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Association e learning-2009_v1
1. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING
March 2009
The State of the Sector
written by Jeff Cobb and Celisa Steele
published by Tagoras
www.tagoras.com
info@tagoras.com
800.867.2046
3. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
Table of Contents
Association E-learning 2009: State of the Sector
Executive Summary | 6
Introduction to Association E-learning 2009 | 9
The Overview | 11
! Participant Demographics 11
! ! Interviews 12
! Purpose, Benefits, and Barriers 13
! Satisfaction with E-learning 16
! ! Satisfaction in Specific Areas 17
The Operational Perspective | 19
! Products: What’s Offered 19
! ! E-learning Products and Services 19
! ! The Appeal of Webinars 20
! ! Vignettes and Videos 21
! ! Process Examples 22
! Personnel and Tools: Who Gets It Done and How 23
! ! Job Titles 23
! ! Adequacy of Resources 24
! ! Where to Turn for Help 25
! ! Departments Responsible for E-learning 28
! ! Prevalence of Outsourcing 28
! ! The Cost of Expertise 30
! ! Authoring Tools 31
! ! Instructional Designers 31
! Summary 34
! Trends and Predictions 34
! Questions to Consider 35
3!TABLE OF CONTENTS
4. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 The Business Perspective | 37
! The Revenue Imperative 37
! Strategy 38
! Return on Investment 39
! The Impact of the Economy 40
! Product 41
! ! Continuing Education and Certification 43
! Pricing 46
! ! Pricing Across Industries 46
! ! Pricing and Formats 46
! ! Pricing and Age of Program 49
! ! Pricing Strategy and Models 50
! ! Discounts 51
! Distribution 53
! ! Market Penetration 53
! Promotion 54
! ! Relationship with Marketing Department 56
! Summary 58
! Trends and Predictions 58
! Questions to Consider 59
The Technology Perspective | 60
! End User Concerns 60
! Webinar Platforms 61
! Learning Management Systems 63
! ! LMS and LCMS Packages 65
! ! Gray Areas 65
! E-learning and AMSes 66
! ! LMS/AMS Integration 67
4!TABLE OF CONTENTS
5. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 ! E-learning Guidelines and Standards 68
! ! Key E-learning Standards in Brief 69
! Social Media and E-learning 70
! ! Social Media Tools 72
! ! Associations Speak About Social Media 73
! ! Providers Speak About Social Media 74
! Summary 75
! Trends and Predictions 75
! Questions to Consider 75
The State of the Section | 77
Appendix A: Participating Organizations | 84
Appendix B: Survey Data | 85
Appendix C: Survey Methodology | 100
Appendix D: About Tagoras | 102
Case Studies
! Building Internal Capacity—and Interest: Community Associations Institute 27
! Cultivating Success: Southern Building Material Association 36
! More Demand for “Fresher,” Shorter Topics: International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans 45
! Certification Creates Demand; E-learning Assists: National Air Duct Cleaners Association 52
! Creating New Value—Globally: SSPC: The Society for Protective Coatings 62
! Simple Satisfies (Association of Cable Communicators Chats) 71
5!TABLE OF CONTENTS
6. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
Executive Summary
Association E-learning 2009: State of the Sector
Association E-learning 2009: State of the Sector respondents who indicated that
represents a major effort to assess the state of e- their organizations will begin
learning in the association market and provide using e-learning in the coming
insight into how the role of e-learning in the sector six months, 75.5 percent are
may evolve in the coming months and years. from organizations with annual
budgets under $5 million, and
At the core of the report is a survey of associations 32.7 percent are from
conducted at the end of 2008. Nearly 500 organizations with budgets of
organizations responded to the survey, providing less than $500,000. The largest
extensive data about how they are using e-learning, cluster of these respondents (36
what tools and technologies they employ to create percent) also come from
and deliver e-learning, and the business practices organizations with fewer than
that support their e-learning initiatives. To 5 staff. This report
supplement this data, the report authors conducted represents a
in-depth interviews with 20 associations and 12 e- The Operational major effort
learning technology and service providers to the Perspective to assess
sector. the state of
Most of the associations e-learning in
surveyed or interviewed for the
The Overview this report use a combination association
Out of 488 responses to the survey, 61.1 percent of in-house and contract market.
were from individuals who indicated their resources to produce their e-
organizations are currently using e-learning. An learning offerings, and the
additional 26.2 percent indicated they plan to start majority of those offerings take the form of live
using e-learning within the coming 6 to 12 months, Webinars. Nearly 70 percent of survey respondents
and 12.7 percent indicated that they have no plans who currently use e-learning reported live Webinars
to start using e-learning in the coming 12 months. as one of their delivery formats. Recorded Webinars
(56 percent) and self-paced online courses (54.5
Not surprisingly, associations use e-learning mainly percent) followed in relatively distant second and
to deliver professional development to members, third places. No other formats were nearly as
and cost-effectiveness, convenience, and the ability popular, but a significant number of associations—
to reach more learners were among the biggest 40.4 percent of survey respondents—do make use of
benefits identified by survey respondents. Overall, member-only discussion boards.
organizations report that they are more satisfied
(78.8 percent) than not (21.6 percent) with their e- With respect to developing e-learning, organizations
learning initiatives. The only specific area in which that currently have programs are about evenly split
these organizations report being somewhat more on whether they do (43.5 percent) or do not (45.9
dissatisfied (35.5 percent) than satisfied (33.5 percent) make use of professional instructional
percent) is in revenue generation from their designers. Among the tools that organizations use
offerings. to develop e-learning, Microsoft PowerPoint tops
the list—not surprising since it is often the basis for
While the survey data indicate that there is a Webinar presentations as well as on-demand
somewhat greater tendency for larger associations courses.
already to have embraced e-learning, there is clearly
significant e-learning activity among smaller In most cases, association e-learning initiatives are
organizations. Additionally, it appears that smaller managed by an education department (which, at
organizations may lead the growth in new small organizations, may mean a single person who
programs in the sector for the coming year. Among wears many hats). Interviews conducted for this
6!EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
7. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 report suggest, however, that the individuals who Web, social networks (25 percent, combining public
wind up with responsibility for e-learning programs and private sites) came out on top, followed by
often do not come from an education background. blogs (16.5 percent) and wikis (10.1 percent). All
Moreover, there was a general sense among three tools—but particularly social networks (32.1
interviewees that opportunities for networking and percent) and blogs (25.7 percent)—show stronger
knowledge-sharing among peers in the sector is interest among respondents planning to implement
lacking. e-learning.
The Technology Perspective The Business Perspective
Among the Webinar platforms used by Most of the organizations interviewed for this
organizations, WebEx (27 percent) and report along with the vast majority of survey
GoToMeeting (23 percent) lead the pack with respondents currently using e-learning (86 percent)
Microsoft Live Meeting (14 percent) a distant third. or planning to use e-learning (77.4 percent) charge
or plan to charge for some or all of their offerings.
Just under half (49.1 percent) of the respondents The average price per content hour for
that currently offer e-learning report using a organizations currently offering e-learning is US
learning management system (LMS) or are planning $56.79 while the most common level of discount for
to within the next 12 months. Among those member course purchases was from 10 to 19
organizations, the majority (71.1 percent) report that percent.
they either have integrated or plan to integrate the
LMS with their association management system Interviews conducted for this report as well as a
(AMS). brief follow-on survey among the original survey
participants suggest that most organizations do not
Knowledge of and adherence have a formal e-learning strategy in place or a
On average, to common e-learning formal approach to pricing their offerings. Only 30.9
organizations guidelines and standards percent of respondents to the follow-on survey
using e- appears to be quite low in the reported having a formal, documented e-learning
learning reach sector. Adherence to the
18 percent of strategy, and only 20 percent indicated that their
Shareable Content Object organizations have a formal, documented process
their
Reference Model (SCORM), for setting prices.
membership
base with the most common set of e-
their offerings. learning standards, was On average, organizations using e-learning reach
considered very important or approximately 18 percent of their membership base
absolutely necessary by only with their offerings. Most organizations provide
27 percent of survey some form of credit—for example, continuing
respondents currently using education units or a certificate—to their learners.
e-learning.
With respect to marketing methods, e-mail
Social media is attracting marketing and word of mouth lead the pack by a
some interest in the significant margin. Among organizations currently
association e-learning offering e-learning, 93 percent report e-mail as
community but leaves much either very important or absolutely necessary, and
room for growth. The 83.8 percent report word of mouth as very
dominant social tool in both important or absolutely necessary. The next closest
current (32.7 percent) and contender is banner ads on the organizations’ own
planned (45 percent) e- Web sites, which 49.8 percent report as very
learning initiatives is important or absolutely necessary. Notably, pay-per-
discussion forums. Among click advertising, search engine optimization (SEO),
the tools that many associate and promotional Webcasts—all mainstays of current
most closely with the social Internet marketing practices—do not appear to have
7!EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
8. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 much of a place in current association marketing
strategies for e-learning.
The State of the Sector
E-learning has arrived in the association sector but
remains immature. A range of factors—from the
current state of the economy to technology
advances to the rise of new generations—point to
growth and to a clear opportunity for e-learning to
transition into a more significant, more strategic
part of the mix of services associations provide to
members. As this transition occurs, it is likely to be
accompanied by the following:
• Growth in implementation of learning
management systems and integration of these
with association management systems
• An increase in the amount of on-demand
educational content offered by organizations
• An increased focus on instructional design
along with development of in-house
instructional design capabilities or use of
contractors
• Relatively slow adoption of social media for e-
learning purposes until organizations develop
strategies and business models for products
that integrate social media with more
traditional content
• An increase in competition that will, in turn, be
a significant factor in the adoption of more
sophisticated marketing practices
New, relevant resources and a more cohesive
professional network for e-learning in the sector
may be the most valuable byproducts of these
changes in association e-learning.
8!EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
9. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
Introduction to Association E-learning 2009
About This Report
To the best of our knowledge, Association E-learning It is important to note that we were purposely
2009: State of the Sector, represents the first major broad in defining e-learning. In our experience, a
effort to assess the state of e-learning in the significant number of organizations limit the term e-
association market and provide insight into how the learning to self-paced online courses and do not use
role of e-learning in the sector may evolve in the it for Webinars, Webcasts, or other forms of
coming years.† educational content delivery online. In an attempt
to ensure that survey participants took into account
Our hope is that the information here will be useful all forms of online education, the following
in providing points of reference and perspective to definition was presented prior to asking
organizations planning for e-learning initiatives or organizations whether they use e-learning to deliver
hoping to grow their current initiatives. We view it education:
as a starting point for continuing, in-depth research
about e-learning in the sector that we plan to E-learning, also known as computer-based
conduct over the coming years. training or online distance education, refers to
computer-enabled learning carried out by
At the core of the report is a survey of associations individuals or groups outside of a physical
conducted from November 20, 2008, to December classroom, either over the Internet or an internal
19, 2008. We received 488 responses to this survey. network. There are many methods of e-learning
Out of these responses, 61.1 percent were from such as Webcasts, self-paced tutorials, podcasts,
individuals who indicated that their organization is facilitated discussions, etc., but for the purpose of
currently using e-learning. An additional 26.2 this survey, any activity in which a user receives
percent indicated they plan to start using e-learning instruction via a computer counts as e-learning.
within the coming 6 to 12 months, while 12.7
percent indicated they have no plans to start using To add to the data collected through the survey, we
e-learning in the coming 12 months. also conducted phone or e-mail interviews with 20
associations and 12 providers of e-learning
technologies and services to the sector. These
interviews were conducted with the promise of
anonymity so that interviewees could feel
comfortable speaking as openly as possible. Only in
12.7%
12.7% Does your organization currently using e-learning to deliver education?
Over 60 percent of organizations surveyed currently use e-learning.
13.5% 61.1% Currently deliver e-learning
Planning to deliver e-learning in next 6 months
Planning to deliver e-learning in next 12 months
No plans for e-learning for at least next 12 months
† We conducted surveys focusing on e-learning in the broader nonprofit sector, including associations, from 2004 through 2006.
The current report represents a continuation of those earlier efforts in many ways, but is also much more comprehensive. The 2004
through 2006 survey results are available, free of charge, at www.jeffthomascobb.com/writing.
9!INTRODUCTION
10. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 few limited instances, and with the permission of the interviewee, are the
sources of quotations or other information revealed in the report. Our Partial data from the
frequent use of quotations from the interviews is purposeful—we heard online survey is
from many interviewees that they do not have sense of what their peers included throughout
are doing or where to go to find out what other organizations are doing. this report. See
Our hope is that the extensive use of quotations will help a voice for e- Appendix B for the
raw survey results.
learning in the sector emerge.
In addition to quoting frequently from the interviews, we have also The chapters on the
crafted brief case studies to highlight the efforts of some of the operational, business,
organizations we interviewed. These were done with the organizations’ and technology
permission, and we tried to be as diverse as possible in selecting the perspectives end with
organizations. The case studies span a range of industries and feature a summary of trends
associations of varying size and geographic focus. Our intention is to and a list of questions
continue to mine case studies from the more than 300 pages of interview for organizations to
ask themselves.
transcripts we have collected as well as from our ongoing conversation
with organizations and to share these, as they become available, with
purchasers of the report.
Finally, the two authors of this report have each worked in e-learning for
more than a decade and have worked specifically with associations for the
better part of that time. Throughout the report we provide our own
analysis of the information collected through the survey and the
interviews, and we draw on our own experience to offer perspectives that may not be readily apparent
from the data. Our approach to doing this is relatively conservative, based on the limitations naturally
imposed by a non-probability survey (see the chapter “Methodology”), but even more importantly, on our
sense that we are still in the early stages of e-learning in the association sector—a sector that is, by its
nature, quite diverse and fragmented—and that broad conclusions must be put forward cautiously.
The report is structured into 10 sections:
1.The executive summary
2.This introduction
3.An overview that discusses demographic data, the purposes of association e-learning, the barriers to
and benefits of e-learning, and satisfaction with e-learning
4.A chapter on operations and e-learning that looks at what’s produced, who produces it, using what
process, and with what tools
5.A chapter that takes the business perspective, looking at the strategy that drives e-learning initiatives,
expenses and income, marketing, and competition
6.A chapter on e-learning technology, including the end user point of view and the organizational
standpoint
7.The state of e-learning in the association sector based on our analysis of the survey data and
interviews
8.A discussion of the methodology used for collecting the data that is the basis of this report
9.A series of appendices that provide a list of participating organizations, the raw online survey data
(parts of which are cited throughout the report), the survey methodology, and information about
Tagoras (publisher of this report) and Jeff Cobb and Celisa Steele (authors of this report)
Our sincere hope is this report proves useful to associations as they assess their e-learning initiatives or
contemplate throwing their hats in the e-learning ring.
10!INTRODUCTION
11. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
The Overview
Demographics, Purpose, Benefits, Barriers, and
Satisfaction
This section provides demographic 0.5%
data, discusses the purposes for 5.3% 3.4%
which associations undertake e- 5.0%
learning, looks at the perceived 14.5%
benefits of and barriers to e-
learning, and analyzes associations’
10.3%
satisfaction with e-learning
initiatives.
11.9%
Participant Demographics
11.9%
As the demographic data provided
at the end of this document
indicate, responses to the survey
were distributed across a broad
range of organizations—from those
37.2%
with a very small staff and
relatively small membership base
to those with more than 250 staff What is your
members and budgets greater than organization’s
annual budget? Less than $100,000 $100,001-$500,000
$50 million per year. Most organizations $500,001-$1,000,000 $1,000,001-$5,000,000
had budgets
between $1 million
$5,000,001-$10,000,000 $10,000,001-$25,000,000
The largest clusters of survey and $5 million. $25,000,001-$50,000,000 $50,000,001-$100,000,000
More than $100,000,000
respondents in the overall range
were nationally focused
organizations (39.7 percent),
organizations with annual budgets between
$1 million and $5 million (37.2 percent), and
1.8% organizations with staff of between 1 and 5
7.8% individuals (26.7 percent). The most common
membership size was between 1,000 and
26.8%
5,000 individuals.
19.8% Which best
describes the Out of the group of respondents that
geographic focus
of your indicated current use of e-learning, the
organization (i.e.,
which best
largest cluster was also nationally focused
4.3% indicates the areas (48.8 percent), had budgets between $1
in which you
actively solicit
million and $5 million (39.4 percent), and
membership)? had staff of between 6 and 10 individuals
Organizations with a
39.8% national focus were
the biggest group.
(17.2 percent). The most common
membership size was 1,000 or less.
Single community or municipality focus
Overall, organizations indicating they are
Multiple community focus in one state currently using e-learning were more likely
Single state or province focus than the group as whole to be nationally or
Multi-state or multi-province focus internationally focused (75.7 percent versus
National focus
International focus
66.6 percent) as opposed to focused on a
11!THE OVERVIEW
12. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 region, state, or locality. begin using e-learning within either 6 or 12 months.
The largest They were also more These groups tend to manage smaller associations,
groups of survey likely to have annual and thus their movement into e-learning tends to
respondents were budgets greater than $5 support the idea we will see significant growth in
from nationally million (42.5 percent new initiatives by small organizations.
focused versus 33 percent); have
organizations The great majority of survey respondents indicated
more than 10,000
with annual that their organization has been using e-learning to
individual members (50.2
budgets between deliver education for more than a year (83.7
$1 million and $5 percent versus 41.5
percent); and have more percent). A relatively small but still notable number
million, 1 to 5 staff
than 10 staff (67.6 percent (15.6 percent) of respondents reported using e-
people, and 1,000
to 5,000 individual versus 55 percent). learning for more than five years. Most (64.6
members. percent) of the respondents currently offering e-
While there is a learning indicated that they do offer some form of
somewhat greater credit for e-learning. (See the chapter “The Business
tendency for larger Perspective” for discussion of credit and e-learning.)
associations already to
have embraced e- INTERVIEWS
learning, there is clearly The organizations we interviewed in follow-up to
significant e-learning the online survey were less diverse from the
activity among smaller standpoint of geographic focus. All but one regional
organizations. It appears association serving four states were nationally or
that small organizations internationally focused. Nonetheless the group was
may lead the growth in quite diverse in terms of industries served, size of
new programs in the staff, size and type (i.e., individuals versus
sector for the coming year. Among respondents who organizations) of membership base, and experience
indicated that their organization will begin using e- with e-learning.
learning in the coming six months, 75.5 percent are
from organizations with annual budgets under $5 The providers we interviewed were also quite
million, and 32.7 percent are from organizations diverse, ranging from Webinar service providers,
with budgets of less than $500,000. The largest like KRM, CommPartners, and Boston
cluster of these respondents (36 percent) also came Conferencing, to high-end custom course producers
from organizations with fewer than five staff. like Enspire Learning, to learning management
system providers like LearnSomething, Certilearn,
Similarly, 82.3 percent of the respondents who and Results Direct. Each of the providers was able
indicated their organization will start using e- to offer a unique perspective based on their
learning within 12 months come from organizations approach to e-learning and the types of clients
with annual budgets of less than $5 million, and served.
43.4 percent of respondents report fewer than five
staff members. Finally, 17 out of the 42 association
management company representatives who
responded to the survey indicated that they will 15.6% 16.3%
How long has your organization been using e-learning?
The majority of respondents were from organizations that had been using e-learning for one to five years. 32.9% 35.3%
Less than 1 year 1 to 2 years
2 to 5 years More than 5 years
12!THE OVERVIEW
13. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
Purpose, Benefits, and Barriers learning for advocacy and issue education.
Respondents in this group were more likely to be
As part of our survey, we asked respondents to
from associations with a large membership base—
provide input on their organization’s purposes for
40.8 percent were from organizations with more
using e-learning as well as some of the benefits and
than 10,000 members as opposed to only 24.9
barriers they experienced.
percent of the all respondents being from an
Not surprisingly, most respondents using or organization with more than 10,000 members.
planning to use e-learning indicated professional
Cost-effectiveness, convenience, and the ability to
development for members and non-members as
reach more learners were among the biggest
their primary and secondary purposes. A much
benefits respondents associated with e-learning—
smaller portion use e-learning for staff training,
among both our survey participants and our
though this may be less a comment on e-learning
interviewees. More than 70 percent of survey
than on the amount of training available to
respondents who are using or planning to use e-
association staff in general.
learning indicated each of these benefits. (See the
We also asked organizations to indicate whether chart on the following page.)
they used e-learning for training chapters or
Somewhat surprisingly, in our opinion, the ability to
volunteers or as a tool for advocacy and issue
generate revenue ranked significantly lower. It was
education. Given that an organization may or may
selected by just over 30 percent of those already
not have chapters, make extensive use of
using e-learning and by just under 30 percent of
volunteers, or engage in advocacy, we found it
those planning to use e-learning in the coming 12
interesting that a relatively sizable group of
months. It is possible that a significant number of
respondents indicated that they use or plan to use e-
92.6%
Professional development for members
86.5%
64.2%
Professional development for non-members
44.4%
35.5%
Training for staff
20.6%
30.7%
Advocacy and issue education
26.2% For what
purposes does
your
organization
20.3% use or plan to
Training for volunteers use e-learning?
26.2% Check all that
apply.
Most
respondents
19.9% indicated
Training for affiliated organizations or chapters professional
27.0% development for
members and
non-members as
their primary and
8.4% secondary
Other Current e-learning purposes.
7.9% Planned e-learning
13!THE OVERVIEW
14. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
For your organization, what are the three key benefits associated with e-learning? Please check only the three that your organization
considers most important.
Cost-effectiveness, convenience, and the ability to reach more learners were among the biggest benefits respondents associated with e-learning.
78.9%
78.2%
78.2%
74.7%
73.0%
72.6%
Current e-learning
Planned e-learning
31.5%
29.0%
23.4%
21.5%
17.7%
13.5%
12.1%
8.3%
3.5%
3.2%
3.2%
3.1%
Other
Reduction of risk by diversifying product line
Ease of tracking continuing education for learners
Ability to generate revenues
Ability to reach more learners
Opportunity for learners to direct their own learning
Convenience for learners
Cost-effectivness versus other modes
Instructional effectiveness versus other modes
respondents equated the combination of a top-three benefit by many respondents. We expect
convenience and the ability to reach more learners to see risk reduction become more commonly
with more revenue, and thus did not single this out recognized as a strategic benefit of e-learning over
as a top-three benefit. Another explanation may be the coming year, particularly given the current
that, while most organization do need to break even economic environment. Additionally, as
on their e-learning initiatives, e-learning is not organizations become more sophisticated in their
envisioned as a significant overall revenue management of e-learning—and learning
contributor to the organization. management systems gain more traction in the
market—we also expect to see increased recognition
It is also noteworthy that neither risk reduction nor of tracking as a significant operational benefit of
ease of tracking continuing education were rated as implementing e-learning.
14!THE OVERVIEW
15. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 Concern about return on financial investment (41.6 We intended for organizations not currently using e-
percent) as well as about the technology skills of learning to answer this question about perceived
end users (45.5 percent) were among the major barriers, but, unfortunately, responses were not
barriers to pursuing e-learning among respondents collected owing to a technical glitch. It seems
with programs already in place. Notably, there reasonable to assume that these organizations
seems to be significantly less concern about would perceive the same types of barriers, though it
technology skills among those who plan to offer e- is also likely that more respondents from this group
learning (35.3 percent), perhaps reflecting an overall would indicate no perceived need for e-learning.
sense that end users are becoming more comfortable
with both the Web and with e-learning. Concern We explore the question of staff resources more in
about financial return is only slightly lower (39.5 the chapter “The Operational Perspective” and
percent), but clearly this group is concerned about discuss the issue of end user technology skills in
the amount of staff resources that will be required to “The Technology Perspective.”
develop e-learning (57.1 percent).
57.1%
Current e-learning
46.2%
45.5%
Planned e-learning
41.6%
40.3%
39.5%
38.7%
35.3%
33.6%
33.3%
33.0%
26.2%
24.4%
21.5%
20.4%
17.6%
8.2%
7.6%
7.5%
6.5%
6.5%
5.7%
5.0%
4.2%
4.2%
3.4%
Resistance from current trainers or facilitators
No perceived need for e-learning
Staff time required to support e-learning
Fear that stakeholders won’t use e-learning
Other
Staff time required to develop e-learning
Lack of management buy-in
Lack of expertise in e-learning
Concern about effectiveness of e-learning
Concern about end users’ technical skills
Concern that costs would exceed non-financial return
Concern that costs would exceed financial return
Lack of funding necessary to implement e-learning
What are the three biggest barriers your organization has encountered or expects to encounter while developing e-learning initiatives? Please check
only the three that your organization considers most important.
Concern about return on financial investment and the technology skills of end users were among the major barriers to pursuing e-learning among respondents with
programs already in place.
15!THE OVERVIEW
16. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009
Satisfaction with E-learning 5.6%
21.6%
16.0%
Overall, how satisfied are you with your current e-learning initiatives?
Most associations reported they are either somewhat satisfied or very satisfied.
We asked respondents from organizations who have implemented
e-learning to indicate their level of satisfaction. On the whole,
experiences with e-learning seem to be much more positive than
negative. Most associations report that they are either somewhat
satisfied (56.8 percent) or very satisfied with their e-learning 56.8%
initiatives. Only a small portion (5.6 percent) reported being very
dissatisfied. Very satisfied overall
Somewhat satisfied overall
Somewhat dissatisfied overall
Through further analysis of the data, we were able to identify ways Very dissatisfied overal
in which organizations that are very satisfied with their e-learning
initiatives most differ from the group that is very dissatisfied.
Very satisfied organizations had the largest percentage of respondents who indicated that their
association had been using e-learning for more than five years. These organizations were significantly
more likely than their dissatisfied counterparts to offer some form of credit for e-learning, to charge for all
of their e-learning offerings, and to indicate ease of tracking as a benefit of e-learning.
All respondents
15.6% Very satisfied
Have used e-learning for more than 5 years 25.9% Very dissatisfied
14.3%
8.3%
Indicate ease of tracking as benefit 16.7%
0%
16.1%
E-learning does not have to be self-sustaining 18.5%
7.1%
How satisfied
or dissatisfied
are you with 54.5%
your current e- Use self-paced courses 66.7%
learning 35.7%
initiatives in
terms of these
42.3%
specific items?
Very satisfied
Charge for all e-learning 53.7%
organizations 35.7%
were more likely
than their
dissatisfied 35.4%
counterparts to No credit offered for e-learning 35.3%
offer some form 57.1%
of credit for e-
learning, to
charge for all of 32.7%
their e-learning Use discussion forums 42.3%
offerings, and to
indicate ease of 7.7%
tracking as a
benefit of e- 34.4%
learning.
Use LMS 46.3%
14.3%
16!THE OVERVIEW
17. ASSOCIATION E-LEARNING 2009 Very satisfied organizations were also much more percent of very dissatisfied respondents indicated it.
likely than very dissatisfied organizations to use a The very dissatisfied group was most concerned
learning management system (LMS)—the very that costs for e-learning would exceed financial
dissatisfied group had the lowest percentage of return.
LMS users out of any of the satisfaction groupings.
The very satisfied organizations are much more In general, the very satisfied organizations appear
likely to make use of discussion boards in their e- to be more mature in their e-learning. They have
learning, and their use of self-paced courses is been at it longer (more than five years in many
significantly higher than that of very dissatisfied instances), they have implemented more
organizations as well as the total pool of sophisticated technology (an LMS), and embraced a
respondents. Use of self-paced courses by very more diverse range of offerings (self-paced courses
satisfied organizations is on par with their use of and discussion boards along with Webinars).
Webinars (66.7 percent for each). Very dissatisfied Finally, they tend to charge for their e-learning and
organizations, on the other hand, report the lowest offer credit much more than their very dissatisfied
percentage of self-paced course usage (35.7 percent) counterparts.
and the highest percentage of real-time Webinar
SATISFACTION IN SPECIFIC AREAS
usage (78.6 percent).
We also asked survey respondents to indicate their
Very satisfied organizations show a high amount of levels of satisfactions with respect to specific to
concern about end user technology skills. While 45.5 specific aspects of their e-learning initiatives.
percent of the total respondent pool indicated this
as one of their top three barriers encountered while The only specific area in which overall
implementing e-learning, 52.8 percent of very dissatisfaction (35.5 percent) seems to outweigh
satisfied respondents indicated it, and only 35.7 overall satisfaction (33.5 percent) is revenue
How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with
your current e-learning initiatives in terms
of these specific items?
Very Somewhat Neutral Somewhat Very Not
Satisfied Satisfied Dissatisfied Dissatisfied Applicable
Usage (e.g., number of course 13.2% 33.3% 10.7% 27.2% 13.6% 2.5%
enrollments)
Revenue (e.g., from course sales) 7.9% 25.6% 16.9% 24.8% 10.7% 14.5%
The financial cost of creating the 12.9% 28.8% 27.9% 17.5% 8.8% 4.6%
initiatives
The financial cost of supporting and 14.6% 27.1% 27.1% 18.8% 8.3% 4.6%
maintaining the initiatives
The staff time required to develop the 7.4% 33.9% 24.4% 24% 7.4% 3.3%
initiatives
The staff time required to maintain the 9.2% 32.9% 29.2% 19.6% 6.3% 3.3%
initiatives
Feedback from participants in the 23.8% 38.1% 17.6% 14.6% 3.3% 2.9%
initiatives
17!THE OVERVIEW
