United States Distance Learning Association

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ORGANIZATIONAL PERSPECTIVE STRATEGIC PLANNING TOOLS FOR CHANGE PROGRAM PERSPECTIVE PROJECT/PROGRAM MANAGEMENT INTEGRATION WITH THE ORGANIZATIONAL MISSION AND VISION GUIDING BELIEFS/PRINCIPLES EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN INTERNAL ORGANIZATIONAL STRENGTHS BUDGET . INFRASTRUCTURE . COMMUNICATION . WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT POLICY . EXERCISING PROFESINOAL RESPONSIBILITY ENGAGING RELEVANT CONTEXTS DESIGNING THE PROGRAM MANAGING ADMINISTRATIVE ASPECTS Figure 2. Linking organizational perspective with program perspective: Using project and program management, tools for change, and strategic planning. implementing distance training and education within the organization need to recognize that it is common for the perceived barriers to be greater, perhaps seeming overwhelming, with novice distance trainers in the initial stages of organizational maturity in DE. These normally abate as the organization and its personnel matures. Secondly, it should be expected that the ranking of which obstacles are most important to overcome will change as the organization gains experience with DE and as distance training and education becomes mission-critical within the organizational strategic planning (see Figure 2). LINKING THE ORGANIZATIONAL PERSPECTIVE WITH DISTANCE TRAINING PROGRAMS Key to the success of technologyenhanced learning and to distance education and training is the commitment and support of the organization’s top leaders (Berge & Smith, 2000). These leaders will need to exhibit enthusiasm for, champion, and allocate resources to these programs while encouraging and rewarding instructor cooperation. Such leaders can build credibility for distance education, maintain currency in the field, and gather support and partners inside and outside of the organization. The most important function of organizational leadership, in this regard, may be to create a shared vision that includes widespread input and support from the instructors and managers, articulates a clear training or educational purpose, has validity for stakeholders, and reflects the broader mission of the organization. Both top-down and bottom-up support is needed for successful, sustained distance training and education at the higher stages of organizational capability. In addition to the establishment of a vision, leaders link strategic planning and specific program implementation and monitoring using such tools as budgeting, infrastructure development, communication, work- Volume 4, Issue 4 Distance Learning 7
force development, and policy revision (see Figure 2). RECOMMENDATIONS FROM CASE STUDIES When people within an organization plan to use distance training and education, there are several barriers to their efforts that they are likely to encounter. Consideration of barriers faced by other organizations may help leaders find solutions to reduce or to minimize obstacles in their own organization. Using a content analysis of 32 in-depth case studies of leading organizations, Cho and Berge (2002) explored solutions to the barriers faced by organizations when they use distance education In a traditional, in-person training situation, registration for the course, documentation, payment, and travel arrangements (if any)—all the functions that are normally thought of as involving the organization—are completed, for the most part, before classes begin. Once instruction starts, the direct interactions that learners have with their instructors become paramount. This may not be the case in the distance training and education classroom. Opinions from learners in distance education classes indicate a halo effect as they suggest that they attribute responsibility for a much broader scope of barriers to the instructor compared to what they would in a traditional setting. For instance, the organization’s communication infrastructure is generally not under the direct control of the instructor, yet such operability issues as access, network stability, and technical support are an inseparable part of elearning. Thus, often learners do not make as clear a distinction between issues normally under the responsibility of the organization from those under the instructors’ control (Keast, 1997; Moore, 1994). Administrative structure and organizational change are important issues that need to be considered simultaneously. Several of the case studies examined by Cho and Berge (2002) indicate the primary importance of organizational culture or norms, paired with administrative structure, when an organization implements, or plans to implement distance training (Berge, 2001b; Bunn, 2001; Crow & Rariden, 1993; Keast, 1997; Moore, 1997; Olcott & Wright, 1995; Shrivastava & Souder, 1987). Technical infrastructure and technical support are also closely linked with other barriers such as user access, student support, social interaction, and quality of learning. It appears that when there is strong support from upper management, aligned with organizational norms and culture favorable to DE, other barriers will be minimized or reduced in intensity (see Table 5 and Appendix B). CONCLUSIONS Technology is one major factor that is helping to drastically change the world economy. Changes in society and the marketplace demand changes in the workplace that include a shift in the focus of distance training and education from instructing to learning. The need for a flexible, knowledgeable workforce, capable of making many decisions that are consistent with management's objectives is driving a new intensity in the area of talent management. Distance training requires a great deal of organizational support if it is to be moved to center-stage and become part of the profile of the enterprise. This will only occur as a result of a cultural shift from valuing education/training to valuing learning and strategic planning that requires commitment from the top echelon of the organization. To make that kind of investment in time, resources, and effort, there must be mission critical business needs that are being address by distance learning (Kearney & Ottley, 2002). To develop enterprisewide capabilities for sustaining distance training and education, it takes continuous effort to link project management, pro- 8 Distance Learning Volume 4, Issue 4
Page 2 and 3: DISTANCE LEARNING FEATURED ARTICLES
Page 4 and 5: DISTANCE LEARNING MAGAZINE SPONSORE
Page 6 and 7: SPOTLIGHT ARTICLE Barriers and the
Page 8 and 9: THE EMERGENCE OF A NEW ECONOMY A de
Page 10 and 11: Table 4. Rank Order of the 10 Facto
Page 14 and 15: Table 5. Solutions to Barriers to D
Page 16 and 17: Table 5. Continued Social Interacti
Page 18 and 19: management. In L. Lau (Ed.) Distanc
Page 20 and 21: compensation, incentives and releas
Page 22 and 23: Pedagogy --Course Development --Cou
Page 24 and 25: Quality in Distance Education A Tri
Page 26 and 27: ability to understand and apply tec
Page 28 and 29: CONSTITUENCIES IN DISTANCE EDUCATIO
Page 30 and 31: control and responsibility for the
Page 32 and 33: Kirtley, K. E. (2002). A study of s
Page 34 and 35: Distance Education in the Public Hi
Page 36 and 37: distance education courses and Inte
Page 38 and 39: need, in a distance education class
Page 40 and 41: Using IT-Based Distance Education f
Page 42 and 43: to participate and share and exchan
Page 44 and 45: to a teacher and get to get filled
Page 46 and 47: Online High School Courses Preventi
Page 48 and 49: students. Fourth, a program that in
Page 50 and 51: independently (November, 2001). Thi
Page 52 and 53: tion. Both classes had a 100% compl
Page 54 and 55: that allow instructors and students
Page 56 and 57: own graduate experience as being fa
Page 58 and 59: tional delivery. The knowledge that
Page 60 and 61: APPENDIX B: WIMBA LIVE CLASSROOM IN
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Access to College for Nontraditiona
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coast through by quietly sitting in
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institutions. According to Shanika,
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Distance Education at the Universit
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Figure 1. UF/IFAS IT’s relationsh
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Figure 2. IFAS 2005-06 operating bu
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ida Division of Continuing Educatio
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Institute of Food and Agricultural
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Learning Objects What Are They, and
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Table 1. Goals of Learning Object D
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easoning as to how they are built,
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INTERVIEW The Perils and Promise of
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4. Limiting the enrollment in dista
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esponsibility to make sure that thi
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ence since it did not figure in the
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INTERVIEW Here Come the Marines! An
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demonstrate, within a set of proced
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and this is significant, the Corps
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Ends and Means Developing a Digital
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artifacts one wants to include in t
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New Media, New Learning School for
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And Finally … continued from page
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United States Distance Learning Association

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