Outsourcing eLearning development is a wise decision as developing eLearning courses in-house can be complicated and time-consuming. Unsure how to go about it? Wondering what to outsource? Read on to find out.
Changing learning habits, businesses going global, and technology doing its part. Well, in today’s time, these factors definitely put forward a demand for improved, engaging, and superior learning strategies that help you align your training efforts with desired business goals. Although Instructor-led Training has been fulfilling the corporate training requirements, eLearning certainly wins the competition hands down! That’s when the real play begins as it sets the chain of designing, developing, delivering, and even translating (if you’re dealing with an international workforce) in process. So whether to develop the courses in-house or outsource the eLearning development? Let’s figure out!
In-house? Outsource? Or Best of Both?
Outsourcing Parts of eLearning Development Can Work Wonders! Here’s a list of five elements that you can outsource:
- Instructional design
- Multimedia components
- eLearning course development
- Translation and localization
- Digital assets for performance support
In-house or Outsource eLearning Development?
When making such important decisions, it’s recommended to consider the ins and outs of every move. The time, money, effort, and other resources required by the in-house team in comparison to saving yourself from the hassle and working with an eLearning development vendor. And if you don’t want to outsource the whole process, you can easily outsource parts of eLearning development. This will take the extra burden off your shoulders and offer you some spare time to focus on more important business aspects that need your intervention.
With that said, if you are wondering what components of eLearning development can you outsource, read on. In the upcoming section, I am going to talk about the 5 elements that you can outsource in eLearning development. Let’s begin!
5 Elements to Outsource in eLearning Development
Given below are the six parts of eLearning development you may outsource:
Instructional Design
Being an expert in the subject and designing eLearning courses that are sure to be effective for the learners are two very different things. If you know that your team has adequate knowledge of the subject but designing eLearning courses can be a challenge, it’s better to outsource it. The eLearning outsourcing vendor has all the required technology along with the knowledge, skill, and expertise of experienced professionals. They have an in-depth understanding of instructional design concepts and adult learning principles. They leverage modern learning strategies like simulation, gamification, scenario-based learning, etc., to develop interactive and engaging eLearning courses. This facilitates better attention and retention among the learners which enhances their productivity and performance.
Instructional designers can also assist you in creating relevant assessments to keep the learning curve in check. This will help you gain a better insight into how well your employees have acquired the concepts and how well are they able to apply these concepts in real-life situations.
Design and develop top-notch eLearning courses with these instructional design strategies. Check now!
Multimedia Components
Multimedia components form an integral part of eLearning courses. It is these components that offer clarity, maintain learner engagement, and kick the boredom out of the learning scenario. Taking them lightly or compromising their quality can have a negative impact on the overall quality and effectiveness of the eLearning course. So, if you have an in-house team that is adept in instructional design, outsourcing the multimedia components is definitely worth it.
Multimedia components include various interactivities, videos, animations, graphics, etc., and designing them can be tricky as they might require customization or even manual programming. So hiring an eLearning vendor to handle the production of multimedia components benefits you in multiple ways. It saves you the trouble of spending energy on learning how to develop multimedia components effectively and the cost of buying expensive software, video editors, and authoring tools. Simply outsource the multimedia components and enjoy impeccable designs.
eLearning Course Development
If your in-house team is handy and proficient in instructional design, then you can very well consider outsourcing the eLearning course development part. The reasons can vary from lack of in-depth knowledge and know-how of the authoring tools to tight deadlines. Your team can easily create the storyboard for the eLearning course and share it with the eLearning vendor’s development team.
The professionals can take it up from here and provide you with a fully functional eLearning course as they have all the relevant skills, experience, and tools. Even better, you can actively participate in the development process as the development team doesn’t move ahead without your signoff. This will save you a great deal of worry while at the same time offer an effective and immersive eLearning content. It’s clearly a win-win situation!
Translation and Localization
If you’re planning to go global, designing and developing an eLearning course only in English might not be enough. Why? Because it is a given that people learn and understand better in their native language. This requires you to translate and localize your eLearning content which can be cumbersome. Translating the content from the source to the target language might still seem feasible, but localization (adhering to cultural sensibilities) can be tricky. Outsourcing eLearning translations help you cater to the linguistically and culturally diverse workforce in an impactful way.
Your eLearning translation vendor already has a team handling eLearning translation and localization projects on a frequent basis. These experts are natives, which helps them incorporate local insights and learnings into your eLearning courses to make it more relevant, engaging, and easy for people to connect with.
Digital Assets for Performance Support
If you want to provide your employees with uninterrupted, accessible, flexible learning content, digital assets for performance support are your way to go. Converting your traditional training content to digital performance support assets or reconfiguring your pre-existing eLearning courses to new formats can be time-consuming and tedious. Moreover, selecting the right content format for maximum benefit can be difficult.
Therefore, outsourcing digital assets for performance support can be advantageous. The performance support assets include various microlearning assets that includes interactive PDFs, infographics, eBooks, videos, etc. They ensure just-in-time information to the employees, which doesn’t hamper the workflow and facilitates a seamless, productive work experience.
Signing off!
Developing eLearning courses can be a rollercoaster ride having its own share of highs and lows! Well, having a friend to enjoy this ride with is what makes it interesting. Here, the eLearning development vendor is your friend and trusted partner to sail you through the eLearning journey. You can easily outsource parts of eLearning development and rest assured about the quality of the course as it is taken care of by the experts in the domain. From instructional design to multimedia components to translation, wherever you feel dicey, outsourcing that part is your best bet. After all, the final impact and effectiveness of the eLearning content are all that matter! Check out this informative guide on outsourcing eLearning design and development.
