rganisational learning is at aninflexion point. Things aregoing to change verydramatically from the way

they have been for years, and the reason issimple. New ways of working, supported bynew technologies, demand new ways oflearning.

TOP-DOWN STRUCTURED LEARNING ISNO LONGER ENOUGH.

Historically, organisations’ approach toimparting their workforce with knowledgewas to train them. Typically, learning anddevelopment departments decided whatshould be taught, who should teach it, andhow workers should be graded after

completion. And learners enjoyed timelyaccess to calendar-based, structuredlearning activities. If this sounds like the19th century, it isn’t. It all applies asequally to training in the past few years asit did to the Victorian era. Deliverymechanisms certainly have changed in thepast few decades or so (with the additionof e-learning and webinars, for example),but the centralised, prescriptive model oforganisational learning has remainedunaltered.

Perhaps, until recently, this approach wassufficient and this may have been for tworeasons. First, there was no external driver,pushing a more effective model. Second,

even if the demand had been there, thesystems and technology to support adifferent model of learning weren’t.Essentially the only way to get peopletrained was as we had done it in the past –albeit perhaps with a slight technical twistadded.

Today things are different.

The exploding speed of communications intoday’s world forces organisations in thepublic and private sector to keep up withthose that consume their services or usetheir products. The old standby of ‘just-in-time training’ is no longer adequate. Simplymaking more knowledge available fasterwon’t do. Learners need the right

November 2009 Inside Learning Technologies 67

Mobile learning is about more

than putting an e-learning

course in your pocket, says

Ara Ohanian.

ALL CHANGEFOR LEARNING AND

DEVELOPMENT

O

information, delivered in a timely way thatis responsive to them.

THE RACE FOR SMART MOBILITY

Globally, knowledge workers are rapidlyarming themselves with powerful mobiledevices that deliver capabilities far inexcess of mere mobile telephony. And thisgoes well beyond playing a few games onyour iPhone.

By 2011, over one billion workers world-wide will be equipped with mobile devicesconnected to the Internet via WIFI and 4Gnetworks. Enhanced processing powercombined with broadband connectivityand GPS is already revolutionising manypeople’s expectations of their mobilephones. This trend will rapidly reach atipping point, as smart mobiledevices/phones permeate every aspect ofour life – personal and professional.

Increasingly, organisations which need tokeep employees always informed and incollaborative communication are lookingfor some method of managing knowledgeacross the enterprise. Where knowledgemanagement is synonymous withdocument control, things are not going tochange. In some forward-lookingorganisations, however, the Learning andDevelopment function is stepping forwardto assume this important role.

These L&D departments recognise thatknowledge mobility requires much morethan simply putting e-learning on a mobiledevice. A mobile learning solution musttake into consideration the worker’senvironment and state of mind.

The worker ‘on the go’ has less time tolearn and more urgent knowledge needs tofulfil. Consequently, the source ofknowledge is often not the lesson. Instead,relevant knowledge can be generated froma variety of sources in a multitude offorms. The ability to access knowledgefrom structured and unstructured sourcesin multiple formats is an approach thatwe call the ‘Fluid Model of Learning’ orFML.

FLUID MODEL OF LEARNING - FML

FML provides the knowledge worker witha knowledge acquisition experiencewhere the learner is in control. He orshe is perpetually both a learnerand a teacher, as are the othermembers of his or hercommunity. And any personcan be a member ofmultiple communities.

This learning experience ischaracterised by the learner’s abilityto find precise knowledge in multipleformats, from various sources.Whatever sources are appropriate,the learner finds the informationthey need to overcome the specificknowledge challenge they face.

FML augments traditional learningapproaches in which learning takesplace ‘just in case’. The followingprovide examples of areas in whichFML broadens the learningexperience to more readily, more rapidlyaccess more useful and up-to-dateknowledge:

• From formal learning content to informal learning content

• From structured learning content to unstructured learning content

• From individual-based learning to community-based learning

• From training-driven to performance-support-driven

• From curriculum-driven to search-driven

• From lesson-driven to knowledge-driven

• From employee-centred to audience-centred (including customers)

• From teacher-driven to SME-driven

• From subject-teaching to knowledge-sharing

For FML to be effective, two keyinnovations are required. One is thedevelopment of an intelligent searchfunction designed to fetch and delivercontent to smart phones. The other is aCategorisation Engine that will aggregate,analyse and present the content in arelevant and useful manner on mobile devices and smart phones.

Without this, the smart phone user will bepresented with an unmanageable mess ofinformation that he or she can make nosense of, and get no value from.

The combination of Intelligent Search andthe Categorisation Engine will presentcontent of multiple types within aconfigurable interface. Not only do usersnow expect to be able to configure theinterfaces of devices they use, this user-driven adaptability is essential.

This enables the user to find theinformation they want in the way theyexpect, and put it to use immediately.Different users will want to vary how theyreceive information – whether they givemore emphasis at a particular time to a

68 Inside Learning Technologies November 2009

ALL CHANGE FOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

By 2011, over one billion workers world-wide will be equippedwith mobile devices connected to the Internet via WIFI and 4Gnetworks. Enhanced processing power combined withbroadband connectivity and GPS is already revolutionisingmany people’s expectations of their mobile phones.

social networking device, for example, toa wiki, a blog or a course.

There is so much information availablethat the best filter for it is the user’s owndecision, based on the right channel for aparticular occasion.

These combined engines will not onlyserve content based on what is beingsearched but will also find relevant and hi-value knowledge links and present them tothe user. Such links can connect the userwith content in multiple formats comingfrom blogs, wikis, videos, audio, documentslibraries, podcasts, or even structuredlessons.

Furthermore, since the system willrecognise which community is mostrelevant to the user, it can connect

him/her to a relevant SME’s mobiletelephone for a live discussion.

This approach works to the strengths ofthe smart phone, rather than presentingusers with a cut-down version of elearning.We are now seeing mobile devices evolveinto knowledge-based performancesupport tools, where their very portabilityand connectivity give them an edge overdesktop computers. They can delivercontext-sensitive information andconnections exactly at the point of need.

This is not some far-off vision ofmobile learning in the future. It is apicture of learning that we can expect tosee emerging in 2010.

It is fluid, it is ultra-relevant, and it isdramatically different from the course-

based learning presented by mostorganisational learning systems today.

The reason this form of learning will evolveis simple: people expect it, organisationsneed it and now, finally, the technologyexists to supply it.

Get ready for a mobile, fluid, learningfuture.

November 2009 Inside Learning Technologies 71

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The combination of Intelligent Search and the CategorisationEngine will present content of multiple types within aconfigurable interface. Not only do users now expect to be ableto configure the interfaces of devices they use, this user-drivenadaptability is essential.

Ara Ohanian is CEO of CERTPOINTSystems. For more information pleasevisit www.certpointsystems.com.

ALL CHANGE FOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT