Specsavers chooses Kallidus to deliver training to 28,000 employees in 10 countries
The world’s largest private optical group Specsavers, has chosen Kallidus, the leading provider of learning and talent management solutions, to deliver a global Learning Management System (LMS). The Kallidus solution is being rolled out to 28,000 employees across Specsavers’ retail operations including more than 1,650 optical stores across 10 countries from the UK and Netherlands to Australia and New Zealand.
Kallidus LMS will be live in all 10 countries by the end of the year enabling Specsavers to deliver 24/7 blended learning worldwide for the first time, and achieve greater control and visibility for its training. Specsavers has chosen Kallidus’ Software as a Service (SaaS) solution and will be using this cost-effective platform to deliver all of its learning from induction training to clinical and professional training programmes.
Sam Reavill, Specsavers’ manager of Learning Systems, Clinical and Laboratory Training department explains: “Kallidus’ global LMS solution will enable us to share training content, ideas and courses across the world and begin to deliver blended learning for the first time to every retail operation helping us to speed up learning and reduce costs. The new solution will also provide greater consistency and visibility of training records across the world which is of particular importance for ensuring compliance as well as for supporting employees on career development opportunities abroad.”
Despite challenging market conditions during the past few years, Specsavers has continued to perform well and achieve significant growth in the UK and overseas. Having outgrown its UK LMS, Specsavers recognised it needed a truly global solution capable of supporting its growing workforces’ learning and development needs.
Specsavers conducted a thorough evaluation of the marketplace and Kallidus was selected following an intensive procurement process.
Sam Reavill said: “The SaaS solution from Kallidus was very attractive both in terms of flexibility, cost and ease-of-use. Global reporting capabilities were also a key factor when choosing our new system and with a phenomenal offering in this area, Kallidus came through as the clear winner.
“At Specsavers we put the customer first in everything we do. Kallidus shares the very same approach and with a real willingness to listen and such a strong focus on customer service, we felt Kallidus as a company was perfectly aligned with our business.”
The new system has already gone live in the Netherlands and four Nordic countries and is currently being piloted in Australia and New Zealand. Implementation is underway in the UK too and the feedback to date has been very positive.
“Kallidus has been very supportive during the implementation process and so far the new system has been well received with users particularly positive about its look and feel and ease-of-use,” added Sam Reavill.
Once the Kallidus system is live in all 10 countries among 28,000 retail employees, Specsavers plans to roll the system out to a further 2,000 support staff globally during early 2014.
Said Rob Caul, CEO of Kallidus: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with such a preeminent brand as Specsavers to deliver a global learning solution that has the potential to revolutionise the organisation’s delivery, management and reporting of training both today and in the long-term future.”
About Specsavers
- Specsavers was founded in 1984 and is now the largest privately owned opticians in the world.
- Specsavers has more than 1,600 stores throughout the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Spain, Australia and New Zealand.
- Total revenue for the Specsavers Group was £1.7 billion in 2011/2012.
- More than 20 million customers used Specsavers globally in 2011/2012.
- Specsavers optical stores and hearing centres are owned and run by joint venture or franchise partners. Together, they offer both optical and hearing services under one roof.
- Specsavers carried out 7,280,640 eye tests in the UK in 2011. 5,199,032 of those were NHS eye tests.
- Specsavers stores employ more than 22,000 staff globally.
- Specsavers was voted the UK's most trusted optician by a YouGov Plc online survey of 2,272 adults, July 2013.
- More than one in three people who wear glasses in the UK buy them from Specsavers* - 10,800,000 glasses were exported from the warehouse to stores in 2011.
- Specsavers was ranked No 1 for both eye tests and glasses in the UK.
- Specsavers sold more than 290 million contact lenses globally in 2011/12 and has more than a million customers on direct debit schemes. Specsavers' own contact lens brand - easyvision - is the most known on the high street.
- The hearcare business in the UK has established itself as the number one high street provider of adult audiology services to the NHS.
- Specsavers supports several UK charities including Guide Dogs, Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, Sound Seekers, the road safety charity Brake, the anti-bullying charity Kidscape and Vision Aid Overseas, for whom stores have raised enough funds to build a school of optometry in Zambia and open eyecare outreach clinics in much of the country.