Training Industry Magazine - Spring 2015 - (Page 58)

CLOSING D E A L S LEARNING: THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME - SARAH THOMPSON The size of the learning industry has grown significantly. Since 2010, the average growth per year is over 5 percent. For the global market, that is over $15 billion. It is estimated the total spend on training in North America was $141.7 billion in 2013. It is also estimated that training services in the outsourced market was approximately $59.5 billion and companies spent an average of 42 percent of their training budget on external (outsourced) suppliers. Along with the growth in the dollars spent on training, there has been a significant increase in the number of suppliers, those providing services and products within the industry. Vendors specialize in industries, content areas and disciplines. The complexity, size and number of providers in the market has pushed the industry into a state of flux. This is a natural state for any industry as it matures. OPPORTUNITY THROUGH CONSOLIDATION The question around which vendor supports specific goals has begun to plague organizations trying to filter through the noise. The industry landscape has changed, resulting in an increase in targeted learning services, learning portals, learning management system vendors, social and mobile delivery, and even the number of conferences that serve professionals in the industry. 58 At the center of all the noise, lies opportunity. With the recent acquisition of Intrepid Learning Solutions, Xerox Learning Services is poised to provide greater strength in services for organizations who can't manage the demand for training. Shrinking the market to a fewer number of providers allows a larger provider to focus on creating a solution that addresses the organization's specific business need, from inception to implementation. INTEGRATION OF KEY SERVICES The fragmentation in the industry is due to the number of specialized providers. While some focus solely on compliance training, others are industry-focused or "jack-of-all-trades," doing everything from analysis, design, microlearning and building enterprise programs. Through the consolidation of Xerox and Intrepid solution offerings, organizations gain efficiency because they are working with one provider. Using a single-source, global partner allows that partner to gain deep knowledge and insight into the client organization's business, understand their organizational challenges and meet their expectations consistently. INNOVATION IN LEARNING Not only has the overall expenditure in training increased, the way dollars are spent has also changed. Today, there is a major shift from training to learning. The old-school traditional model of training is transforming to learning, with the learner at the center of the ecosystem. There is a growing need for short-form content, integrated with collaboration and served at the moment of need, to better enable a learner to perform their job requirements. The digital native should be the model for the corporate training world - how a digital native learns is not in an extended weeklong, lecture-heavy classroom. AT THE CENTER OF ALL THE NOISE, LIES OPPORTUNITY. Space exists in the marketplace for emerging innovation and training dollars are shifting that way, too. Organizations in the industry, whether outsourcing partners, technology vendors or solutions providers, will continue to forge new paths into new technologies, innovations in how learning is provided and mobile delivery. Continued broad-scale innovation is also critical to moving the boundaries of the industry. The consolidation of providers will expand the investment dollars for research and development in the industry. Innovation is a big key in any industry and the learning marketplace has fallen behind. However, the industry is at an exciting juncture - let's see where it will take learning into tomorrow. Sarah Thompson, formerly of Intrepid Learning, is the principal consultant at Xerox Learning Services. Email Sarah. http://www.trainingindustry.com/wiki/entries/size-of-training-industry.aspx

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - Spring 2015

Soft Skills Make Up Vital Part of Corporate Training
Table of Contents
Guest Editor: Leadership: The Artichoke Effect
Focusing on Mindsets and Attitudes
The Importance of Soft Skills For Trainers
Social Simulators Bring Training to Life
The Power of Storytelling in Organizational Development
Leading Change with Resilience
Why Perspective Selling Makes Sense
Harnessing the Power of Teamwork
Collaborate to Innovate: Building an Innovation-Friendly Business Culture
Are You Using the Best Metrics to Evaluate Your Skills Training?
Influencing into the Future
Culture: The Enemy at the Gate of Innovation
Casebook: T-Mobile: Answering the Call for Leadership Development
Leadership is an Inside Job
Vendor Selection Tips for Corporate Sales Training
Checking Your Motivation to Lead
The Real ROI of Leadership Training: Soft Skills Lead to Hard Results
Closing Deals
Company News
What's Online
Training Talk

Training Industry Magazine - Spring 2015