I am currently working with an organization that is really struggling with getting IT buy-in for their HR based eLearning initiative. Do you have any advice or any articles you can point me to that I could give to the director to help her? They have had meetings, but it just seems like the HR department is spinning their wheels. Thank you in advance.

Michelle Frederick

IT directors have to prioritize requests based on overall impact to the organization. Does your HR executive(s) believe in the initiative and understand how it will benefit the organization? If not, that's probably the best place to start. Once you get upper management buy-in at the HR level, assuming they have a good relationship with IT executives, they can help IT to understand how e-learning can positively impact the organization with reduced costs and increased workforce performance.

Hope that helps.

Sheldon Murphy
Solid State Learning
www.sslearn.com

What do you really mean by "IT buy-in?" How is HR spinning their wheels?

Do the corporate business unit stakeholders support a shift to elearning and have they chartered an intiative with funding and resources?

IT is a service provider within the organization.

Are the refusing to assist in tool selection, implementation, infrastructure support? What, exactly, is the problem? And who, specifically, in IT is not buying-in?

Amy and Sheldon -
First - thank you for your responses!!
Second - great questions - currently the Director of Training has been given the directive to cut costs related to travel for training. Her vision is to bring eLearning to the organization to help achieve this. Her manager is supportive in this initiative. I think there has been some history between HR and IT that has strained relationships a bit. It appears that there has not been a lot of communication between the two departments in the past and that has led to some major mistakes on the part of HR (i.e. choosing to have their own LMS build - which was a disaster, etc)
Amy - I think you have a great point and questions - in terms of "have they chartered this project and do they have the proper structure, funding and resources to build a great e-learning environment." The answer to that is - I don't think so. They have really laid any solid framework from which to build this environment. Ultimately it kind of seems like they have really put the cart before the horse. They have an authoring tool and are creating content, but no guarantee that they will be able to put it on the LMS that is currently being used by another area of the company. (there are uploading limitations that need to be worked out, etc.)
The IT department is really reluctant to assist them with tool selection and seem to be acting very territorial. This would specifically be the web development department. In the beginning - they were insisting that all of the content be developed in Flash and would not even entertain the idea of Lectora. Only through some major prodding did they finally relent and go for it.
My gut feeling is that I am going to have to help them start from scratch - with a solid Project Charter and go from there.

Michelle

Yes, I think that is the right course. Get all of the stakeholders together, including the customers of the Training department and IT. Start with the mandate to cut travel costs, and go from there with brainstorming ideas including live virtual classrooms and elearning.

Get buy-in from the business units, then IT should come along. After all, if the BUs are driving the change, they should want to be a solution-provider not an inhibitor to achieving the business goals!

I can't imagine IT dictating to me what tools I will use to create content. That seems a little odd. They are not the ID/Training experts. Their role should be to suggest soutions and implement the course charted by the BUs-- but not dictate them!