Publishing Qualification-based Learning for a Professional Body
Business Challenge
Retained in conjunction with the Wordhouse by the Chartered Institute for Purchasing & Supply to develop and deliver to print-ready stage a series of 17 Course Books for use by their students to prepare for their professional qualifications.
Echelon’s Solution
Authors commissioned and provided with electronic template into which to write structured content. Materials posted onto Echelon’s proprietary content management system for review by our learning design team and subsequent copy editing and proof reading before being converted into html. The project involved 17 authors, 17 subject matter experts, and five specialist publishing staff. Over 1 million words were published in a 10 month period.
Key Benefits
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Echelon’s authoring tool ensured consistency of structure and learning
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The content management system tracked and displayed each document throughout the publishing process
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Project brought in on time and to budget
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Echelon’s solution
Research
Desk-based research undertaken into the structure of content that would best suit CIPS’ students. Document type definition designed to create programming structure enable authors to follow consistent format and for content to be processed electronically.
Buy in
CIPS bought in to this content managed approach as it would create consistency of format, an ability to review each document at any stage in the publishing project, and speed and efficiency in updating and editing content.
Learning Structure
Content designed for both text based and web access. Design, authoring, editing, desk top publishing, production and distribution of over 2,000 hours worth of text-based open learning material for the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply. The materials comprise open learning study guides, revision guides, question banks and textbooks for each of the eleven examinations, plus case study and project, which CIPS students must pass to qualify for membership of their professional body. More than 5,000 A4 pages of learning materials have been developed, at the equivalent of first degree level.
Communication
Launch of the new workbooks was highlighted on CIPS’s website and in their members Newsletters.
Sustaining the initiative
17 books updated and 2 new books published in 2009 four years after the original publication using the content management system for updating.
The CIPS qualifications are structured in ladder form to suit most needs and sustain learning:
UK students who are new to the profession undertake the Level 3 Certificate in Purchasing and Supply as an ideal entry point to CIPS’ qualification. The International Certificate and Advanced Certificate in Purchasing and Supply is an appropriate starting point for non UK based students.
The Level 4 Foundation Diploma, Level 5 Advanced Diploma and Level 6 Graduate Diploma provide a suite allowing progress up to degree level. All of the qualifications are Qualifications Curriculum Authority QCA approved and appear on the National Database of Accredited Qualifications (NDAQ)
Evaluating the outcome
Content and structure maintained for updated books due to popularity of structure and ease of access via text or the web.
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