Section III

Training Forecasts for 2011

D
uring the reactive budget cutting of the Global
Financial Crisis, HR and L&D funding was amongst
the first to suffer with headcount freezes and training
cancellations. Many HR professionals argued that a time
of crisis was not the time to take away the most valuable
business support services and sought other ways to keep their
employees skilled and motivated.
Economic forecasts for the coming year are as diverse and
uncertain as promises that the recession is over.
Online learning is any computer based technology used to deliver
learning; anything from interactive, training programs to expert
systems that deliver on-demand answers to common questions.
The benefits of online learning include:
t Scalable, supporting any number of staff
t Consistent, delivering the same information every time
t Adaptable, supporting staff across multiple locations and
technology platforms

“In 2010, world output is expected to rise by 4%,” t On-time, giving staff the support and information they
IMF, World Economic Outlook Update. need, when they need it

t Measurable, providing automated L&D records and

“Economic growth the rest of this year and early next year t 72% plan to invest more in recruiting through social
assessment
will weaken to less than three percent,” networks
Associated Press. t Flexible, offering both purely online and blended solutions

Therefore, the challenge for HR and L&D managers is to support Social Learning on the Rise
t 80% of companies are planning to use social networks to
find or attract candidates
For Your Recruitment
business growth whilst maximising tight budgets, so rather Social media tools extend the benefits of online learning even t LinkedIn use grew from 80% in 2008 to 95% in 2009 Needs in Australia
than investing in traditional programs, many businesses are further, with 79% of companies using the technology to engage t Facebook use grew from 36% in 2008 to 59% in 2009
instead looking at alternative, cost effective ways of managing employees, according to a 2009 IABC survey.1 Perhaps the most
Specialist providers of permanent, contract
t Twitter ranked third with 42% of companies using the site
employee communication and delivering learning. popular application for online learning is to use social media as and temporary recruitment solutions
for recruitment
a knowledge sharing hub, retaining vital tacit knowledge within
the business. Organisations such as Microsoft, NASA, Pearson, However, these numbers do not stop there and continue to Engineering & Construction t Accountancy &
Standard and Poor’s Asia-Pacific Economic
Growth Forecasts for 2011 increase by the minute. Finance t Media, PR & Marketing t Medical &
Caterpillar and IBM have led the way in encouraging staff to share
Healthcare t Supply Chain & Logistics tIndustrial
knowledge via internal social media platforms.
Labour & Trades Hire t Hospitality & Retail
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Rapid Growth
As well as the communication benefits of new technologies, they
3.0% There is no doubt that the use of social media is affecting many
Australia also represent significant cost savings over traditional software Prime Executive Prime Workforce
3.5% areas of both personal and business life, and its use is growing
platforms and are becoming sufficiently established to offer Sydney Paramatta
3.0% 2010 rapidly. Ernst & Young's Australian recruitment page had 3,500 T: +61 2 9291 4244 T: +61 2 9635 8011
corporate levels of security and stability.
A Gaze into the Future

New Zealand
3.5% 'fans' in 2008 and now has 15,250, showing an increase of over
400% in just two years.
Hong Kong
4.2%
4.7%
2011
Social Recruitment www.primeappointments.com
One of the areas where social media tools have been readily The potential is there today, motivated by optimistic corporate
4.5%
Singapore
5.0% adopted is recruitment, with global businesses such as Burger King, growth and limited budgets, to integrate these different technologies
Reckitt Benckiser, SABMiller, Ernst & Young and Accenture using into HR and L&D strategy and realise their many benefits. HR
4.8%
professionals are uniquely positioned to take advantage of new Part of the JRS Global Group of companies
Malaysia
5.3% social media tools in recruitment, but the use of social media does
not only have cost and convenience benefits. According to Towers management, learning and recruitment techniques and deliver real
Watson's 2009/2010 Communication ROI Study, companies with value in organisational development.
effective internal communications had 47% higher total returns
Online learning moving ahead to shareholders over the last five years compared with other

Mind Resources’ 2010 APAC L&D survey showed that two thirds of companies. 2 References
1
IABC research.
re ch. “Employee Engagement Survey.”
” 2009. PDF
DF
companies will be investing heavily in online learning technologies
t 3
Jobvite's 2009 Social Recruitment Survey shows that
over the coming year. Online learning is scalable, responsive, and 2
Towers Watson. “Communication ROI Study Report: Capitalizing on
employers are moving their recruitment budgets from
Effective Communication.”
” 2010. PDF
solves many of the issues associated with business growth such
traditional recruitment agencies and job websites to social
as new employee induction. 3
Jobvite. 20 May 2009. Web. 3 Nov 2010.
media.

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