Abstract
Globalisation has taken root at all economic levels and has forced organisations to skill their
employees in order for them to compete on unprecedented levels. Companies can no longer
afford to see themselves in operation outside of the global village. Those that have not yet been
absorbed into the global economy are moving faster than ever before towards the information
age, focusing on people as the greatest competitive edge.
Survival in a global economy is not only dependent on how quickly an organisation is able to
respond to the changing economic environment but also on the ability of the business to learn.
The concepts of a network organisation and a learning organisation have redefined how
suppliers, employees and customers interact and how learning in organisations takes place.
Traditional learning processes are no longer adequate for meeting the demand for faster just-intime
learning.
The benefits of anytime, anywhere access to learning and information offered by the Internet
and the World Wide Web are fundamentally changing the way many companies operate and
interact. In the field of mass education the Internet is changing instruction, research, and
administration. The prospects of e-learning have far-reaching implications for business
organisations by virtue of the enabling technologies that are removing distance and fostering
collaborative on-demand learning.
The business case for investing in e-learning is evident in the myriad new products, services,
and providers that are entering the e-learning domain. Curriculum and content development
through software learning environments, teleconferencing, and integrated learning delivery
systems have a fundamental impact on the growth of the e-learning industry.
Companies are not the only entities affected by the new economy. Governments across the
world have become increasingly involved at a macro-economic level in fostering skills
development as a means of competing in the global arena. South Africa has approximately 5
million economically active citizens, compared to the UK with 15 million and the USA with 25
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million. In response to the skills shortage, South Africa has proposed a Human Resources
Development (HRD) strategy, entrenched in an outcomes-based learning methodology and
enacted through various pieces of legislation, including the South African Qualifications Authority
(SAQA) Act 61 of 1995.
The national HRD strategy, by virtue of this legislative element, has been cascaded to
organisational level to ensure the requisite skills development across all sectors of the economy.
Organisational training and development strategies are influenced by the national outcomesbased-
learning methodology. The development of skilled individuals through interventions such
as workplace skills programme and learnerships must conform to SAQA requirements in terms
of unit standards, assessment, quality assurance, the National Qualification Framework, and
registration as a training provider.
African Oxygen Limited (Afrox) is one such South African Company that must conform to such
legislation in developing its employees. Afrox is in the business of gases, welding products and
healthcare. The Company was established in 1927 and listed on the Johannesburg Stock
Exchange (now referred to as JSE Securities Exchange) in 1964. It has a market capitalisation
of over R5,5 billion and 343 million shares in issue. The group comprises of two focused listed
companies: gases and welding, and healthcare.
Afrox is South Africa’s 17th largest employer with over 16 000 employees in both lines of
business. The company is part of the BOC group plc affording it the status of a global company.
The BOC Group has operations in 50 countries on five continents and owns 55% of the shares
of Afrox. Afrox can rely on its parent company to provide the latest in technology, research and
development and other leading global business practices.
A historical feature in Afrox (and the BOC Group) has been the regional basis on which the
company was organised and structured, with some employees operating in fairly remotes sites.
The geographical composition and proximity of the customers and markets, as well as
transportation constraints has influenced the establishment of three regional centres from which
to distribute product and service customers.
The challenge in Afrox is to refine how learning systems that involve the use of technology take
place. All employees in Afrox have a competency profile on the e-learning systems of the
organisation. However, in recent focus group sessions perceptions of e-learning have been
found to vary among e-learners. The study is therefore concerned with investigating the
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perceptions of e-learners in order to position the company to capitalise on the advantages that elearning
offers the business world.
A literature review of key aspects of e-learning systems will be presented relative to the learning
systems within Afrox. An empirical exercise involving a telephonic survey is offered, based on a
stratified sample of respondents in Afrox to determine their perceptions of key aspects of elearning.
Ms. H. Jacobs