eCom's new blog!

We are currently in the process of redesigning our blog.

In the meantime, we have given you a sneak preview of our  new design.

We hope to have this up and running very soon.

The eCom Office & helpdesk will be closed from:

Wednesday 23rd December at 12 noon

until

Thursday 7th January 2010 at 9am

If you have an urgent enquiry please contact: urgent@ecomscotland.com

eCom Scotland would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

After all the planning and preparations it is really good to finally be here in Berlin for Online Educa 2009!

The hotel we are staying in is fabulous!  http://www.pullmanhotels.com/gb/hotel-5347-pullman-berlin-schweizerhof/index.shtml  We are staying in the Spa wing, with two lifts and a breadcrumb trail to find the massive suite rooms, and the food is just wonderful.  Not great for the diet but what the heck.  

The conference is being held in the Hotel Inter Continental just over the road from us, with a German Christmas market outside and the Berlin Zoo just up the road.  We will post pictures soon of the surrounds.  The weather is pretty mild at the moment, so we hope to venture out and about later on today.

Today (Wednesday) is the pre-conference day at Online Educa, although we have still been really busy, and the Scottish Home-Made tablet has gone down very well, especially with the ex-pats.  A virtual taste of Scotland!

Thursday & Friday are the main days and we have a full itinerary with the main highlight being Linda’s presentation on Virtual Classrooms and their role in the future of eLearning Environments.  Oh and Robert in his kilt! 

Visit our stand at Online Educa, Berlin C118 for a Virtual Taste of Scotland and find out more about Virtual Learing.

Only downside:  8 Euros for a cup of tea in the exhibition hotel!!  I will be bringing my flask…..

Virtual Learning is the key to cutting training costs within Organisations

With the rise of flexible working and the general aim to cut travel and environmental costs, Virtual Learning has emerged as an excellent method of reaching learners and improving employee productivity within Organisations. 

No matter how good the eLearning is, or how easy the system is to use online learners can’t help losing focus, checking email, twittering, texting, or heading onto Facebook.

Virtual Learning creates a lively, hassle-free, blended learning environment ensuring the learners are engaging and maximizing the effectiveness of learning.

In response to this eCom Scotland have launched eNetVROOM™, Virtual Classrooms which offer an enhanced online learning experience for your learners.  Learning through Virtual Classrooms delivers the same content as the classroom, with presenter-led, real time information ensuring a high level of communication regardless of the geographical distribution of the learners. 

eNetVROOM™ is embedded in eNetLearn™, eCom Scotland’s Learning Management System which offers a fully integrated environment for easy maintenance of users and learning content, 24/7 availability, reporting features and creative environments to allow your learners to work collaboratively.

The Virtual Classrooms can be set up to contain Video Clips, Webinars of Keynote Speakers, Online Learner Discussions, Workshops (With Guidance Notes), Communities of Practice, eMentoring and Virtual Business Meetings.

 eCom Scotland will be presenting eNetVROOM™ live at Online Educa, Berlin 2009

 For more information on eCom Scotland please visit www.ecomscotland.com

Web & Multimedia Designer Required within eCom Scotland (Dunfermline) to cover Maternity leave

To create design approaches and e-learning content for a wide range of eCom Scotland projects, delivering to eCom Scotland’s quality standards, and ensuring design and content meets client and project objectives.

Experience in an e-learning or web design position; Capable of taking initiative; Strong communication skills; Strong IT capabilities in range of MS Office applications (PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Fireworks, Photoshop, Illustrator), comfortable learning new applications including e-learning authoring tools and graphics application packages

Experience designing websites and have an in-depth practical knowledge of HTML, CSS and web accessibility as well as a good knowledge of cross browser and platform issues.

Go to: http://www.elearningalliance.org/content.asp?ArticleCode=5805 for more details

Contact wendy.edie@ecomscotland.com with CV and cover letter if you are interested.

eCom Scotland is delighted to support The British Institute for Learning & Development by presenting at the forthcoming BILD Connect Event.

The event will run from 1030 -1530 with networking, coffee and lunch.

Date:  15th October 2009
Theme: Maximising the use of technology in learning to achieve ROI
Venue: EPICT, Hillington Business Park, Glasgow

eCom Scotland’s, Learning Team will present a session titled “Maximising learning outcome through Online Collaboration”.

For more information please visit:

http://www.thebild.org/Events/PLMVGO/FTYHZE

eCom Scotland Ltd is delighted to be exhibiting at Online Educa Berlin from 2nd-4th December 2009.

ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN, the largest global e-learning conference for the corporate, education and public service sectors, is the key annual networking event for the international e-learning and technology-supported learning and training industry, attracting and bringing together experts in the vanguard of technology-enhanced learning from around the world.

Over 2000 delegates from more than 90 countries and every continent attend the conference to discuss the latest developments in the field.

For further information about the conference, please visit http://www.online-educa.com

I think we are only now getting over the trauma that was the Wildhearts Wolftrek!

Over the weekend of August 8th & 9th we joined over 300 other hardy/crazy adventurers and took to the wilds to complete the WildHearts WolfTrek, an epic outdoor challenge taking place across 45 miles of Highland wilderness, from Forres on the magical Moray Firth Coast all the way to monstrous Cairngorm Mountain.

The 45-mile hike took us through a route packed with diverse terrain, landscapes and wildlife, with the stunning scenery helping to keep us inspired and energised. The trek kicked off at the historic Dallas Dhu Distillery, Forres, at 4pm where we then ventured through spectacular Highland countryside, including ancient pine forest, sparkling lochs and breath-taking mountain passes. We then passed through the eerie and remote Dava Moor overnight, (which is the bit that still haunts me!) passing by the ruined castle of the medieval tyrant the Wolf of Badenoch, who lends his name to the event. We didn’t see the Badenoch ghost but we did see a magical shooting star.

Finally, and with only 2 members out of our original 6 still on their feet, tackled the twisting trail up Cairngorm Mountain to recover from their efforts with a thoroughly deserved celebration. Well Done Taha & Basil for completing the entire 45 miles!

The final tally was:

Charles Doherty
17 Miles: 6 Hours – brilliant effort with a dodgy knee

Tracey McDonald
20 Miles: 7 Hours again another outstanding effort as Tracey was 3 months pregnant

Robert Craig & Wendy Edie
32 Miles: 12 Hours (Both walking rather strangely by that point)

Basil & Taha Khan
The full 45 Miles in 17 Hours! Fantastic effort and I am sure it was a little bit of sibling rivalry that kept them going until the end.

A big thank you to Chris Etchells & James Wilson for providing support through the whole trip. The breakfast BBQ was the best!

And an even bigger thanks goes to all who sponsored us for this event. We have currently raised over £400.

Many thanks

eCom All Stars at Cairngorms looking weary:  (check out the Flickr for more photos)

We recently went through the minefield that is recruiting a sales person. Whether you are using a recruitment company or not, this is a high risk situation for any company as a sales person is an extension of the Company. We looked for someone who would represent our Company’s attributes and abilities when calling on clients or networking, we didn’t want pushy, annoying or technically unaware to be the lasting memory of the potential client.

We advertised in all the right places, and received too many CV’s from out and out sales people; people who tell me they could sell their Granny (A Scottish Term), given half a chance.  As I say, that is not what we are looking for. But it seems that what we are looking for is a difficult mix of talents.

In the past we have tried hiring people with good sales technique and morals with ‘some technical abilities’. The intention is to train them on all technical aspects of eLearning Development. But they just don’t last the pace. On two occasions individuals have left after 3 months, saying it is just too hard to transfer!

We have tried hiring eLearning professionals who already have the technical capability we are looking for, but then we then find their focus is on projects, and not new business; Networking and closing deals being low on their agenda. One bonus is that we have some amazing project managers on the team.

One rose amongst the thorns is Robert Craig. Robert (@robertcraigecom) joined us from one of our partners, QuestionMark. He came on board with the knowledge of the eLearning & eAssessment market, and all the technical ability we require. He also has no hesitation heading out to clients, networking and generally pushing the new business forward. Where can we get another Robert, Is cloning the only answer?

What has been your worst interviewee?

Ours:

We had one person come to an interview, when we asked them if they had the day off for the interview, they said that they had told their current employer that they had family troubles and wouldn’t be in that day. The interview might as well of ended then, as there was no way we would be hiring them. Tip: Take the day off as a holiday or take a long lunch if you are going to an interview.

Edinburgh Telford College in Edinburgh has launched a new website www.ed-coll.ac.uk, developed by eCom Scotland.

Over the last four months, eCom has been working with the College to create the new site which will include new features including an interactive flip book e-prospectus, an improved online applications forum system and a film and image gallery.

Feedback from students and staff was used to re-design the site to develop a more user friendly and informative site.

The film gallery features a still image of one of the college films when clicked takes the user to the college film and image gallery.

Other features include and e-prospectus, a contact form and a course search function.

The college has also created a presence on Facebook and Bebo which used to promote the new site as it looks to continue development to improve its online application process.

Paul Berryman, digital marketing executive at Edinburgh’s Telford College said; “The new Telford College website has a fresher, more contemporary look and feel. It’s consistent with our brand image and we hope visitors will find it a lot easier to navigate for the information they are looking for.”

Berryman continued: “We will be continuously updating and improving our website with new features to encourage visitors to engage and interact with it with ease, while keeping visitors informed on all the latest news and events from the College.”