The learning process has evolved over the years. Learning is not just limited to school children; Adults and professionals also have to go through certain learning stages over time. Education helps in the long run.
Employees are constantly being taught new ways of working and ways of working. Companies use various forms of teaching to complement this. For example, in recent years, the Six Sigma principle has helped companies teach their employees how to make their organization better and more efficient.
Six Sigma
Over the years, Six Sigma has proven itself and has become the most widely used learning method. Developed by Bill Smith in 1986 while at Motorola, Six Sigma was originally defined as a metric for measuring errors and improving quality. The main goal of Six Sigma is to provide the customer with high performance, reliable service and added value.
eLearning
E-learning covers a wide range of applications from computer-based learning, virtual classrooms, web-based learning to digital collaboration. E-learning has emerged as the most viable training method adopted by various countries around the world, offering both cost savings and flexibility to the executive team.
E-learning in Six Sigma
For initial success, classroom training is conducted for both Green Belts and Black Belts during the tentative launch of a Lean Six Sigma initiative. Courses such as Lean Sigma Overview, Yellow and Black Belt Training can help change corporate culture and make Green Belts and Black Belts more effective. It is commonly observed that when a company completes a significant number of Black Belt courses, the infrastructure generated is sufficient to support e-learning for Green Belts.
Benefits of e-learning
Because the e-learning is conducted at a location of the student’s choice, the company saves on travel expenses. Once the company has its own Master Black Belts, class time is reduced so they can focus on the big projects. Additionally, new recruits can be trained immediately without having to wait for courses to become available. In addition, black belt meetings run more efficiently because the team members are familiar with the processes.
Importance of E-Learning and Six Sigma
o As it is a flexible learning method, employees only need a minimal amount of equipment such as computers, CD players and an internet connection.
o Increasingly difficult economic conditions are forcing companies to focus on their financial health. Living and travel costs of employees are reduced through e-learning.
o The cost to develop a web-based training course is approximately $60,000 and a training system is $500,000 – including software, hardware and consulting fees. Therefore, the training is comparatively cheaper.
Disadvantages of e-learning
o There is little or no interaction between employees and company officials.
o Other forms of teaching allow staff to network and clarify doubts with their peers, making it easy to get different views on the same issue. This is missing with e-learning, since the employee is only dependent on the specified specialist materials for clarification.
When used effectively, any learning method can bring benefits to organizations, but when the same method proves to be a detrimental factor in progress, organizations should discard it. In the case of e-learning and Six Sigma, new features should be added that would make the process more effective and reliable. Six Sigma should also supplement the teaching method with face-to-face interviews so that employees can get a better perspective.
Thanks to Tony Jacowski
