Blended Learning at Mediacom

Dec 09, 2016

The challenge

MediaCom North is located across 3 locations, Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham. Learning solutions were required across the range of employee levels from graduates to board directors. There was a need to deliver a programme that supports staff from their first days as an employee up to the most senior roles in the business. Mediacom were open to a blended mix of learning solution styles and methods. Coaching clinics were also seen as a helpful addition for supporting staff learning.

Mediacom's objectives for the intervention included:

Integration between departments and disciplines.
A more connected response was required for clients. In the new media age, traditional department specialisms need to coexist. Clients require a seamless solution that brings online, offline, TV, events and other market approaches together. Training needed to provide better connections across those departments.
Support agency growth through internal promotion
The agency had grown significantly over the past 8 months due to the expansion of their digital offering (i-Lab) and the growth of their new business wins.
Training needed to develop fundamental skills to enable future staff promotion that would fulfil the skills gap.

The main challenge was establishing the training requirement of all staff rather than just settling for generic workshops covering a range of skills. We investigated and identified key competencies required for progression for every staff level. Mediacom needed to provide learning support throughout the staff career cycle. This was to cover a wide range of personal and interpersonal skills. The delivery would need to cater for:

A wide ranging blended learning experience for the whole team that feels like a single solution
A programme that will create energy and buzz about learning
Learning designed for geographically spread teams, delivered across different locations
Alignment of language, models and approaches across the entire structure of the business
Cater for a variety of learning preferences
Make learning highly accessible
Provide a coaching clinic facility

The solution

This was a business wide programme delivered across the entire organisation from graduates to board directors. The solution was designed as a rolling programme structure for each of the six employee level streams. Staff could enter the cycle at any point in the programme, being able to hop on or off, accessing those interventions most helpful to them.

In total the programme provides 37 unique learning opportunities and many hours of coaching clinics.

This was a fully blended learning programme, one learner journey using a range of learning interventions in a single experience.

The blended programme was delivered using:

Online introductory modules
Face to face multi-day workshop events
Coaching clinics
Snap-Shot 2 hour workshops
Dedicated interactive eLearning
Facilitated social learning portal
Follow up conclusion online modules

Alignment was ensured through consistent content, models, language and branding.

The programme included learning streams for all levels.

A dedicated social media learning tool allowed employees to share ideas and best practice across the business.

This was a complex programme including 37 separate learning interventions, plus coaching clinics, being delivered across three locations to 6 different levels of staff. A significant planning exercise was completed to include delivery dates for all solutions including online and eLearning elements. Once finalised iManage took responsibility for ensuring that each separate solution was delivered on time.

Weekly reviews were undertaken between iManage and Mediacom account managers, providing opportunity for feedback, discussion and fine tuning of the solution.

The solution was a fixed fee arrangement which kept to schedule and budget

The result

Every learning objective has been fully met. iManage rose to the challenge of improving business skills from graduate to Board Director with their approach. We believe that this programme has broken new ground in its level of integration as a blended delivery solution. Staff have been enthused at every stage of the programme creating a buzz about learning. Each of the sessions planned are full to capacity, so much so we are extending and repeating the learning streams to give all staff members the opportunity to benefit from the training.

Mediacom wrote:

We found that iManage really listened to our requirement and they covered our key criteria when searching for a training provider with an integrated blended learning approach that our staff could engage with and benefit from. They understood our culture and shared our values / attitude towards training and development of staff. iManage have fulfilled the brief over and above expectations.

Senior Directors have commented on the increased integration between departments and disciplines, the more connected response, an eagerness and passion of employees to take on extra responsibility and a willingness to take ownership of their own daily tasks.

Since undertaking the training platform, internal feedback forms have revealed an optimistic positivity for integration between departments and a new found enthusiasm for their current roles with encouraging signs of progression.

In the last 6 months there has been an unprecedented 25 promotions across MediaCom North Group. This is testament to the fact that staff are engaging and applying their skills in their daily roles and managing their own careers.

The Managers have a fresh passion of their management styles and are committed to managing mediocrity, developing talent and coaching their teams to be the best in the business.

A connected approach to learning and development has cemented our connected approach to our clients and each department. A more integrated MediaCom is emerging, iManage and our blended learning training programme has more than a little to do with it.