Blended learning is an effective training delivery model being implemented across the globe, however with so many variations of the model and range of learning technologies available how do those in charge of learning and development decide which has been the most effective and cost efficient? Well the answer is that most decisions are based on price and learner feedback, because the return on investment of the training isn’t worked out and there aren’t processes in place to include the measure of effectiveness.

Some interesting research conducted by IS Interactive Services, with over 500 senior learning professionals, on the future of blended learning backed up the fact that very few organisations measure the return on investment (ROI) of their training budget.  It found that only 28% of those surveyed measure training against business KPIs and the most common form of training evaluation is ‘happy sheets’, the learner evaluation.

With a variety of data analysis methodologies it is surprising that more businesses don’t measure training ROI. There is a strong business case for training staff, evidenced by a wealth of research and surveys, as it improves staff retention, performance, motivation and loyalty, but if a business doesn’t gather the evidence to prove this then where is the business case?

Some time ago there were some figures out on the ROI of Corporate Training that said that $1500 invested in training per employee results in 24% higher profit margins. Certainly e-learning can improve the ROI of the training budget, in fact calculations done in the US found that it can be 50-60% greater than for traditional training, which itself can have a 4 x ROI, if done well*.

For some guidance on measuring the ROI of e-learning take a look at the article on TrainingZone.

Author: Carolyn Lewis, Managing Director of Elearning Marketplace and learning technology consultant.

* Syberworks E-learning Benefits and ROI Comparison of e-Learning vs Tradtional Training