Tools Used
Articulate Storyline
Camtasia
Snagit
Adobe Premiere Pro
xAPI & Javascript
Adobe Illustrator
Audacity
Overview
This project was a gamified, scenario-based onboarding experience for a large-scale catering company. As learners navigate through the various levels of this course, they are introduced to the staff, company policies & procedures, and the necessary next steps to complete for human resources. This learning experience uses Articulate Storyline as the primary authoring tool, Camtasia for tutorials such as ‘how to set up direct deposit’, and Adobe Premiere to create the company welcome video. I used Adobe Illustrator and Audacity as secondary tools to create a company logo, manipulate vector graphics, and edit the sound.
The Client’s Problem
This project involves a large-scale food service provider who caters to high-budget weddings and events. The client came to me to create an eLearning onboarding experience because of a high turnover rate and the need for a more streamlined training process. It takes time and resources to get new employees up to speed on company policies and procedures, what needs to be completed for human resources, and to introduce employees to the team. Due to the turnover rate, the company deemed that it would be worthwhile to invest in a cost-effective eLearning solution that would frontload employees with all of the necessary basic information, protocols, and administrative to-do’s, so that they would be ready to work when they showed up at their first event.
Solution
After conducting a needs assessment with the client, an eLearning solution was deemed to be an appropriate and viable solution to replace the inefficient onboarding protocol that was in place. The eLearning program used data-driven strategies to provide a gamified, scenario-based, personalized, and interactive onboarding experience that was not meant to merely present information, but rather to arms learners to complete necessary actions and get them excited to work for a great company.
Design Theory
Action Map: Inspired by Cathy Moore’s action mapping strategy, this project began with a kickoff meeting with the client and SME’s wherein I began by facilitating a brainstorm session focusing on the problem and potential solutions. “What do employees need to do, and why aren’t they doing it” acted as our guiding question, and an emphasis was placed on what actions learners would be able to perform after completing this learning experience. This brainstorm was put on virtual paper in the form of a mindmap with our stated goal/objective in the center (“what will learners be able to do"?), and ways in which learners could reach this goal branching out from that central objective.
The objective that we decided on for this learning experience was: “New employees will show up to work the first day knowing company policies and procedures, and they will be ready to carry out the necessary functions of the job.” Firstly, relevant policies, procedures, and functions needed to be identified and flushed out, and then they needed to be prioritized through asking questions such as:
“which actions contribute the most towards achieving the goal?” (High-Priority Actions)
“Which actions are most often performed incorrectly?”
“Which actions have the worst consequences?”
Once high-priority actions were identified, we asked ourselves what type of problem we were facing as this would help us determine what type of learning solution would best fit our needs.
Business problems tend to fall into one of four categories: environment, knowledge, skill, or motivation. However, when we solve the root problem, whether it’s environmental, skill-based, or knowledge-based, problems of motivation typically self-correct.
This company’s problem was identified as being primarily knowledge and skill-based, and an eLearning intervention was deemed to be an appropriate intervention. Frontloading employees with the necessary knowledge and skills would prepare them to show up to work on the first day ready to carry out the necessary actions, and would save the company time, money, and resources.
Storyboard and Prototype: After our kickoff meeting, the next step was to create a text-based script. In order to do this, I worked closely with SME’s in both the human resources department as well as the main banquet captain who could provide me with the necessary specifics regarding relevant policies and procedures (e.g. kitchen safety, dress code, answering questions from quests, etc.). Using Google Docs, I was able to create a text-based script while getting feedback from SME’s and working collaboratively on a shared document. After approval from the client, I was able to create a prototype in Google Slides displaying the text with the relevant animations, activities, resources, and triggers. Upon further approval from the client, I was able to transition into development on Articulate Storyline.
Design Theory: Using Gagne’s 9 events as a theoretical framework for the learning experience, I decided that this would be an ideal project to infuse with elements of gamification, personalization (giving the user voice and choice in their own learning experience), and interactive practice activities. Research shows that “gamification can increase company productivity by up to 50% and employee engagement by 60%” (eLearning Learning, 2019), thus making the decision to gamify the experience seem like a no-brainer. The learning experience allows for the learner to choose their character and unlock levels, and utilizes a leaderboard to incentivize active participation and engagement.
Development: Using Articulate Storyline as my primary authoring tool, I developed this learning experience to be fun and to feel casual. While the aims of this learning experience were serious and would translate to improved employee performance as well as lowered onboarding costs, this did not mean that the learning experience itself had to feel overly serious. All of the major functions, personalization, and interactivity of this course was created using Articulate Storyline, while tutorials (such as how to set up direct deposit) were created using Camtasia as this made more sense for a step-by-step walkthrough of specific actions. Adobe Illustrator was used to create the company logo and edit vector graphics, Adobe Premiere was used to edit and create the company video, and Audacity was used to edit project audio.
To personalize the experience as I desired, it was necessary to learn and execute basic Javascript functions and implent Xapi in the project. Implementing xapi for the project allowed me to track time spent on any given activity, track answers, and monitor which resources which were consulted.
xAPI Implementation
Data ought to inform each decision we make when designing a learning experience, and this is why I decided to implement xAPI tracking into this learning experience. xAPI allows tracking of learner behaviors that just isn’t possible with SCORM, and this data allows for a far clearer picture of how learners navigate the learning solution.
Tracking Answers: An xAPI statement is generated every time a learner selects an answer, whether it is correct or incorrect. With SCORM, I would be able to review whether a given activity or quiz was completed, but I would not be able to view any specific incorrect answers that had been selected prior to the correct response. Utilizing xAPI tracking allows me to observe whether there are any commonly selected incorrect answers, and this, in turn, informs me where further training or clarification might be worthwhile.
Duration (or time spent): This course also utilizes xAPI to track how long a learner spends on any given page, activity, or question. This data can be revealing because it often shows what skills or concepts present learners with the greatest difficulty, whether learners are engaged, and how challenging or easy the course may be for learners.
Resources Consulted: There are resources within the course, such as ‘hint’ buttons, that allow the users to receive help if they are stuck on an activity. Each time a user consults one of these resources an xAPI statement is sent to the LRS. This data allows us to view whether learners find these resources to be necessary, and whether there is a relationship between viewing these resources and a learner’s final score and time spent on a given activity
Summary
This project allowed a large-scale catering company to onboard new employees with far greater cost-efficiency and consistency so that new employees show up to work the first day ready to perform. This learning experience presented learners with an eLearning solution that is gamified, personalized, and interactive. Using Articulate Storyline, Camtasia, and Adobe Premiere, I was able to present the learning experience in a streamlined and visually appealing format that allowed learners to advance from level to level as they advanced towards the finish line. Implementing xAPI tracking with this project allowed for the gathering of valuable data on the efficacity of the final learning experience, as well as learner behavior as they navigated the course.