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Posts Tagged ‘learning management system’

The bad old days of complex, almost incomprehensible business systems are definitely on the way out. New system designs and much better integration are in. The entire theory of business systems has been reinvented as a much more efficient, far more flexible paradigm. Read the rest of this entry »

Owning your own business is a very exciting step to take in life, with a lot of rewards along the way. However there are also many risks that come with owning a business, or even with running someone else’s business from the top position.

Of course, the obvious risks that come to mind are generally financial, such as going into liquidation or bankruptcy. Some of these financial problems can even become a personal problem, for example if you are served with a Director Penalty Notice.

But these days there are also other risks and problems you will face that you need to consider. Some of them may feel like a smaller part of your day-to-day business dealings, but they are all very important.

All companies need to do a risk assessment of their own business. As some industries are exposed to different risks than others you will need to analyse the potential threats specific to your industry and company. You need to keep in mind that there are also risks that are outside of your company that you need to be prepared for, such as interest rate rises or natural disasters.

As a company, you will need to learn to anticipate and respond to threats, and adapt to changes as part of your risk management process.

Below, we take a look at just some of the concerns that face business owners today:

Managing Talent

What is a business without talent? You not only need staff to keep the company running, but you need good staff to keep it successful.

We are in a time where companies are now facing the prospect of the baby boomer generation leaving the workforce. This is a blow to many businesses as the training and knowledge these skilled workers possess is hard to replace.

The impact is, many companies are now looking for new talent and they need to find them before competitors do. Once they have them, they will need to put into place a great learning management system to not only train the employees but to retain them.

Emerging Markets

Emerging markets can actually be a huge positive to many companies. If you are in a position to move into these new markets early on, you can dominate this new area and become very successful. But of course the flipside to this is that if you are not in a position to have presence in an emerging market, you will likely see your competitors go in and gain the edge instead. As emerging economies are dominating global growth, while developed countries are suffering economical crisis, you can see why it is such an important strategic move for companies to be able to move into the emerging markets.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Today there is a huge focus on corporate social responsibility from consumers. And thanks to new media such as social media, consumers have more voice than ever before.

A huge part of the social responsibility lies within environmental issues and being green. Companies are now under the spotlight as their impact on the environment has come to the forefront of the public mind.

Businesses are facing threat to their reputations and so they need to be careful to maintain – or in some cases rebuild – the trust of the public. Part of this reputation management is to listen to the public and to respond to them, not sweep their viewpoints under the carpet.

Many companies also need to make some long-term changes to how the business is actually run, the supplies they use and how they dispose of waste. Of course, this means there is a financial impact on the businesses as they make this transition.

Discusses the importance of OHS training and its applications .

Every experienced manager, supervisor and staff member knows how important OHS training can be. It’s critical in emergencies, and it’s good workplace business practice. Knowing the OHS reporting requirements and even just understanding the issues can make a big difference between a safe workplace and a risk management horror story. Many businesses operate a special OHS management system to ensure best practice and make sure that workplace safety is under full control.

OHS training overview

The basic levels of OHS training are:

• OHS training at induction level- Core OHS practices and orientation

• Risk management training- This is usually a specialized form of training appropriate to the workplace

• OHS delegated officer training- For people delegated to OHS roles in the organization. This includes further training in reporting and documentation of OHS issues and incidents.

Apart from the mandatory OHS training at induction level, these are needs- based training programs. This training is best conducted using a dedicated learning management system which carries out structured training and develops and implements schedules of required training for staff. For OHS training, these systems are ideal. They can be structured for both basic OHS and advanced risk management training like managing an offsite backup service for system crashes or actual risk management courses in legal liability training and related asset management.

OHS compliance training and learning management systems

In many organizations the OHS management system is part of broad based compliance management systems used to ensure statutory compliance and best business practices. Training is conducted within a learning management system, which is a dedicated training management function. OHS compliance is actually a specialized area for many businesses. The OHS issues for businesses can be extremely variable and may require specialist training in areas like hazardous materials, electrical safety, or other industry-specific matters.

In major industries employing large numbers of staff and contractors or staff in remote locations, the learning management systems are invaluable. These systems are designed to manage training efficiently, and can be adapted to any workplace situation. For contractor management, for example, where employers are both obliged to provide OHS training to contractors as well as enforce OHS compliance, OHS compliance training can be delivered on a “customized” basis, dealing with all the issues related to the work on site, site safety, required work practices, risk management and public safety.

Productivity and OHS training management

It’s rarely mentioned that OHS work practices are in fact best practices for any workplace. “Safety” translates directly into practical risk management on the job. It also ensures that hazards like faulty equipment, dangerous wiring, unsafe surfaces and other potentially major liabilities are dealt with promptly and effectively.

This training also saves lives and avoids the kinds of incidents which can wreck lives. Until comparatively recently, about 30 years ago, the workplace was one of the most dangerous places on Earth. Only actual war zones and traffic accidents caused more casualties. Productivity in the workplace can be measured in safety as much as in dollars.