E-learning simulation delivers £400,000 a year for Abacus

Citation

(2006), "E-learning simulation delivers £400,000 a year for Abacus", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 38 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/ict.2006.03738cab.001

E-learning simulation delivers £400,000 a year for Abacus

Abacus Financial Services Group has won benefits valued at some £400,000 a year through implementing bespoke e-learning courseware that mimics a business-critical software application known as the client-handling system (CHS).

The SkillWise courseware, for some 300 users, has reduced the need for classroom training and associated travel costs, has delivered clear and measurable productivity gains, and is helping staff to learn and to comply with approved procedures.

“Until we implemented the courseware, training and support on CHS were mostly provided by a small set of expert users,” said Mervyn Le Masurier, Abacus group training manager. “But this made training reliant upon those experts, it disrupted the business by diverting experts and learners from operations, incurred travel costs and meant new users sometimes had to wait longer for induction training than was ideal, delaying their contribution in the workplace. The courseware has freed us from these issues.”

The training system is self-contained and not connected to client databases or to the outside world, meaning that the Abacus business and its client affairs are not subject to training exercises.

“We are delighted at the return on investment Abacus has won from implementing the courseware,” said Paul Greenhalgh, SkillWise commercial director. “The simulation courseware follows the SkillWise learning method, offering the user the chance to watch, then try, and then be tested on any chosen process.”

Using the courseware, a learner at Abacus can watch a full CHS module demonstration, or only a feature, such as “adding a new client”. The learner can then try the processes for himself or herself, within the simulation, guided by onscreen advice. An “infobox” provides a captured commentary from an expert user. Users can then be tested on their own competency to perform key tasks in the simulation.

The courseware went live in 2004. Abacus estimates that each year:

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  78 person-days of additional billable time can be charged because simulation-based e-learning has proved to be faster and less disruptive to learners than classroom training;

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  96 person-days of additional billable time can be charged because expert users are drawn less often into training or to provide user help;

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  225 additional billable days are won through new staff becoming active in the workplace sooner; and

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  six days of an IT consultant’s time are saved since IT is no longer required to maintain test data for learners within the live system.

“To assess continued benefit and relevance, 18 months after the simulation went live, we monitored for one month the access rates by existing staff,” said Mervyn Le Masurier. “We discovered high continuing value. The simulation was accessed 81 times, by 26 individuals. The duration of use averaged four hours per working day and some 648 learning elements were completed by users.”