Embracing the upsides
In spite of a proven track record in delivering online courses, some potential clients remained sceptical. “Some were very open to the idea of online delivery, happy to try it and see what happened,” said Hooper, “but others were more resistant, including one client who memorably described themselves as a ‘stick-in-the-mud face-to-facer.”
The sceptics needed convincing that an online course could deliver the same quality experience as residential ‘immersion’. Can you, for example, replicate the networking benefits of meeting other people in person or generate the same kind of creative energy that comes from having a group of people in one room?
Gazzard argues that, if anything, online delivery breaks down barriers: “Prior to COVID, the majority of our students wanted to come to Madingley Hall. For many, the online option felt distant and isolated. But what we’ve seen is the emergence of a strange kind of intimacy. By entering into your tutors’ and peers’ homes, seeing their partners bringing them a cup of tea or a child demanding their attention, you see beyond the professional veneer that we all adopt.”
He also described how students were creating strong bonds with their classmates, providing a supportive environment for those sharing stories of COVID-induced redundancies, sometimes leading directly to job offers from peer learners.
In terms of the online experience, she has also noticed how it allows some of “the quieter voices” to make themselves heard. “In face-to-face sessions, the main form of interaction is speaking out and some people are less comfortable with that. When there are different ways of communicating, such as typing questions, we have found that you can surface more perspectives.”
For Kyne, another advantage is that by breaking the content up into smaller segments, delegates, “get time to reflect between sessions, perhaps implement what they’ve learnt in their workplace and feedback to their tutors.”
Any doubts delegates might have had about a lack of interactivity seem to have been confounded, judging from course feedback. Dorian Xhixho from MuleSoft, attending the Cambridge Judge Business School’s Managing Innovation Strategically Live Online course, is one of those who has been pleasantly surprised by the online experience: “I found [online] to be equal and if not better, in some aspects. For example, participants … were more willing to share and brainstorm ideas, which made the course more lively. In a classroom environment, this may not happen as often, due to the tendency of ‘agreeing’ with your classmates."
What about our “stick-in-the-mud face-to-facer”? Having been persuaded to take the plunge, Hooper says, “the company is now a huge fan to the point where they think remote delivery will be their default model and they want us to help develop some of their other programmes.”
Greater access
An obvious benefit of online delivery, is its capacity to reach more people in further flung places. Cambridge Judge Business School, for example, has noticed an uptick in interest in its courses particularly from South Africa and Nigeria. Marketing Director, Derrick Mabbott, attributes this partly to compatible time zones but also to the fact that if you subtract the cost of travel and accommodation, enrolment becomes a more affordable proposition.
Hooper also points out that it’s not just reducing the price point that increases accessibility. “For people with childcare or other such commitments, travel wasn’t previously an option. Online opens up learning to people – often women – who were previously excluded. Of course, another benefit is that it’s massively reduced our carbon footprint now that we are not flying teams around the world or have participants flying to us.”
While the Cambridge providers are not seeing online as an opportunity to increase the numbers of delegates on a particular course – and thereby diluting the experience – there are occasions where technology can support impressive levels of impact.
Richard Hill, Client Director at the Møller Institute, which specialises in leadership development programmes, describes how it was able to reach 70,000 young leaders around the world.
“We have been running a programme with the British Council called Future Leaders Connect. Every year, 50 terrifyingly accomplished young people spend a week in Cambridge learning about leadership. Last year we ran it over three sessions for the tens of thousands of applicants who didn’t make it to the last 50. Although we wouldn’t claim it was the same experience, it meant we were able to transfer knowledge on a heroic scale.”
