Business case study– CECA
CECA, the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks, had only three years to make their employees operational in English communication. They chose World Speaking’s phone courses for their high level of specialization and flexibility, allowing trainees to quickly reach the desired objectives.
The company
The Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks offers a wide range of financial, technological and consulting services and has over 34 agencies in Spain.
The challenge
CECA employees perform most of their professional tasks in English. From the writing of technical documents to the participation in international conferences, a high level of the language is required. Their traditional training initiatives were proven to be inadequate. Not only were they unable to provide specialized content, but they also lacked schedule flexibility and trainee follow-up.
The Group decided to change their training strategy and set a goal of making their employees English level operational in just three years. In order to do this, they needed a flexible solution with an individualized approach adapted to each trainee’s learning pace. In addition, CECA wanted to implement an effective monitoring system and a motivational coaching program. They were now looking for a single language provider able to address their unique needs.
“During the pilot test, we quickly realized that the World Speaking method really met our expectations. The telephone courses were fully customized, accessible at all hours of the day, and offered a sophisticated reservation and monitoring system.”
Antonia María Losada, Head of Development & Human Resources.
The partnership
World Speaking and CECA began by launching a major information campaign on the new training policy. It concentrated on the benefits offered by the telephone courses in order to encourage employees to try out the new method.
A 36 hour program of individualized telephone courses was offered in 3 different languages: English, French and German. The recommended learning pace was a minimum of two courses per week, which corresponded to 1 hour of training.
Trainees began with an online language audit in order to personalize the learning content according to their individual level and career goals. They could plan out their course schedule directly on the Internet via a reservation platform. Here, they could also cancel a reservation up to six hours before the lesson. Trainees’ ability to easily manage their schedule immediately improved the attendance rates.
“Over a hundred students entered the program in the first year. Word of it spread quickly. 20% of trainees, who previously took face-to-face lessons, asked to switch to the new method which is a very good start”, confirms the Head of Development and Human Resources.
The World Speaking difference
World Speaking brings together a staff of over 600 qualified native teachers, specialized in a particular industry. It is this unique ability that allowed them to offer CECA a quality program customized to each employee’s individual profile.
Trainees could benefit from an advanced platform where they could choose the teacher who best fit their personal preferences. They could even book an emergency coaching session: a teacher was immediately available to offer counseling or help prepare a last-minute presentation! Motivational coaches took action as soon as a lack of attendance was detected.
The World Speaking Learning Management System provided the Head of Training with comprehensive reports. Via a secure online platform, they were able to access information on attendance rates, satisfaction scores and test results. A World Speaking Project Manager prepared a full summary at the end of the programs.
The results
CECA achieved rapid results since the first year of the program. Over 75% of trainees improved at least two levels, the attendance rate considerably increased and the overall satisfaction rate was 98%.
“In addition to the flexibility of the classes, we appreciated the teacher’s professionalism. The World Speaking Project Manager was very responsive, and replied immediately to each trainee’s question. Today, I notice a high level of interest in distance language training: the amount of employees’ requests increased by 55% from one year to the next”
, concludes María Antonia Losada.
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