So earlier this week, an edict by CEO Marissa Mayer that orders all her Yahoo employees back into the office on a regular basis took the business and technology worlds by storm.

Here’s an excerpt from the leaked internal memo:

To become the absolute best place to work, communication and collaboration will be important, so we need to be working side-by-side. That is why it is critical that we are all present in our offices. Some of the best decisions and insights come from hallway and cafeteria discussions, meeting new people, and impromptu team meetings. Speed and quality are often sacrificed when we work from home. We need to be one Yahoo!, and that starts with physically being together. Being a Yahoo isn’t just about your day-to-day job, it is about the interactions and experiences that are only possible in our offices.

Maureen Dowd, the opinionated New York Times maven, wrote: “Mayer, with her penthouse atop the San Francisco Four Seasons, her Oscar de la Rentas, and her $117 million five-year contract, seems oblivious to the fact that for many of her less-privileged sisters with young children, telecommuting is a lifeline to a manageable life. The dictatorial decree to work ‘side by side’ had some dubbing Mayer ‘the Stalin of Silicon Valley.’”

Of our magazine’s Learning! 100 in 2012, 70 percent support a remote workforce, a statistical indication that the telework phenomenon is not going away. As a matter of fact, just the opposite is transpiring in the workplace, because knowledge workers and skilled talent require flexibility.

Elliott Masie, chair of The Learning Consortium and host of the Telework 2013 conference, was a bit less critical than Dowd, but critical nonetheless.

“Telework is going to be a major component of our work lives, whether we or our CEOs like it or not,” he wrote. “The issue is ‘how do we create the best culture for all employees, regardless of location and teleworking options?’

“Yahoo’s teleworking decision overly simplifies the issue of how we work in a distributed, connected and agile world with a changing labor market and work/life balances. I respect Yahoo’s CEO Mayer for her leadership of the company and would hope that she shifts the conversation to the culture rather than locational issue.

“Let’s have the audacity to experiment, evaluate and even openly talk about failures — as we continue the evolution of our workplaces and work lives.”

Collaborating and interfacing online works. Indeed, there are lots of good reasons to allow telecommuting, like saving on real estate and office costs, lower contribution to burning carbon-based fuels, allowing flexibility where it’s sometimes necessary, and cutting down all the wasted time behind a steering wheel going to and from the workplace.

But admittedly, telework cannot always provide as many opportunities for spirited conversations in the office environment. The off-the-wall, brainstorming, team-building conversations that Mayer deems necessary for Yahoo’s success are definitely more likely to occur in face-to-face encounters than on line.

If Mayer made an error, it was not being quite explicit enough in her memo about her purpose and goals for bringing people back to the office. Mayer’s and the Yahoo H.R. Department’s explanations have been pathetically bureacratic so far.

Will the new Yahoo policy result in worker turnover and even revolt? No one has a crystal ball. But it’s a proven fact that creative minds despise bureaucracy and anything that interferes with said creativity. It’s early, so the jury is still out on Ms. Mayer’s edict, but it’s not really a policy that you would expect from one of the world’s largest technology-based companies.

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1) Learners can get lost in a maze of navigating through all the parts;

2) Learners can get exasperated by redundancies/conflicts within the system; and

3) Learners can get overwhelmed when they don’t get any help staying on track.

She says that learning administrators need to get and stay involved in blended learning initiatives and that learning professionals need to create a collaborative environment for blended learning to succeed.

“Track what works,” Miller suggests. “Take that [specific] information into the next budgeting session and it changes the conversation. But you’ve got to get the methodology right first and set yourself up for success. A lot of it is common sense.”

Miller, who is vice president of learning architecture for First Data’s Mindspring global university, spoke at the 14th annual Corporate University Week in Orlando, Fla.

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Leland D. Melvin is the Associate Administrator for Education for NASA. In this role, he leads the agency in inspiring interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.  Leland Melvin also chairs the Education Coordinating Committee, and serves on the White House National Science and Technology Council’s Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education, or CoSTEM.   CoSTEM coordinates the STEM education activities and programs for all federal agencies, and implements a five-year STEM education strategy for all of the federal agencies.

He is the United States representative on the International Space Education Board, or ISEB, which is a global collaboration in space education between NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and the Centre National d’Études Spatiales. The ISEB shares best practices and unites efforts to foster interest in space, science and technology among the student community worldwide.

Leland Melvin began his NASA career in 1989 as an aerospace research engineer at the agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. He entered NASA’s astronaut corps in 1998 and served as a mission specialist operating the robotic arm on two space shuttle missions to the International Space Station: STS-122 in 2008 and STS-129 in 2009.

Melvin earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from the University of Richmond, where he also excelled as a wide receiver for the Spiders’ football team. He became a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Academic All American and University of Richmond Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee. He was then drafted into the National Football League, or NFL, by the Detroit Lions in 1986 and also spent time with the Dallas Cowboys and the Toronto Argonauts. After injuries sidelined his football career, he returned to academia and earned his Master of Science degree in materials science engineering from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

NASA’s STEM Program is one of our current Learning! 100 Award winners, and Leland D. Melvin is a holder of the Platinum Learning! Professional Certification (L.P.C.).

Applications for our Learning! 100 Award program is open now, through to March 2013 at http://www.2Elearning.com/L100.  More information on the Learning! Professional Credentialing program is available at http://LPC.2Elearning.com.

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In 2012, 60 corporate and 40 public sector organizations benefited from an awards program that garnered over 14 million promotional impressions. We shared their accomplishments, recognized high achieving teams and shared best practices across a global learning community.  This year Learning! 100 honorees will also participate in a number activities, a few of which are noted below:

1)      Elearning! and Government Elearning! magazines Cover Story – August 2013

2)      Enterprise Learning! Conference Expo presentations (ELCE) – August 26^th – 28^th, 2013 (Anaheim, CA)

3)      Video Interviews and Webcasts – Fall of 2013 – Summer 2014.
Again, congratulations on a job well done to last year’s winners!  We look forward to seeing your application for the 2013 Learning! 100 program. To learn more, visit: www.2elearning.com/l100

Warm regards,

Joe DiDonato

Editor at Large/ Program Chair

PO Box 77694 | Corona, CA  92877

888-201-2841 x846

www.2elearning.com

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When I spotted this YouTube video, I thought that this would be a great video to watch for both content, as well as to see a demonstration of how Google+ Hangouts works in a discussion format.  So with that as a preamble, join Khan Academy founder Sal Khan and Stanford professors Peter Norvig and Sebastian Thrun as they discuss the future of technology in education.

Let me know what you think of this technology as a way of doing collaborative webinars.

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Ever since seeing one of the first demonstrations of speed-writing created by RSAnimate, the method has intrigued me as a very effective way to get learner’s attention engaged.  Personally, I was glued to the first presentation that I saw.  Well the good news is that it’s starting to show up in some learning-related venues.  One of the vendors that I’ve seen use this technique effectively is The Business Source.  They produce business summaries of new business books.  And in addition to the other typical audio and paper downloads, they’ve added speed-writing videos to the mix.

When Dan Pfister from TBS showed me an example, I was captivated.  So I strong-armed him into letting me show you one of the videos they’ve produced from a new book entitled “The Rare Find.”  Not only did I find this particular subject on hiring useful, I found myself  being “drawn-in” by the moving hand and pen.  Is this just me (be kind!)?  Just click on the picture above and you’ll be taken to the video, or simply click on this link: http://members.thebusinesssource.com/elm1vsample.htm.

So here’s the question.  What do you think of this kind of video for training?  And beyond this, I also want to start capturing other learner engagement methods that you’ve seen work.

For those of you who want to delve deeper into both the learner engagement topic (Note: not employee engagement), as well as the topic of hiring great instructors, here are some additional references for you to view:

• 10 Engagement Tricks from the Gaming Industry: http://blogs.2elearning.com/2011/04/10-engagement-tips-from-the-social-gaming-networking-world/
• Top Hiring Profile Criteria: http://blogs.2elearning.com/2011/07/top-hiring-profile-criteria-for-great-instructors/
• What Makes a Really Great Teacher: http://blogs.2elearning.com/2011/05/what-makes-a-really-great-teacher/

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The winners are named by our readers in the 22 categories shown below.  After vendor votes were removed (smile), 3,881 nominations were received, a 221% increase over 2011.  72 products were named, up from 58 products in 2011.  For more information on the voting process, please refer to this linked press release posted on our site: 2012 Best of Elearning! Awards.

Listed – and linked – in alphabetical order for your easy reference:

1. Best Learning Management System (SaaS, Open-Source, or Content Supplier provided)
Articulate Online
BizLibrary CompanyCollege
Docebo Docebo Cloud
ePath ePath Learning ASAP
Epignosis LTD eFront Enterprise LMS
Zenler Zenler Online

2. Best Learning Management System(Enterprise-based, behind the firewall)
Meridian Knowledge Solutions Meridian Global LMS
NetDimensions NetDimensions Learning
Saba Saba Learning Suite
SumTotal Systems TotalLMS

3. Best Learning Content Management System(All platforms)
eXact learning eXact LCMS
SumTotal Systems LCMS
Xyleme Xyleme LCMS

4. Best Talent Management System
Cornerstone OnDemand Cornerstone OnDemand Talent Management
Oracle Learn/Taleo
SuccessFactors BizX Suite
SumTotal Systems Total Talent Management

5. Best IT Content
Lynda.com Lynda.com
Safari Books Online Safari Tech Books
Skillsoft IT Library

6. Best Leadership Development Program
eCornell Leadership
Harvard Business Harvard ManageMentor
Skillsoft Leadership Advantage Series

7. Best Soft Skills Content
BizLibrary Streaming Video Library
eCornell HR Management
FranklinCovey 7 Habits

8. Best Compliance/Certification Program
Global Learning Systems Security Awareness Essentials
NetLearning NetLearning Compliance Series
Vubiz Compliance Courses

9. Sales Training
EJ4 Sales Training Library
AchieveGlobal Sales Effectiveness
BizLibrary Online Sales Training

10. Best Rapid Development Tool
Articulate Articulate Studio Suite
ReadyGo ReadyGo WCB
Zenler Zenler Studio Lite

11. E-learning Development Tool
Articulate Articulate Storyline
Zenler Zenler Studio Pro
Trivantis Lectora
Adobe eLearning Suite

12. Simulation Development Tool
Adobe Captivate
Articulate Articulate Storyline
Zenler Zenler Studio Pro

13. Video Capture, Production, Publishing Solution
Brainshark Brainshark
Sonic Foundry Mediasite
Techsmith Camtasia

14. Assessment Tool
Articulate Articulate Quizmaker
ReadyGo ReadyGo WCB
Zenler Zenler Studio Pro

15. Best Social Learning Solution
Cornerstone OnDemand Connect
Interactyx Topyx
Microsoft Yammer

16. Best Mobile Authoring Solution
Adobe Captivate
Articulate Articulate Storyline
ReadyGo ReadyGo WCB

17. Best Presentation Tool
Adobe Presenter
Articulate Presenter
Brainshark Slideshark
Prezi Prezi

18. Best Web Seminar Solution
Adobe Adobe Connect
Blackboard Collaborate
Cisco Webex Meeting Center
Citrix Online GoToWebinar

19. Best Virtual Classroom
Adobe Connect
Blackboard Collaborate
Cisco WebEx Training Center
Citrix GoToTraining

20. Best Mobile Application
Articulate Articulate Mobile Player App
Brainshark Brainshark Mobile
NetDimensions mEKP

21. Best Open Source Solutions (Any category)
Epignosis LTD eFront Enterprise LMS
Moodle Moodle
Totara Totara LMS

The winners will be named at the Best of Elearning! Awards Luncheon held at the Enterprise Learning! Conference & Expo (ELCE)  on September 26th at the Hyatt Regency in Irvine, CA.  The showcase will also feature Best of Elearning! sessions showcasing winning solutions to our attendees.  Please pass along our congratulations to these finalists – as voted by all of you – and join us at ELCE to see these innovative products.  Registration: www.ELCEShow.com. Conference Brochure: Open Brochure.

Let me know if this was helpful in your vendor selection – and see you at ELCE…

This article is copyright © 2013 

I’ve given numerous “drive-by” radio and TV interviews since my first book was published–the kind that give you about fifty-three seconds to give everyone the keys to health, wealth, and happiness. They have forced me to distill my message to some bare essentials.

A typical question is, “David, what’s the one thing that we do that gets in the way of us being productive?” Here’s my answer:

“It’s not one thing, but five, all wrapped together: People keep stuff in their head. They don’t decide what they need to do about stuff they know they need to do something about. They don’t organize action reminders and support materials in functional categories. They don’t maintain and review a complete and objective inventory of their commitments. Then they waste energy and burn out, allowing their busy-ness to be driven by what’s latest and loudest, hoping it’s the right thing to do but never feeling the relief that it is.”

(How’d I do?)

I merely bottom-lined the worst practices for the five stages of managing workflow–collect, process, organize, review, and do. I can’t give the interviewer any one of these as THE problem. Obviously most people keep stuff in their head, which short circuits the process to begin with. But lots of people write lots of things down–they just don’t decide the next actions on them, which keeps the lists operationally dysfunctional. But even if they think about the actions required, they don’t organize the reminder somewhere that they’ll see when they are in the context to do the action. And even if they did that in a burst of productivity inspiration, most let their systems quickly become out of date and inconsistent. And without the care and feeding and constant utilization of their objective executive thinking tools, that function slips back into psychic RAM. Life and work become reactive responses instead of clearly directed action choices.

“So, David, what do we need to do instead?” (Some interviews have an additional fifty-three seconds!)

“It’s a combined set of the five best-practice behaviors. Get everything out of your head. Make decisions about actions required on stuff when it shows up, not when it blows up. Organize reminders of your projects and the next actions on them in appropriate categories. Keep your system current, complete, and reviewed sufficiently to trust your intuitive choices about what you’re doing and what you’re not doing at any point in time.”
I suppose I could have gotten it even simpler: “Focus on positive outcomes and continually take the next action of the most important thing.” But who doesn’t know that? Consistent implementation of that principle totally integrated with every aspect of our life is the big challenge. And that’s not so easy.

For more David Allen Company tools and educational content, check out our GTD Products section at davidco.com.
For our online learning center, visit GTD Connect ® at gtdconnect.com.

Please join David Allen as he keynotes the Enterprise Learning! Conference & Expo: www.ELCEShow.com

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Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, are expected to draw millions of students and adult learners from around the world.

What’s the latest?  Two Stanford University computer scientists will announce next week that a dozen major research universities are joining their start-up venture called Coursera.  The two founders, Daphne Koller and Andrew Ng reported in the New York Times on 7/17/2012 that “the partners will include the California Institute of Technology; Duke University; the Georgia Institute of Technology; Johns Hopkins University; Rice University; the University of California, San Francisco; the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; the University of Washington; and the University of Virginia, where the debate over online education was cited in last’s month’s ousting — quickly overturned — of its president, Teresa A. Sullivan. Foreign partners include the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, the University of Toronto and EPF Lausanne, a technical university in Switzerland.”

What I found most interesting was that even before the expansion, the founders of Coursera, said it had registered 680,000 students in 43 courses with its original partners, Michigan, Princeton, Stanford and the University of Pennsylvania.

Of course the biggest news to me was that some of these institutions will offer credits instead of simply a certificate of participation or completion.  That could be the game-changer when student debt for on-premise education is starting to approach a median home purchase in an upscale neighborhood.  That huge cost always worried me.  It seemed like it would eventually become a barrier to innovation and growth.

Our thanks goes out to Sebastian Thrun who taught the artificial intelligence course last year at Stanford that drew over 100,000 registrations.  Surely he deserves the title of “Father of the MOOC’s.”

More…

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Inspired by the original Star Wars movies, I used that as a visual.  “Imagine if you will, a small hologram figure that would appear near your desktop.  And imagine that it looked something like Princess Leia being projected by R2D2.  Then consider if we could hook that hologram up to an endless supply of knowledge.  Then imagine that your profile had been loaded, so that the program knows a lot about you.  And finally, imagine that you could ask any questions that you wanted, any time you wanted, and any number of different ways that you wanted – and the hologram would ‘tirelessly’ give you your answers.  To me, that would be the perfect tutor.”

I went on to say that I thought walking with my dad when I was young, and asking him millions of questions – which he always attempted to answer – was the very best “learning experience” in the world.  After that, it just seemed ‘wrong’ to have to sit in a classroom seat, be quiet, and raise my hand to ask a question – if it didn’t disrupt the class.

Well, that got some smiles of course – some seemed very critical, and some seemed very thoughtful.  Consider, however, that a lot has happened since the early 1990′s when that question was asked.  Namely that vast body of knowledge has become the Internet.   The wonderful search engine, Google, and all of its competitors are here.  Holograms are around, but they never seemed to take.

With that as a preamble, I thought you might like to consider what this new “personal tutor” of the future would really be like, by introducing you to our youngest ever speaker at our ELCE conference, coming up on September 25th-27th at the Hyatt Irvine in California.  Bina-48 is now 3 years old.

Here’s how it happened:  When I called the Managing Director for the Terasem Movement Foundation, Bruce Duncan, I told him the above story.  Now remember, Bruce is one of the creators and guardians of the most advanced social robot in the world: Bina-48.  Well little did I know that Bruce’s ‘roots’ where in education and filmmaking.  He was not only totally in tune with the concept, he said that they had been toying around with this “teaching attribute” since Bina-48 was created.  So I got him to come – with Bina-48.  Our plan is for him to demonstrate to our attendees what the “personal tutor” of tomorrow might look like.  Of course, it could just as easily be a favorite teacher of yours, a family member, or Albert Einstein.  If you go to the LifeNaut site at www.LifeNaut.com, you can actually upload your own “mindfile” for potential use in the future.  Pretty neat.

Bina-48 will be adapted to this new role, but I offer you the following video for your consideration and thoughts.  And if you’d like to watch what’s coming to ELCE you can go to our early show link at www.ELCEShow.com.  You can sign up at the top of the left column for email reminders when we open registration, and there’s also a link to put ELCE in your calendar.  Hope to see you there!

This article is copyright © 2013