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March 27, 2000
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U.S. Veterans Benefits Administration to use online training to improve productivity
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he U.S. Veterans Benefits Administration faces a significant workforce challenge: 40% of its staff of 12,000 will reach retirement age between now and 2003.The administration, which assists war veterans and their families with home loans, insurance, pensions, and education through the GI Bill, plans to hire new people to replace some of those retiring, while also shifting employees from some departments into others where demand is greater. In both cases, fast learning is required.
To get new and reassigned employees up to speed, the agency plans to deploy online training. "One of our targets is to improve accuracy and productivity in the work we do," says George Wolohojian, director of employee development and training.
The agency will launch a pilot program this month with the assistance of Saba Inc., a training vendor that will provide systems that support online training, and technologies that help make the most of the training content. To administer education benefits, the agency maintains four regional centers with 550 employees who process claims and determine eligibility. That group will be the first to participate in the pilot, with plans to expand it to the administration's 57 offices.
In addition to providing the systems and software templates on which the agency's training content will run, Saba will provide data-analysis technologies that can be applied to E-learning content. For example, its tools let companies set up tests and skills analysis, and measure gaps between what an employee knows and what he or she needs to know in a particular job.
The agency had considered using a system developed internally by a sister organization, the Veterans Health Administration, but was concerned the system would require too much work to adapt it to the agency's needs. "The nice thing with Saba is that it had a centralized, flexible database," says Tom Segress, a Veterans Benefits Administration computer specialist.
Saba doesn't provide content; it functions only as an application service provider. Dennis Douglass, the agency's director of education, considers that an advantage. "We have technical training requirements that Saba doesn't fill," Douglass says. "It's the training management that allows us to be more effective in managing the education of our employees."
Previously, training programs were hit-or-miss in terms of effectiveness and results were inconsistent-fairly typical of a largely decentralized agency. "What we need is the capability to provide systematic, consistent training," Wolohojian says. "We owe the same high level of service to every vet."
Jim Ayube, an analyst with the Aberdeen Group, agrees. "Government is ripe for E-learning," says Ayube, who spent 14 years as a contractor with the U.S. Air Force. "Since government agencies are so spread out, and they're always looking for ways to cut costs, E-learning makes a lot of sense."
In the pilot program, trainees will participate in a series of skills assessment tests online. Then they'll be able to see where there are gaps in their knowledge, and will receive course suggestions. Throughout training, trainee managers can track individual progress. Workers who successfully complete training can determine benefit eligibility without going up the chain of command, which saves time.
Wolohojian says whether the pilot proves successful depends on how his business managers and employees use it. His hope is that the agency will have a "single access, easy system for training and career development." Adds Wolohojian, "It's a major cultural shift."
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