Project Spotlight
Case Study: Using Feedback and Virtual Experiences to Improve New Hire Onboarding
Client: Flying Angels Medical Transport
Audience: New Flight Nurses
Responsibilities:
Needs Analysis
Instructional Design
eLearning Development
Multimedia Development
Documentation
Project Management
Tools:
Articulate Storyline 360
Vyond
Canva
Microsoft Word
Project Case Study Details Below
"Just wow! This asset to our team is invaluable and will help streamline our onboarding for years to come."
- Bob Bacheler, Flying Angels Managing Director
BACKGROUND
About Flying Angels
Company: Flying Angels provides an alternative to an air ambulance. Their flight nurses work with flight coordinators to complete non-emergency medical transport all over the world via commercial airlines. Each patient case, called a mission, is managed by a flight coordinator. Travel and patient care are handled by an assigned flight nurse.
Audience: New flight nurses have existing medical experience and nursing licenses. Some of them also have personal or professional travel experience. Everyone works remotely and each nurse works independently. All employees are issued a company laptop and have access to internal sites with records, patient notes, and documentation.
Problem: New Hires Needed More Support
With employees working remotely all over the country, new hire flight nurses were often working by themselves even on their first mission. All flight nurses had medical experience but new hires who had not previously done medical transport were left confused or unconfident about how to follow the mission processes, and felt isolated as they acclimated to their role.
An opening scene of the eLearning course where the flight coordinator introduces herself and addresses the learner by name.
ANALYSIS
I collaborated with subject matter experts and leadership throughout this project. During the analysis phase they provided me with available onboarding materials I could review, information about company growth and hiring rates, and new employee requirements.
"I wish we could do a ride-along for every new employee but we just don't have the capacity for that..."
Data
More than 50% of new hires submitted support requests to their flight coordinator or other administrative sources for clarification about what documents to check during preflight or when to complete the expense report.
Flight Nurse Feedback
Feedback from new nurses who had never done commercial medical transport explained that they had trouble conceptualizing how the flight nurse process worked end-to-end until they went on their first mission.
There were also comments about wanting better guidance on where to find certain information during a mission while they were acclimating to the process, and about feeling like it would be nice to have more support during onboarding than just their flight coordinator.
Additional Stakeholder Feedback
We discussed the possibility of on-the-job training during the new hire onboarding period to address some of the gaps so that employees could see what the process was like and get the support of an experienced nurse. This might also help them ask questions they would not think of until they went on their first mission. My stakeholders agreed that would be helpful but due to logistics the company couldn't do that for all new hires.
DESIGN
I took a 3-part approach to the solution based on the analysis findings.
Simulate
I designed an asynchronous eLearning course for access from the company-provided laptops. The course flow followed a mission simulation for a flight nurse from beginning to end.
Practice
I designed a checklist of process steps that new employees could practice with during the eLearning, and use as an on-the-job reference for common steps, questions, and resources.
Support
I directed new hires to a private Facebook group at the end of the eLearning so they could connect with and ask questions of experienced flight nurses and coordinators.
Design Details
Design Methodology: I used the ADDIE framework in my approach to this project, as well as in how I structured this case study. I also leveraged Action Mapping in my design approach to determine what knowledge could be accessed from resources and where learners would benefit from practice.
Learning Theory: My approach uses several theories, such as behaviorism regarding check-ins, but the eLearning course is primarily based on Knowles' Adult Learning Theory.
Learners are provided information that is directly relevant to their job.
Learners have choices about which information they want to access.
The premise of the course is a realistic task-based scenario.
The flight coordinator listing out the course objectives in conversation.
The initial eLearning design document with objectives and aligned concepts and tasks that might be reflected in the course content.
DEVELOPMENT
I did 4 review cycles with Flying Angels stakeholders via email and online meetings. We completed a design document, text-based storyboard, prototype draft, and final review and signoff and made several revisions as we worked through development.
When programming I used Storyline characters and Vyond animation to incorporate storytelling and scenario appropriate scenes into the course. I also used Storyline themes, slide masters, variables, and triggers to maintain consistency and integrate various interactivity.
I developed the course using Articulate Storyline 360, Vyond, and Canva.
The course slide master, programmed with triggers and variables to display and operate the Checklist and Check-In buttons.
Development Details
There were several strategies I used to keep myself on track with our learning goals and our timeline including my visual design training and Mayer's principles of multimedia.
Visual Design: Keep it consistent.
The color palette I used was from the client's style guide.
I created a custom theme in Storyline to maintain consistency.
I constructed a custom slide layout that framed all the scenario scenes to keep them visually similar.
Mayer: Keep it simple and to the point, segment when applicable, and utilize personalization.
I removed interactions and content that didn't align with the project outcome.
I segmented content and concepts with the different scenes of the scenario, as well as with how I created and utilized the checklist for different parts of the process.
I used personalization by making the text conversational and addressing the learner by name throughout the course.
Design Focus: Prioritize time to what supports the learning design.
As I would dive into each component of the project I would check in with myself about whether this was something that would just be fun to create or whether it would support the learning goals.
The storyline theme dialog box with a custom theme created for the client's branding.
"Does this support the learning goals for the project?"
The Revision Process
There were several revisions I made as a result of client feedback including:
Reordering the opening scene to put users directly in the scenario during the introduction, instead of after it, to create more engagement and context around the information being provided.
Adding more dynamic animations when the Check-In and Checklist buttons are introduced to make them more noticeable.
Adding additional navigation components since the audience might be unfamiliar with interactive eLearning solutions as this was the first course the company launched.
IMPLEMENTATION
I hosted the course on the web in HTML format since the company does not currently have a learning management system. The checklist resource we created was added to the company intranet site where we linked to it during the course. The Facebook group was created on Facebook with a private link that was added to both the course and company resources.
The final eLearning is a 45-minute scenario where learners complete a simulation of a mission with a flight coordinator as their guide. The mission starts with an outgoing flight to pick up a patient and ends after the patient drop off when nurses fill out their expense report.
eLearning Details
The final course includes the following features:
Conversational text where learners are addressed by name
On-the-job resources provided for learners to use for course activities
Flight coordinator check-in monitored during the course
Realistic context for information and practice
Knowledge checks on course objectives
Customized feedback based on learner performance
Optional resources provided for different experience levels
EVALUATION
There are multiple opportunities for learners to self-assess their knowledge in the elearning, including targeted scenario questions at the end that evaluate course objectives. Learners are provided a certificate of completion that they can provide to show their successful completion since the client is not using an LMS.
Follow up discussions with the client at 3-month, 6-month and 1-year post-launch have yielded positive feedback from flight nurses and flight coordinators.
New hires feel more confident and better understand the expectations of a mission prior to their first assignment.
Support requests around resources and process questions have been reduced following the implementation of the checklist - which analytics reflect is a frequently accessed document.
The group discussions have been used by new and seasoned employees to share experiences and ask questions increasing virtual connection across the remote workforce.
