Establishing a multimedia project team

When planning to implement new technologies into an organisation it is important to have the support of all the business areas that may be affected by the technology. Multimedia and Technology Based Training (TBT) can reach into those areas of the business that have little to do with technology usage. There are two major issues that need to be addressed when planning for the implementation of multimedia within the workplace. Firstly, choose the projects to work on that have both the best payback and a high level of exposure in the rest of the business. Secondly, create a highly professional and credible project team that assists with obtaining user credibility with the technology. This session will provide attendees with a framework for ROI analysis of potential multimedia projects. It will also provide guidelines for project team development and hints to assist with the successful implementation of this complex and byte hungry technology. This includes ensuring that it fits the businesses IT infrastructure and architecture and stresses the importance of a specific multimedia development methodology.

Introduction

The two most important influential elements in every organisation's drive to achieve success are its Information Technology and its people. Although both are important in their own right, the major factor in the equation for success is how they interact. With technology expanding their options, more businesses are moving to Multimedia and Technology Based Training (TBT) [1].

• Within the next two years, Motorola will move up to 50% of its training from the classroom and toward technology based delivery.
• IBM expects classroom training to represent just 40% of its training by the year 2000, with the rest delivered via technological methods.
• By the turn of the century, Ford expects half of its classroom training to be replaced by other methods.

Multimedia and TBT offer extensive interaction and real time measurements of learning at lower costs. It also offers strategic business and training advantages, such as improved achievement and productivity, reduced learning curves, and increased employee satisfaction and motivation. These advantages equate to a higher level of customer service for both internal and external customers.

For optimum results, any business must consider how to

• Apply multimedia and TBT effectively
• Set and manage expectations about multimedia and TBT
• Establish a methodology for the development of organisational multimedia and TBT systems
• Implement multimedia and TBT and launch initial projects successfully,
• Identify prospects in other areas of the business to apply multimedia and TBT, and
• Avoid the pitfalls that new multimedia and TBT clients may encounter.

Description of the technology

What is computer based training (CBT)?

• Computer Assisted Instruction or Learning (CAI/CAL)
• Computer Managed Instruction or Learning (CMI/CML)

CMI is where the management of the training program is carried out by the computer. It takes over all of the routine chores of keeping track of the trainees progress; their performance in training and, depending upon the type of assessment procedure, it can mark the trainees answers and give appropriate feedback. It is also capable of providing reports for each class of trainees as well as present individual profiles.

What is multimedia?

In the training area, this technique allows the learner to interact with the computer in order to select, control and pace the learning experience. The learning material can therefore be presented in a visually relevant and creative manner that can enhance the effectiveness and enjoyment of the learning process. Educational psychology contends that learners quickly process and retain multimedia education.

What is technology based training (TBT)?

TBT includes essential learning characteristics such as active student participation and immediate feedback of results, but it also takes into account essential parameters such as the student's individual differences or prior knowledge, learning speed and ability - enabling students to learn at their own pace.

The TBT approach reduces training costs substantially where large numbers of users or those geographically dispersed require training. It is also valuable in coping with the training implications of staff turnover.

Why use the technology?

• Time to learn can be reduced
• Information is consistent
• Savings in time, cost and expenses can be very significant
• Training or access to information may be accessed when and where it is needed
• Training can be done at a students own pace
• Revision is more readily accessible
• Average student mastery can be improved
• Training is stimulating and challenging to students

When the use of the technology is justified

• Where more than 50 people need to access the same information or where there are areas of high staff turnover.
• When information is required on tap, for example tourist information in a city not previously visited by the tourist.
• Where substantial benefits can accrue from improved job skills.
• When there are high risks to staff or the company from oversights in such areas as the environment, safety, contractual procedures and Trade Practices.
• Where consistent information or training must be delivered to a large number of geographically dispersed operating units.

A business case for organisational adoption of the technology

Standardisation

In the classroom, instructors tend to emphasise topics they are most familiar with, which skews course content. With TBT, differences in course makeup or instructors don't affect learning. Even the best instructors have "off" days and absences due to illness. TBT guarantees that delivery will always be the same. Consistent course information can serve as a solid base for further study, practice and application. This is where the appropriate selection of a development methodology will assist organisations in the delivery of a consistently good product despite staff turnover in the Training and Development group.

Criteria for selection

An easy to use authoring tool can save a great deal of development time. For example, some authoring tools let course authors quickly toggle between learner view and editing mode, so they can test the course while writing it.

The selected TBT system must fit the organisations current and anticipated hardware and software architecture and system standards. For this reason, transportability - how easily courses can be transported across hardware platforms - may be important in selecting the best software authoring and presentation tool. Transportability is especially critical for organisations with a large, decentralised national user base. It is essential to select a product that will fit into the current or proposed organisational architecture. [7] The purpose of the implementation of multimedia and TBT is to reach as many staff as possible throughout the organisation. Current mainframe systems are now capable of supporting such a demand and future plans to decentralise the IT function onto Local Area Network (LAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN) platforms should be incorporated into the selection of an appropriate TBT delivery mechanism.

One way of effectively determining what software tools are necessary to deliver TBT to the organisation is to compare the Reach and Range of the organisations current system to that of the business needs for TBT technology within the organisation.

The chart below shows that the current organisational system Reach and Range is more than capable of supporting the Reach and Range that will be required by the introduction of a Multimedia or TBT system to cope with any future needs.

Project objectives

• To construct a Multimedia Development Project Team capable of working on consecutive multimedia and TBT projects.

• To prioritise multimedia and TBT projects based upon their suitability to the business needs and their potential for a short term payback period.

• To commence the first identified projects due to their:
  
  - cost benefits
  - short and long term resource advantages
  - their suitability to the organisational IT infrastructure and architecture

Human resource estimates

• Project manager
• Programmer
• Graphic artist
• Sound production expert
• Video producer
• Camera operator
• Video editor
• Script writer
• Instructional designer (if TBT)
• Subject matter expert
• Project sponsor

Cost/benefit analysis

Classroom training carries a myriad of costs such as

• travel time, airfares, accommodation, taxis, food and drink
• facilities and maintenance overheads
• class administrators
• unproductive waiting time between classes
• printing and distribution of written training materials, and
• taking employees off line or off the job

Jack E. Bowsher, retired Director of Education - External Programs, for IBM, notes that moving thousands of learner days from classrooms to self study or CBT has saved IBM more than $200 million each year. [9]

Canadian Imperial Bank of Toronto claims that CBT has reduced training costs by 45 to 60%, with employees learning 50% faster. [10]

It cost a major New York financial institution more to pay salaries to new hires waiting for stand up classes in one year than it cost to develop all of their CBT tutorials. [11]

An analysis of 18 studies revealed that, on average, CBT costs about 28% less per unit of effectiveness than conventional classroom instruction.[12] In one organisation's measurements of cost effectiveness, CBT was 80% more cost effective. [13]

Hardware, software and staffing costs

An example of a standard format for a project ROI analysis will be handed out as an attachment during the session. If this is then used in conjunction with the organisation's internal cost of debt and some basic formula in a spreadsheet for discounted cashflow, it is easy to demonstrate very attractive payback periods that even the finance department could not pick fault with.

Cost benefits that do not impact the bottom line

Intangible cost benefits

Multimedia and TBT benefits are difficult to measure unless they're properly defined, such as higher employee productivity and better morale caused by:

• Better employee safety
• A reduced learning curve, so employees can be productive sooner, and
• Decreased task completion time, so each employee does more.

Strategic benefits

Many competitive organisations are quickly realising that technology will never be able to sustain long term competitive advantage. The banking and airline industries are prime examples of this. Using the airline industry as an example short term competitive advantages can be gained, but is difficult to maintain these.

The airline industry is a low profit margin business, where competition is fierce and price wars are common. The new "Qantas" has heightened that competition. As Ansett moves to establish international routes, the adoption of world best practice will become more important. In this environment, a competitive edge could be expected from the use of new training technology to reduce costs, improve efficiency, productivity, service standards and importantly, profits.

Payback potential

Using a standard template for a "Work Value Model" it is possible to demonstrate marginal improvements for "Managers" and "Salaried Officers" productivity levels and more justifiable improvements for "Administrative Assistants", and "Clerks".

	Managerial	Salaried	Clerical	Non-productive
Managers	50%	20%	20%	10%
Salaried officers	5%	55%	20%	20%
Administrative assistants		10%	70%	20%
Clerks			60%	40%

The following marginal improvements are expected to be achieved as staff are gradually trained. These benefits would also be achieved over a shorter period of time due to the fact that staff can access the training at any time rather than wait for a trainer to be released to run a course of a maximum of 16 participants.

	Managerial	Salaried	Clerical	Non-productive
Managers	55%	25%	10%	10%
Salaried officers	5%	65%	15%	15%
Administrative assistants		20%	60%	20%
Clerks			80%	20%

Challenges and risks

Supplier dependency

Hardware and software upgrades

Authoring system flexibility

Accessibility

Conclusions and recommendations

• Organisations should implement multimedia and TBT for use in training based activities due to the expected cost/benefits that can be exhibited.

• A project team should he set up to evaluate and select the most appropriate software tool to meet organisations needs.

• A multimedia and TBT methodology should be established to assist with implementation and to create standards for future project development. This would involve identification of appropriate potential suppliers and demonstrations of their abilities.

• Further research from the project team will be needed to help the organisation establish the most beneficial and stable delivery system for this media. This would involve benchmarking leaders in the use of this technology and visiting their sites to see what they have achieved.

References

1. Dena A. Heathman and Brian H. Kleimer, Training and Technology: The Future is Now, Training and Development, 45 (September, 1991) pp 49-54.

2. Chris Lee, Who gets Trained in What 1991, Training, 28 (October, 1991) pp 47-57.

3. Dena A. Heathman and Brian H. Kleimer, Training and Technology: The Future is Now, Training and Development, 45 (September, 199 1) pp 49-54.

4. William J. Bennett, ed., What Works: Research About Teaching and Learning, 2d ed. (Washington DC: US Department of Education, 1987).

5. Peter Weill, Infrastructure (& Architecture), Information Systems Management class 12 (August 23, 1994), pp. 385-387.

6. M. Obradovitch, S. E. Stephanou, Project Management: Risks and Productivity, (Daniel Spencer Publishers, Oregon 1990) pp. 85-89.

7. Peter Weill, Infrastructure (& Architecture), Information Systems Management class 12 (August 23, 1994).

8. Modified Rapture, CBT Directions (October 1988) pp. 10-11, based upon the Forth Annual Crwth Survey performed by Crwth Computer Coursewares, Santa Monica, CA.

9. Jack E. Bowsher, Educating America: Lessons Learnt in the Nation's Corporations, (New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1989).

10. Beatrice Jordan Garcia, Training the American Team, Edge, July/August, 1990 pp 47-53.

11. Ralph E. Granger, Computer Based Training Works, Personnel Journal, 69 (September 1990) pp84-91.

12. D. Fletcher, Cost Effectiveness of Computer Based Training, in Proceedings of the 1987 IEEE Systems Man and Cybernetics Conference (New York: The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, 1987).

13. Judith Yates Borger, Banking on CBT, Training: The Magazine of Human Resources Development, 25, (September, 1988) S 10-12.

14. Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, Putting the Balanced Scorecard to Work, Harvard Business Review (September-October 1993) pp. 134-147.

15. Philip Kotler, Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, Implementation and Control, (Prentice-Hall International 1991) pp. 40-60.

Please cite as: Stubbs, J. (1996). Establishing a multimedia project team. In C. McBeath and R. Atkinson (Eds), The Learning Superhighway: New world? New worries? Proceedings of the Third International Interactive Multimedia Symposium, 391-396. Perth, Western Australia, 21-25 January. Promaco Conventions. http://www.aset.org.au/confs/iims/1996/ry/stubbs.html