Much of the custom content development work that we do at KMi involves voice over narration. While we do a fair amount of the writing, we also work frequently with outside subject matter experts to develop the scripts needed for customized eLearning. We developed the material below to help guide writers who may not be all that familiar with writing the spoken word.
In web based elearning as in any media production the primary objective in preparing a script for a narrator is enabling as smooth a read as possible. Every mistake on a script or every place where something is unclear will almost certainly result in a bobble by the narrator. Every bobble by the narrator extends the amount of time and increases the dollar amount that they and the audio studio will charge. At a minimum of $300 per hour you can understand why we want to make the process as efficient as possible. To that end we’re providing a few suggestions for you to keep in mind as you prepare the script.
- Read it aloud to yourself. This is the best way of catching mistakes before they get to the narrator. An error we see frequently is the use of extra or missing words. Spell-check doesn’t pick them up and they’re hard to see when you are proofing silently.
- Don’t use slashes: Replace them with the word you want used so the narrator does not have to stop and decide whether it should be “and”, “or”, “and-or” , “slash” or “stroke”.
- Provide phonetic pronunciation for foreign words. We recently received a script with 7 Japanese words that were repeated frequently. Luckily the engineer was familiar with Japanese pronunciation and we were able to muddle through. Even so that omission probably cost 20-30 minutes of narrator and studio time.
- Tell the narrator how acronyms are to be pronounced. For example, do you want SKU pronounced “S-K-U’ or “skew”?
- Same for letter number combinations. Is BA62 to be pronounced “B-A-six-two” or “B-A-sixty-two”?
- Limit parenthetical comments. Recognize that a narrator has to use intonation to signal to the learner that “we’re taking a short side trip here”. Keep them short and use very few. Parenthetical comments that are too long and too frequent can make a sentence very hard to read sensibly. If you feel that you need more than one in a sentence chances are you need a new sentence.
- Use bulleted copy rather than long sentences with semi-colons. Here’s a recent example:
“These improvements can include reduction in material costs from the use of alternate materials or reduction in scrap; reduction in labor and service costs by locating service personnel in lower cost labor markets and increasing the use of labor saving technology, such as automated voice response systems; improvements in quality through programs such as Lean Six Sigma; reduction in inventory through improved forecasting and sharing of demand data throughout the supply chain; and reduction in life cycle and maintenance costs from preventive maintenance programs.”
This is a perfectly fine sentence but the narrator would have a much easier time of it if it were formatted like this:
These improvements can include reduction in material costs from the use of:
- alternate materials or reduction in scrap
- reduction in labor and service costs by locating service personnel in lower cost labor markets and increasing the use of labor saving technology, such as automated voice response systems
- improvements in quality through programs such as Lean Six Sigma
- reduction in inventory through improved forecasting and sharing of demand data throughout the supply chain
- and reduction in life cycle and maintenance costs from preventive maintenance programs.
I hope you find this useful. If you'd like other useful information on eLearning content, click here to download a free white paper on the appropriate use of different formats.
...but I don't think you'd want to. Unless you're a nurse that is.
The KMi learning content development team is just wrapping up production for an online training solution to teach nurses (gulp, wait for it)... how to catheterize a patient. Now, you probably have gathered that we're big on customized elearning here at KMi but I bet you think that there's a limit to what kind of training eLearning is good for. I'll also bet you'd rather not be catheterized (If, God forbid, you needed to be) by a nurse who learned via web-based eLearning. Right?
I'm with you there, so here's the good news...we're not actually teaching them how to insert a catheter, but instead how to use a catheter kit. (phew!)
You see, the kit is put together in such a way, that if the elements are used in the right order, and in the right way, a sterile field is maintained and the likelihood of infection in patients is greatly reduced.
That's what we call "perform procedure" and online learning solutions are absolutely great at that kind of training.
The fourth module in the four-module series is a simulation where the learner controls the hands of the nurse as he/she goes through the process step by step. It's very cool but kind of graphic. If you think you can handle seeing it, write me at jvcopeland@kmionline.com and we'll set up a demo for you.
John Drummond is CEO of Integrity Works Inc. our partner in the development of online compliance courses. We have developed custom elearning solutions for a number of global clients. We also cooperate on an ethics portal call the Integrity Academy.
John recently wrote some marketing copy for a campaign that we're working together on. I'm going to quote it in its entirety here:
All the boxes got checked, so how come things got worse?
It’s no mystery; we all know compliance is only one part of corporate integrity. At Integrity Works we help build ethical cultures customized to your business. We understand that the real answer is values-driven e-learning. This means learning based on example, education and engagement.
Example from the top because leaders set the tone
Education means setting and maintaining an ethical business culture, where ethical direction and corporate functions, such as remuneration, are in tune
Engagement means connecting with society at large, as well as the corporate workforce.
You can call on us the full range of values-driven e-learning, including:
We can help find the gaps that prevent expensive compliance working; help you build a sustainable ethical culture; and help show others the contribution you are making
With Integrity Works, you not only get integrity, you get the works. Contact us now.
If you are interested in knowing more about Integrity Works and KMi, contact me at
jvcopeland@kmionline.com and we'll arrange a demo.
One That Works
KMi has a great partnership with Kibler and Associates specifically in the person of Bill Kibler. It's a pure partnership and we work together in implementing LMS and in custom content development. Each side brings their unique strengths to the relationship. 
Bill has marketed himself as an out-sourced eLearning champion for his (and our) clients. As such he plays a role that I’m surprised that we don’t see more often. As an “inside outsider” he can, to a degree, ignore and work around the politics and power games that often inhibit full time employees. He’s not oblivious to the internal struggles common in big companies, he worked in one for over 23 years, but he knows how to work around them as he provides all aspects of client management. His constant attention to the client helps KMi to be in the right place at the right time and also helps us avoid getting caught up in internal politics.
For our part, KMi backs Bill up with our world class LMS, eLMS, our responsiveness and flexibility and our sterling group of custom content developers. This arrangement is one we recommend to any client but particularly those new to eLearning. Kibler and Associates and KMi together have the talent and the technology to take virtually any elearning initiative from zero to sixty in a surprisingly short time.
You can contact Bill at wkibler@insight.rr.com or read his blog here.
As always, please contact me at jvcopeland@kmionline.com with any questions.
I'm going to interrupt the Partner/Vendor series a bit here to write about another subject.
KMi has done a lot of work in developing online compliance and ethics courses. In fact, the production of a series of web-based business ethics case studies is where I got my start as an online training provider way back in the early 90's. It would not be inaccurate to say that to say that KMi owes its existence as one of the best eLearning development companies precisely because of those early case studies. But that's another subject for another day.
We are preparing to launch a marketing push with our partner, Integrity Works Inc. in connection with the release of the 2009 Ethics Resource Center National Business Ethics Survey. (NBES) In getting ready for our efforts we've been researching earlier surveys. Here's a quote from the 2007 NBES:
This year, more than half of the employees surveyed are reporting misconduct (56%). The three most common types of misconduct reported include conflicts of interest (23%), abusive or intimidating behavior (21%), and lying to employees (20%). The statistics are more troubling in negative work environments. ERC describes a negative work environment as one where employees feel:
- A lack of satisfaction with information from top management and/or supervisors
- A lack of trust that top management, supervisors, and/or coworkers will keep promises or commitments
- The company rewards employees who are successful, even if it is through questionable means
The number of strong ethical cultures, ones where the above characteristics are absent, is on the decline. Only 10 percent of U.S. companies have strong ethical cultures. ERC attributes this to low management awareness of misconduct and few successful ethics and compliance programs.
I'm willing to bet that this grim outlook will be even worse when the 2009 NBES comes out in late October. We've seen it coming for years.The problem is not economic hard times, although the recession does exacerbate things. The problem is that US companies have relied too much on compliance and too little on ethics; too much on CYA and too little on changing culture; too much "check-the-box" and too little on changing behaviors.
Our role in helping a company develop a "strong ethical culture" is admittedly only one part of a larger effort. That said, really well done, really engaging custom elearning solutions on ethics, as opposed to generic library stuff, can go a long way in creating such a culture. Taking the time to make content relevant to employees, speaking their language, understanding their day-to-day dilemmas communicates management's seriousness of purpose in a uniquely powerful way.
If you'd like to join in on this conversation post a comment below or contact me directly at jvcopeland@kmionline.com
One that got away, continued...In my last post I described the sad story of a web based elearning partnership gone wrong. The whole episode was not a complete loss however. There were lessons learned (and re-learned).
- Every elearning initiative needs a champion. When implementing elearning there
must be someone on both sides of the partnership that is commited, passionately, to its success. In this case we had such a person on our partner's side but he left to take another job. His sucessor was not hostile or even indifferent about the project. This gentlemen was even quite enthusiastic for a time. Actually he was enthusiastic for the exact amount of time we sat across the table from him and brainstormed and planned for the wild success that our online learning platform was going to be. I think as soon as we disappeared from his sight, the project disappeared from his thinking. We needed a champion. - I failed to stick to my guns. I wanted to produce a series of courses that would appeal to the largest number of potential learners; I wanted to build up critical mass. Our partner, in the person of our departed champion, wanted to take what he saw as the "killer app" approach; one course that senior management would complete. (they represnted fewer than 400 of the total population of 300,000) Once the bigwigs did the course they would, the plan went, fall in love with elearning and then push it down to their employees. There is so much wrong with this strategy that I don't want to get into a rant here but suffice it to say that senior management don't do elearning as a rule so we had a fatal flaw in the plan from the get-go. I knew it, I said it repeatedly, but ultimately I let them do it their way. Bad mistake.
- Both partners need "skin in the game". I was so enamored of the big number potential of this project that I did not insist that our partner invest anything beyond their time. If you don't have a committed champion, a sizable but reasonable financial investment can help focus the mind. It's a poor second but better than nothing.
Nothing, as I wrote earlier, is exactly what both partners got out of the deal.
Thankfully there are partnerships that work. I'll be talking about one of those in a future post. In the meantime if you'd like to talk about a partnership or any sort of relationship with KMi, please write me at jvcopeland@kmionline.com.
One that Got Away
As I wrote earlier a pure partnership is highly desirable for KMi as an online training provider. It's a tricky relationship, however, and even when everything looks right, things can go horribly wrong.
Consider this case: It's 2006 and our potential partner is a professional organization with over 300,000 members. Each of those people is required to complete 15 hours of continuing education each year. 4.5 million hours of training! Our partner was capturing a grand total of 6000 hours of classroom training each year. That's about .013% of the total!
They needed help in implementing elearning.
In the last post I wrote that the partner needs to bring four things to the table:
- A defined audience
- Marketing channels
- Content in any form
- A vision for eLearning
As we've seen they had the audience, a big audience with required CE's no less. They had marketing channels; a newsletter, a magazine, a website and multiple regional conferences. They had content from their classroom training. What they did not have was vision. The conventional wisdom held that the members of this organization always had and always would get their CE's at multi-day conferences and there was no one who could see the big change coming or even that the big change could come. There was no one to challenge the conventional wisdom and champion the elearning initiative.
We put up an implementation of our hosted learning management system, we built them a course, we held promising and substantive meetings and then... nothing. Absolutely nothing.
We'll conclude this sad story and add some lessons-learned in the next post.
Click here to read the first post in this series.
Looking For Pure PartnersI'm not sure if other elearning companies are like us in this respect but we at KMi are always looking for partners. Real, genuine, share-the-risk, share-the-reward partners. These are relationships where KMi is not only an online training provider but where we are an integral part of a business delivering online learning solutions.
Here are the parts and pieces that each partner brings to the relationship:
KMi Inc.
- An implementation of our hosted learning management system, eLMS
- Learning content development services
- Hosting, administration and support
- Marketing support; design services for web and print
- Sales support
Partner- A defined audience
- Marketing channels
- Content in any form
- A vision for eLearning
In posts to follow. I'll profile a partnership that works and one that didn't. If you are interested in exploring a partnership, or any kind of relationship, with KMi, please contact me at
jvcopeland@kmionline.com.
Click here to read the first post in this series.
This series of posts is going to explore the ways KMi, as a online training provider, relates to and interacts with the organizations that we support. I want to talk about this from our perspective as both an elearning content developer and as the supplier of an LMS learning system.
When we think about relationships with those that we serve in delivering online training solutions, one way we can sort them is using the partner/vendor model. Those relationships fall into the following three general categories:
- Pure partnerships: This relationship involves a sharing of upfront risk in return for
sharing of future revenues. Typically KMi will lower our upfront charges for implementing LMS or for custom content development to make it easier for our partner to realize a web based elearning initiative. - Effective partnerships: Here we are technically a vendor but effectively work together with the client as a partner. This relationship requires a high degree of transparency and mutual trust.
- Client/Vendor: This is undoubtedly the most common relationship that elearning companies have with their clients. To me it's the least desirable but increasingly unavoidable as corporations tighten their procurement policies.
I will explore these three in greater detail and with case studies where possible in future posts. As ever, if you wish to contact me please write me at jvcopeland@kmionline.com.
Our brilliant design people just finished the latest version of the detailed brochure on our online training system, eLMS. This document not only talks about features and benefits but it's also full of useful information on implementing and managing a SCORM learning management system.
Click here to download a copy.
One of the larger implementations of our hosted learning management system, eLMS, is for the Accenture Supply Chain Academy (SCA). Currently SCA serves courses to over 45,000 registered users from nearly 200 global companies in 105 countries.
This has been a great relationship where KMi has truly been able to act as a partner as together we have constantly improved the online learning platform. In addition KMi provides elearning content development for course modules (650+ to-date), LMS management and help desk services.
As usual, the client says it best...
"In 2003 KMi became the primary technology partner for the Accenture Supply Chain Academy, providing the technology infrastructure, helpdesk support, and learning design and development to our new growing eLearning business. Their innovation, flexibility and competitiveness helped us to achieve rapid growth and to scale economically as we grew from a small startup to a multi-million dollar business. A true partner, their spirit and responsiveness makes KMi an critical part of our success."
Christopher Jepson
Manager of Technology & Operations
Supply Chain Academy Accenture
If you are interested in having an engaged, willing and flexible partner for your elearning initiative please contact me at jvcopeland@kmionline.com.
OK, I could be wrong, but I think we are invented the Red Flag Game originally for online compliance courses with our partner Integrity Works Inc. It's an interactive exercise in which the learner listens in on a conversation or observes an interaction. Anytime the learner hears something that is ethically questionable he/she clicks the Red Flag button. The conversation stops and the learner is given feedback and in some cases a follow up question to support the learning. The object of the game is to collect as many red flags as possible. We've also used a red flag/green flag version where the learner picks up correct and incorrect actions and statements
We've now adapted the game to be used throughout our elearning content development efforts for training in such diverse areas as supply chain management and waitstaff training for the hospitality industry. We first used the technique in 1999. If you know of an earlier use, post a comment below.
Click here to play the "Competing Fairly" version of the game.
We take all the elearning content development we do seriously but lately we've been doing a series of customized elearning modules on safety issues for a client in the oil and gas industry.
We got our start with this client doing online compliance courses. They were well received and now we're working with divisions all over the company doing all kinds of courses including several online application training series. The company has also adopted eLMS as their LMS learning system.
The safety courses are striking because they concern issues that are literally life and death. The extractive industries are extremely dangerous and it is sobering to think that the work we produce could save lives. Admittedly these are awareness level courses and these learners will receive much more in-person training but we do know from experience that online safety training works. As our partner Bill Kibler reported in
another post on our blog that one of our mutual clients reported a 50% reduction in OSHA-reportable accidents after one year of implementing LMS with a series of safety courses.
In KMi's services for implementing LMS, our LMS learning system itself and in everything else that we do in customized elearning, we like to brag about our flexibility, responsiveness and customer centered approach. A couple of recent large implmentations of eLMS as a hosted learning management system are great examples of what we mean.
First here's an example of an "out-of the box" look and feel of our online learning platform:
Now here is one configured to meet the exacting branding standards of one of our newest clients:
And finally an implementation for our client who wanted a complete facelift. Their site is used for marketing and so they really need a fresh and dynamic interface.
We'd love to take you an a tour of the eLMS features and flexibility. Write me at
jvcopeland@kmionline.com and we'll set up a demo right away.
There a small debate going on within KMi on how best to produce online application training modules. One camp advocates the use of a tool like Captivate that automates the production of SCORM content through screen recording. The other camp wants to use "pure" Flash in computer application development because of the greater level of control and flexibility that Flash provides. I'm trying to stay above the fray but I think I'm coming down on the side of the pure Flash camp.
Don't get me wrong, I think Captivate is great as far as elearning development tools go. It has an incredible feature set and it's "publish once to multiple formats" option has the promise to be pretty useful. The problem with all the features is that they limit flexibility. Sure you can publish your tutorial as a SCORM course and a PDF at the same time, and sure it provides nifty tools that allow you to add step-by-step direction bubbles but what if you don't like the output? What if the PDF isn't laid out the way you want it? What if you want to add dimension and shading to the bubble? How easy is it to get in there to make changes?
And therein lies the rub. Our people want to have a blank canvas to work with and they want to be able to do with it anything they want. Tools like Captivate promise to do so much for you but in return you have to give up too much control.
More on this later.
So, what does good customized elearning look like? KMi recently produced a series of airport operations courses for the UN World Food Programme. We extracted a piece from an alcohol awareness course to use as a sample course. It's a really good example of the power of Flash as the most powerful of the eLearning development tools. Check out the blood alcohol content calculator on page 7.
Click here to take a look at the sample. (Sorry about the error message. The course is coming from our eLMS demo site and the SCORM calls from the course cause the error) If you'd like to see the course sample and others launched from our online learning platform write me at
jvcopeland@kmionline.com and I'll set you up. It has a pre-assessment, a post assessment and a custom certificate
Rapid-eLearning can be rapid (sometimes) but is there any learning? While many of the new eLearning development tools like Articulate and Captivate are effective in the quick conversion of PowerPoint slides into web based SCORM content, their output is usually well... deadly. So, what is rapid eLearning good for?
In her book
eLearning and the Science of Instruction, Ruth Colvin Clark has a useful model for determining which type of online training is good for which goals. She puts forth the following general goals:
- Inform
- Perform procedure
- Perform principle
As you might guess inform is the simple transference of information as you might want to do when updating a company policy or rolling out new product features. Perform training either teaches people step by step procedures or works to help them make decisions and take actions according to general principles.
So which goal does rapid-eLearning achieve? In our experience it's inform and inform only and a relatively small subset of that. If you have something that just needs to be put out there quickly and you need confirmation that your people have accessed and understood it, then a short rapid-elearning course with an assessment on a SCORM LMS will work for you.
If, on the other hand, you have to "sell" your audience on anything, such as why the new policy is important or how to actually sell the new product features, you will need more than basic bulleted text rapid-elearning. That is where KMi comes in. We can help not only in custom content development but also in the selection and best-practice usage of authoring tools for your in-house usage. Contact KMi for a free consultation.
One of the great strengths of a SCORM learning management system (LMS) is that it helps to centralize all training data. The benefits that an organization gains from implementing an LMS are fairly obvious. A good LMS does more than track online training. It should be able to track, record and report on virtually any learning event. Once scattered training records can now be stored and accessed in one place.
The learner should benefit as well. In the health professions, for example, the majority of continuing education (CE) takes place at conferences that range from one-day workshops to multi-day, multi-track tradeshow like events. An web based training and events management tool would provide an automated record of CE for each learner... a CE transcript. The next logical step would be to integrate that tool into an LMS learning system.
KMi has taken that step with the eLMS conference builder.
This tool is a full featured Conference and Meeting Management package that is fully integrated into eLMS. The Conference Builder is ideal for any organization that delivers continuing education to it's members at meetings, workshops and conferences. .
This powerful and flexible tool allows you to:
Manage any size conference with the ability to enter multiple conference locations and multiple rooms per location.
Create multiple session-tracks, and allow user-registration by-session or by-track.
Deliver Custom Certificates for the completion of individual sessions.
- Offer Credit for the completion of individual sessions.
- Collect any custom user-registration information that is not pre-defined within eLMS for any session or for the conference as a whole.
Easily provide travel and lodging information for nearby hotels, car rentals, etc. as well as any conference-based price information.
Allow Conference Presenters to manage and post their materials to sessions they have been assigned to.
Manage a complete Conference Roster, which includes the ability to check-in users, and manually add users to Session Rosters.
Conduct Pre-Assessments, Post-Assessments, and Evaluations for any conference session, or for the entire conference.
Provide access to additional session-based or conference-based materials once a user has completed their registration.
Whether you are looking at eLearning companies for implementing an LMS or for learning content development, the people you really want to pay attention to are the implementation managers. You should go out of your way to meet and interact with them as early in the selection process as possible. These people are the front line in customer support and service. They are the ones that communicate your needs to the elearning content developer as well as the software developer.
At KMi we realized early on that the implementation people were absolutely vital to a successful relationship and ultimately a successful business. A common practice among learning management system providers is the ‘bait and switch’ routine where the really experienced people are pulled off an account soon after the contract is signed. At KMi the person who is assigned to a project, the person that you meet on day one (or during the proposal phase) stays with you for the long haul. And we don’t have a ‘B’ team, our implementation support people are all first string. We select them for their empathy and honesty, their ability to communicate and their love for problem solving and we train them continuously.
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