The Bengaluru-based firm says it is far cheaper to tap corporate who are looking to re-skill existing workers, as they look to redeploy the same workforce rather than hiring new people. Businesses also drive bulk purchase of its online courses and have shown the tendency to be repeat customers.

1. wwww.digitalerra.com
Online Learning Firms Turn Focus On
Training Corporate Clients
Simplilearn, an online platform that aids reskilling of technology workers, has pivoted to serve
more business clients rather than individuals seeking to get certified in new technologies, as the
cost of consumer acquisition has hit unsustainable levels.
#DigitalErra Thought Corner
The Bengaluru-based firm says it is far cheaper to tap corporate who are looking to re-skill
existing workers, as they look to redeploy the same workforce rather than hiring new people.
Businesses also drive bulk purchase of its online courses and have shown the tendency to be
repeat customers.
“If you look at most of the consumer-facing companies, their biggest problem is cost of customer
acquisition,” said Krishna Kumar, founder and chief executive officer of Simplilearn.
Online Learning Platforms Banking On Similar Model
The working model has been quite a success where there is a requirement of businesses, who
don’t mind spending a larger amount to train their employees in new skills.
Online education platform Coursera is one of them which offer specialised courses for corporate
learning and development. On asked why Coursera is foraying into the corporate learning space,

2. wwww.digitalerra.com
its Chief Business Officer, Nikhil Sinha said the platform already has many individual learners
who work at some of the largest companies in the world.
He adds, “Corporate employees were already seeing the benefits of what we were providing and
signing up. The idea was that the company itself can provide our learning to their employees in a
more organised fashion which matches the company’s needs and the learner’s needs and with
administrative tools to track progress to make learning a successful experience.”
Yesterday, a similar edu-tech player, Eruditus raised $8 million in series B funding from
Bertelsmann India Investments. Eruditus partners with leading business schools across the world,
including Harvard Business School, Wharton, INSEAD and MIT Sloan among others, to offer
professional development courses in India, Singapore, Dubai and other global locations.
“Demand for high-quality educational services – particularly in the business sector – is growing
fast in India and Southeast Asia,” said Pankaj Makkar, managing director at Bertelsmann India
Investments. “Eruditus meets this demand with classroom, online and blended-learning offers,
giving more people access to global business education,” he added.
Edu-tech- An Enabler For Increasing Employee Productivity
New age economy is digital based economy, use of digital tools to improve employee
productivity, customer engagement, customer satisfaction and loyalty is call of the day.
Technology is an enabler not only for young audience but also for seasoned professionals who
want to be in sync with the new age digital economy.
The main characteristics of corporate learning are:
 Fast-paced: Corporate learning is mostly “fast paced” because “time is money” in the
corporate world. Training needs to be delivered in as short a time frame as possible with
maximum results.
 Career-related: Enterprise learning helps employees gain new skills to advance their
careers inside the company. Corporate Learning Management Systems have additional
modules to facilitate that process.
 Benefits organisation: Enterprise learning focuses mainly on pragmatic issues with
immediate benefits for the organisation rather than just individual benefit.
 Training: Training usually means the act of being prepared for something, of being taught
or learning a particular skill and practising it until the required standard is reached. This
has obvious practical implications for the workplace.
 Return on investment: An enterprise needs to be able to calculate the ROI of its learning
investment.
All The More NeedFor E-Learning In Corporate India
The potential of eCommerce education and training is huge in India. Currently, the market in
India for e-education is pegged at US$3 bn and is growing at 17.4%. With the increasing number
of internet users, the digital learning market is expected to reach $5.7 billion by 2020. Besides,

3. wwww.digitalerra.com
entrepreneurship is growing in India. It has become a new career mantra. With central
government’s initiatives and drive like Startup India, it is expected that in next 5 years, India will
produce more than 10 million new entrepreneurs. Thus, all in all, the market for e-education for
entrepreneurs is huge.
“The biggest strength of online education is that one or few instructors can reach tens of
thousands of students in a single class,” says Ashish Jhalani, co-founder of online learning
platform, Edvantez.
For these e-learning firms, the ability to seize the opportunity depends on how successfully the
challenges affecting India’s skilled workforce can be addressed.