DMG from thirty to six traditional training days
More sales days means a higher turnover
If you have ever bought a kitchen, new furniture or a bathroom, you have probably been in one of the 350 stores of De Mandemakers Groep (DMG).
DMG is a large and ambitious Dutch company that sells and installs kitchens, and which is active in the furniture and bathroom sectors. This leading company owns various kitchen and home interior formulas, and has made customer-friendliness and quality its priority for more than 35 years.
E-learning an important link in DMG’s growth
Anyone joining DMG becomes part of an ambitious family firm. More than 5000 colleagues worldwide seek to achieve the very best for their customers and contribute to an organisation that continues to grow. DMG has various brands of its own, such as Ben Sanitair and Job and is now also owner of shop formulas like Mandemakers, Brugman, Woonexpress, Keuken Kampioen, and others. But how can you provide the same unique customer experience in every DMG store? And how do you ensure that new and current employees have the same knowledge and represent DMG in a consistent fashion? Tom Scholte, e-learning developer at DMG, set about finding a new learning management system in order to find the answer.
Tom explains, “Collaborating with various parties, we have gained experience of e-learning in the past. Because we were not always the owner of the content or because we were not able to alter it, it was not a great success.”
DMG has investigated the possibilities for using e-learning within the current learning processes of the DMG Academy. Tom Scholte has interviewed people, held surveys, carried out a theoretical research project, and written an advisory report. It was on the basis of a tendering procedure that the company decided to join forces with Totara partner UP learning for the purpose of building a unique learning environment.
Tom Scholte on the added value of van e-learning for DMG.
Personal coaching with Totara LMS
In the summer 2015, DMG started training new employees using Totara LMS. This is an all-in-one learning management system for the administration, documentation, reporting, and provision of e-learning training courses. UP learning was asked to deliver the implementation and training and to provide support where necessary.
For DMG, it is important that Totara LMS really is deployed as a learning management system (LMS) and that the employees acquire the necessary knowledge and skills through Totara LMS. New employees take a fascinating and personal training course and learn everything about DMG’s kitchens, furniture and sanitary products.
“Our various store formulas have gained a personal look and feel, thanks to UP learning,” says Tom Scholte. “UP learning has helped us to develop modules. During the first few weeks, we were still finding our way around Totara LMS but now it is easy to operate. We worked in a structured manner and every month we launched a training group. Our working relationship with UP learning was excellent!”
There are currently five trainers at DMG who are developing all the e-learning, including the modules, tests, assignments, films, and other interactive learning activities. New employees are given a practical trainer in their store who looks at the assignments that come in and discusses these with them. The ultimate aim is that employees in the stores get to the know the products even better and achieve more and better sales.
The results of the new learning environment
The learning platform went live for the first time in September 2015. Since then, more than 1000 employees have actively used the new learning environment. The amount of time spent learning at DMG has been considerably shortened thanks to the use of Totara LMS.
With Totara LMS, we can train people more effectively. Instead of thirty tradition training days, we now only need to organise six days, so our new employees can spend 24 days more in the stores. Previously, it took a year to train 130 new participants, using completely traditional methods – now it takes just four to five months. This means that DMG has much greater capacity for training its people.
The ultimate objective is to provide learning materials and to better train all current employees (>5000) in every department, not just those involved in sales. The company will be adding logistics and other services to Totara LMS on a step-by-step basis.
“At DMG, we offer e-learning to all our new commercial employees. Because of the quiz aspect, the courses and the films, our employees are challenged to learn everything about our kitchens, furniture, and sanitary products. The scoreboard gives it that little bit of competition. The amount of time spent learning has been shortened considerably.” – Tom Scholte, e-learning developer, DMG
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