Arlington, Va. - October 16, 2006- Plateau Systems, a leading provider of software for developing, managing and optimizing organizational skills and talent, today announced Plateau Blended Learning, a new training delivery model that replicates a classroom experience using interactive virtual learning technology. Plateau Blended Learning expedites the delivery of complex training courses to distributed organizational users to simplify training coordination, minimize job interruption and decrease training expense. The program, announced before more than 300 attendees at the company´s 11th annual user conference being held this week in Orlando, further expands the educational services offered through Plateau Global University.
"We are excited and eager to take advantage of this new program," said John Lewis, eLearning Content Integration Architect at Ahold USA. "Coordinating training for thousands of Ahold administrators and learners across the globe is not only a time consuming and complicated process, it can also be costly. In addition to the obvious cost savings benefits, Plateau Blended Learning will enable us to better accommodate employee schedules and improve our ability to effectively budget and allocate employee time and resources."
Plateau Blended Learning allows customers to access Plateau´s instructor-led application classroom training directly from their desktops, without having to leave the office. This interactive online format provides a dynamic learning experience by combining live, real-time instructor-led training with self-paced instruction and delivering it a virtual environment, allowing students to study, assess, and apply tasks and concepts according to their specific schedules. Replicating a true classroom experience, Plateau Blended Learning also provides 'Office Hours' for off-line discussion with the instructor.
"The logistical complexities and expenses associated with training geographically dispersed customer teams are especially challenging for global enterprise companies," said Shelly Heiden, Executive Vice President for Global Operations. "Plateau Blended Learning´s hybrid approach combines the benefits of classroom-based learning with the convenience of a self-paced delivery model that customers can access directly from their desktops. This program is an attractive alternative to traditional training methods and was designed specifically for enterprise customers looking to maximize employee productivity and expedite training while minimizing employee out-of-office time and decreasing expenses."
Plateau Blended Learning complements Plateau Global University´s current educational programs which include:
- Plateau Classroom Learning
This Informative, interactive, instructor-led course format utilizes multimedia presentations, demonstrations, and hands-on lab sessions. Train-the-trainer classes are also available upon request.
- Plateau On-site Learning
This format, ideal for training entire project team or multiple employees in the same office, brings the same instruction and course materials found in Plateau´s Classroom Learning to the customer´s location.
- Plateau Virtual Learning
This online training option, designed for simple conceptual topics and job tasks, leverages standard Web and phone conferencing tools to present virtual courses over the Web. This format provides ample opportunity for Q&A with a live, online instructor.
- Plateau Self-Paced Learning
This approach allows learners to train at their own pace and ramp up on the job utilizing one or a combination of formats, including: Web-Based Training (WBT), role-based courses that include application demos with some narration; Job Aids, downloadable task-based documents or animated online demos; and Reference Guides, online documents that provide specific, in-depth instructional text and dialog.
- Plateau Implementation Qualification (IQ) Program
This program certifies customers and partners as in-house experts on Plateau applications. After receiving certification, in-house experts can apply their Plateau skills and expertise to extend the strategic value of their system by ensuring tighter alignment with their corporate business objectives.
Plateau Global University is housed within Plateau´s highly regarded Knowledge Services Organization which delivers flexible, interactive online and classroom training options that can be tailored to meet specific organizational needs and requirements. Consulting and Customization services are also available to guide customers through each step of the training lifecycle - from planning training strategy to developing company-specific training materials.
The announcement of Plateau´s new educational offerings follows the company´s debut last week of iContent, a new industry paradigm for managing and delivering talent management content. These announcements, coupled with the introduction of Plateau Business Edition, the only performance management solution to combine performance and learning in a single product, and Gartner´s positioning of Plateau as a leader in its recently published E-Learning Suites Magic Quadrant, further demonstrate Plateau´s ability to innovate and deliver services and solutions for enabling next generation talent management applications.
For more information about Plateau Educational Programs, please visit http://plateau.com/serve/kserve.htm. Information about Plateau iContent can be viewed at http://www.icontentportal.com
About Plateau
Plateau is a leading provider of adaptable Web-based software for developing, managing and optimizing organizational skills and talent to increase workforce productivity and business operations performance. Plateau´s software is being used by some of the world´s largest, most successful enterprises, including the American Red Cross, General Electric, Internal Revenue Service, and Wendy´s International. Industry analysts, including Forrester Research and Bersin & Associates, have rated Plateau a leader in functionality, technology, and customer satisfaction. The company is headquartered in Arlington, Va. For more information, please visit www.plateau.com