Internet Learning Volume 4, Number 2, Fall 2015 | Page 43

Internet Learning
factors: managerial support, job support,
and organizational support (Cheng, Wang,
Moormann, Olaniran, & Chen, 2012).
This con-tinues the trend that has been
identified in the construction of a learning
organization. Support for workplace
learning is not a single department or a
single level within the organization; support
to motivate employee learning happens
across the organization and throughout
the organizational chart. Everybody in the
organization has a role to play in building a
positive learning environment for employees
(see Figure 3).
Figure 3. The three organizational learning
environment factors: managerial support,
job support, and organizational support.
This helps to frame the overall
discussion of workplace learning and its
importance to remaining competitive in
the modern, dynamic market. While the
engagement of the individual employee in
learning activities may be the most visible
element of workplace learning what is
actually happening is that organizations
are becoming learning organizations. As
learning organizations, the effective use
of employee learning leads to positive
organizational performance and positive
economic performance (Pantouvakis &
Bouranta, 2013). The delivery phase of
workplace learning will also encompass all
areas of the firm.
Once an effective climate and
support structure has been established, a
company must then effectively deliver the
learning experience in which employees
have been motivated to engage. Kyndt,
Raes, et al. (2012) explain the need for a new
perspective on the delivery of learning as a
whole:
…because of the rapidly changing
context in which organizations operate,
a necessity arises for employees to
learn in a way that involves integrating
materials from different sources,
relating new information to prior
knowledge, applying knowledge
differentially according to the situation.
In other words, a need for a deep
approach to learning comes to the fore
(p 272).
The delivery of the learning
experience for employees most directly
involves the implementation and evaluation
stages of the ADDIE model, although the
earlier analysis, design, and development
stages directly impact the success of the
program. As with the individual employees,
firms first must recognize the need for
learning to take place. This recognition of
need can be either an emphasis on repairing
an identified failing in the firm or it can be
a process of finding and enhancing existing
solutions to make further improvements
to a process (Govaerts, et al., 2010). Once
the need is identified then the design and
development phases can be pursued.
Designing and developing a learning
experience for employees, regardless of the
topic of the instruction or the role of the
employee, is perhaps the most important
unseen activity involved in the delivery of
workplace learning. At this stage specific
goals are identified for the training and details
such as delivery format, scheduling, and
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