Strategic Management
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Strategical Management
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Executive Summary
A review of online learning systems within the Apollo Group has been carried out to assist in planning for the future provision of an integrated managed learning environment for the University. To meet its aspiration to provide excellence in teaching and learning, the Group must provide an online learning system which will support core online activities in a reliable and secure way. Students expect to have access to course support materials in a coherent structure online, including electronic resources of all kinds and are increasingly comfortable with interactive online activities in their daily social live, hence an E-learning approach over an above the other sectors of the Apollo group seems appropriate and a must for the future.
E-Learning is a very broad term for internet-based learning in general. Distance
education, online learning, E-Learning Ð- all of these terms are becoming synonymous with the latest approach to providing high quality educational offerings. E-Learning can be defined as technology-supported learning and the delivery of content via all electronic media. Compared to computer-based training (CBT) E-Learning places greater emphasis on interaction and communication. Interaction with the instructor and with other students may occur via internet-channels, videoconferencing or teleconferencing, in asynchronous (email or bulletin board) sessions or synchronous (e. g., chat room, whiteboard, application sharing) sessions (Seufert et. al., 2001, 35). Furthermore, the term ЄE-Learning” has created a hype over the last couple of years and implies commercialization aspects. E-Learning as one of those fashionable ЄE-words” has been established as a new “buzzword” which is mainly created and pushed by marketing strategists and by educational institutions to boost the E-Learning trend. The Internet has allowed colleges, corporate universities and for-profit businesses to begin offering degrees and executive education via the Web. Definitions or articles about E-Learning are not older than 2 years, meaning that we are speaking about a term that exists merely since 1999. That was the time when companies offering computer based training established so-called E-Learning solutions. One of the largest companies in this business field, ЄCBT systems” renamed itself ЄSmartforce” in 1999, introducing the trademark ЄThe E-Learning Company”. Today, this company has a market leader position in delivering 3 integrated E-Learning solutions. This example represents the general development of the last two years.
According to several forecasts this segment of the education market appears to be the fastest growing when compared to the traditional market. International Data Corporation estimates that the online corporate education market may total $11.4 billion by 2003, up from $234 million in 2000. John Chambers, president and CEO of Cisco Systems promotes E-Learning on its corporate website: “There are two fundamental equalizers in life: the Internet and education. E-Learning eliminates the barriers of time and distance creating universal, learning-on-demand opportunities for people, companies and countries”. He emphasized at a key note speech to the Fall 1999 Comdex Trade
A reasonable answer has to consider diversified and multiple factors. Technology drivers, pedagogical advances and changing learning patterns, the demands of corporate training and the business aspect of E-Learning as “window of opportunities” are determining factors. Therefore, E-Learning represents the convergence of many factors from different fields, for example technological drivers, changes in society, edutainment drivers, changing corporate training and the new learning paradigm which describes the shift from training to learning (Meister, 1997, 22). The new learning paradigm emphasizes the following critical issues:
self-organized learning, focus on metacognitive learning strategies and preparing lifelong learning skills, emphasize on process-oriented learning (to focus on Єlearning to learn”) instead of product oriented learning,
shift from training to self-responsible learning, student- and team-oriented methods and collaborative learning based on constructive
learning theories, building a community of learners, experts, facilitators, coaches, high flexibility, personalized and individualized learning (according to different learning
types, personal preferences).E-Learning represents the convergence of several factors. Conversely, the growth of E-learning and distance education have converging effects on the educational market
Core Competencies
By definition Core Competencies are a bunch of strengths that a company possesses that allows them to gain competitive advantage. According to Hamel and Prahalad (1980) It is something