XpertLearning

We Have Moved!

2011-01-03T09:12:00.000+04:00

Dear readers,

We have moved to a new home on or own domain!

Please bookmark and visit http://www.blog.xpertlearning.com/

The XpertLearning Team.

CAFÉ ME 2010 Dubai

2010-11-14T10:54:00.004+04:00

XpertLearning was very proud to host their annual CAFÉ ME (Customer Advisory Forum Event – Middle East) at the Pullman Hotel, Dubai. We welcomed nearly 80 guests from most industries in the Middle East, spanning 49 companies.

With ‘Comfy Couch’ panel discussions, presentations from Bill Spindloe (Director for Business Development) and Dennis Brown(SkillSoft Co Founder), case studies from Emirates Airlines and Emirates NBD and an entertaining host in Paul Michael Gledhill the event was very well received.

We also held an award ceremony for several of our clients for a variety of achievements in their eLearning implementations(List award titles and winners here. The surprise F1 multi ticket raffle was a real highlight to cap the days agenda.

Additional photos are on our Facebook page here: http://goo.gl/K4DAh

The first of our attendee comments is below:

“We at Emaar would like to extend our gratitude for being a part of your well received event. Every bit of information received by us has been very useful to our experience & it is much comforting to understand innovative solutions for similar challenges faced by reputed organizations.

We look forward to your continuous support as always for the road ahead, Congratulations again to the whole team for the successful event.”

Kishor Sadarangani - Emaar

XpertLearning hauls in two awards!

2010-10-19T16:36:00.000+04:00

We are proud to announce that Bill Spindloe has been awarded the Rookie Salesperson of the Year 2010 and the Marketing Team has graciously accepted an award for best Marketing Programme throughout the SkillSoft EMEA channel.

XpertLearning sent four team members, Janine Croft and Paul Michael Gledhill (Managing Directors and Co-Founders), Bill Spindloe (Director of Business Development) and myself (David Hastings, eLearning Sales cum Social Marketing man) to the rather excellent SkillSoft Channel CAFÉ event in Rome.

It was a great experience and we look forward to sharing SkillSoft’s developments in the world of eLearning with you all at our own CAFÉ ME event to be held in November.

Hit the link below to get registered and we look forward to seeing you there!

http://goo.gl/bS4h

XpertLearning holds a workshop on ROI for the HR and Training Professional

2010-08-26T08:43:00.003+04:00

Dubai, August 23, 2010. Towards the end of July, XpertLearning conducted a survey to identify topics of interest for HR and Training Professional. The results of the survey indicated that most participants were interested in the topic “ROI for the HR and Training Professional”. In this light, XpertLearning held a workshop on “ROI for the HR and Training Professional” at the Arjaan Rotana Hotel in Dubai. The event brought together key professionals and executives within the Learning & Development arena, from high-profile companies across the Middle East. The agenda for the event was as follows:

• Introduction

• Doing More for Less

• Building the Vision and Mission of L&D

• Success Criteria – What do you measure?

• Justifying Budgets

• ROI calculation practices

The session was chaired by Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of XpertLearning, and facilitated by William Spindloe, Business Development Director at XpertLearning.

At the end of the session, the attendees were requested to provide their feedback. Below are some of the comments received.

Najia Maqsood, Commercial Bank of Dubai

A good experience and definitely a brilliant opportunity to share and learn from industry experts. Brilliantly facilitated. I would like to attend a session on HR & Training Best Practices.

Merzy Daruwala, VFS Global

This is an excellent initiative. The content and delivery of the session was fantastic. Great work! All the best to XpertLearning.

Rachel Jones, Brookfield Multiplex

Thought-provoking session. Encouraged participants to question what and why things are done – suggesting challenging current processes. Enjoyed insight into looking at training from non-HR/training viewpoint.

Annabelle Hamilton, Currie & Brown

Having not had previous experience in any way with the training field, I found this morning extremely useful and interesting. Working within groups and learning from others with experience and new ideas were fantastic.

Kishore Sadarangani, Emaar

Was inspiring and very helpful. I am looking forward to getting more in touch with you in the future.

Nikki Khan, Jashanmal

Enjoyed the presentation and was a good way to make the ROI clearer for the process of training to be approved. Thank you!

Ramnath Venkatraman, Noor Islamic Bank

It was indeed a very useful and value-adding session. Amazing facilitation. You may offer these half-day courses at a reasonable cost along with an e-Learning module – there will be clients! All the best.

Deborah Brown, Currie & Brown

Would have liked to see some case studies of other companies (ROI), also a brochure of XpertLearning to pass on to Directors. Good group involvement, participation, speaker very clear with a sense of humor which is great!! Keep up the good work, you all deserve it.

Maggie Williams, ENOC

Great workshop, food for thought, great for our knowledge sharing.

Elroy Vaz, Abu Dhabi Land

Very lively interactive session. Facilitated brilliantly by Paul.

Following the success of this event along with great feedback received from the attendees, we, at Xpert Learning, are now planning to run the same event in Qatar and Oman along with future similar events on topics of interest for HR and Training Professionals within the Middle East region.

For more information about future XpertEvents, please visit our website or contact us at info@xpertlearning.com.

Holograms H-Learning: The future of learning

2010-08-19T08:33:00.000+04:00

The rapid developments in Information Communication Technology (ICT) have made tremendous changes in the many fields of life. Educational institutions along with businesses in the corporate world have been quick to take advantage of technological services via integrating ICT into education and training, which in turn has produced new models of education such as e-learning, distance learning and blended learning. These models have changed the face of learning as well as playing an essential role in the increase of the learner population and also providing a good opportunity to learn at any time and/or place.

Recently, technological developments are playing an important role in improving the educational process. For example, we see many educational institutions using sophisticated technological tools such as touch screens, new software and others. Scientists are working very hard to provide an advanced technology, which can benefit them in many areas. 3D Hologram Technology (3DHT) is one of the most creative of these solutions.

Holograms have broken out of the world of science fiction and fantasy and are about to become common currency between London and New York, Sydney and Mumbai, Shanghai and Moscow. Live and life-size 3D TelePresence holograms can now interact with their remote audiences whether they are a band performing on stage, a politician delivering a keynote speech, or a CEO holding an interactive meeting with colleagues around the world.

Musion Systems Limited is a company which is based in the UK and is the exclusive master global licensor for the Eyeliner holographic projection system. Musion’s Eyeliner technology has developed life-size holographic figures with full motion and with no latency between sound and image. Using a high-speed (20mbites/sec) MPLS Internet connection it is, quite simply, transforming the future of communication. So, if you want to make a major speech, you can stride the stage, not just sit at a desk. If you want to use 3D motion video images, they appear seamlessly beside you, not on a separate monitor. You can communicate in real time – no time lapses – with both on-stage colleagues and audiences. Eyeliner is a system that is fully bi-directional and interactive; you can see them just as clearly as they can see you. Just about the only thing you can’t do is shake their hands – or at least, only virtually.

All of this is possible only with Musion Eyeliner foil technology. But its uses go far beyond the boardroom or the political stage. Entertainment, education, design and engineering collaboration, product launches – the list goes on.

The importance of 3D Hologram Technology on education

In this area we can take advantage of 3D Hologram Technology (3DHT) in different forms. For example, holograms now allow students to be taught by a “virtual teacher” who could be many kilometers away. The process goes a step beyond video conferencing in that the hologram teacher appears to be in the classroom, and can see and speak to the pupils as if they were all in the same room. The system used by Edex, the largest supplier of Internet connections to the UK education market, at the BETT2000 educational technology show in London. Moreover, 3DHT can enhance the educational process by bringing famous characters to life again from the past, and they speak about themselves and/or explain something as an assistant teacher. For instance, there have certainly been many worthy philosophers and learned men in world history perhaps none more celebrated that the Greek Philosopher Plato. Unfortunately we are unable to talk with Plato as he is from a past period, while we are in the present period moving into the future period by hologram. In Seoul’s Alive Gallery Project, holograms and 3-D animation technology bring 62 world-renowned masterpieces of Western art to life again. In this project we can see the Mona Lisa answering questions from students, such as “Why don't you have any eyebrows?” she is answering, “When I was alive, a woman who had big forehead was considered a beauty … so most women had their eyebrows taken off for beauty”. Or, Michelangelo explains the fresco technique he is using to paint “The Last Judgment”. He explains the work of another masterpiece he had completed earlier on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. A pop-up screen shows a close-up of the famous “Creation of Adam”.

Janine Croft, Managing Director of XpertLearning, the leading e-Learning solutions provider in the Middle East, visited Musion Systems Limited studios during a visit in London. She was left spellbound by the technology. “Teachers replaced by holograms. It sounds like something from a science fiction movie or T.V. show. How awesome is that if holographic teachers or trainers could be sent to you, without you having to move or travel?”, said Janine.

She further added, “We, at XpertLearning, actively support the introduction of new learning technologies. As an organization that is seen to be one of the visionaries for the future of learning and technology within the Middle East region, we see the hologram as being a key technology/feature moving forward for the future. It will change the way people communicate/interact with each other.”

For more information about the Musion Eyeliner System, please visit http://www.musion.co.uk/.

Leadership Development Channel: Now available in Arabic!

2010-08-10T11:44:00.001+04:00

XpertLearning, in collaboration with SkillSoft, a leading SaaS provider of on demand e-learning and performance support solutions for global enterprises, government, education and small to medium-sized businesses, is proud to announce that the Leadership Development Channel (LDC), an on-line leadership resource from Books24x7, is now available in Arabic.

Middle Eastern nations are rapidly expanding their internet usage so more and more content is in the national language. According to World Internet Statistics, latest recorded figures show that from 2000 to 2009, Arabic language on the web grew 2,297 per cent, easily ahead of Russia's 1,359 per cent. Of the world's total 1.8 billion web users, 60.2 million (3.3 per cent) are Arabic speaking (Gulf News, 2010). The mushrooming of Arabic on the internet can be attributed in part to ambitious policies such as those advocated by the United Arab Emirates, which leads the Middle East region with 74.1 per cent internet penetration (Gulf News, 2010). As many as 3.5 million of the 4.8 million residents in the UAE are online. Since 2000, the UAE has witnessed a 384 per cent increase in internet user growth, during a financial and social renaissance that has propelled the Emirates onto the world stage (Gulf News, 2010).

However, inspite of this growth, the Chief Strategist of Etisalat, the UAE’s largest telecommunications company, Ali Al Ahmed, reported that there is not enough Arabic content on the Internet to take full advantage of newly built broadband networks in the region (The National, 2010).

The new Arabic LDC offering from SkillSoft goes a long way to bridge this gap.

LDC is a unique collection of 100 on-demand programs (videos) in multiple learning formats featuring best-selling business authors, experts and CEOs, who can have the biggest impact in motivating and challenging the thinking of learners. Offerings include:

• Leadership QuickTalks - Concise, just-in-time, application-based learning from best-selling business authors and leaders! These five minute video learning programs are designed for immediate and contextual application to drive success in the workplace.

• CEO QuickTalks - The CEO QuickTalks feature the best thinking from Bill Marriott, Bob Wright, Blake Nordstrom and more of today’s top business leaders and practitioners.

• Video On-Demand Programs - Covering key competencies including business acumen, diversity awareness, attracting and retaining talent, and more; offers a suite of video learning assets targeted to drive excellence at all levels of the organization.

• Live Events - Provides executives with cutting-edge thinking in business and leadership through live and interactive presentations featuring the most recognized and sought-after thought leaders including Marcus Buckingham, Stephen Covey, Ken Blanchard and more. Up to eight Live Events are produced annually.

Video programs range in length from one minute to two hours. Many are downloadable to your computer or video iPod!

These video resources are ideal for:

• Self-Development: Just-in-time learning

• Individual Coaching: use QuickTalks for one-on-one coaching

• Team Meetings: use a QuickTalk to start your weekly meeting

An online brochure for the Arabic LDC is available here.

For more information about the Arabic LDC and for pricing, please contact XpertLearning at info@xpertlearning.com or call +97143910504.

mEKP Takes Learning to the Field: NetDimensions Set to Revolutionize Training Delivery with World's First Truly Portable LMS

2010-08-02T14:12:00.000+04:00

Hong Kong, July 26, 2010: NetDimensions (London Stock Exchange, AIM: NETD), a global provider of performance, knowledge and learning management systems, announced today the commercial release of a revolutionary new product, mobile EKP (mEKP).

“We believe that mEKP is the world’s first full-featured personal learning environment that runs completely off a USB flash drive – no installation required,” said NetDimensions Managing Director and CEO Jay Shaw.

"There are any number of offline players that do simple course tracking. They generally install on Windows machines and have limited functionality. This is different," he added.

mEKP is the end-user version of the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP) learning and performance management system, NetDimensions’ flagship product. mEKP runs directly from a USB flash drive or other storage device and can be accessed via browser on Windows and Mac OS computers.

"Our commitment to a component-based, open standards architecture in EKP is what makes mEKP work," said NetDimensions Chief Information Officer Ray Ruff. "Form-factor and user personalization flexibility is a reflection of that commitment."

A truly portable e-learning environment, mEKP supports not only courseware and exam delivery, career development reviews, news articles and end-user reporting but also direct, tracked access to technical documentation, maintenance and operating procedures, full-motion videos, high bandwidth graphics and other workforce content libraries.

The mEKP system features the same security options and permissions settings as EKP and supports high-level encryption of flash drive content. The recommended default encryption containers comply with the U.S. government approved Advanced Encryption Standard.

Current NetDimensions clients can deploy mEKP as an additional EKP service; mEKP is designed to periodically synchronize updated user data with a linked "master" EKP.

Companies that use other learning and human resource management systems can deploy a mEKP network configured to transfer data to and from their existing systems.

Designed for Disconnected and Mobile Workforces

mEKP is designed for organizations with employees who work at remote locations and have limited or restricted Internet connectivity.

Expected user groups include workers on offshore oil rigs, ships and submarines as well as private and public sector employees working in places where bandwidth may be prohibitively expensive or where training materials such as videos and simulations are simply too large for practical network-based delivery.

mEKP can be deployed to field-based workforces, including to sales people, airline crew, first responders, military personnel and public utilities staff.

At the same time, mEKP addresses the challenge of delivering training to new recruits and to employees who have limited access to computers in the workplace, for example, to floor staff in factories, stores, restaurants and hospitals.

“Our experience with clients around the world tells us that people find uses for our products we can't even imagine when we introduce the products,” noted Shaw. "We're sure the same will be true for mEKP."

Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of XpertLearning, says “mEKP is an amazing product, the first within the Middle East region. We already have some of our larger customers adopting it within this region and we expect many more to acquire this outstanding product. We are currently engaged in an active marketing campaign of mEKP and so far, we have received interest from many of our customers and prospective clients”.

For more information about mEKP, visit www.netdimensions.com/mekp or contact us at XpertLearning on +97143910503 or email info@xpertlearning.com.

Masie e-Learning Research Grant

2010-08-02T14:03:00.005+04:00

Through our strategic alliance with Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University, XpertLearning has come to learn of the following opportunities for research grant. We, at XpertLearning, believe that there is a lack of corporate research on e-Learning within the Middle East region. We encourage and promote research within this area for the benefit of the region. Our partnership with Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University gives us access to such opportunities and we strive to spread this knowledge among the masses within the region. Below is an outline of the Masie e-Learning Research Grant:

The Masie e-Learning Research Grant is launched by Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University to support and encourage the conduction of planned research that addresses the design, development and implementation of e-Learning in the Arab World. The grant is established to encourage research and development in the various dimensions of e-learning; support the production of original work that would further broaden and enrich research in e-learning; promote e-learning and further enhance e-learning methodologies and practices contextual to the Arab world.

The grant is named after Mr. Elliott Masie; Mr. Masie is an internationally recognized futurist, analyst, researcher and organizer on the critical topics of workforce learning, business collaboration and emerging technologies. He is the editor of Learning TRENDS by Elliot Masie, an internet newsletter read by over 52,000 business executives worldwide, and a regular columnist in professional publications.

The Masie e-Learning research grant is limited to original research projects (not initiated before) that are to be conducted within the Arab World setting and address issues pertinent to e-learning implementation in the region. The projects could be in the form of qualitative/quantitative research or best practice case study.

All submissions will be evaluated by an international well renowned Jury on the basis of:

1. Originality and innovativeness of the proposed project

2. Relevance to the Arab World

3. Timeliness and manageability of the project

4. Focus on Research Question

5. Strength of the proposed research strategy

6. Propose Research findings communication strategy

Research Fund Values

The fund allocated to the Masie e-Learning Research Grant ranges from 3,000 to 10,000 US Dollars per annum; it is decided upon based on applications submitted.

Dates and Deadlines

Announcement of the Award Annual Cycle: 1st of February of each year

Deadline for Submission of Proposals: 15th of August of each year

Proposals Review and Evaluation: 15th of August – 1st of October

Declaration of the Winners: Opening of the HBMeU Annual Congress on January 31st, 2011

For submissions or more information, please contact us at XpertLearning on +97143910503 or email info@xpertlearning.com

NetDimensions Next Steps

2010-08-02T13:35:00.000+04:00

Next Steps 2010 is your once-a-year opportunity to see what's coming next from the NetDimensions team and learn how your peers are using and profiting from NetDimensions products and services today.

Day one will give you a thorough look at how companies like yours are deploying the newest NetDimensions technologies. With case studies, corporate snapshots, best practice discussions and product overviews, this full day of client and company sessions will give you more of the tools you need to get the most out of your NetDimensions investment.

On day two you'll receive hands-on training straight from NetDimensions' chief architect and technical consultants. The second-day Master Class certificate program at Next Steps 2010 will be led by Ray Ruff, co-founder and Chief Information Officer of NetDimensions.

The certificate program will include “Learning-in-a-Flash,” a hands-on training session on NetDimensions’ revolutionary mEKP portable learning solution. Another session will be dedicated to how EKP works with integrated talent management (and will show you how to deploy the new EKP Appraisal Editor for performance management). A third session will explore regulatory and compliance issues around assessment and the enterprise (see the Next Steps 2010 website for more information on all the Master Class sessions).

Participants who complete the program will be awarded a Master Class certificate (view a sample Master Class certificate here).

“We believe that this is a great opportunity for individuals within the corporate world to learn and share best practices from organizations which have successfully adopted and implemented the Learning Management System, EKP. We hope that such an event receives maximum attendance and turns out to be very successful”, said Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of XpertLearning. XpertLearning is one of the leading e-Learning solutions provider and strategic partner of NetDimensions within the Middle East region.

Sign Up Today!

Sign up for the Master Class today (or any time on or before August 20th) and aside from saving money with the early bird discount (USD100 off the standard price), you'll get a chance to win an Apple iPad.

Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to learn how you can take fuller advantage of your NetDimensions investment to free up your organization to do what it does best (and get a chance to win an Apple iPad).

Depa goes mobile with mEKP

2010-07-12T22:17:00.000+04:00

Dubai, UAE: July 12, 2010: Depa, the world’s largest interior contractor, providing a complete range of high-end interior services and turnkey solutions, and one of XpertLearning’s key clients in the United Arab Emirates, becomes the first company in the United Arab Emirates to acquire the mobile EKP.

The mobile EKP or mEKP for short, is a simplified version of NetDimensions’ powerful and robust learning management system (LMS), the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP), running independently from a USB flash drive, with no installation or Internet connection required.

mEKP enables learners to review course materials, run courses, take exams and review documents, as well as review exam and training history information from any computer with a USB port at their convenience anywhere, anytime. It can intelligently manage learner information (AICC, SCORM, exam data) while offline and communicate with the master EKP system to synchronize learner-specific information when access to the Internet or company intranet is available. All course and exam completion data, including dates, times and scores are uploaded to the main server when an Internet connection is available.

Depa, who already has the EKP LMS, has a solid e-Learning initiative with their e-Learning portal branded Depa University. Their portal hosts more than 300 courses with more than 2000 employees registered for e-Learning. Stefanie Heidester, in charge of Internal Communication and Knowledge Management within the Talent Development section of Depa, was full of praise for the mEKP product. “Training and developing our employees is one of the core values at Depa. Due to the nature of the construction business, we adapted a blended learning approach in order to train and develop all our employees regardless of their location, mostly relying on our online university to deliver a variety of courses. As we face a lot of problems at our site offices with low or no internet connection, mEKP is a great solution for our employees to access the courses that have been assigned to them to ensure that their development needs are met. With mEKP, Depa finally has the possibility to give our employees access to Depa University without being connected to the internet, regardless if they are travelling, on site, or at home”, said Stefanie.

For more information on the mEKP product, please contact info@xpertlearning.com or call +9714 3910504.

XpertLearning Partners with Microsoft to Provide Online Training to Imagine Cup Gulf Finalists

2010-06-27T16:55:00.000+04:00

Dubai, UAE: June 27, 2010: In collaboration with Microsoft Gulf, XpertLearning, the leading provider of e-Learning solutions in the Middle East, will provide the Imagine Cup Gulf winners with access to online courses to sharpen their presentation skills ahead of the Imagine Cup World Finals in Warsaw, Poland.

Now in its eighth year, Imagine Cup has grown to be the premier student technology competition in Gulf and worldwide that aims to encourage young people to apply their imagination, their passion and their creativity to technology innovations that are focused on finding solutions to real world problems.

The regional winners of the Gulf Imagine Cup 2010 had an intense competition amongst university student team finalists from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and the UAE. The three member team from the American University of Kuwait celebrated their first-place finish in the regional finals for their project ‘Multi-touch tutoring system’. The second place went to the team from Sultan Qaboos University, Oman for their project ‘Show me the traffic; the third runner-up was the team from University of Bahrain for their project ‘Cash Trash’ and the fourth place went to the team from University of Wollongong, Dubai for their project ‘Ear-It’. In addition, another team from Sultan Qaboos University, Oman, was declared winner of the mobile application development category for their project ‘Find me a taxi’ supported by du. All four winning teams will represent the region and participate at the global finals of the Imagine Cup that is being held in Warsaw, Poland from July 3-8, 2010.

“Imagine Cup empowers students to apply their creative and technical skills to make a positive impact on the local and global community. They are challenged to use technology to help solve the world’s toughest problems, and every year we see students rising to the challenge and developing tools to address these needs” said Sekna Khanafer, Academic Developer Evangelist at Microsoft Gulf.

Sekna added that Nabeel Nazeer, a previous winner of the 2008 Worldwide finals in France, is currently working as a Technical Consultant for XpertLearning in Dubai. The team at XpertLearning decided to contribute and help the teams in their quest to become winners at the worldwide finals in Poland.

“The Imagine Cup is the ultimate accolade any Computer Science or Information Systems graduate student can attain. It helps students receive the recognition and encouragement they need to pursue their career. From my personal experience, presentation skills are extremely important and truly made the difference for my team during the final competition in France. You can have an amazing project but if you cannot sell it to the judges at the World Finals, then the chances of you winning the title is slim,” said Nabeel.

“XpertLearning provides a range of accredited presentation skills courses from SkillSoft, a leading SaaS provider of e-learning and performance support solutions for global enterprises, government, education and small to medium-sized businesses. These courses can definitely help the Imagine Cup Gulf winners in sharpening their skills ahead of the World Finals. XpertLearning is glad to partner with Microsoft to contribute to the growth and development of students within this region. We wish the Imagine Cup Gulf winners the best and look forward to them winning this year’s competition in Poland,” Nabeel added.

In 2007, Nabeel’s team, TeamSmile from the University of Cape Town in South Africa, developed an innovative solution to enhance the lives of bus commuters using text mes¬saging technology. The team saw their idea as a way to lure middle- and high-income groups in South Africa onto public transport by providing them with accurate information on bus arrival times. The team went on to win the National Innovation Competition and the Imagine Cup National Competition in 2007 before travelling to the World Finals in France in 2008. As one of the six teams awarded the Imagine Cup Innovation Accelerator prize at the Imagine Cup World Finals in France, Nabeel’s team travelled to Silicon Valley, California, US, for a rigorous two-week business and technology training pro¬gram in May 2009. Following this trip, the team opened up a company in South Africa to commercialize the product.

For more information on the success of Nabeel’s team, see the links below:

http://www.uct.ac.za/dailynews/archives/?id=6706

http://www.xpertlearning.com/Extranet/IC.pdf

http://www.it-online.co.za/content/view/396669/

http://www.commerce.uct.ac.za/Commerce/News/CommerceConnectsNewsletter/2008/20080711_CommerceConnectsNewsletter_Article3.htm

http://imaginecup.com/About/InnovationAccelerator.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/jul08/07-08icwinnerspr.mspx

http://imaginecupfinalsinparis.spaces.live.com/blog/

NetDimensions Wins 2010 Technology Company of the Year Award

2010-06-13T11:55:00.000+04:00

Hong Kong, June 10, 2010 – XpertLearning’s partner, NetDimensions (London Stock Exchange, AIM: NETD), a global provider of performance, knowledge and learning management systems, has won Computerworld Hong Kong’s coveted 2010 Hong Kong (HK) Technology Company of the Year Award.

“We are very proud to receive this award,” stated Ray Ruff, Chief Information Officer and co-founder of NetDimensions at the awards ceremony hosted by Computerworld Hong Kong on June 9th.

The HK Technology Company of the Year Award recognizes the foremost company providing IT products and/or services to organizations locally and overseas that has been integral to the advancement of the IT industry in Hong Kong.

“This award is dedicated to the hard work and perseverance of NetDimensions’ team members in driving the company’s continuous success for more than a decade,” added Ruff.

Nominations were submitted by Computerworld Hong Kong’s readers and the winner was selected by the magazine’s editors based on criteria including product innovation, market achievements and successes, and key milestones.

Computerworld Hong Kong Publisher Simon Yeung said: “Each year the Computerworld Hong Kong Awards strives to recognize a Hong Kong-based technology firm that has demonstrated clear innovation, market success and a proven ability to compete and succeed against market-leading competition - NetDimensions with its stellar customer wins and superior technology is truly deserving of the 2010 HK Technology Company of the Year Award.”

Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of XpertLearning, was full of praise for NetDimensions. “We are proud to be the regional supplier of the NetDimensons solutions and believe they fully deserve this accolade”, said Mr. Gledhill.

Janine Croft, Managing Director of XpertLearning echoed Paul’s comments. “Following our very successful NetDimensions User Day in Dubai last week, we are very happy that NetDimensions have won such a prestigious award”, declared Janine.

XpertLearning has a very successful first-ever NetDimensions User Day event

2010-06-06T14:30:00.001+04:00

Dubai, Moevenpick Hotel, June 02, 2010. XpertLearning, the leading provider of e-Learning solutions in the Middle East, held its first-ever NetDimensions User Day event. This event was a first of its kind within the Middle East region and was held in collaboration with NetDimensions, global enterprise solutions provider of performance, knowledge and learning management systems.

The event started off with a welcome note and an overview of the day’s agenda from Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of XpertLearning. John Quinn, ‘Presentologist’ and General Manager of Satellite Visual Communication, followed up and introduced the audience to the Interactive Audio Response System & Electronic Voting System, which was going to be used by the audience to respond to questions posted by the presenters during the day.

The audience was then introduced to the NetDimensions’ representatives, Steve Curtis, Channel Manager EMEA, and Rory Stewart, Consultant EMEA. Steve Curtis provided an overview of NetDimensions along with some key product updates. The focus of the event, however, was on NetDimensions’ key product offering, namely the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP). Steve was also involved in some other key presentations during the day, including a session with Clayton Marshall D’Souza, Technical Manager and Riham Khoury, Head of Academia at XpertLearning, on how clients can move from EKP Bronze to EKP Gold and the benefits that such an upgrade will bring to them.

Rory Stewart introduced the audience to NetDimensions’ latest product, the Mobile EKP (mEKP), which is an end-user version of the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP) and which runs independently from a USB flash drive without any required installation or Internet connection. Rory also demonstrated how mEKP enables users to review course materials, run courses, take exams and review documents, as well as review exam and training history information from any computer with a USB port at their convenience anywhere, anytime.

Case studies were presented by representatives of XpertLearning’s key clients. Robert Saint-Jacques, Human Resource Director at twofour54, kicked off the case study series. He was followed by Rachel Devereux-Douglas, Learning & Development Manager at Supreme Group, Ali Zaheer, Training Officer and Haitham Kamal Abdulkarim, Contact Centre Team Leader, both from Emaar. The case study series was wrapped up with a presentation from Maggie Williams, Management Trainer and Tariq Manzoor, Learning and Development Administrator, both from ENOC. The case studies focused on the core product offering of NetDimensions, the EKP, and how it helped these organizations (twofour54, Supreme Group, Emaar and ENOC) in managing their entire training and development process from delivering and tracking to testing and reporting.

Nabeel Nazeer, Technical Consultant at XpertLearning, wrapped up the presentation series with a session outlining the different marketing initiatives taken by the company. The company’s social media marketing initiative was introduced to the audience. Nabeel also explained how XpertLearning works hard to provide excellent customer service and support its customers on EKP from pre-sales to implementation and after-sales technical support.

The event concluded with a prize ceremony, chaired by Riham Khoury, in a truly classic Hollywood-Oscars-event-like fashion. Prizes were awarded for 3 categories, namely Best Dressed LMS, Best Overall EKP Implementation and Biggest Usage of EKP Functionality.

Through the use of the Interactive Audio Response System & Electronic Voting System and with background music taken straight from the ‘Pirates of the Carribean’ to set the Hollywood Oscars atmosphere, the audience voted for the Best Dressed LMS. Vodafone Qatar knocked everyone out and landed itself the most-coveted prize. The prize was collected by Asim Mirza, Operations Delivery Manager, and Alexandra Pascu, Lead Trainer, both from Vodafone Qatar.

Emaar, represented by Ali Zaheer, bagged the prize for Best Overall EKP Implementation. DEPA won the prize for Biggest Usage of EKP Functionality. Stefanie Heidester, in charge of Internal Communication and Knowledge Management at DEPA, collected the prize from Janine Croft, Managing Director at XpertLearning.

All in all, it was a great first XpertLearning – NetDimensions User Day event. The XpertLearning team thanks everyone for attending and participating in this event. We look forward to welcoming you next year!

Exercise for a good cause

2010-05-27T10:15:00.002+04:00

Dubai, May 21, 2010. EXHALE Dubai, a fitness centre based in Jumeirah Beach Residence and Motor City, organized an event for ‘GOOD WILL JOURNEY’, an initiative in association with ‘HOPE & PLAY’ charity organization to help raise awareness and funds for the physically challenged children of Gaza.

GOOD WILL JOURNEY In May, June and July, Wissam Al-Jayyousi, a Palestinian gentleman, will be riding a motorbike over 40,000 km, crossing over 30 national boundaries from Dubai to London. He is doing this to raise awareness and funds for disabled and physically challenged children in Gaza.

HOPE & PLAY is an organization dedicated to helping add hope and play to the lives of children who are denied these most basic rights. They believe that every child has the right to safely play, learn and grow in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.

The idea behind the initiative was to get people to participate in an exercise class at EXHALE, at a fee of AED 100 per person. The proceeds of this initiative go entirely to charity.

Rana Khoury, e-Learning Assessment Specialist and Project Manager at Xpert Learning and professional yoga trainer, was actively involved in this initiative. She headed a session on Vinyasa Yoga. Vinyasa means ’breath-synchronized movement’. In this session, the participants expect a dynamic practice offering a variety of asanas (postured) all connected by the breath, flowing with a dance-like movement. Creative and varied, this vigorous class was set to music and build strength, flexibility and endurance.

“What happened and has been happening in Gaza and the West Bank has had the most traumatizing effects on the citizens and children living there. The children of Gaza have been denied any sense of a normal childhood and any initiative that helps brings awareness, funds, and ultimately aid to those children is one that is very dear to my heart. As a yoga teacher, and a Palestinian, to be able to contribute in any way means a lot and is something I was not only happy but very proud to do”, said Rana.

Other sessions included Pilates Reformer and Flexi Bar Cardio by other qualified instructors from EXHALE Dubai.

The initiative was very successful with 50 participants attending and many more contributing.

As shown by Rana Khoury’s initiative, Xpert Learning prides itself on participating in various social responsibility initiatives, in its effort to not only lead the way in the field of e-Learning, but also to give back to the community and leave a positive mark wherever they can.

For more information about similar initiatives, please contact Rana Khoury at rana@xpertlearning.com or call +971505522741. You can also connect with Rana on LinkedIn

Employee welfare calls for online Health and Safety courses

2010-05-23T14:16:00.000+04:00

Repeated explosions and thick, black smoke, resulting from a fire at Sharjah National Paints caused a chaos. The traffic was in a mad frenzy with Emirates Roads being cordoned off; whilst 250 fire-fighters were called from all over the emirates to control the fire (Khaleej Times, 2010). Surprisingly, this is the second such incident at National Paints as in the 1990’s a massive fire broke out and 40 people suffered injuries with a loss of over AED 50 million (Khaleej Times, 2010). Such unfortunate incidents occur due to carelessness of people who engage in dangerous activities such as disposing burning cigarettes and inadequate care of inflammables materials (Khaleej Times, 2010).

Xpert Learning offers Safety & Environmental training programs which aim to improve the safety of employees by the use of DVDs, along with a wide variety of online courses. The courses include fire safety/emergency training, environmental, hazardous materials, Chemical Handling, Risk Assessment, Electrical and Construction Safety.

For more information on these online courses, visit http://www.xpertlearning.com/ or contact William Spindloe at william.spindloe@xpertlearning.com

Information taken from Khaleej Times

Poor planning and methodology main cause of project failure

2010-05-18T15:21:00.009+04:00

A recent Middle East survey which highlighted a wide range of reasons for project failure, with improper planning and methodology cited as the leading factor in project failure, with 78% of respondents reporting it as an issue.

Other contributing factors to project failure included lack of communication (75%), and unrealistic target completion dates (67%), identified inadequate commitment and involvement from senior management (59%), insufficient budgets and resources (56%), too many assumptions and unknowns (51%), project politics and conflicts (38%), lack of set targets or measurable results (45%), and the formation of the wrong project team (27%).

The survey results reflect a region wide under-investment in project management tools and a lack of skills and training.

Other factors that the survey identified as causing problems with projects were lack of motivation and the inability to properly control the project team, insufficient risk analysis, lack of planning tools and weak IT infrastructure, slow decision making, lack of alignment with the organization's strategic goals, delays in engineering and procurement, wrong choice of contractors, design changes, and economic instability.

Xpert Learning offers a range of project management courses and certification tracks. For more information and brochure downloads of our offerings, click here.

This article has been taken from ITP.net.
(http://tinyurl.com/29pogk8)

Bridging the Gap: Preparing Students for the Modern Workplace

2010-05-11T10:43:00.005+04:00

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – May 6th 2010 - On Tuesday May 4th a group of key stakeholders from the UAE's education and training sectors met in Abu Dhabi, along with education professionals from the UK, to discuss how to provide world-class solutions to help engage employers and students as part of the British Council's Skills for Employability programme.

“There is a gap between what the business sector needs from its next generation of employees and the expectations and skill levels that the students have when they are first employed. This forum brings together people who can help bridge that gap,” says Paul Sellers, Country Director, British Council.

Melanie Relton, Regional Vocational Education Manager, for the British Council adds: “The key to a successful future is to draw on each other's experiences and with over 2,500 professionals from all over the world involved in the British Council's network, these partnerships can only be strengthened by these sorts of events.”

Patrick Groves, International Relationship Manager from Pembrokeshire College in United Kingdom, spoke at the seminar to share his experiences of creating a vocational training programme that gave students the skills, resources and knowledge to be an asset in the workplace.

Stephan John, Head of Operations of People 1st, a UK organisation that specialises in developing training programmes for people in the leisure, travel, tourism and hospitality industries, said: “We create nationally recognised qualifications that mean every student and apprentice gains the right mix of knowledge and competence to thrive in employment. Working here in the UAE we can share our experiences and make a difference”

And finally, Paula McManus, Head of Learning and Development from National Bank of Abu Dhabi outlined how the bank is working to create a corporate culture of lifelong learning, career progression and personal development.

The forum generated action points to ensure that education establishments and the private sector work together so that students in the UAE have the best opportunities possible to gain the relevant experience they need to make them valuable commodities in the modern workplace.

For further information contact Sherry Farzami, British Council, Sherry.Farzami@ae.britishcouncil.org.

The Enterprise Challenge

A one-day event organized by the British Council, as part of its Skills for Employability programme. The Enterprise Challenge is designed to complement the students' existing curriculum while teaching modern workplace skills like problem solving, team work, verbal and non-verbal communication, presentation, leadership and entrepreneurial skills to the nation's future workforce. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-zXjs2GQ2k

Skills for Employability
Skills for Employability is a British Council programme that addresses the demand for skills in a global economy so that national educational and training systems are better able to respond to labour market demands and learner needs.
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-skills-for-employability.htm

Rachel Devereux-Douglas: A magical e-Learning journey at Supreme Group

2010-05-05T15:34:00.007+04:00

Rachel Devereux-Douglas has worked in Dubai for 12 years, 10 years in a Learning & Development Capacity. She began her career with Emirates Airlines in 1998 and quickly began training Cabin Crew for Service Delivery and Customer Service. During her 5 years training, she completed a Training Development Diploma through the University of Leicester, before moving to the Corporate Leadership Department as a Learning & Development Specialist to deliver management training programs and development centers for senior managers. During this period, she began and has now completed her Masters in Social Science for Human Resource Development and Performance Management through the University of Leicester. After 10 years with Emirates Airlines, she moved to a company called ‘Supreme Group’ in 2008, a Foodservice and Logistics provider to clients in challenging and remote regions. She joined ‘Supreme Group’ as the Corporate Learning and Development Manager to set up the department and deliver management training programs. Supreme has grown from 3700 employees to 9000 during Rachel’s tenure and is still growing today.

After conducting 38 interviews as part of a Training Needs Analysis (TNA), she quickly identified employee needs, which evolved around almost 300 different topics with requirements for technical and non technical skills – which of course she could not personally deliver. Through networking, she was introduced to Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-founder of Xpert Learning. Paul subsequently came to visit Rachel in a small office in Deira to discuss the needs of Supreme. Rachel then attended an open seminar facilitated by Xpert Learning, SkillSoft and their clients at a five-star hotel in Dubai. The event included a panel of high-profile Learning & Development professionals and speakers, all sharing best practices. Attending this seminar helped Rachel to conceptualize her approach to e-Learning in order to make the initiative within Supreme Group, a success. After this session, she prepared a SWOT analysis and conducted a cost benefit analysis to compare the cost of classroom training, travel, accommodation, time spent out of the business amongst others, to the fractional cost and large selection of online learning modules. Rachel was particularly attracted to how e-Learning could accommodate her employees’ needs, especially those working in remote locations with 24x7 learning at the fingertips.

e-Learning began in April 2009; the contract started with 100 employees who were nominated as ‘good performers’ in order to gain membership. At the onset this was treated as a ‘Reward’ program. Rachel selected modules that linked to the organization’s Mission, Vision and Values, core competencies, through an online TNA facilitated by Xpert Learning and face-to-face TNA by herself. This approach offered a seamless development plan aligned to the annual performance review. Through the application process, employees had to analyze and prioritize which modules would add most value to their development; this required feedback from the line manager, therefore aiming to gain commitment. The Manager was also requested to set objectives in the performance review, requesting their employees to complete at least 10 modules per year. Xpert Learning offered a lot of support and flexibility to add additional modules on where necessary; with quarterly scheduling in order to provide a summary of results and revisit achievement of objectives. This added value particularly where managers needed a specific skills set outside of the core competencies.

Rachel ensured that employees received a bi-monthly newsletter on e-Learning to illustrate results, employee testimonials, top 20 learners, most usage per business unit to create healthy competition and communicate prizes and prize winners for completing the most number of modules.

Halfway through the program, Rachel initiated a recognition ceremony to reward e-Learners and employees who completed corporate programs with certificates. As part of a post-course for e-Learning, Rachel designed and recommended the use of a reflective learning log; supplemented with feedback from the line manager, that should be attached to the performance review in order to provide recognition for behavioral changes on the job. Although the training was not mandatory, the results were above 100% target with 1082 modules completed in 2009-2010. By the end of the first year, the total number of employees using e-Learning had doubled in size.

The feedback from employees has been extremely positive; this has provided a motivational tool for employees who are grateful of the investment in their development, creating ‘positive perceptions of goodness’ about the company they work for. Many potential employees even enquire if development is provided for employees, making the employer proud to confirm that e-Learning is one of the learning tools available for them.

The 2nd year of e-Learning at Supreme Group has just started and an invitation has been sent to all employees to apply for membership. Potentially, the number of users could grow between 300 – 3000 employees. Rachel whole-heartedly testifies through personal experience that adding best practices, before, during and after implementation, will support a company embarking on an e-Learning program.

Undoubtedly, this will be another successful e-Learning year for Supreme. We wish Rachel all the best in her endeavors.

Connect with Rachel on LinkedIn or contact her at racheldouglas@mailme.ae

Xpert Learning hosts its first-ever 5@Ten session

2010-05-03T11:42:00.001+04:00

Dubai, April 29, 2010. At its head office in Knowledge Village, Dubai, Xpert Learning held its first 5@Ten session, which brought together key professionals and executives within the Learning & Development arena, from high-profile companies across the Middle East. The objective of this initiative was to bring together thought-leaders within the industry in one room, on a roundtable, with an open agenda, allowing them to share anything they want to, on any topic, with or without any relation to learning or e-Learning. This first 5@Ten session was attended by the following key individuals:

Patricio G. Porras (Chief Learning Officer, Axiom Telecom)
Ali Zaheer (Training Officer, Emaar)
DharamVeer Sood (Assistant Manager, Rivoli Group)
Lara Gibbs (Training & Development Manager, FlyDubai)

The session was chaired by Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning, and facilitated by David Hastings, new e-Learning Account Manager at Xpert Learning.

Paul kicked off the session by introducing the attendees and laying out the purpose of the session. To break the ice, he started the discussion on an informal note by narrating a recent story of “extreme learning”.

Paul’s story led Patricio Porras to outline a few of his achievements, on a more formal note. Patricio talked about the induction process at Axiom Telecom. He mentioned that 80% of his time was invested in the induction process which turned out to be very successful. “Companies traditionally recruit when a position becomes vacant. This is a bad policy. Our new induction process aims to break this tradition. Once new recruits pass and get certified, what we do after the first 90 days of induction is my new focus at the moment”, said Patricio. “This is the year of people development!”, further added Patricio, who is currently hiring about 20 employees per month. His current induction cycle is: 1st and 2nd day, everyone attends a broad spectrum induction at head office, 3rd day in the market place, 4th and 5th day are sales, product knowledge, process. Quizzes and evaluations come after the 4th and 5th day, following which there is a department induction and then a personal induction.

Following Patricio’s account, Ali Zaheer picked up on the discussions by sharing with the audience how online assessments are conducted at Emaar. “These tests save costs and time”, declared Ali. Visibly a few steps ahead of everyone else, Ali explained that Emaar uses online video key messages from senior management to encourage staff to use the eLearning Portal. According to Ali, this scenario has been properly tried and tested and works well for Emaar. Ali went on further to explain that they have created online policy and procedures instead of paper using rapid conversion tools. With the addition of visuals and voice-overs, these have become more interactive and effective.

Lara Gibbs contributed to the discussion by asking about the problem of missing the personal touch during the induction process. This led to further discussions amongst the attendees.

On a slightly different note, DharamVeer Sood followed up by giving his account on how induction to e-Learning happens at Rivoli Group. “We made the learners at Rivoli aware of the financial implications involved in e-learning and they appreciated that the organization was investing in its people even during these times”, declared DharamVeer. According to him, e-Learning keeps people engaged. He attributes the success of the e-Learning initiative at Rivoli Group to the shortened induction period, pilot evaluations and giving people the flexibility to opt out if they do not want to participate. DharamVeer added that he monitors the progress of the learners by running reports regularly and setting the pass mark at a high score to ensure that the learners knew their materials.

After more than an hour of discussions and interactive engagement, Paul wrapped up the session.

Following this successful session, with microphone in hand and in a truly journalistic style, Nabeel Nazeer, Technical Consultant at Xpert Learning, requested for feedback from the attendees.

David Hastings, who recently joined Xpert Learning and was invited to facilitate the session, was very impressed by the multiple topics of discussions which arose within a session which had no agenda at all. “Having joined 5@Ten as part of my induction into the world of e-Learning, I would say that if I had any lingering doubt or anxiety about joining Xpert Learning, it was washed away by listening to the thoughts of major players in today's session,” said David.

Lara Gibbs

As L&D professionals, often we spend our days, eyes and ears focused on the day- to-day of making training/learning & development happen without taking time out to develop ourselves – 5@Ten was a great opportunity for me to share best practices and learn from my peers in various industries - Thank you Xpert Learning for including me in this inaugural endeavor and for giving back as you always do, I look forward to participating in subsequent sessions.

Ali Zaheer

It’s a great initiative! No Doubt! I think that sessions like these will bring companies (who have implemented e-Learning solutions) closer and share their strategies. Great work Xpert Learning!

Patricio G. Porras

Thank you Xpert Learning. Really enjoyed the discussion and looking forward to the next invite.

Paul Michael Gledhill

I found the session very flowing, engaging and enjoyable. It was a breeze! I can’t wait to chair the next one.

We, at Xpert Learning, are now looking forward to the next 5@Ten session which will happen on the last Thursday of next month, 27th May 2010. Please contact us at info@xpertlearning.com or call +971 4 3910503 for more information if you want to be part of this interactive and fun-filled session.

Free Education for Children Across the Globe – Get Involved!

2010-04-29T14:00:00.002+04:00

Dubai remains one of the world’s strongest growth engines thanks to the vision and inspired leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai. Recently, Sheikh Mohammed introduced a strategy and vision which is based on the foundations that will achieve an overall UAE vision until the year 2021 (Emirates News Agency, WAM, Jan 3, 2010). The strategy’s top priority is to provide the highest levels of prosperity and a decent life for citizens, by upgrading the education and health care systems and focus on social development and the improvement of governmental services so as to enhance UAE stature worldwide (Emirates News Agency, WAM, Jan 3, 2010). His Highness aims to establish a world class learning system based on the development of knowledge and skills of students of all ages and build a knowledge-based economy that will maintain the UAE's trade standing regionally and internationally (Emirates News Agency, WAM, Jan 3, 2010).

In line with Sheikh Mohammed’s vision, Xpert Learning, the leading e-Learning solutions provider in the Middle East, has played an extensive and sustained role in encouraging and fostering education throughout the United Arab Emirates and the Middle East region since its inception. Education is a top corporate priority for Xpert Learning, as it is the key to prosperity and opportunity. Janine Croft, Managing Director at Xpert Learning emphasized that the company strives to bring corporate responsibility to every aspect of its business. “We’ve institutionalized strong principles of corporate governance and support initiatives that increase access to technology and education,” said Janine. “Xpert Learning just recently came across a very interesting initiative known as “Free Education for Children Across the Globe” which aligned itself nicely with our company’s corporate social responsibility. We are keen to get individuals and organizations within the Middle East region involved in this amazing solution,” she further added.

In today’s complex world, children’s futures are determined by their ability to master the basics of reading, science, math and computers. Yet costs, class sizes and other issues often prevent children access to quality online learning that can support and reinforce these essential skills. e-Learning for Kids is a global non-profit foundation providing childhood learning via the internet completely free of charge.

Covering the basics such as reading, science, maths and computers, it is not only a place for children between the ages of 5 and 12 to come and learn in their own time at their own pace, but also a community for the grownups too.

In 2009, more than 1.6 million children in 190 countries benefited from one or more e-Learning for Kids courses. For 2010, their goal is to reach between 2 to 3 million children.

There are so many ways in which you can get involved to help them achieve this goal, from simply spreading the word to making a donation, from volunteering your skills (whether as an individual or as a vendor) to partnering with or sponsoring the foundation. This is an amazing initiative and will most definitely be of great benefit to children in the Middle East.

To find out more and to get involved now, please contact us at Xpert Learning at info@xpertlearning.com or call +971 4 3910504.

Lakshmi Prakash, active researcher in the field of e-Learning

2010-04-27T15:41:00.006+04:00

Lakshmi Prakash completed her Masters Degree in Computer Applications from Madras University, and worked in India for some time at Amrita Institute of Technology & Science (AITEC) currently under Amritha Vishwapeedam University, Kerala, India. After a few years in India, she moved to Oman in 2001 and joined Sohar University as Course Coordinator. Since then, she developed her research interest in personalized e-learning systems tools and architecture.

Lakshmi is currently publishing research papers in these areas in collaboration with Prof. N.S. Kutti (Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman) and Dr. A.S.M. Sajeev (Professor of Computer Science, UNE, Adelaide, Australia).

Being an avid fan of e-Learning, Lakshmi has always believed that the availability of good quality learning resources plays a very important role in improving students’ performance. Tracking and reporting on students’ performance are two of the issues that almost all educational institutions face today. She feels that learning management systems and content portals like SkillSoft’s Books24x7 are the answer to this problem. At Sohar University, e-Learning was introduced very gradually. As the Course Coordinator and e-Learning Researcher, Lakshmi was able to introduce many of the University staff and students to a learning management system, through several workshops. It was not easy in the beginning. Unfreezing people’s mindsets, moving them to a new paradigm and freezing them again can be a challenging task indeed. The learning curve was quite high for people who were quite new to such a system. However, the students embraced the initiative and the software with open arms. e-Learning has brought Sohar University and its staff closer to students and the students closer to the learning process. They appreciate the availability of resources within the learning management system and can easily develop a learning path which helps them meet deadlines, get access to their learning topics and also communicate with their course coordinators and among themselves.

The senior management at Sohar University and the Faculty of Computing & IT was quite open to new forms of learning. Lakshmi kept in touch with Xpert Learning and after assessing their learning needs, Xpert Learning presented them with SkillSoft’s Books24x7, which suited their requirements and was subsequently acquired. Students and faculty members were grappling with the need to acquire more knowledge and needed more resources. Similar to the learning management system adoption, it was not easy to encourage the students and staff to use Books24x7; most of whom often cited time as a constraint. However, within a short period of time, Books24x7 experienced a growing number of users. This, anytime, anywhere, library with such a large and ever-growing collection of very useful book excerpts, covering almost every topic in IT, Engineering and Business is more than what we expected at the University. Now students are free not only to refer books that are mentioned in their course profiles, but also read books on the latest technologies and new research areas. Students browse the site from their mobile phones and a growing number of students are using Books24x7 more for knowledge rather than just to pass the course. The Search, Personal Folders, History, Recommended, Mobile Access, Top Titles and other features provide the much required personalization tools that endear Books24x7 to serious learners at Sohar University.

Contact Lakshmi Prakash at lakshmi@soharuni.edu.om

Xpert Learning turns over a new leaf

2010-04-25T15:54:00.001+04:00

Xpert Learning, the leading e-Learning solutions provider of the Middle East, turned 7 this month. Ranked among the few fortunate and successful organizations which announced growth in 2009, Xpert Learning boasts a significant growth on last year’s revenues. Astounding success as it may sound to many, Xpert Learning has managed to keep itself level-headed in many areas of business.

Recognizing and following His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s vision of a Greener Dubai and in line with the Earth Day (April 22, 2010), Xpert Learning decided to take it to the next level by going Green and Eco-Friendly. All waste paper and tins in the office are deposited in special boxes for recycling. But this is not where Xpert Learning stopped.

Asim Saeed, a technology freak and a visionary employee at Xpert Learning, suggested that we must all give Dubai something back. According to Asim, it is unfair to the city of Dubai to billow smoke and all other carbon emissions in the atmosphere with air-conditioning equipment running 24x7 and monster trucks patrolling the 13 lane highways aimlessly; where water and greenery are scarce. Asim believes that we all need to do our share to not only reduce carbon emissions, but also increase oxygen supply by doing our small bit. So, one Sunday morning, on his 2x2 desk, he places a can, not larger than a Soft Drink Tin.

The tin contains a bean in a special type of soil and ready to germinate. Asim watered it for 3 days and a plant sprouted out. Out of the plant comes a bean with a special message on it… “Hope”.

The bean grows a few inches every day. It not only got the staff members at Xpert Learning excited about the concept, but people from a few of the neighboring offices and some delivery boys who come on a daily basis to say Hello to their little plant friend.

While Asim is busy booking orders for the beans, when asked to comment on this great idea, he said it gives him great pleasure to see the bean grow and shape up.

Since Asim’s bean is a beautiful little indoor plant, it requires minimum sunlight and water. Feel like trying one?

Contact Asim at asim@xpertlearning.com for more information and connect with him on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Saba Al Tukmachy: A successful change of career - From dental surgeon to e-Learning fairy

2010-04-24T17:50:00.000+04:00

After graduating from the prestigious Ajman University of Science & Technology with a Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.) in 2002, Saba Al Tukmachy practiced as a dental surgeon for a few years in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Over these years, she nurtured a particular interest in surgeries and treatment methodologies that could be carried out using cutting-edge electronic and high-tech equipment. According to Saba, her dental surgeon career was a childhood dream come true for her. Even if she spent a short period of time within the medical profession, she enjoyed the experience and gained exposure that would prove vital for her next steps in life.

A great philosopher, Frederick F. Flack, once said, “Most people can look back over the years and identify a time and place at which their lives changed significantly. Whether by accident or design, these are the moments when, because of a readiness within us and a collaboration with events occurring around us, we are forced to seriously reappraise ourselves and the conditions under which we live and to make certain choices that will affect the rest of our lives”. Similarly, Saba made a choice that changed her life. She took up a job offer from the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) in Dubai, as an event, marketing and customer relation executive. Switching from a medical profession into the business world was quite a challenge for Saba but her determination and confidence allowed her to adapt to the new field with ease. Her job scope was a lot focused on building relationships, marketing, branding, advertising, event management. She also got exposed to various advanced graphic design software, online registration systems and Cisco-related online courses.

Following this step in her career, Saba joined Emirates National Oil Company Limited (ENOC) in 2009. ENOC, a wholly-owned Dubai government company, is a global energy group, operating 30 active subsidiaries and joint ventures, many forged with key international blue chip organizations. Its services range from real estate to retail, where an extensive network of ENOC and EPPCO service stations across Dubai and the Northern Emirates supply motorists’ fuel needs and include convenience stores, car wash and quick oil change facilities.

By the time she moved to ENOC, Saba was pretty experienced in online systems. At that time, ENOC had already launched a pilot e-Learning initiative with behavioral courses for its employees. However, this initiative was unsuccessful due to lack of buy-in from senior management.

With the help of Xpert Learning and using two of its main product offerings, NetDimensions Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP), and SkillSoft’s courseware library of key business topics and competencies as well as utilizing the marketing and branding techniques she acquired from her previous work experience, Saba re-introduced the concept of e-Learning in a much more fashionable way and turned it into one of the most important innovative modern learning tools within the ENOC culture. Since then, e-Learning has helped ENOC in its goal of becoming a large organization with operational businesses. e-Learning allowed ENOC employees who work in long shifts and in external sites such as Jebel Ali and Fujairah, amongst others, to have access to training materials. According to Saba, e-Learning has been the much-needed solution to learning & development of their competencies online.

Besides the fact that e-Learning is a very valuable and cost effective opportunity provided by the organization, Saba felt that it has proved to be an incentive for many senior managers to try and benefit from it. “I, myself have enjoyed a lot of the simulations and the business scenarios I experienced through these simulations, and the fact that I can refer back to learning materials whilst undertaking these online modules, is really amazing”, Saba enthusiastically added.

Saba reserves special plaudits to the Xpert Learning team. “Xpert Learning has provided us with the right tools that we needed at ENOC to make e-Learning a success. They have given us many great opportunities to meet with other clients and major companies, within the UAE and Middle East region where we’ve shared our success story at ENOC and best practices. Let’s not forget the continued technical support and customer service of the Xpert Learning team. The technical orientation sessions delivered by the team for our staff periodically has proved to be very useful to us”, said Saba.

Saba Al Tukmachy currently works as a Training Coordinator within the Learning & National Development Department of ENOC.

Contact Saba at saba.altukmachy@enoc.com

e-Learning Boat Captain abandons Dragon boating and chooses leisure cruising as an alternative

2010-04-24T17:48:00.000+04:00

Dubai, April 25 - 26, 2010. Following the Dragon Boat Race at Dubai Festival City, Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning and Captain of the e-Learning boat (which came last within the dragon boat race), developed a real taste for the seas, besides his passion for e-Learning. Paul has enrolled himself for a boating course!

JPS Passenger Yachts & Boats Rental (LLC), a company based in Dubai, will be conducting the two-day Royal Yachting Association (RYA) course which will take place at the Dubai Creek and Yacht Club, in Deira, on the 25th and 26th of April 2010. The RYA is the national body for all forms of boating, including dinghy and yacht racing, motor and sail cruising, RIBs and sports boats, powerboat racing, windsurfing, inland cruising and narrow boats, and personal watercraft.

One of the great things about being on the water is that one never stops learning. The RYA is a leading maritime publisher, with some 80+ book, DVD and multimedia titles on its current list relating to all matters marine from Get Started books, books for children to more advanced pilotage and weather books and more.

Their publications are highly regarded internationally and RYA titles have been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages. They are developing special southern hemisphere editions of their leading training titles to meet demand from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, and a co-publishing agreement is in prospect for the USA.

The two-day course content being offered by RYA is broken down into 2 levels, namely PowerBoat Levels 1 and 2. A description of these 2 levels is provided below:

PowerBoat Level 1

This course is an introduction to boating techniques for launching and recovering a boat from a road trailer, everyday boat handling and the use of safety equipment.

PowerBoat Level 2

This two-day course provides the skills and background knowledge needed to drive a powerboat and is the basis of the International Certificate of Competence. It includes close quarters handling, high speed manoeuvres, man overboard recovery and collision regulations. The course can be taken inland or on the coast and the certificate will be endorsed accordingly.

No matter how challenging the courses are, Paul is really looking forward to earning the certifications. “After tasting the water too much and suffering the aches and pains of rowing on the Dragon Boat, it seems that PowerBoat sports are a lot easier”, said Paul. “Perhaps, leisure cruising will be a less strenuous option than the Dragon Boat racing”, he further added.

We wish Paul all the best for his endeavor. Aye Aye Captain Paul! May the force be with you!

NetDimensions User Day 2010: Save the Date

2010-04-20T11:03:00.001+04:00

Xpert Learning is proud to announce that it will be hosting its first ever NetDimensions User Day Event on the 2nd of June 2010. This event is a first of its kind within the Middle East region and will be held in collaboration with NetDimensions, based in Hong Kong. NetDimensions is a global enterprise solutions provider of performance, knowledge and learning management systems. Its main offering is the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP), which is a powerful, multilingual learning management system that manages the entire training and development process from delivering and tracking to testing and reporting. Xpert Learning’s clients within the Middle East region are active users of the EKP System. Our clients effectively use EKP for candidate screening, new-hire orientations, skill and competency assessments, employee reviews, career development planning, certification procedures, sales and service training, and much more.

The aim of the NetDimensions User Day event is to bring together current and potential users of EKP in order to:

Share best practices, ROI and new innovations through interactive sessions and case studies
Learn about success stories
Understand the full functionalities of the LMS and make full use of these functionalities
Learn about current trends within the LMS space and future offerings of NetDimensions and Xpert Learning

The venue for this FREE event will be advised within the coming weeks. The full event agenda will also be posted shortly.

To register for this event, please send us an email with your name, company name and number of seats required to events@xpertlearning.com or call +9714 4461219. Seating will be limited. Please book your seat as soon as possible.

Paul Michael Gledhill, a visionary leader with a passion for e-Learning

2010-04-15T15:45:00.019+04:00

Having worked in the travel industry in some of the world’s most exotic locations, Paul returned to the UK to continue his training career and development studies. He worked for the UK Government as Business and Training Advisor and received several awards from the Training and Development Lead Body (TDLB), and Lincoln and Durham Business Schools for Business and Training Counseling. As a professional trainer and an excellent presenter with a keen interest in emerging technologies, Paul started looking into the booming e-Learning industry. Paul is currently a Director and Co-founder of Xpert Learning FZ-LLC, an e-Learning service and solutions provider, based in Dubai and founded in April 2003. Xpert Learning works with the leading corporate, government and educational establishments throughout the Middle East.

Paul has implemented over 100 technology-enabled learning and development initiatives for the likes of FedEx, Siemens, DEPA, Nestle, Dubai Duty Free, Emirates National Bank of Dubai, Unilever, GUST University, Etihad Airways, Rivoli Group, Supreme, ENOC, Ministry of Bahrain, Dubai Airports, Dubai Chamber of Commerce, Emirates Airlines and many others. The successful implementations have helped these leading companies optimize learning efficiency through the use of innovative learning techniques and technologies.

Paul is also a provider of research centric consulting solutions that assist organizations to define, operate and optimize their strategic learning initiatives.

With thousands of learners on customized corporate learning portals throughout the Middle East, Paul has introduced a new modality of learning to an array of people from so many cultures and demographics. Learners using these portals range from blue-collar workers to white-collar workers to managers and CEOs.

In terms of his achievements, Paul’s list scales from SkillSoft Sales Person of the Year in 2005 to International Business Partner of The Year in 2008. He has been recognized by many of Xpert Learning’s high profile clientele and has been recognized as an expert in the field of e-Learning both in the region and internationally by peers both within and outside the industry.

As a pioneer of research on technology-enabled learning in the region, Paul has also conducted online surveys and collected feedback from learners and managers of online learning initiatives and has provided tremendous insights to trends and future options for the general public. A white paper on the state of e-Learning in the Middle East written by Paul along with two colleagues, Nabeel Nazeer and Riham Khoury, can be found on Xpert Learning’s website via the following link:

http://tinyurl.com/y24yk9a

Over the past 7 years, Paul has been actively conducting round tables and has been hosting many conferences, most of which he was appointed Master of Ceremonies. Through these high-profile events, he has enthusiastically engaged participation and opened the minds and hearts of people wishing to enhance their knowledge using technology.

The main impact to the region of Paul’s highly avid initiatives has been the 60+ companies that, year on year, continue to work with Paul and Xpert Learning to enhance the working lives and knowledge base of workers throughout the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

All in all, Paul is a very enthusiastic individual who is committed to promoting lifelong learning for people from different cultures within the Middle East. His passion has brought him success in the e-Learning field and with the growing number of clientele for Xpert Learning, lots of opportunities exist for him to share his knowledge to the masses and take e-Learning to a different level in the coming years.

Connect with Paul Gledhill via:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/paul.xpert?ref=ts
Twitter: http://twitter.com/xpertpg
LinkedIn: http://tinyurl.com/y48bvpv

Xpert Learning set to participate in the 5th Annual GCC Nationalisation Summit

2010-04-15T15:24:00.001+04:00

Dubai, April 25 - 29, 2010. The Middle East region’s longest running and highly acclaimed Nationalisation event is back. The 5th Annual GCC Nationalisation Summit 2010 is not just another HR event. It is designed to incorporate the region’s leading Nationalisation programmes and it will tackle the attraction, retention and development strategies that companies are now facing whilst arming themselves with proven solutions that they can implement in their future and existing Nationalisation programmes. This year, the event will be held from the 25th to the 29th of April 2010 at Arjaan Rotana Hotel, Dubai Media City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The event will include speeches and workshops led by GCC Nationalisation industry leaders who will share exclusive best practices and case studies on implementing the latest techniques and programmes, challenges faced and successful solutions.

Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning, has been appointed as a workshop leader during the event. Mr. Gledhill has more than 7 years of experience in the field of e-Learning. He has been recognized as an expert in this field both in the region and internationally by peers both within and outside the industry. Mr. Gledhill has also been actively conducting round tables and has been hosting many conferences, most of which he was appointed Master of Ceremonies. Through these high-profile events, he has enthusiastically engaged participation and opened the minds and hearts of people wishing to enhance their knowledge using technology.

Mr. Gledhill will be leading an interactive workshop entitled “Sustainable employee engagement and empowering company culture”, on Wednesday 28 April 2010 (13:30 for 13:45 start – 16:45 for 17:00 finish with a 30 minutes break mid afternoon) at the Arjaan Rotana Hotel. An overview of this workshop, which promises to be very thought-provoking, follows:

Workshop Overview

How do you know if your employees are actually satisfied, happy, motivated or even engaged in their day-to-day roles? Do they talk about your organisation outside of the office – what do they say? This workshop will show you how to create an engaging, interactive environment that Nationals will find hard to leave.

By attending this workshop you will be able to:

Build a company culture that engages all employees
Look at programmes to empower your employees and to make them loyal advocates of the organisation
Understand where there may be current problems and explore how you can eradicate them

For more information on how to register for this event and attend the workshop, please contact Paul Michael Gledhill via paul.gledhill@xpertlearning.com or call +97143910503.

Xpert Learning to hold a workshop in Dubai on how to deliver successful presentations

2010-04-11T11:37:00.001+04:00

Presentation skills are now an essential part of everyday life - whether it is in business communications, sales, education, demonstration, community and social pursuits or simply as part of a hobby or leisure pursuit. Giving a mere talk, a motivational speech, clinching an important sales opportunity or clearly communicating a message; all are the more effective for the speaker having the right skills and approach to effectively impart the right information. Furthermore, in today’s challenging business environment, clients, partners, managers and stakeholders expect companies to communicate with them more effectively than ever before.

“Delivering Successful Presentations” is Xpert Learning’s all-encompassing workshop to deliver those skills to would-be and could-be-better communicators. This workshop will equip you with the latest tips and techniques on delivering information with clarity, confidence and conviction. We will focus on the content of your presentation and the techniques you need to be a more effective presenter. Learn the simple and constructive methods to secure an effective and successful outcome to any communicating task. Recognise the factors that aid and hinder the communications process and know how best to maximise the strengths and overcome the weaknesses of any communications challenge. Become proficient at doing the simple things well in the use of equipment and technology, such as projectors, boards, computers and Microsoft PowerPoint. Be at the vanguard of cutting edge use of the new audio and video media that can lift your message and engage your audience in ways you (or they) never thought possible.

This classroom-based workshop is accompanied by an interactive online training package, which will act as a guide and a valuable reference tool for the future. It will include the following titles by SkillSoft:

Presenting Successfully
Delivering the Message
Giving Successful Presentations Simulation

The key areas that will be covered within the workshop include:

The Foundations of Presentations
Basic Presentation Structure
Using Presentation Equipment Effectively
Delivering Your Message
Combining Presentation Skills with MS PowerPoint
Presenting with Confidence and Impact
Advanced Presentation Skills

Presenters will be:

Paul Michael Gledhill, Director & Co-Founder of Xpert Learning
William Spindloe, Business Development Director at Xpert Learning

Workshop Date:

17 May 2010

Workshop Venue:

Arjaan by Rotana
Location: Dubai Media City
Directions: Arjaan by Rotana-Dubai is located in the heart of Dubai Media City at Al Sufouh road and overlooking the Palm Island. The Hotel Apartments Property is just 5 km away from Mall of the Emirates and at a distance of 30 km from Dubai International Airport.

Workshop Timing:

8:30am – 4:30pm

Cost of the workshop:

Dhs 500 per attendee

Number of Seats:

Limited seats available. Please book your seat at the earliest.

For more information, please contact events@xpertlearning.com or call +9714 4461219.

e-Learning Boat lose big time at Dubai International Dragon Boat Festival

2010-04-05T10:04:00.000+04:00

Dubai, April 04, 2010. Xpert Learning took part in the 3^rd Dubai International Dragon Boat Festival, which was held at the Festival Marina, Dubai Festival City. More than 40 teams participated in the event, which was broken down into 4 separate categories, namely Premier Mixed, Corporate Cup, School/University Cup and More Premier Women. The Xpert Learning Team, aboard their e-Learning Boat, competed within the Corporate Cup.

In true stereotypical fashion, the members of the e-Learning boat, who the other competitors labelled, “The Geeks”, came last in their race.

Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning and Captain of the e-Learning Boat said: “We were getting lots of jibes from the other teams about us plotting an e-Learning course on Dragon Boating techniques on laptops and not being able to even finish. But our team never stopped rowing and put such a brave and valiant effort. So, we were the true winners on the day!”

“Some of our crew members had never even been in a boat, never mind rowing us to victory, but our attitude was to go out there, enjoy the day and at all costs, cross that finish line,” he added.

In a formal statement, the Directors of Xpert Learning, who sponsored the e-Learning Boat, reiterated their confidence in the e-Learning boat crew after the race and blamed the weather for the race results. “It is obvious that the wind and the bad start were the only reasons for our loss, otherwise I think we would have gone on to the finals and been the eventual winners.”

According to Janine Croft, Managing Director of Xpert Learning, the event was very well-organized. “The organizers did a magnificent job throughout the tournament and everything ran smoothly,” declared Janine.

Asim Saeed, Account Consultant at Xpert Learning and one of the crew members, drove the team ahead with a pretty inspiring and motivational song. “We sang ‘row row row your boat gently down the stream’, but perhaps that wasn’t the right song choice to get to the finish line first”, said Asim.

Rana Khoury, e-Learning Assessment Specialist and Project Manager at Xpert Learning, maintained a fighting spirit despite losing the race. “We would challenge the other teams to some online assessments and see how well they do,” affirmed Rana, with much determination.

Nabeel Nazeer, Technical Consultant at Xpert Learning, shared Rana’s spirit. “We have already started training for next year’s event, we know where we went wrong this time. Watch out for us next year!”

Riham Khoury, Account Manager at Xpert Learning, was one of the few, if not only, covered women who took part in the race. “I loved representing all the covered women out there. It was great and I had so much fun with the crew,” said Riham.

Nina Dubash, Account Consultant at Xpert Learning, blamed the sea water for the team’s loss. “I got a mouth full of water and felt sick, otherwise we would have won,” declared Nina. She further added that “it was an amazing experience, nonetheless and we all had so much fun”.

Musfir (Tom) Khawaja, Account Consultant at Xpert Learning, felt that the event was amazing and truly lived up to his expectations. “The event was awesome, it was well-organized, all the teams were motivated. One could just sense the competitiveness in the air. I think our team did really well, with the minimal training that we had and considering that it was a first for all of us,” he expressed.

As part of its ongoing support and gratitude to its customers, Xpert Learning invited some of them to join the e-Learning Boat and be part of the experience.

Badia Bouhaddou, Business Coordinator at the Finance Department of Noor Islamic Bank, loved the event. “I feel extremely proud of being part of such a wonderful team and I would like to thank all of you for the amazing time I spent with you all. Participating in such an event for the first time makes me feel like I was a winner already even before the race started!” said Badia.

She further enthusiastically added that, “the fact that we even got on the boat was already enough for us to declare victory. I was very much inspired by the challenge and look forward to future events with Xpert Learning. I will not consider us as a loser but a winner since we were the 4^th team to cross the finish line!”

DharamVeer Sood, Assistant Manager at Rivoli Group, took a philosophical stance when asked how his experience about the event was. “Like the wise Panda would’ve said, the dragon boat event was AWESOMENESS! It’s the most fun I have had doing anything ‘official’, thanks to the Xpert Learning Team and the rest of the e-learning (boat) team!”

Teng Chin Huat, ex-Project Manager at LCL Interiors, was full of emotions at the event. “I was born in Penang, a state in Malaysia where Dragon Boat is very famous. Nevertheless, it took me around the world and out of the state to experience the 1^st Dragon Boat ride of my life...How awesome! I enjoyed the experience. Hope that we can do it again next time...and get the trophy home,” declared Teng.

Janet Luu, Shop Designer at Al Tayer, was full of praise for the Xpert Learning team. “It was a great experience racing with the Xpert Learning team. I met a fantastic group of people,” said Janet.

Ailyn Mapa, Administrator at Axiom Telecom, echoed Janet’s thoughts. “Thank you for that wonderful opportunity…knowing you is a kind of a victory in itself… nice meeting you all,” said Ailyn, who gave the team an ‘extra edge’ with her extra burst of energy.

Zerses Dubash, Group Marketing Manager at Reach International, gave a very extended and amazing feedback about the event. “I would start by thanking all you wonderful people for the beautiful time that we had together for this event. Indeed, it was an event and a sport where the meaning of teamwork, literally has to get implemented. On a personal note, I thoroughly enjoyed all the moments and the entire course of the event. A special mention and thanks to the Xpert Learning team for including me within the event as your one of your own members”.

He further added: “A special mention to Paul for his timely humorous spells and energy that kept us giggling and in smiles all the time.The entire team was filled with enthusiasm and ready to go and once we were in the boat, there was no looking back. And then we started rowing the "e-learning boat" (as Paul would say). All that matters is that we gave in all our best, thoroughly enjoyed the entire bit of this experience and at the end of the day, participation is the first step to victory. So I can very well say that we have cleared the first step and slowly and steadily, with a XPERT team like Xpert Learning, victory is within reach”.

All in all, the Dragon Boat event was a huge success and was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who participated and came to watch. Being a sport that is all about positive team spirit, being healthy, making friends and having fun, it truly lived up to its characteristics and most importantly, to everyone’s expectations.

Xpert Learning invited to speak at UNESCO event in Paris

2010-04-04T11:46:00.000+04:00

Paris, March 15, 2010. Xpert Learning was invited to speak with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) at their Headquarters in Paris, France. In an audience that included the Director General for Communication and the Chief for ICT in Education, Science and Culture, Xpert Learning’s representative, William Spindloe, spoke about the cultural, geographical and technological challenges that e-Learning faces across regions such as the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Mr. Spindloe also emphasized on the impact that access to this form of education can bring to Governments, Non-Governmental Organizations and Communities.

“UNESCO advised us that they look to talk with regional industry leaders in the field of Learning and Development to gauge how best to implement and manage education projects going forward. On this occasion, Xpert Learning was chosen to provide an insight into the ins and outs of implementing e-Learning in the Middle East and Asia”, said Mr. Spindloe.

For further details on the UNESCO event, please contact Mr. Spindloe via william.spindloe@xpertlearning.com.

Xpert Learning holds a seminar for Learning & Development Professionals in Abu Dhabi

2010-03-29T10:27:00.000+04:00

Abu Dhabi, March 24, 2010. Xpert Learning hosted a seminar for Learning and Development Professionals at Park Rotana Hotel in Abu Dhabi. The Xpert Learning team included Janine Croft, Managing Director, Paul Michael Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder, William Spindloe, Business Development Director and Riham Khoury, Account Manager. During this informative and practical workshop, presentations were delivered to the audience by the Xpert Learning team on the following key learning and development topics:

Building the vision and mission of L & D
Success Criteria – What do you measure?
ROI calculating practices
Justifying Budgets – “Learning to love the CFO”
Doing more for Less – Hints and Tips

The event included lunch and a networking session which allowed the attendees to get to know each other and share ideas and best practices about the industry.

Paul Michael Gledhill, addressing the audience, emphasized on the importance of the ability for Learning and Development professionals to converse with finance professionals using their language. “Success and measurements need to be translated to business impact and return on investment,” said Mr. Gledhill.

William Spindloe, during his presentation entitled ‘Justifying Budgets – Learning to love the CFO’, highlighted the dynamics involved when requesting for a training budget for learning and development. “If you don’t get the training budget you think you need and deserve, you need to ask yourself why. How well did you justify the need to the CFO? Did you put together a robust return on investment analysis? If not, then you will definitely get the budget you deserve, but not necessarily the one you need,” said Mr. Spindloe.

Through these probing questions, Mr. Spindloe got the audience to interact and engage in discussions and brainstorming sessions.

Shabbar Sheikh, Career Planning Coordinator at the Knowledge and Human Development Authority of the Government of Dubai, loved the seminar.

“It was a pleasure meeting the Xpert Learning team and being a part of the workshop. I really feel as if I’ve benefited from the experience and look forward to hearing more from your team and organization,” said Mr. Sheikh.

Ariel A. L. Atabug, Talent Manager at Habtoor Hotels, shared the views of Mr. Sheikh. “The workshop was definitely helpful and I’m sure all of us who attended picked up more than just a few points for our respective Battles of the ‘Budget’,” said Mr. Atabug.

Sonali Bahri, Talent Acquisition and Development Manager at AstraZeneca - Gulf FZ-LLC, found the session very useful and thanked the Xpert Learning team for organizing and facilitating.

Given the success of the seminar and positive feedback received from the audience, Xpert Learning plans to organize similar events within the United Arab Emirates (UAE), more specifically Dubai, in the near future.

Join the Xpert Dragon Boat on April 2 & 3, 2010 at Festival Marina, Dubai Festival City

2010-03-21T11:35:00.000+04:00

Experience the Chinese boating challenge by joining the Xpert Dragon Boat team on April 2 & 3, 2010 at the Festival Marina, Dubai Festival City. Dragon Boating is a thrilling water sport, full of adrenaline, sportsmanship, strategy, and technique. It is also a sport that is all about positive team spirit, being healthy, making friends and having fun.

Dragon Boating coincides with the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar (May-June). The sun and the dragon are most powerful at this time of year, so the Chinese people pay homage to this through ritual celebrations such as dragon boat racing. So it’s not only a chance to enjoy the weather or the sea but an opportunity to experience and become part of this culture.

It will be an incredible experience! Join us for this event and become an Xpert Dragon by sending us an email to info@xpertlearning.com before the 30th March 2010.

Xpert Learning awards prizes in the 'Skills for Employability' workshop for Emirati students from vocational colleges in Dubai & Abu Dhabi

2010-03-21T10:46:00.000+04:00

Abu Dhabi, March 16, 2010. Xpert Learning teams up with British Council, Barclays Bank and Injaz-UAE, a member of Junior Achievement Worldwide, to organize a free job skills workshop for Emirati students from vocational colleges in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Through role-playing scenarios and other activities, the students were taught some of the things they will need to join the workforce.

“We were taught things we didn’t even realise we needed, and just through the knowledge of it, we immediately feel more confident,” said Ms al Mehairbi, an Emirati student attending the workshop.

To highlight their support for this initiative, Xpert Learning offered prizes to the winners of a competition organized within the workshop. Paul Gledhill, Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning, one of the leading content and e-Learning solution providers in the Middle East, said that students had a great day and learned lots of useful things to help them in their quests for knowledge.

“The real story, however, is what happens next and how their progress are followed up. To this end, our prize comprised of a series of 6 x 1 hour online modules, which cover key skills to enhance their learning, as of that day. These courses include Leadership Essentials, Generating Creative and Innovative Ideas, Business Writing, Optimizing Your Work/Life Balance, Being an Effective Member and Managing Your Career,” said Mr. Gledhill.

He further added that, “the really interesting part is that, through our learning portal, we can track the usage of these courses by time spent, course completions and scores. We can also communicate with the students using social media like chat and discussion boards.”

Melanie Relton, the regional vocational education manager at the British Council, said students may have the technical knowledge once they graduate, but that there is still a skills gap.

Employers say many graduates lack the practical skills, such as how to communicate, lead groups and solve problems creatively, that they need them to have.

Lara Khouri, a regional marketing manager for Edexcel, an international company that provides educational training, said employers were looking for people who are open to instruction, are willing to be trained and who want to keep learning.

Nora al Ali, 18, from the Abu Dhabi Women’s College, loved the training.

“It’s not that we’re being taught what we’re doing right and wrong in our presentations, but we’re also being shown how to interact, and that we should be interacting in the first place,” said Ms al Ali, a foundation-year student.

Ms al Ali said female students tended to be shy in a mixed environments and lacked confidence.

She said the training could help women candidates overcome their shyness and any lack of confidence.

“It is such a benefit to be given the opportunity to develop something new in ourselves, that we don’t learn about in college,” she said.

Rebecca Taylor, an English teacher at Abu Dhabi Women’s College, said her students were eager to take part in the training.

“It was not compulsory for students, and yet they jumped at the opportunity to try something new that could benefit them.

“They get the chance to exercise newly acquired skills through practical exercises, and it fosters their creativity.”

This type of learning, added Ms Taylor, provides students with the chance to mix with other like-minded students from other colleges, which is good practice for the real world.

Louise King, a business teacher at Abu Dhabi’s Vocational Education and Training Institute (Adveti), also received positive feedback from her students.

“We build up their skills over two years in the classroom, but here, they apply these skills and new ones as well; it is applicable to students in all disciplines, regardless of what they are studying.”

A similar programme will be offered as an optional course to 10th and 11th graders, as well as first-, second- and third-year college students at the Abu Dhabi Men’s and Women’s Colleges, Adveti and the Dubai National Institute for Vocational Education.

“By working together with partners, future employers and business mentors, we can help students both professionally and through their own personal development,” Ms Relton said.

Xpert Learning's partner, SkillSoft, ranks #1 in Customer Loyalty for 3rd consecutive year in survey of global software and IT companies

2010-03-03T14:36:00.000+04:00

NASHUA, N.H.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SkillSoft PLC (Nasdaq: SKIL), a leading SaaS provider of e-learning and performance support solutions for global enterprises, government, education and small to medium-sized businesses, today announced that it has been ranked first in a customer loyalty survey for the third consecutive year. This year's survey of SkillSoft customers was conducted in September and October by TNS, the world's largest custom research company.

The customer loyalty score is derived from customer responses in key areas including intent to repurchase and willingness to act as a reference. SkillSoft significantly exceeds industry benchmarks in all areas. In fact, 97 percent of customers who answered said they would act as a product reference, the highest score for this category since SkillSoft started commissioning the survey in 2004. SkillSoft continues to receive high marks for their products, customer service and ease of doing business.

During the three years that SkillSoft has topped the customer loyalty results in the TNS index, it has been benchmarked against companies ranging in size from approximately $100 million to $120 billion in revenue. All companies are in the software or IT services sectors.

"We've invested in a large, customer-facing sales and services organization so that our customers have the best experience possible, and we also invest heavily in R&D to ensure that our customers have access to the most innovative products," said Chuck Moran, President and CEO for SkillSoft. "We emphasize to every employee that being responsive to customers is the most important thing they do, and this survey reflects this commitment."

Comments provided by customers reveal that SkillSoft's learning consultants are a key ingredient in receiving high satisfaction responses. SkillSoft's 24x7x365 customer service center also receives high marks. Comments such as the following were frequently provided:

"Your consultants are the best I have worked with in terms of being customer focused. They truly try to understand our needs, goals and targets. They take feedback very professionally."

"Business partnering and responsiveness to customers are the best we've seen."

"We have received excellent service and support and they have been accommodating to us."

The surveys – which detail customers' attitudes towards SkillSoft – are commissioned annually by the company to help drive continuous improvements across the organization. SkillSoft has approximately 10 million end users at 3,000 companies including roughly half of the Fortune 500.

"One thing we believe strongly is that you can't improve something if you don't measure it," said Tom Buehrer, Senior Vice President at TNS, which works with many of the Fortune 500’s top technology companies to provide market measurement, analysis and insight. "SkillSoft is a great example of a company that backs up its promises about customer satisfaction with research programs to make sure they are achieving their goals."

Xpert Learning gives Free Access to the Pandemic Flu Awareness e-Learning program

2010-03-01T19:56:00.000+04:00

There is still widespread concern over the risk of exposure to the deadly Bird Flu and H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu). The virus has become a health emergency in the region and around the globe.

"As part of our corporate social responsibility," says Paul Michael Gledhill Director and Co-Founder of Xpert Learning, "We have been offering an e-Learning course to our Corporate clients. Now, we would like to offer this to everyone in the region with internet access," he continues.

The course is a short and engaging 1 hour program which deals with the following:

What is Bird/H1N1 Flu?
How is it transmitted?
What are the symptoms?
Bird/H1N1 Flu treatments

For anyone who is interested, please visit our website at www.xpertlearning.com and click the banner advertisement located in the left column of the homepage to take you to the Pandemic Flu course.

First Steps into Social Media Marketing

2010-02-28T16:05:00.000+04:00

Following a successful NetDimensions Partner Conference in Rome, Italy, Xpert Learning kicks off its social media marketing campaign with this new blog, new Twitter and Facebook links.

Social media marketing is a term that describes the use of social networks, online communities, blogs, wikis or any other online collaborative media for marketing, sales, public relations and customer service. Common social media marketing tools include Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.

Xpert Learning is currently using all of the above tools along with Blogger to pursue this marketing initiatives. We, at Xpert Learning, hope that such an initiative will attract customers to our website and ensure that they are aware of our various product offerings that suit their business and learning needs.

NetDimensions Partner Conference Rome 2010

2010-02-28T14:58:00.000+04:00

The NetDimensions Partner Conference took place in Rome at StarHotels Metropole this year.

The conference was about strengthening ties between NetDimensions and its valuable partners.

During the conference, the NetDimensions Team presented issues that were relevant to the partners and offered product direction, demonstrations and road maps, as well as tips to better position their businesses in today’s global market, so that they can further enhance their sales and marketing strategies in the year ahead.

This has been an excellent opportunity for Xpert Learning as well to connect with other partners to share best practices and sales strategies.

Also, in attendance were the representatives from the NetDimensions engineering, professional services, customization, marketing, sales and pre-sales teams. The Xpert Learning representatives took this chance to get to know the people who make NetDimensions such a valuable business and technology partner.

As mentioned previously, the conference was held at the Starhotels Metropole, situated in downtown Rome, a stone’s throw away from historic, architectural landmarks such as the Opera House, the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain.

In summary, the conference turned out to be very successful and informative for the Xpert Learning team.