Pathlore Software Corporation, a global leader in providing learning-management
software and services to industry and government, has announced that Canon U.S.A.,
Inc., a leader in imaging technologies, has bought Pathlore's enterprise learning-management
solution (LMS). As part of Canon's newly released Systems and Technical Support
eLearning Center, the Pathlore LMS will analyse and report on training delivered
through classroom instruction, self-paced courses, computer-based classes and
e-learning programmes.
Canon U. S. A., Inc., based at Lake Success, N.Y, and a subsidiary of Canon
Inc, trains over 10,000 dealer-technicians and systems engineers in its U.S.
dealer network. By launching an e-learning centre with the LMS, Canon is offering
its dealer network a blend of online and classroom training.
This blended solution will deliver training programmes more efficiently than
ever before, say Canon's executives. Moreover, quality training provided to
high-level support professionals should help Canon to achieve brand loyalty
from dealers and end-user customers.
By relying on the LMS, engineers and technicians, for instance, can tap what
Canon calls online ‘pre-study’ materials. These materials help workers
to learn about products before taking classroom-delivered training with their
peers.
This, in turn, lets instructors make hands-on diagnostics and troubleshooting
the focus of the classroom training.
Canon’s e-learning centre offers dealer-technicians a way to take online
certification tests, too. If the technicians pass the online exams, then they
can opt-out of certain courses.
For technicians, this increases their productivity and lowers costs by eliminating
the need to travel to Canon’s regional offices for training. The approach
also allows them to spend more time with customers.
"With the LMS, we'll be able to increase hands-on diagnostics work in
certain classes from 60 per cent to 70 or 80 per cent," said Don Walker,
manager of educational services at Canon U.S.A., Inc. "It's all about making
a dealer-technician feel more comfortable with our products, which improves
service quality and sales."
The LMS also lets dealer-managers and technicians go online to check class
schedules, course descriptions and students’ transcripts.
"We're making it easy for our dealer network to get instruction that helps
them to support both customers and products and, together, achieve a high level
of end-user customer satisfaction," added Walker. "If we make learning
about Canon's products easier, while maintaining a high level of quality, then
dealers and end-users - when offered a choice - will select our products over
our competitors' brands."
Before installing the enterprise LMS, Walker's team kept tabs on training with
pen and paper. For example, to find out how many people took one of Canon's
copier classes, Walker would have to call five regional training centres to
build a report. With the LMS in place, said Walker, Canon can, in many cases,
save up to 50 per cent of the time the company spent juggling class schedules,
registering people for training and weighing the results.
"The Pathlore LMS will centralise the business of training at Canon, which
will save us time and reduces our expenses," noted Walker. "It also
will strengthen the link between Canon and its dealers."
"Canon has gone beyond simply tracking training to relying on its LMS
to improve the performance of its dealer-technicians and systems engineers,"
commented Steve Thomas, Pathlore's chief executive.
Notes for Editors:
About Pathlore
Founded in 1995, Pathlore develops software that delivers and analyzes all
facets of corporate training. More than 1,000 customers from around the world
have tapped Pathlore’s learning management solutions to increase sales,
improve employee retention and comply with government regulations. The privately
held company’s clients include DaimlerChrysler, Delta Air Lines, Novartis,
PNC Bank, Southwest Airlines, U.S. Bancorp, government agencies on three continents
and more than 100 healthcare organisations. For more information, go to http://www.pathlore.com
Pathlore makes software to track and manage education delivered over the Internet.
Further information from:
Stuart Hornsey, Pathlore Software Ltd, 00 44 (0) 1923 698498
Bruce Duff, Pathlore, 00-1 614 781 7285 (direct line)
Bob Little, Bob Little Press & PR, 00 44 (0) 1727 860405
For product/technical information: call Pathlore on 00 44 (0) 1923 698498,
or visit Pathlore’s
website.
For additional information on Pathlore LMS 6: visit www.pathlore.com/customerzone.asp.
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