Recently I have been spending time with some of our education clients providing training on Moodle.
If you have never heard of Moodle - (and most of you wouldn’t) Moodle stands for Modular Object Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment (what?!) and is an e-learning software that is typically used to create modular internet based courses. Moodle is open source software which means it is FREE and has long been the darling of the education sector as it comes with powerful collaboration features and helps relieve teacher workload by allowing its users to pool resources, set assignments and automate the marking process.
It is not often that the education sector has something to teach the commercial world but this lesson is one that I believe the business world would be wise to pay attention to.
Here are some of the features of Moodle and I have explained how the business world can take advantage of them.
Powerful Collaboration Tools
There are so many colaboration tools within Moodle that will help businesses become more productive. Tools such as Discussion Forums, Wikis, Databases, Glossary, Shared Calendars, Blogs etc. My favourite is the messaging tool – which is a kind of chat room. This would work exceptionally well in the business context as it would allow users to exchange instant messages with colleagues in different departments, different sites or even different regions. It is also a great way to keep in touch with clients. Think about the money you will save and much more it is FREE!
Pooling Resources
One of the advantages of using Moodle is that it allows users to Pool Resources in one central location. I remember a conversation I had with a client – a solicitor at a local practice based in Birmingham. He relayed a story about how once just before a major case, he had forgotten important information that would form the basis of his legal argument. Normally he would have simply asked his PA to fax across the copy of the document, however his PA was absent due to a family bereavement and trying to explain where the files could be to another colleague was proving fruitless. Imagine if they had Moodle in place. Not only would he have been able to access the files himself (you can access Moodle where ever you are as far as you have an internet connection), finding the file would have been much more easier using Moodle’s search functionality! If this idea is making you think “intranet” then you would be thinking on the right lines! Moodle works exceptionally well when used as a company’s intranet and did I mention it was FREE?! (well every little helps..)
Moodle for Training and Staff Development
Teachers love Moodle because it helps them automate the marking process. They can set tests and homework online. Students can enrol for the tests / homework and the results are instantly sent to the teachers. Moodle also allows teachers to create courses online for their students which means they can learn in their own time.
Why not do the same? Times are hard and with budgets ever decreasing, this may mean that the kitty for training is limited. So think outside the box! The internet (God bless Google) is full of free resources that you can utilise to train your team. Let’s say for example you wanted to create a course teaching users how to use Excel. Using the internet you can find videos, instruction manuals, cheat sheets etc that you include as part of your course. Your users will simply follow the instructions contained within the course, watch the videos, take the relevant tests that you set and hey presto! They are experts! Check out this site for an example of a “course” in action. You may need to log in before you can access the course. For user name type in manager and the password is demo.
Thats enough mutterings from me today! Give me a call if you want to discuss further how Moodle can help your business on 0121 309 0060 or email me angela@supremesystems.co.uk. You can also visit Moodle’s Site for more information. If it is IT Support you need – give me a shout too! 
It’s now 7.50pm and I have front row tickets for the X Factor( front row being the settee in my front room). I hope you have a great week ahead. Next week I will be extolling the virtues of VOIP (those of you who have outrageously high phone bills will love this post – Using VOIP can help you reduce your phonebill by atleast 40%!)
Ciao!
