A COURSE NARRATIVE THAT WAEVES TOGETHER EMOTION AND LOGIC, CRAFTED THROUGH RESEARCH AND A STRONG UNDERSTANDING OF BUSINESS NEEDS

CUSTOMER PROFILE

CEAT is a flagship company of an esteemed Indian business house, the RP Goenka Group. The RPG Group is just over 200 years old and is synonymous with quality as well as integrity. CEAT is itself a leading manufacturer in the tyre segment, with a presence in over 100 countries.

THE REQUIREMENT

For people to work together effectively, they need to share a common understanding of the company’s purpose and values. Poised for a growth spurt, CEAT saw this as more than a theoretical exercise and wanted all managers to be clear about this messaging.

THE SOLUTION

Learnnovators framed the primary impact that the training should have, and independently conducted deep research to understand the corporate values, the ‘essence’ or spirit of the company and the kind of activities it had undertaken which exemplified these aspects.

Research-Driven Ideation

We came to the design needs discussion after doing our homework about the background and history of the company – and with ideas already simmering! Pleased with the calibre of preparation, the client team shared their needs comprehensively, also providing excellent feedback about the ideas they were most interested in pursuing.

The rich and highly collaborative session set the tone for the entire relationship.

Key Details

• The solution was crafted carefully in a tone that would truthfully reflect the company’s personality.
• The required output was in an e-learning format, a crisp module of no more than 30 minutes.
• There was no traditional ‘source’ content document dump. Rather, we used our first-hand experience of getting to know the company to tell the story of the company.
• The Learnnovators team drove content acquisition by sketching out the outline of the module and then interviewing the key stakeholders to develop the initial picture built through research.

Beyond the Spec Sheet

The openness and rapport gave Learnnovators a candid view of the spirit of the company in action. We learned about various initiatives that CEAT has that really manifested the intentions of embracing diversity and focus on social / community welfare.

We identified the unstated intentions that would delight the CEAT team, such as plurality in the visuals used in the training, a certain ‘lightness’ of spirit and the non-stuffy air and simplicity with which everyone carried themselves. We reflected these perceptions through the graphics used, particularly in the animations.

Everyday Relatable Settings, Inclusive Character Representations

An Unusual Learning Goal – Informed Appreciation

We decided that one of the learning outcomes to aim for would be to foster an informed appreciation of the company’s purpose. To this end, we leveraged our ability to research and process academic studies to incorporate content-relevant findings to present to the learner at key moments. While the source of the information was academic, the language used in the course was very conversational and friendly, with even a sprinkling of culturally relevant expressions and fun comparisons!

Easily Understood, Simple Screens Even for Academic Content

Similarly, the course didn’t just provide empty assurances that the company was doing everything in its power to live its purpose. It tapped into the wealth of information available about the company to specify instances and even build an interactive media gallery with carefully curated elements to complement the teaching.

A Reusable, Interactive Corporate Story-telling Artefact

Beyond Tokenism

It is nearly a norm to have videos of top management of large companies incorporated into the training. This screen is at the start or end of the module and the video content tends to be generic.

We knew, on the basis of our initial research, that this was an unusual case. The CEAT leader was far more than a ‘talking head’. Our audience had a much deeper relationship with their MD. We discussed the internal dynamics and culture of the company with our stakeholders and incorporated the MD as a key element in the approach.

His words and voice were used at critical moments of teaching to reinforce the message the company wanted to send. So, the video snippets were woven in throughout the training and actually used as a highly relevant, enriching thread in the course narrative. We also visually treated the video differently, supporting the key points being discussed with accompanying custom illustrations.

Use of Leadership Messaging as Core Approach Element

THE BENEFITS

Research played a critical role in the entire design and development, underpinning everything from the depth of interactions with the client to the media elements chosen and teaching strategies used.

CEAT was delighted with the result as it met all of their stated – and then some unstated! – needs. The course was not ‘just another’ droning training but actually did justice to the company spirit and its aspirations.

It gave learners a rich view of so much at CEAT yet without overwhelming them – a tricky balance to strike with an organisation of such size and scale. The focused ‘key takeaway’ highlights made it very clear what learners had to know. Still, the curriculum also had the richness and depth to cater to what learners might like to know and eventually come back to, in order to explore small chunks over time.

TOOLS / TECHNOLOGIES USED

Articulate Storyline, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe AfterEffects, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere Pro