Delegates to the European e-learning Summit – held in Sheffield from 17th to 19th November and which coincided with the launch of Learning Light’s third report on the state of the e-learning market in the UK and the rest of Europe – have been commenting on both the Summit and the report.

 

Matthew Lloyd, managing director of the e-learning solutions provider Omniplex, went on record as saying: “Discussing key issues in e-learning – such as the shift from bespoke e-learning content creation to the in-house use of rapid authoring tools; the growth of e-learning for mobile delivery, and the morphing of structured e-learning programmes into less structured electronic performance support – was most stimulating.”

 

Soon afterwards, commenting on the findings of the Learning Light report, Martin Baker, managing director of leadership and management online learning specialists LMMatters, said that e-learning providers need to think creatively about what they are offering.

 

“The UK e-learning industry is predicted to grow – which is great news – but just not at such a fast pace as it has been growing. Against the backdrop of the recession, the challenge for all e-learning providers is to provide more for less. That doesn’t have to mean more software or hardware. Think ‘outside of the box’: knowledge, experience and support, for example, all have value,” he said.

 

”I’ve been in this industry for 16 years and never before have I been involved in discussions about e-learning like those at the Summit,” said Patrick Fitzpatrick, managing director of PTK Learning, who was impressed with the whole event..

 

Comment: Among the Tweets from delegates to the Summit was one saying: ‘Peace has broken out in the e-learning industry’. Perhaps it was the calibre of delegates around the table but they demonstrated a degree of agreement and resolution to concerted action that has not been seen in the industry – to my knowledge – for at least 20 years.

 

A brief summary of the report ‘The UK e-learning market 2010’ is available for download from http://www.e-learningcentre.co.uk/