eLearning is here to stay, and whereas in the past it was just an option, it has now become a necessity, a complement and a day-to-day reality in the world of training.
EvolMind has been developing software for online training for more than 16 years and has succeeded for them and their clients with evolCampus, an elearning platform that breaks down all the fears that users face in online training. It is simple, complete and effective, but the most important thing is that they have made it with the user in mind, whether the user is the administrator, the teacher or the student.
CEO at Evolmind
Today we interview the founder and CEO of Evolmind, Javier Perez, who knows perfectly well the challenges of eLearning, as well as the needs of users, especially after a year where technology has been the key to both the personal lives and the work.
Technology has definitely become a basic tool for training, especially after this last year 2020. Have people had time to adapt to eLearning?
It is clear that social distance and teleworking have changed the sector. Before, eLearning was just another option. Those who had the face-to-face option delayed the online training, because they thought they had to spend a lot of time and effort to adapt, they didn’t know how to start. After the pandemic, online became a necessity and the only option. There has been a huge leap in demand. At EvolMind this has helped us to see and confirm that we are heading in the right direction by offering a useful solution for everyone that really makes their job easier.
How should companies get ready for an eLearning project?
Nowadays many people are translating their face-to-face training directly to online and that’s it. The question is, are you really going to do the same as before but through a webcam? I would recommend the following. Forget everything you have read, starting with your prejudices. Stop thinking that it’s going to be complex, that it’s going to take a long time to set up, the price… and don’t think you are going to do an amazing first training either.
Try this. First know your audience and think about what the daily routine of teachers, administrators, students would be like. This is important to make a realistic training that comes to success.
As for the content. It is always better to cut them in pieces. Some people are recording 4-hour video conferences as if they were face-to-face. That is not optimal. Mix it with other dynamic elements: activities, debates between students.
Create indicators on how the student is doing. Sometimes clients focus on content and then the student becomes demotivated. Communication channels are needed: chat, forum…studying from home requires willpower. The platform must facilitate this.
Finally, and in relation to platforms and technology, this is essential: try it yourself. You, your teacher, a student. Upload a couple of pdfs and a video and try the experience to ensure it is what you need.
There are many myths about eLearning. Is it true that we need technological knowledge, and a lot of time to set up an online training project?
That is the reason for our existence. At EvolMind we want technology to be a facilitator. We don’t want our users to spend more time studying the platform apart from the time they have to dedicate to the specific course. evolCampus is so simple that no previous knowledge is necessary. There are no technical complications, no installations, no programmers needed or anything like that. We are so sure of the effectiveness of evolCampus that it doesn’t even require any permanence. You only pay monthly for the students you need and to top it off, you can try it for free for 14 days. Do you see any risk?
Then, what are the most common problems and walls you face before doing eLearning?
Without a doubt, I would say that the biggest barrier is fear. Fear of not knowing how to start, of not being able to do it in time, of having to spend a lot of time learning the tools. Of the technical complications, of thinking that you need an engineer, a programmer, technical knowledge… fear of the price.
But, we all know, fears are not real. It is just a lack of knowledge and when you have the information you see it more clearly. That is why the work of our sales team, curiously enough, has become more like guides than sales. They gather their needs and put their ideas in order to see the best way to meet their objectives.
Think that before, the teacher looked the students in the eye and knew whether they were motivated or not and they only had to know their subject: English, compliance, coaching… But now there is an intermediary. To go through it you have to learn how to upload videos and content, share passwords, download links. All these actions generate headaches and therefore dissatisfaction. Many say that online training doesn’t work… but, what doesn’t work is doing it anyway.
Sometimes clients choose the most popular options and maybe they are more complex than they need, others are more basic and they fall short.
It is important to clarify before taking the plunge.
What are the main features of evolCampus?
The main one is that evolCampus is designed to be used without any eLearning experience. You can forget about technical issues as it is cloud-based. On the other hand, our tools help you automate your training management, so you will not lose time. When creating courses you can upload your contents in different formats (PDF, videos, presentations, debate forums, tests and it is SCORM-compliant too). Of course we want our clients to show off so they will be able to customise their eLearning platform with their logo, their corporate colours, their own URL to make it look as if it were their own.
What is the difference between evolCampus and other eLearning platforms and technologies?
Nowadays we can find solutions with thousands of options and settings: gamification, virtual reality, big data. Evolution is unstoppable, but we have to look for the least possible friction between technology and the user.
In our case. There is a key fact. Today we have 70,000 simultaneous students and none of them have had to be taught how to use the platform. We try to address the general user, the one who is used to common tools such as Google, Facebook, Whatsapp. Simplifying its use is key for technology to be a facilitator and not the opposite.
Our platform is distinguished by thinking of the user so that they do not encounter any obstacle. It does not require any type of installation or previous knowledge, it has a flexible price and has no permanence. It is a simple, complete and effective platform that will allow you to carry out online training without any kind of problem.
What solutions are supported by the evolCampus LMS?
evolCampus will allow you to centralise your online training in a single platform in order to manage it in a simple and effective way for administrators, teachers and students.
You will be able to carry out online training without previous experience, without the need of any installations or technical knowledge (it is cloud-based) and also with a flexible price which means that you will only pay for the number of students you have, making it totally affordable for all types of clients, large and small.
As a platform, it will help you manage your entire training project, from content creation, student enrolment, interaction with them through chats, forums, messages, integrating your videoconferencing system as well as monitoring, evaluating and analysing the course through automatic reports.
The uses and solutions depend on the needs of each client. Some customers use it for onboarding, internal training, consultancy, customer support, academic training or just to continue with training that was previously face-to-face.
What kind of companies do you have among your customers?
Most of our clients are companies that use it to train new employees or to improve their skills, consultancies that train clients, professional associations that need to train their members, NGOs, and practically from all industries you can imagine: Human Resources, Technology, Law, Health, Construction, Coaching, Marketing, etc. Many have found in evolCampus the solution to their challenges. Of course, it is also being used by cademies, training centres and universities to reach a wider audience with customers in different locations and at different times or just to continue their training when social distance was a necessity.
What are the challenges faced by a company like yours and how do you expect to move forward to become a reference solution in eLearning in more and more countries?
Our challenge is to continue demonstrating that technology should be a facilitator and drive you towards your goals, not lead you to spend hours studying how to use it. At evolCampus we are committed to this idea and therefore we are continuously advancing and updating the platform with improvements, but without compromising the simplicity that makes it instantly usable by all types of users. We always have the user in mind and for that reason most customers stay with us as soon as they do the free trial we offer. The ease of use is evidence.
About EvolMind
Evolmind is a Spanish company specialized in the development of eLearning platforms for online training management since 2006.
evolCampus is its main product, an elearning platform that stands out for its simplicity, to manage and centralize an entire elearning project. Consulting, foundations, training centers and companies of all kinds are currently part of their clients.
evolCampus now operates in 25 countries worldwide.
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