eLearning For The Media And Entertainment Industry: What Is Required?

eLearning For The Media And Entertainment Industry: What Is Required?
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Summary: On a global scale, the worth of the entertainment and media market is set to rise to 2.14 trillion by 2020. What's worse is that being one of the biggest industries to exist globally, it doesn’t train its employees properly, if at all. This article discusses how eLearning can help.

Using eLearning For The Media And Entertainment Industry Wisely

On a global scale, the entertainment and media market was worth 1.72 trillion U.S. dollars in 2015 and is set to rise to 2.14 trillion by 2020. The industry is made up of film, television, radio, and print, which further encapsulate movies, TV shows, radio shows, news, music, newspapers, magazines, and books. As you can imagine, almost every person on this planet is a consumer in this industry. And what kind of people does this industry employ? Well, reporters, correspondents, and broadcast news analysts; writers and authors; editors; photographers; graphic designers; translators; film and video editors and camera operators; broadcast and sound engineering technicians; announcers; producers and directors; and performers—from actors to musicians, and composers are only those individuals that are involved directly in the industry. The workers who are behind the scenes and focused on the business side are public relations people, talent agents and representatives, marketing managers, entertainment lawyers, and distribution workers, among others. But what about training these legions of individuals that work in this multi-trillion-dollar industry? Yes, training is required, but other than degrees and certification courses, there’s seldom any on-the-job training available. That’s right. One of the biggest industry to exist globally doesn’t train or upskill its employees properly, and that is just plain wrong.

Why eLearning?

But why eLearning as the training methodology? The question should be: “Why not eLearning as the training methodology?”. The media and entertainment industry, much like many modern industries, depends heavily on technology. From individuals involved directly in the industry to those who work behind the scenes, both are people who utilize computers and technology in both professional and personal lives. Taking eLearning courses to enhance their skills shouldn’t be a problem for them. As for time, because we know there are no fixed working hours in this industry, that shouldn’t be a problem either, as eLearning courses can be made available on smartphones easily nowadays, allowing learners to access and complete eLearning whenever, and wherever they like.

Secondly, let’s take a look at the general skills required of individuals present in the industry. Strong communication skills, the ability to work well independently and on a team, management skills, problem-solving abilities and knowing how to prioritize work and meet deadlines in addition to a flexible attitude, self-confidence, solid knowledge of the company and its players, and a decent sense of humor are pre-requisites in this industry. And oh, having a thick skin is essential too.

Fortunately, all of these skills or qualities can easily be inculcated into an individual using eLearning courses. After all, the skills and qualities required aren’t so different from those required in corporate organizations. Specific skills such as writing, editing, acting, composition, photography and the like, to name a few, can be improved upon using eLearning courses as well.

The Biggest Problem Facing The Media & Entertainment Industry

There’s another looming problem facing the media and entertainment industry that can be solved using eLearning. The problem is that media and entertainment giants usually prefer experience over talent. However, the most experienced individuals in any industry are generally the oldest too. And, old people have to retire soon, even though the age of retirement in this industry is more than in other industries. Now, when these old yet experienced individuals retire, who’ll the industry turn to? The answer to that is simple. Ensure that the younger population at least have skills at par with the retiring population if not experience. This can be achieved easily through a blended learning approach, which includes your eLearning courses, gamified if possible, as well as classroom sessions with the retiring legends of the industry as the mentors. This way, the experienced can impart the years of wisdom they have amassed over the years to the youth, and the skill part can be fulfilled using eLearning. Sounds good?

It is disheartening to see an industry with such potential not utilizing eLearning. Although there has been some progress, and many an organization has actually started using corporate eLearning as a means to train and upskill their employees, there’s still a lot lacking. The media and entertainment industry as a collective must understand the importance of Learning and Development, and start utilizing eLearning to train their employees, lest they remain the only industry in the global market to be unable to upskill employees. The rest is up to individual organizations in the industry.

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Originally published at cblpro.com.