I've been collecting examples of Social Learning in the Workplace for some time now here on this page at my website, but have just come across this major case study on how TELUS is using Sharepoint to embrace social computing and streamline formal learning. Here is the summary of the report.
TELUS, a Canadian telecommunications company, spent considerable resources on third-party learning for its 35,000 team members. The company shifted its investment and adopted Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 to serve as the focal point of a new information and social learning initiative. TELUS, which worked with partner imason, will use the system to support learning through a formal, informal, and social content paradigm, including networking, blogs, wikis, videos, communities, and collaboration sites to foster knowledge sharing among team members. Team members will be able to learn more quickly because knowledge will be readily available from experts within the company, as opposed to solely through scheduled classes. The company also expects to see increased team member engagement, better sharing of institutional knowledge, and 20 percent savings on learning costs in 2010 alone.
The main part of the report is divided into the following sections:
- Situation
- Solution
- Building the pilot solution
- Fostering the cultural shift
- Benefits: Cost savings, Faster speed to collective insight, Heightened team member engagement, enhanced document governance, better sharing of institutional knowledge
"With its many social, learning, video, and other collaboration facets, this SharePoint Server 2010–based solution will serve as our ‘virtual water cooler.’"
This is a powerful example of corporate social learning - that has started with a "collaboration" system rather than a "learning" system - and will I think become a model for many other organisations for the future
Microsoft Case Studies: TELUS - Telecom company enmbraces social computing and streamlines formal learning, 12 May 2010
