Micro Center Creates Branched Learning Scenarios with Lectora

Profile
Micro Center®, a unique, upscale retail chain that operates 21 retail stores in major markets nationwide, is a division of the Micro Electronics, Inc. family of businesses, all leading providers of computer products, accessories and services, headquartered in Columbus, OH.

Micro Center is a destination retailer designed to satisfy the dedicated computer user by offering more computers and computer-related products than any other retailer. A key component of Micro Center’s success is its Sales Associates, recognized by customers and industry observers alike as the most knowledgeable in the business.

Challenge
Several years ago, Micro Center began creating elearning content to train its associates across the nation. The problem, however, was that its courses seemed more like “page-turners” that merely stated what the users needed to learn rather than teaching them by example how to handle specific scenarios and follow certain procedures. It was apparent that they needed more interactive courses to keep the learners engaged.

While Micro Center purchased Lectora authoring software in 2004, they were not yet aware of all the features the product has to offer. In 2007, Micro Center re-evaluated the tool and realized that they could indeed create courses that its users would be excited to see.

Solution
The Training team at Micro Center firmly believes in “learning by doing.” After looking at Lectora, the design team knew that the tool would enable them to create branched simulations for adaptive elearning that would achieve just what they had in mind. The team then set out to create Micro Center’s new Management 101 Training Program by using Lectora to build engaging simulations and to throw out the “page-turner” approach.

The team designed a prototype which utilized variables in Lectora to create the back-end logic that was needed to develop branched learning scenarios. The design team soon discovered that after creating one prototype, they could develop a template that would carry this logic into other courses, thus saving time in creating future courses.

One of the courses in this curriculum is called Managerial Behavior and is meant to teach new managers or supervisors how to deal with certain situations that they may encounter. The design team was able to create learning scenarios that took learners to a specific question or page based on their actions and answers to previous questions. During the simulation, learners are then given the opportunity to Get Advice, receive Expert Coaching, or access background learning material. These three options provide learners with an interactive way to receive hints and advice on each scenario.

Results
By utilizing Lectora to create branched simulations, the Training Department was able to dramatically cut development time, “The real benefit of Lectora is that it saved development time, while also making courses more dynamic and sophisticated,” said John Zurovchak, an instructional designer in the Training Department.

Lectora eliminated the need to employ Flash experts, saving them thousands of dollars, “By using Lectora, we eliminated the need to hire Flash experts to create courses,” said John. “Training Departments can spend significant amounts of money for Flash designers because they think it’s the only way to make a course engaging, but our results have proved that Lectora can do it all.”

Micro Center created the type of courses its team had dreamed of since it first began its journey into elearning a number of years ago with the help of Lectora. “The flexibility, ease of use, and power of Lectora has helped us to evolve from page-turner courses to engaging learning simulations that our users enjoy taking and that improve learning and performance in the long run,” added John.

Thanks for Your Feedback!

Recently, Trivantis asked for your feedback on the Trivantis newsletter and the results were astounding! Thank you for participating and providing great feedback and suggestions. Based on the survey, 83% of The Buzz readers are satisfied with the content in the newsletter and 86% are satisfied with the frequency of Trivantis mailings.

Your responses also provided Trivantis with great ideas for future editions of The Buzz. The majority of readers want to see more case studies so they can learn how other Trivantis clients are using Lectora and CourseMill. And of course, we’ve already listened to your suggestions by including the Micro Center case study in this July issue. Be on the lookout for more content that you specifically requested.

Visit Trivantis at CHART

Trivantis will be attending the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers’ (CHART) 75th Semi-Annual Hospitality Training Conference, held August 9-12 in Washington D.C.

CHART is one of the oldest and largest nonprofit organizations dedicated to training in the hospitality industry. The conference is geared toward training and human resource professionals who want to positively impact their organizations.

If you're interested in seeing a one-on-one demonstration of Lectora or CourseMill while at CHART, please contact Bob Bathalter at 877.929.0188.

To register for CHART’s 75th Semi-Annual Conference, click here.

Lectora Tips and Tricks
for New 2008 Maintenance Track Enhancements

The following features were just released for Lectora 2008 this month. All current 2008 users should have automatically received these features, plus many more. If you don’t have auto-update enabled in Lectora 2008, you can install the new features by clicking here.

If you have not yet upgraded to Lectora 2008, please contact Trivantis. Lectora 2007 users receive 65% off Lectora 2008 for a limited time only! By upgrading, 2005 users will receive more than 65 new features.

NEW Feature! Configurable Hotkeys
In Lectora 2008, you can now create your own custom shortcuts, which saves time and increases efficiency. To add your hotkeys, simply open up your Preferences menu and click on the Hotkeys tab. You can change default hotkeys and choose a new hotkey for any task or function not already assigned in Lectora.

NEW Feature! Debug Mode Variable Change
In Lectora 2008, Debug Mode now offers the ability to manipulate variables while previewing a title. While in Debug Mode, click on the Variables button, which will bring up the Variables dialog. This screen allows for an easy way to change variable values on the fly. Enter in the new variable value and click Update to commit those changes. If a value is incorrectly entered, the Refresh button will reset the variables back to their original values. This feature is also available when publishing to HTML with the Debug option selected.

NEW Feature! Instant FLV Conversion
New right-click “convert to FLV” option automatically coverts individual audio and video without publishing. Simply right click on the appropriate audio or video and select “convert to FLV.” This will automatically take the selected media file and convert the file type to .flv. This option is also available in the Resource Manager. Using this option allows for individual file conversion rather than using the Compression tab when publishing to HTML.

Receive Recognition by Applying for Bersin & Associates Learning Leaders

Do you have ground-breaking training and development programs at your organization? Is your organization using innovative practices to train employees? If so, tell your story and become recognized throughout the learning industry by applying for Bersin & Associates' Learning Leaders Program.

The Learning Leaders Program recognizes and rewards organizations that have seen significant improvements from their learning and development programs and trainings.

Trivantis encourages you to apply today in order to receive the recognition you deserve.

For more information, or to apply for Bersin and Associates' Learning Leaders Program, click here.

eLearning Instructional Design
Tips & Tricks

Based on your suggestion, select editions of The Buzz will now include Tips & Tricks for eLearning Instructional Design. These tips are written by Trivantis' own Instructional Designer, Sighle Brackman, who makes sure each and every course that is developed by Trivantis' Custom Development Services (CDS) team adheres to instructional design standards.

1. Convert content to instruction that is concise and to the point. Use visual and tactile representations to support (or eliminate) text as much as possible.

For example:

Instead of: You can view statistics about California by clicking the state in the map above. California is on the far west side of the US.

Choose: Click California in the US map above to view state statistics.

2. Use graphics, interactivity and animation to support and clarify instruction. Graphics, activity and animation should have a specific purpose in a course. Having it in a course “just to have it” or for entertainment value clutters the course and distracts the learner from their purpose.

3. Use bullets to bring attention to the key points in a sentence and make it easier for the learner to “get the point” quickly.

For example:

Instead of: The gardener explained that there were three primary tasks involved in caring for a lawn. The three tasks include fertilize and weed at least once a year, mow often, and water in the early morning or late evening.

Choose: Care for a lawn with three primary tasks:
fertilize and weed at least once a year mow often water in the early morning or late evening.