?

Posted by susan reuter on Thu, Jan 04, 2018

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You may already be familiar with the difference between cloud-hosting and on-premise hosting, and have heard about the overwhelming trend of organizations moving to the former.

The learning management industry is no different; according to a 2015 Capterra study, 87 percent of respondents use a web-based LMS, while only 13 percent have an on-premise or installed system.

But this doesn’t mean cloud-hosting is the best option for everybody. As is true with so many of the features and capabilities of an LMS, it depends on what you’re looking for.

home_server.gifHosting an LMS on premise has advantages that can be overlooked and undervalued in the mass exodus to cloud.  

There may be few LMS providers who offer this option, but many organizations need it.
Are you one of them?

In this blog post, we dive deep into on-premise hosting—what it is, what its benefits are, and who are the best candidates for this LMS hosting option.

What is an on-premise system?

There are different terms associated with this option:

  • On-premise
  • Self-hosting

An organization will buy the LMS system up front, and it’s theirs forever— hosted on their local systems or with third-party hosting. They have the option to pay the LMS provider for annual maintenance to get tech support, updates, and upgrades, but many have internal IT teams to cover this.

  • Perpetual licensing

Perpetual licensing is another associated term, and it refers to when an organization purchases the LMS license. This option is a popular model for self-hosted, on-premise installations of enterprise software.

Who needs self-hosting?

On-premise/self-hosting makes sense for large organizations who have:

  • In-house IT departments 
  • Resources for implementation and maintenance
  • Strict security requirements
  • High volume use

Why host on premise?

Companies who want on-premise hosting for their LMS (banking, financial services, government agencies, etc.) are usually looking for controlled environments to store proprietary or sensitive information.

Hosting on premise means that an organization has complete control over their LMS hosting environment. This is attractive to many organization for five main reasons:

  • Strict operations processes
  • High customization potential
  • High scalability
  • Control over security procedures and processes
  • Integration with other installed systems

Strict operations processes
An on-premise or self-hosted LMS can be the answer when your organization demands strict control over upgrade and release schedule to meet requirements such as 21 CFR Part 11 regulations or ISO requirements.

High customization potential
With on-premise hosting, you can use the LMS however you want and customize it endlessly (although you will need an LMS core platform that has that kind of flexibility).

High scalability
When you’ve got the LMS license, there is no limit to the number of users on your system, and there’s no cost to add more.

Control over security procedures and processes
With self-hosting, your LMS lives at home (or on a private server), which means it’s in a predictable server environment. No changes (updates, overhauls, maintenance, etc.) will be executed without your say-so, and all data and operations stay behind your firewall.

With an in-house server, your IT team minimizes downtime and schedules maintenance based on your schedule.

Integration with other installed system
If you already host other management software (talent management or HR), the implementation and integration of one more system is relatively easy.


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Schedule a requirements review with a Ziiva technical consultant

 

 

See also:
Five IT points to consider when changing your LMS
Changing your Learning Management System (LMS) can present a number of IT challenges and questions.

Topics: lms tips, learning management system, self-hosted LMS





Corporate Training: Well-trained workers save time and money

Posted by susan reuter on Wed, Sep 01, 2010

Why train employees?

If you’re using Ziiva’s Prosperity Learning Management System as part of your corporate training efforts, your answer will likely be to roll your eyes and ask, “Duh? Why NOT train employees?”

Sadly, online learning isn’t a no-brainer for everyone. Here are four ways that a lack of proper employee training can hold your business back:

It will cost you time: California’s inspector general recommended that a contracting company which received nearly $3 million inemployee training, education, learning management, employee development federal stimulus money to weatherize homes stop work because it did not train its employees, the Associated Press reported. The inspector general also said state officials should verify that the 38 other companies receiving stimulus money to weatherize homes are using properly trained workers.

Now, even if these other companies have a trained workforce, they could lose business while they gather the documentation necessary to prove it. In a case like this, using an LMS that tracks individual employee development and provides instant documentation can resolve the situation quickly.

It will cost you money: Last month, an untrained employee dumped 100 gallons of sour milk down a storm drain outside a grocery store in Santa Rosa, Calif. The milk could have harmed wildlife if local officials hadn’t cleaned it up before it reached a nearby creek. “This was just an untrained employee who didn’t know the difference between a sanitary sewer and a storm drain,” police told the Press Democrat newspaper. Nonetheless, the store may end up on the hook for the cost of cleaning up the spill, as well as a possible fine.

It will corporate training, online learning, cost savings, employee developmentcost you customers: There are numerous sites where consumers can register their displeasure with you for any reason, including having to deal with untrained employees. It’s important to monitor these sites and respond to legitimate complaints, but it’s even more important to train your workers so that you can avoid the sort of issues that lead to complaints in the first place.

It will cost you your reputation: The examples above came up in a simple Google search. If your would-be customers do even the most rudimentary due diligence, they’ll find any potential problems with your organization this way, as well.

The bottom line: Corporate learning isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.

Topics: lms learning, employee training, corporate learning, learning management system, employee development, online training