Bradford College opts for Enterprise Study from BroadSkill
BroadSkill, the UK's leading supplier of freelance trainers and a major IT solutions provider, today marked six months of successful operation of the first implementation of Enterprise Study Platform (ESP) in an academic institution. ESP is a modern web-based training management system that automates all the processes involved in running an L&D function from training booking to post-course evaluation (following the Kirkpatrick model for Investors in People), e-procurement, internal course management and the maintenance of training records.
Bradford College is the fourth largest institution of its kind in the country and has a student population of over 29,000. With nearly 2,000 staff, the requirement for internal training places significant demands on the Staff Development function. Training administration was very labour intensive until, following a supplier evaluation; Enterprise Study was chosen to automate the procedures involved. The implementation was rapid as no software installation was required as the system runs remotely on internet-based servers using an Application Service Provider model.
The new system was launched in September 2005. It allows staff to check on their training records, browse the internal training catalogue and make bookings. The system automatically manages the seeking of management approvals, the sending out of joining instructions, post-course evaluations and updating of training records.
The result was an immediate drop in the administrative load. "There were a few groans about change," said Christian McGrath, Staff Development Officer, "some said they liked the paper system. We said that this might be the case, but when you have to manually process up to 100 paper forms a week on average, it becomes an unmanageable process."
"Most people find the Enterprise Study System helpful in regards to booking on courses, they particularly like the facility to look at what training is available, what training they have booked on and their full training history, which they can download and keep in their CPD (Continuing Professional Development) portfolio. Once they've registered at the college they can also access the system from home, so it's particularly useful for our part-time colleagues."
Once staff have got used to the system they found it really easy-to-use, which makes life for Staff Development much easier, allowing them to concentrate on more important matters than paper shuffling. "I would definitely recommend Enterprise Study to other educational establishments as it would make the management, procurement, workflow and analysis of booking internal and external courses much more streamlined" concluded McGrath.
Stephen Fletcher, MD at BroadSkill, said: "Enterprise Study was initially most popular with commercial training providers and incorporates training functions. We are now finding the interest widening to include any organisation that needs to provide training services. The large manpower and cost savings available to customers are very attractive and have made the system a core component of our training administration offerings."