Introducing Virtual Classroom at 33 locations

This is what Bosch Rexroth's Key User Week used to look like, where around 80 participants from 33 countries were trained. The content was about a special sales planning software, Strategic Prognoses Planning (SPP), which the key users deal with and which they support decentrally in the national companies.

In 2012, there was a change from traditional classroom training to virtual classroom (VC) training. This was a big challenge for everyone involved, as the same topics still had to be taught. The training is indispensable because the key users, as multipliers, pass on what they have learned to their colleagues at the respective locations.

At the beginning, the participants were sceptical whether the same results could be achieved online as in face-to-face training - after all, it used to be possible to concentrate completely on the innovations of the software and applications for a week away from the daily business. "Of course, it was not practical to hold continuous training sessions on the phone and in VC for a whole week," explains Susanne Thiele, Training Consultant at tts, a full service provider in the field of learning.

But it was precisely this that turned out to be a great advantage: "The participants were able to put what they had learned into practice promptly and in their daily work." Questions that only arose in the application could thus be clarified in the next session.

Instead of the five face-to-face days, there were twelve sessions with 14 topics that every employee had to attend. To train all 80 key users, 47 sessions were held over 17 weeks. There were bundled blocks and business-related breaks. All events were organised and carried out by tts. "However, these must then be registered as fixed dates," Thiele emphasises. Otherwise, he says, the topic of continuing education gets lost. Another challenge was to motivate the staff again and again when the total of twelve sessions were far apart. Depending on the session, the training lasted 30, 90 or 120 minutes.

But unlike the previous Key User Week with its linear sequence (arrive, learn, leave, pass on), participants now have the opportunity to view material, repeat content, exchange ideas with colleagues and even create content and hold webinars themselves in areas they are good at. Personal relationships are not neglected, however, as participants continue to maintain their networking contacts.

In the WebEx Meeting Center, participants can arrange to meet at any time and solve tasks together. "A quiz that accompanies the entire training process increases the motivation to participate," observes Thiele. This was important because the events were held on a voluntary basis.

For the organisers, this type of training was more time-consuming than classroom training - nevertheless, the change was worthwhile for Bosch Rexroth: 85 percent of the target group participated, with an average of eight per session. "For a voluntary event, that's a great success," Thiele emphasises. She attributes the good response, among other things, to the shared portal room where the key users can communicate with each other and find all the documents that are important for their work. Thus, in addition to the financial savings (travel costs, working time, number of trainers), the company has reaped a priceless benefit: Sustainability.

A survey of key users found that 53 per cent would like to continue taking training virtually, with 44 per cent giving a positive verdict, although they still value face-to-face events. "Switching to VC training doesn't mean there will never be face-to-face training again," says Thiele, "but it can be more targeted and with smaller groups." What makes tts and Bosch Rexroth equally happy: in the survey, not a single person stated that online training was pointless and could not replace the real Key User Week. A balanced mix of methods is crucial for success.

The implementation was quick: there were just five weeks between the cancellation of the face-to-face event at the end of June 2012 and the first course at the beginning of August. By the end of November, all contents had been completed. In the meantime, the large-scale rollout has been completed and a certain routine has set in among the staff. "Our customer is observing a higher level of initiative in learning," says Thiele. This means that the key users are taking on more responsibility and demanding topics. "They don't take over the direction, but they know what material they need from us and in what way they want to use it."