Case Study: Raytheon Professional Services
Technical Services Training for Auto Dealerships
Raytheon Professional Services (RPS), a global leader in learning services and outsourcing, delivers late-breaking technical training to automobile dealerships and more than 50,000 technicians through video satellite broadcasting. These high-quality broadcasts are viewed live, with interactive question and answer sessions, and later on a programmed basis—at the dealerships. Raytheon wanted to deliver these broadcasts in a web-based format that would enable on-demand access for technicians at work and at home. They also wanted to give technicians the ability to use this timely product knowledge as a performance support tool. Technicians could then get their product updates and search for the knowledge they need whenever and wherever it is most convenient.
Prior to their contract renewal with a major automobile manufacturer, RPS discovered Altus Learning Systems through the Learning on Demand practice of SRI Consulting Business Intelligence (sric-bi.com). They were impressed with the rich media features, capabilities and functionality, seeing an ideal fit for their knowledge disbursement needs. So RPS launched an internal pilot program to judge the effectiveness of repurposing their broadcast content.
Altus Learning Systems converted several broadcasts, created a custom-branded vPortal and hosted the video on a global content delivery network. Altus then provided secure access to the RPS vPortal via their Learning Management System (LMS), offering two modes of access: 1) course registration for credit, and 2)performance support to acquire the specific information technicians need on the job. The internal pilot had rave reviews and the project went into its second phase – a limited pilot with the company’s customer. RPS asked selected end-users to use the new system and provide feedback, which was unanimously enthusiastic. The company since converted the pilot to full deployment accessible by more than 50,000 thousand users. In one recent month 11,000 technicians voluntarily visited the knowledge portal 18,000 times and conducted more than 9,000 searches—a ten-fold increase in just seven months.
According to TrainingOutsourcing.com, the industry’s first and only knowledge community focused specifically on learning strategies, best practices, emerging trends and outsourcing, the extension of Raytheon's contract with this customer was one of the "Top ten events that shaped the training outsourcing industry in 2004."
By using Altus Learning Systems, RPS was able to offer a major customer new, innovative capabilities immediately, with no up-front development or infrastructure investment. Two-tiered outsourcing is a model for other training outsourcing companies for the same reasons their clients use them: reduced operational costs, reduced fixed costs, speed-to-market, risk mitigation, fast access to new technology and the ability to maintain focus on their core mission and competencies. Altus can also help training outsourcing companies quickly generate new revenue streams through on-demand software licensing and digital media services.