DDI's Online Coach Always has Time for Employees; Companies Like BellSouth are Moving Their Employee Classrooms Into Cyberspace

Business Wire, Sept 15, 2000

OPAL 3.0 leverages a company's training and development investment by reinforcing training and providing a learning tool to spur further development. Using OPAL 3.0 online also adds value to an organization's Internet connection. Finally, because OPAL 3.0 is customizable by DDI or the client, it can provide maximum value and efficiency at the lowest cost.

The Magic is in the Mix

In today's world of intense competition and supersonic technological change, it is a given that companies must provide the most up-to-date training to make sure their workforces keep their competitive edge. However, those companies that mix online training with existing methods such as classroom instruction, simulations and printed manuals get the best results.

"The key to successful training is using the right medium for each unique situation," Weaver said. "In some cases OPAL 3.0 might be the best method, especially where there's an immediate need for an employee to face a crucial situation or acquire a specific skill. OPAL 3.0 can also be an effective alternative where distances or costs make classroom training difficult. In other cases, OPAL 3.0 can help an employee reinforce or develop skills learned in a classroom or from a manual."

BellSouth

BellSouth Corporation in Atlanta uses OPAL to improve its managers' skills and effectiveness. Before OPAL, managers complained that it was impossible to get classroom training in the multitude of situations that could arise, many of them with little or no warning. BellSouth chose OPAL because it provided specific steps and examples that clearly showed employees how to do their jobs better right away.

"OPAL has been very effective for us," said Eileen Meyer, management program director at BellSouth. "In a recent example, our managers reported that just one aspect of OPAL, a meeting planning function, helped cut the average time of meetings in half. That made OPAL a winner for us right there."

Moreover, BellSouth concluded that OPAL was a key to employee satisfaction by helping employees grow and develop their careers. Even though the number of OPAL users at BellSouth has remained constant, the number of times these individuals have used OPAL has doubled. "Today training and employee development have become crucial needs," Weaver said. "We are proud to offer OPAL 3.0 to make online learning easier and more effective than ever."

Available for interviews about OPAL 3.0:

Pete Weaver, senior vice president and chief technology officer at DDI

ABOUT DDI

For more than 30 years, Development Dimensions International (DDI) has helped many of the world's leading organizations hire, develop and retain the best people by specializing in:

-- Leadership development through succession management,

assessment and training.

-- Competency-based recruitment and selection systems that

identify people with the right skills and motivations --

people who can grow, learn and succeed with the organization

over the long term.

DDI leads its industry in the creation of Web-based training and hiring tools. It has worked with thousands of organizations around the world and with clients from nearly every industry including manufacturing, telecommunications and health care. To assure clients' global capabilities, the company operates more than 70 offices and affiliates worldwide.