| Case Studies |
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| GuinnessUDV Ireland |
| | | GuinnessUDV Ireland approached Olas about the ECDL last year. The ECDL programme in GuinnessUDV Ireland was originally run as a pilot scheme. As this was a great success, the programme was then offered to a wider number of employees. People from all parts of the brewery, not just the office based staff, were invited to participate. |
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| Many of the GuinnessUDV Ireland staff had not previously been exposed to computers so it was a big step for them to become involved in this programme. |
| On registration for the programme the employees are issued with an ECDL skills card and an Olas manual. The manual contains detailed course notes on each module plus exercises and sample tests. Olas then provide 1/2 days training for each module of the syllabus. The participants are encouraged to work on their own in preparation for the tests. A workshop is held by Olas prior to each test which provides an opportunity for the participants to talk to the tutor, cover areas of the syllabus they are having problems with, and discuss the test format. |
| As a result of the huge demand in GuinnessUDV Ireland for participation on the ECDL programme, Olas have now taken over the administration as well as the testing and training for the programme. To date, 250 employees have commenced the programme and 80 have received their ECDL certification. |
ECDL Advanced:
There is now an Advanced ECDL accreditation, which the PC training team at Olas are currently preparing to offer to our clients. The ECDL Advanced focuses on accreditation at an advanced level in the most popular areas of spreadsheets and word processing. |
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| Enterprise Ireland |
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| Enterprise Ireland (EI) is a government agency, which works with industry and its partners on enterprise development. There are approximately 1000 employees based throughout Ireland and overseas. The ECDL programme for EI was designed in partnership with Olas. |
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| The organisation became an accredited test centre but all the tests were administered and corrected by Olas. Initially, EI offered the ECDL programme to a pilot group of 25 employees. The participants firstly attended a briefing session by Olas. |
| As EI had already invested heavily in CBT material for PC applications training, it was decided that tutor-led training would only be required for 2 of the ECDL modules (basically the topics not covered in the CBT material). The pilot programme was successful and the commitment of the participants was very high. Their feedback however indicated strongly that tutor-led training was the preferred approach and they recommended that future participants receive training in all the ECDL modules. EI have now offered the programme to all its employees and the programme is being run in phases. Every 3 months a new group (about 80 people) commence the programme. On enrolment the participants attend a briefing session from Olas at which they are given the ECDL pack. |
| This contains: |
 | ECDL Workbook (designed by Olas - Modular Based with notes, exercises and sample tests) |
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| Schedule of Training and Tests |
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| Training/Testing Commitment Sheet |
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| Information Leaflet |
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| Module List |
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| List of "Buddies" |
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| Telephone / Email support from Olas |
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| The buddy system, (which pairs an entrant on the programme with someone who has already completed or has commenced the programme) was suggested by Olas as a way of maximising the effectiveness of the programme. This is an example of how our experience has allowed us to advise clients on value-add aspects of running an ECDL programme. |
| Some of the participants, who have good PC skills already, are still keen to gain the ECDL. They do not require training prior to the tests but are able to prepare for each module using the Olas workbook and the CBT material. Some of the EI employees from regional offices in Ireland have taken their tests at local ECDL test centres. This is an advantage of ECDL being so widely available in Ireland. |
| To date, of the 191 employees who have commenced the programme, 48 have already completed the ECDL and obtained their certification. |
| As a result of EI's investment in the ECDL programme there have been many benefits to the organisation. The employees are obviously improving their technical skills but there have been some softer benefits too. The staff have demonstrated great commitment and enthusiasm for the programme. The ECDL programme has had a positive impact on the integration of staff and getting people to work together. There has been a great response to the participation of management in the programme. Perhaps the least anticipated benefit has been the improved relations between the employees and the IT department, who initiated the programme. |
