Our next step in democratising learning: #EdAppSummit2021
When we first set out on our mission to democratise learning, we knew that there were three key questions we wanted to answer:
- What do we do for companies and teams who are on a limited budget?
- How do we allow single hat HR professionals time to deploy training material?
- What about those individuals that have no access to organisational training?
Budget
Access to quality training is not equal. The biggest factor in this is often cost. Traditional learning management systems (LMS) can cost upwards of ,000 a year – not including additional features like reporting, translation, or authoring tools. This often means that learning and development (L&D) programs are only accessible to those who have access to sizable budgets. So, where does this leave small-to-medium businesses?
We felt passionately that EdApp needed to be completely free – forever – for teams of any size to use. This means no trial period. No restriction of features that would make the LMS impossible to use over the long term. No limit on lessons deployed, lessons taken, or number of users. Organisations can access EdApp’s unlimited course authoring, our entire editable content library, mobile app, full analytics suite and live chat support – all for free. This decision has since led to millions of lesson completions for teams around the world – regardless of budget.
Time
We also wanted to make the process of creating training easier by building the world’s largest free, editable content library (now over 650 courses). We recognise that the HR generalists that work within SME’s simply don’t have the time to create training material when they’re busy hiring and managing their teams. When you’re already at capacity, it’s unfair to expect you to dedicate weeks or months to put together an e-learning course – let alone deploying it in a workshop!
That’s why we created our library of free courseware that can be easily edited and deployed to teams. We’ve organised our content library by category, so it’s easy to find the training material you need and, as it’s completely editable, you’re able to quickly rebrand and alter the course to match your organisation’s guidelines – or develop more in-depth learning. This allows your HR team to quickly share important training and knowledge with your teams in a few minutes, rather than in weeks or months.
No Access To Organisational Training
But what if you aren’t employed right now? Not only can organisations use the course library to deploy to their teams, but individual learners also have access to our free course library through our Educate All initiative with the United Nations. Through this partnership, we’re empowering and educating millions of learners around the world, particularly those furthest behind with limited access and opportunities for education. As smartphone ownership continues to grow – even in underdeveloped countries – we saw the opportunity to share EdApp’s expansive mobile course library to help educate learners around the world. To accommodate internet restrictions, we’ve even created an off-line feature to make learning accessible.
While I’m proud of all we’ve achieved, we’ve now set our sights on another element in our quest to democratise training – the ability to access world-class conferences and gain practical action plans and insights from industry leaders.
The Current L&D Conference Landscape
Shortly after EdApp joined the SafetyCulture team, our parent company hosted their third summit, From Surviving to Thriving, where they spoke with high-profile guests, like Erin Brockovich, John McAvoy, and Captain “Sully” Sullenberger about how they adapted in high pressure, rapid change environments. This got us thinking…
What if we could assemble a world-class speaker lineup specifically for the L&D and training industries and put together an incredible event that would provide a practical approach to training that anyone leading a team or wanting personal growth can attend for free?
You see, in the L&D industry, events are typically funded by expensive tickets and vendors showcased far and wide. As sponsors are paying to promote their branding to your customers, they expect some return on their investment. Typically, there are different tiers of vendors that equate to different levels of brand visibility and direct access to the audience. And with every tier, there is a trade-off that happens between the organiser and the sponsors.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that outside of the event’s keynote speakers, these events are largely written by the platinum and gold vendors to best showcase their products. After all, speaker spots are often part of the vendor packages. By the end of the event, the focus has shifted from the real innovation, ideas, solutions, and practical takeaways that we were promised – and end up talking about the vendors’ products instead.
Not only that, but most L&D events are most often ticketed events with basic entry costs upwards of ,000. Due to the large price tag, these events are only accessible to L&D professionals working at large organisations.
As someone who has built a business to make learning free and accessible to all, it doesn’t sit right with me that individuals who want to attend these events need to have access to large L&D budgets to be exposed to new ideas, thought leaders, principles, and tools. Oftentimes, those who need the most help are the solo L&D or HR professionals at a small- to medium-sized organisation tasked with training their teams.
Their organisation’s budget can’t accommodate hiring a second person for their immense workload, let alone pay for flights, a hotel, conference tickets, and expenses like transportation and food. No wonder why teams can’t access these events if they work for an SME!
That’s why we’re changing all of this. Today, we are unveiling a free, virtual summit featuring some of the leading thinkers in the L&D space, two inspiring leaders of all-time in the sporting world, and an innovator who changed how organisations approach building a company culture. I am pleased to announce our first-ever global event, Rewrite The Playbook, taking place on April 29, 2021.
Summit 2021: Rewrite The Playbook
Overnight, many organisations have had to completely change how they develop and deliver training and learning experiences. The workplace as we know it underwent massive digitisation thanks to the pandemic and the sudden transition to remote work. COVID-19 showed us that people can adapt and evolve, but how has training and learning adapted? Now, it’s time to put our teams in the best possible position to take on a new normal and create a practical game plan to lead your team to success.
We’ve gathered some of the most innovative learning and development leaders to explain how they are pioneering training in the new normal. Join us to hear from three of the greatest game-changers in history all completely free:
Magic Johnson | 5x NBA Finals Champion, 1992 Olympics Gold Medallist
Once known as the best point guard of all time, LA Lakers All-Star Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s career on the court was cut short after he learned that he was HIV positive. Thirty years on from his diagnosis, Johnson pivoted his success from the NBA court to highly prosperous businesses. At #EdAppSummit2021, Johnson will share how to truly unleash potential, facing and overcoming adversity, and continually being at the top of your game.
Patty McCord | Former Chief of Talent at Netflix
Patty McCord served as Chief Talent Officer of Netflix for 14 years and helped create the Netflix Culture Deck. Since it was first posted on the web, it has been viewed more than 15 million times, and “may be the most important document ever to come out of Silicon Valley,” according to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Currently, McCord sits on Netflix’s Board of Directors and is an executive coach at her own consulting company. At #EdAppSummit2021, McCord will share how to rapidly upskill your workforce, the value of failing, and how to make a successful team.
Arsène Wenger | Former Arsenal Football Manager
Iconic football manager, Arsène Wenger, joined the English Premier League (EPL) club Arsenal in 1996 and became the longest-serving manager of the club. Wenger won 3 Premier League titles, 7 FA Cups, and masterminded the entire unbeaten season in 2003-04 as his “Invincibles” team became champions. Currently, Wenger is FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development. At #EdAppSummit2021, Wenger will share how to drastically improve team performance and empower your team to think outside the box.
We will also be hearing from Darren Murph, Head of Remote at GitLab and Debbie Ekas, Director of Learning at Deloitte, along with many more. Darren has mastered the art of working remotely before COVID-19 hit, and Debbie comes from an established background in HR, with a commitment to accountability for management and connecting teams.
In keeping with our mission to democratise learning, Rewrite The Playbook will be a free, virtual summit to help training managers around the world with inspiring stories and practical insights to help you level up your teams to high performance. No travel costs. No conference fees. No sponsors or vendors. And no need to work for a big corporation. Our goal is to expand our mission to the events world so every team has access to the information, solutions and tools to be their best.
You can expect to leave knowing how to:
- Tackle the big challenges faced by the training community in 2021
- Approach learning and training practically in your workplace
- Uncover different perspectives when problem-solving
Plus, you’ll leave our free virtual summit with your very own copy of Rewrite The Playbook, as well as lifetime access to the event recording and free resources from EdApp, keynote speakers, and panellists.
These learnings will be relevant to L&D and HR professionals across a wide range of industries, including healthcare, pharmaceutical, FMCG, retail, operations, hospitality, construction, IT, financial services, manufacturing, mining, government, and more. Register here and invite your team for a day of inspirational talks!
Author