Fairytale from the Future: Facial Recognition

For most organizations, the ‘new normal’ is synonymous to ‘remote working.’ Remote working also means remote learning and upskilling being the need of the hour, learning is a vigorous process with us all. But what happens to assessment? Remote assessment is not something we are used to yet. Though there are some instances of remote assessment practices, but they are not fool proof thus not good enough for desperate time like these.

Traditionally, the authentication of the person appearing for the remote assessment was being done through designated username and password, and also two-factor authentication but there’s a loophole. It does not have proof of authentication. Thus, to ensure secured proctoring of these assessments, GCube proposes Facial Recognition, and we implore you that you hear us out as we shall be surely answering all the questions of high cost and accuracy issue.  

As a client posed the problem, we got into action to research the challenge and that is how we arrived at the facial recognition solution to make proctored assessment process seamless and efficient with practically zero imprecision. However, like with technology, facial recognition has been presented with challenges in its capacity but, GCube’s LMS has countered and resolved most of the following challenges by integrating a robust system.

High costs involved in facial recognition: Facial recognition involves continuous clicking and matching of the images with the ones in the database. Every passing second involves 24 frames, so a session of 30 minutes will increase the cost manifold. GCube’s solution counters these exorbitant costs by clicking the pictures of the learner at irregular intervals (which cannot be predicted by the learner) and matching it with the database. In addition, the FR now is offered as a service by providers like AWS and Google Vision so there’s no need to build a separate infrastructure. This way the costs are greatly controlled without affecting training and assessment.

Improved accuracy: Another challenge that used to come in the way of using facial recognition is accuracy. As the current facial recognition systems are trained on larger data the accuracy levels have increased following the very basic principle of machine learning. Of course, add to this the availability of high-end camera equipment at reasonable pricing which has improved the FR technology by many folds.

Privacy – the bone of contention in the field of FR:  For a long time, facial recognition has dealt with the issue of privacy. This has however been solved in the GCube facial recognition suite by matching with the reference image and erasing the rest of the captured data except in case of a discrepancy. In case of any discrepancy below the mismatch threshold of 70% between the uploaded photograph and the snapshot, the following error messages, dependent on the upload will be registered:

·             MF – Multiple Faces Detected

·             OF – One Face Detected

·             NF – No Face Detected

The snapshots which do not cross the mismatch threshold are stored for the proctor or mentor for their approval along with the original photographs the learners have uploaded. The proctor or the mentor can then access the report workflow and deal with them accordingly.

Thus, we have now made Facial Recognition an accessible technology and not a fairytale from the future.  

With over 100 industry awards in learning technologies, G-Cube would love to share more information with you about our facial recognition solution engineered specifically for the learning industry. Please do write to us here.

Making Pharma LMS GxP Compliant

 

A regular admission of our Pharma Solutions team is that they get requests from clients for an LMS which complies with GxP requirement. And it is interesting to see that even with such a large demand base, there are few products that are customized to their needs. While the need is such, traditionally the LMS and the DMS/QMS are maintained separately and the perennial client complain remains that this leads to higher overheads and vulnerabilities in compliance monitoring.

From our exploration as an LMS provider trying to figure out the optimal solution for GxP in training systems, the challenges identified were as follows:

• System maintenance, risk analysis and record keeping
• Regular system checks and a plan for business continuity
• Information security guidelines being followed based on rules of the country of operation
  
  

Based on the same we have a list of recommendations for your Pharma LMS to ensure long term GxP compliance.

System Qualification for IQ, OQ and PQ validation

For a manufacturing unit to claim to be compliant to GxP, one has to have the information of IQ, OQ and PQ and the concurrent validation available for the LMS. and creating a system qualification of the software becomes an important step to ensuring future GxP compliance.

Service Patch Records and Risk Analysis

Like any software, your LMS has to be updated regularly. However, to remain compliant, it is important that records of all service patches and risk mitigation steps are recorded on the LMS to show to Auditors that all possible steps have been taken to avoid major incidents.

System Checks and Business Continuity Planning

The LMS should come with a process for regular checking of the system. It is also required to have alternate documentation available in case of a single point or multiple point failure of BCP.  It is always advisable to store SOP and Quality guidelines in a backed-up server or the Cloud to remove on-premise vulnerabilities to knowledge or break in process. This storage also needs to come with the highest levels of security but should be accessible so work can continue at other facilities in case of one facility being affected by any major incident whether man-made or a natural disaster. There are many different options to select from including but not limited to AWS and Azure. Auditors love a good Business Continuity Plan that is secure and scalable.

Information Security Guidelines

The regulatory bodies are very particular about Pharma companies demonstrating that the InfoSec guidelines related to the country or region. While choosing an LMS it is important to acquire one that has ready documentation available to avoid any kind of non-compliance incidents been reported during a GxP audit.

While these are standard procedures required for the pharma industry, clients face major time loss trying to get these customizations done to their LMS. We suggest being proactive while looking for an LMS, rather than reacting after getting one.   

At GCube, we have 20 years of experience and 80+ industry awards in learning technologies. To know more about products and services, please do write to us. 

Automotive Industry Update: Learning Management Systems Should Be Industry Focused

Hiring an electrician to do a plumber’s job, could lead to someone or something getting zapped. Similarly using a corporate learning management system (LMS) to deliver training to the personnel at your auto dealerships can bring about dissatisfactory results.

To understand the learning needs at an automotive dealership, we looked at the variables that make our auto industry clients’ dealerships unique.

1. Diverse and non-homogenous skills and education of the work force
2. Unrelated departmental goals at first glance
3. Skewed trainer to dealership ratio
4. Lack of structured training before shop floor exposure
5. Unavailability of logical linking of training and performance

Our study suggests that for automotive dealerships the choice of LMS needs to be industry specific in order to overcome these issues. The following key features are what sets the Auto specific LMS apart from the rest of the lot. Read on.

On the job training and evaluation

At most dealerships, a new hire goes from completing their joining formalities to the shop floor directly. Under these circumstances where there is no formal training, it is important to have an LMS which has inbuilt forms, checklists, and tools. This helps mentors or seniors to keep track of everything they need to share with a trainee, and to evaluate a trainee’s performance while on-the-job.

Predictive analysis of individual’s performance to annual sales trends

Almost every role, whether customer facing or not, has an impact on the brand and reputation of a dealership, which ultimately impacts the annual sales trends. Therefore, an LMS which connects trainings attended to performance in their job roles, and then extrapolates that to find trends impacting sales, gives the leadership a way to predict training needs.

Simple user interface for diverse workforce

There cannot be different learning management systems for different departments at a dealership. Therefore, the LMS of choice must have an interface that is easy to use by an undergraduate mechanic with 20 years of on-job experience with automobile engines. With smartphones and tablets, it has become extremely easy to get a knowledge device into the hands of the employees, but the delivery of knowledge must be easy to handle and understand.

Sales and service enablement tools

Customers want great service and at a price point that makes sense to them. Whether the customer is purchasing a new vehicle, exchanging an older model, or getting one serviced, the employees talking to the customers should have knowledge, expertise, and customer service skills. Some things can be imbibed through training, but some things like market prices, loan rates, parts availability, etc. needs a ready interface that provides this information to the employee. An LMS that gives the flexibility to set up chat-bots, comparison charts, and calculators to enable point-of-sale assist is a blessing.

Integration with management systems

Integration with the CRM or dealership management system allows the LMS to fetch performance data and link it to the trainings attended or available. This also creates a visual chart or dashboard to be available to view and manage the extended workforce.

Optimum training resource utilization

When the ratio of trainer and dealerships is not optimal, the trainer has to travel extensively. Having an LMS that can track trainer calendars for availability and scheduling, and other resources such as room availability really helps. The LMS should also have an OTP feature for when the trainer starts a training. It should be able to capture attendance via an app and should also be able to deliver proctored assessments. If the LMS can provide all these insights, then it becomes easy for leadership to track the cost-benefit ratio of this method of training delivery.

In an industry that is in a constant state of flux, being able to empower and enable all the personnel at a dealership to put their best foot forward is essential. The right learning management system can help provide stability to employees and prepare them for handling the changes the future may bring.

We at GCube, have 20 years of experience and 80+ industry awards in learning technologies; and would love to hear your thoughts, queries, and suggestions. Please do write to us.

How to Successfully Onboard New Employees Even During Shutdown

This article articulates the importance of incorporating a robust Learning Management System (LMS) for onboarding new employees amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Using an LMS for onboarding purposes, can maximize efficiency in introducing new recruits to your corporate culture, accelerate job satisfaction, productivity and inoculate against turnover.

With forced quarantine being deployed by governments around the world to control the Coronavirus pandemic, companies have implemented work from home strategy to ensure welfare of its employees. However, a decrease in productivity, employee engagement, and a constant effort to bridge the communication gap, is a genuine concern of working remotely. One of the key concerns is – how to ensure successful onboarding process of new employees, while the workforce operates from home. Since onboarding is a reception phase of an employee who joins the organization, it becomes crucial for any organization to ensure and retain employee loyalty, maximize productive, and minimize turnover rate. For this reason alone, organizations are now deploying modern Learning Management Systems to bolster positive employee experience via virtual onboarding process. 

Understanding Virtual Onboarding

Brookshire’s Grocery Company, which has been awarded, “America’s Best-In-State Employer for Texas, 2019”, by Forbes, achieved 100% acceptance rate by more than 9,000 employees who underwent virtual onboarding and training, using a robust learning management system. Work from home based scenario shouldn’t and mustn’t inhibit employers from providing the best onboarding experience to new employees. Using a learning management system (LMS) for onboarding purpose can maximize efficiency in introducing new recruits to your corporate culture, accelerate job satisfaction, productivity, and inoculate against turnover. 

                              Source: Onboarding New Employees: Maximizing Success, Talya N. Bauer,2010

Benefits of Using a Robust LMS for Onboarding of New Employees Amid the Pandemic

1. Create a productive corporate culture with amalgamated learning material - With LMS, your HR team has strong control over the message that the organization would like to deliver to the recruits, during an introductory virtual orientation. Whether it is a mandatory compliance training, company’s value-mission-culture learning session, or a general view of its products and services courses, LMS helps in instilling an organization’s core values and goals among new employees, even as they work from home. In a nutshell, LMS helps an employer by converting manual process into a digital format and automate routines, saving money and man-hours.

2. Track and evaluate the learning curve of each employee - LMS can help employers to track the onboarding progress of each employee, with auto-generated reports and advanced analytics, without having to prepare, manage and transcribe to paper forms. By analyzing the assessments, employers can take corrective measures to help new recruits to retain knowledge, by aligning the right onboarding course with their learning needs; all while working from home.

3. Cost-effective technique -A Learning Management System meticulously organizes the onboarding information in an interactive and engaging way, so that it is successfully acquired and retained by the employees. Since its online, it saves the cost of organizing the training session (physical set-up), content creation, and, most important, the logistics of it. In short, you save big, as you onboard and welcome new recruits, while working from home.

4. Ease of use – LMS is an interactive device-based and web-based application that is compatible with an array of mobile devices, tablets, laptops, etc., most suitable for ‘on-the-go’ learners. This essentially means that content or learning modules are presented visually and can be accessed from anywhere and at any time, making it high on accessibility rate. The content for training can be delivered virtually, but in real-time, as per the needs of the organization. Learners also have easy access to notification dashboards. The best part is – user can access the learning material on their smartphones, in both online and offline mode.

GCube Learning Management System

GCube LMS is the proprietary learning management system that supports powerful authoring tools to create interactive content and deliver the relevant knowledge to achieve organizational success. The system’s unique approach to GUI brings information to the fore that helps employees utilize the system faster, and provides measurable ROI through stringent analytics. It is SCORM and Tin Can complain, with customizable and multi-lingual support to cater to the learning needs of your diverse ethnic workforce. To know more, you can write to info@gc-solutions.net.

UI and UX in Modern LMS Systems

Significant Role of New-age UI and Seamless UX in Modern LMS Systems

The significance of modern Learning Management Systems (LMSs) is continuously evolving for corporate training. With the shifting focus towards technology-aided learning, the scope of using the new-age LMS systems with an intuitive user interface (UI) is also increasing. The responsively-designed UI with icons, menus, search bars, and buttons ensure training delivery as per the personalized needs and styles. Also, user experience (UX) is another aspect to measure the usability and efficiency of an LMS. So, organizations deploy modern training platforms with interactive UI to deliver personalized learning for all.

The best learning management systems support easy navigation and interactive UI to attain success. The UI and UX of LMS systems play a significant role in deciding how learners interact with the platform. A poor UI with an outdated design lacks visual appeal. Also, a poor UX with too many clicks make the system complex and less engaging. As per the survey by Brandon Hall, 50.6% of organizations consider a bad UI/UX as an obstacle between learning and training goals. There are different factors which reflect the importance of good UI/UX to facilitate the learning experience. These include:

• The new-age learners prefer training, which is performance-driven and ROI-aligned. They access relevant training content to fulfill their pertinent needs to bridge skills-gaps, boost engagement, and workplace efficiency. A good UX in modern LMS ensures that the least number of clicks are required to perform a task such as assigning courses. Consequently, this boosts the overall levels of engagement and retention for seamless user experience.

• Modern corporates depend on powerful learning management platforms to measure and track learners’ performance. They deploy robust LMS systems to automatically assign e-learning courses as per the pertinent needs, styles, KRAs, skills, and learning habits. An exceptional UX enables organizations to align the right kind of learning to different training goals- compliance, sales, onboarding, and more.

• The mobile LMSs support a clutter-free UI and seamless UX. Due to the reduced screen size and need to learn at the point of need, the LMS needs to support advanced UI features. These include a touch screen, facial recognition, eye tracking, are 3D touch are vital factors responsible for improving the overall training experience.

A custom UI and seamless UX create some sense of familiarity among users with modern LMS systems. Furthermore, learners who access courses via an LMS are more likely to engage more, retain for long, and perform better at the workplace. Choosing the best training platform with an intuitive UI/UX is the most crucial decision for organizations. So, based on factors like visually-appealing UI and functional UX, organizations address personalized training needs and foster continuous learning & development.