We lost control over our ability to get everything we needed for a training engagement to the right place at the right time. Trainers were left hanging without the materials required to conduct the classes.

Fulfillment success hinged on getting those materials to the client locations. We looked at somehow getting the materials to the clients as PDF documents. FTP technology was the rage. We considered placing the workbooks on a secure FTP site and having the client download one copy of the file and print it out. But we quickly realized that if clients could copy the one file at will, then our copyright could easily be violated.

We tried using Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology. This meant an encrypted file that needed a key at the client end and an Internet connection that transmitted the decryption of one workbook and reduced the number available to the client. Ten years ago, most classrooms were not equipped with an Internet connection. Wireless was not everywhere. It also made it that much harder for our clients to do business with us. DRM was rejected. This project however did lead us to simplifying our books. We were able to use “perfect binding” and substantially reduce the weight and size of the shipments. Manufacturing costs went down. Print shop hours were reduced.

At the same time as we struggled to supply the world, the world was being digitally transformed all around us. We contracted with local printers where we had global offices They created an inventory of printed materials for us in Singapore and the U.K. We created Dropbox accounts that we supplied with fresh files that the printer consumed and transformed into the perfect bound workbooks.

We weren’t done yet of course. We were in the habit of developing training courses around almost every book that Ken Blanchard wrote. We reduced the number of programs we teach to nine core and nine supporting from about 50. Simplify, simplify.

Our virtual training business blossomed. We still used live instructors for most sessions with physical materials delivered to the learners. It was obvious that digital delivery would lead to more efficiencies and reduce costs even more as that part of our business grew. We built a materials delivery and curriculum management system and housed it at Amazon Web Services in Dublin, Ireland. That way we keep personally identifiable participant information on that side of the Atlantic and make it easier to comply with European data privacy laws.

Today, we have over 500,000 participants housed on that platform. The learners receive a much richer learner experience. The platform ushers them through the content before, during, and after the engagement and they get slick, full color printed materials and interactive job aids during this transformation as well. Almost every client receives their materials through the platform. We have successfully transitioned from a face-to-face training model to a blended face-to-face/virtual/e-learning model. We have even integrated the platform with client Learning Management Systems. Imagine the cost savings we have realized by not having to manufacture 500,000 workbooks and ship them someplace.

Our gross margins are the highest they have ever been. Our manufacturing costs are the lowest they have ever been. Coincidence?