Welcome to the March, 2011 issue of Element K News, the e-Learning newsletter from Element K®, intended for our customers and other friends! Element K News provides a monthly update of our latest e-Learning product releases. But it goes beyond that, variously including partner spotlights, dates of upcoming Element K webinars and conferences, highlights from Element K Blog, and more. This month includes a consideration of the critical need to develop managers, insights on how learning and development opportunities can be helpful in retaining top talent, plus many exciting Element K product updates, so please read on!

• Developing Managers Becoming More Critical 
• Can't Give Raises? Provide More Learning and Development Opportunities! 
• The Benefits of an Engaged Workforce 
• Trends as Seen by the Training Top 125 
  
• What's New at Element K Blog

• Microsoft Office 2010
  

• Conference: May 22-25, 2011
  ASTD International Conference and Exposition

• e-Learning Courses
• Real World Blended Learning Subscriptions
• Brainbench Exams
  
• GetAbstract Book Summaries
• Did You Know?

Developing Managers Becoming More Critical

Paula Ketter, editor of ASTD T+D magazine, wrote a column for the February issue titled "Skills Development Increasingly Critical for UK Managers". She cites a recent survey from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) which finds that managers in the UK will "look to improve employee engagement and their own skills development in 2011 amid concerns over lack of manpower and loss of key talent." Specifically, the survey of more than 800 managers indicated that:

• 35% believe their organizations have lost talented people as a result of the recession.
• 42% believe that workload is a key factor in pepole leaving the organization.
• more than 40% do not believe that their organization has the right people in place to fulfill business objectives in 2011.
• 42% say that they will be making improvements in their internal communications strategy to combat employee engagement issues.
• 38% plan to increase training and development opportunities in 2011.

Ruth Spellman, CMI's chief executive, noted "The case of continuing to invest in management training has never been clearer. Business leaders will need to be actively looking for alternative ways to continue to develop the skills of their staff, despite restricted budgets." Ketter notes from the survey that specific areas being targeted include:

• Strategic decision making (40%)
• Networking (38%)
• Coaching and mentoring (34%)
• Project management (32%)
• Communication (27%)
• Financial management (27%)
• Team leadership (22%)
• Negotiation (19%)
• Time management (16%)
• Talent management (16%)
• Delegation (15%)

And managers aren't just targeting one of these key areas as, on average, each manager plans on improving three skills in 2011. Emphasizing the key need, Spellman stated "We know that 2011 will be another difficult year for managers. The imperative now is to make sure that [they] are supported through training and development."

Sound familiar? Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about Element K's many learning solutions that specifically target the needs of managers.

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Can't Give Raises? Provide More Learning and Development Opportunities!

In the February issue of Talent Management magazine, Editorial Director Mike Prokopeak, titled his From the Editor column with the provocative "The End of the War on Talent.". After noting the recent history of job cutbacks, remaining employees boosting productivity by "doing more with less," and so on, Prokopeak notes that "Many workers, particularly high fliers and high potentials, are plotting their exit." He backs this contention by noting statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics which indicate the rate at which workers are voluntarily leaving their jobs steadily climbed throughout 2010. Prokopeak's conclusion is that: "It's time to change the battle plan as we move from a war on our talent to a renewed war for it."

Noting that "we can't just use the old tried-and-true tactics," Prokopeak's advice for talent managers includes the following:

If you haven't already, it’s time to turn up attention on the workforce. While overall unemployment has hovered near 10 percent for a while now, the rate for high-potential talent is closer to 6 percent. The broad war for talent entered a cease-fire with the financial crisis of 2008, but the battle for high-potential talent kept raging. It's going to get even hotter.

...

It's time to be smart. If you're unable to offer higher pay, provide other creative compensation and benefits programs, such as flexible work schedules and plum stretch assignments. Now that many workers are returning their focus to the future, identify high-potential talent and develop customized programs to show them a tempting career path. Show them why your company is the best place for their future. Develop creative, low-cost ways to engage and develop them. There's no shortage of tools at your disposal now, from traditional mentoring to virtual coaching and e-learning.

Further supporting some of these sentiments, a recent article from TrainingZone notes the results of a recent survey, undertaken by training provider Global Knowledge, of 700 learning and development managers and staff within both commercial and IT departments. As noted, some 57% said they were being denied the necessary funding for skills development. Furthermore, nearly three quarters of staff consider learning and development opportunities to be as important as salary when choosing their next job, but more than half are currently receiving no training from their employer.

The article notes that "The findings were also echoed in a second study undertaken among 500 private sector workers by recruitment consultancy Hays. Just over three out of five of those questioned complained that their current employer was not doing enough to invest in their skills development. As a result, some 46% were concerned that their current skillset would not meet employers' expectations in five years time, while 58% said that the expertise required for their current role was already changing. A worrying 55% did not know or were unsure about what expertise their employer was likely to require in the future."

Such results are certainly alarming, but remedies are close at hand. Rich and powerful learning and development opportunities abound and can be provided in cost-effective ways, including e-Learning courses in a wide range of subject areas, interactive business simulations, virtual labs, vast resource collections, and much more. These solutions can be especially important for organizations who are looking for alternatives to significantly raising salaries to protect their most important resource -- their employees.

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about our wide range of learning solutions, that can help you survive and thrive in the war for talent by helping you to retain your top talent while improving their productivity along the way.

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The Benefits of an Engaged Workforce

The benefits of rich learning and development programs go far beyond helping to retain key talent in your organization. They also lead to a more engaged workforce, and a more engaged workforce has several key benefits. As reported in the January/February 2011 issue of Elearning! magazine, research from the Gallup Organization shows that "companies that had higher-than-average employee engagement also had 27 percent higher profits, 50 percent higher sales, and 50 percent higher customer loyalty."

Those are powerful numbers that give L&D leaders even more reasons to implement learning initiatives that help drive workforce engagement, and in turn produce greater sales, profits, and customer loyalty. Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about Element K's highly engaging e-Learning and blended learning solutions, and the impact these tools can have on your organization.

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Trends as Seen by the Training Top 125

We'd like to congratulate all of the organizations in the latest class of "Training Top 125," as recently announced by Training Magazine. An interesting article in the January/February issue provided "Training Visions" from the leadership at these best-in-class organizations, giving readers a glimpse of their key learning and development initiatives, agendas, and trends. The responses were varied, but of those mentioning modalities, technologies, and focus areas for their L&D efforts in the coming year, the following were some of the recurring items:

• Social / informal learning
• Measurement, with a focus on connecting with real business value
• Leadership development / the war for talent
• "Learner at the center" / personalization / individual development plans
• Mobile learning
• Quick and relevant video clips
• Shorter content
• Blended learning
• Performance support
• Trainers and the L&D group more broadly becoming "facilitators" and "enablers"

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about how Element K's learning solutions address each of these key trends and themes.

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What's New at Element K Blog

At Element K Blog, we provide commentary and insights on the learning and development industry, which includes reports on industry conferences, pointers to the best industry resource sites, and the regular feature "Learning and Development Roundup," where we point you to key resources and opinions from the past 4-6 weeks.

Here is what you'll find at Element K Blog recently:

• The Value of Reflecting on the Weekly Lrnchat - How one blogger is providing summaries of the weekly L&D industry Twitter chat.
• Consider the Benefits of Games and Gaming Concepts for Learning - A great TED video that relates gaming concepts to learning.
• Learning Technologies 2011 - A brief recap of the recent event in London.
• Reflections on 2010 and Predictions for 2011 - A review of industry reflections and predictions around the time of the calendar change. 

We hope you'll check out Element K Blog, come back regularly, and add us to your RSS reader. Also, if you use Twitter, you can follow us there at our account @Element_K.

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Conference: ASTD International Conference and Exposition

May 22 - 25, 2011, Orlando, Florida

As described at the conference website, "Held each spring, this premier event for workplace learning and development professionals welcomes 8,000 attendees from more than 70 countries. These professionals manage all aspects of learning in their organizations. From CEO to specialist, from dean to student, ASTD 2011 welcomes people from across the globe. The ASTD 2011 International Conference & Exposition features more than 230 educational sessions from industry-leading experts and a world-class EXPO filled with the latest products and services from top suppliers."

We look forward to seeing you at this great annual event, so please stop by and see Element K at booth #827 in the Expo Hall!

For more information, see the conference website.

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Microsoft Office 2010

Organizations are always looking to make the most of their software investments. Often, staff rely heavily on Microsoft desktop applications to create and distribute spreadsheets, documents, presentations, emails, and more. Whether it's the finance administrator developing budgets or the sales representative emailing a proposal, software is fundamental to how business is conducted.

When used properly, these powerful tools allow your employees to be more efficient and effective, thereby increasing productivity, which is why we have assembled a comprehensive collection of online learning materials to enable your staff in the use of these tools. We have developed these materials so that they can be used for application rollouts and upgrades, individual career development, cross-training, and "just-in-time" problem solving.
 

Ease Your Transition to Microsoft® Office 2010
Planning on upgrading your organization to Office 2010? Or perhaps you have already transitioned from an earlier version to 2010 but need to enable your staff to use more of the new functionality available to them? Designed to acquaint learners with all of the new features and tools as well as the new interface, our transition courses cover Office, Access, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word.
 

Support a Mix of Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced Users
Microsoft Office is a multifaceted software suite that can be used at basic and more advanced levels, depending on user need and the sophistication a task or project requires, which is why we have created three course levels for all of the most popular applications.

• Level 1: Beginners will explore features and expand their capabilities while they learn to create and modify basic files.
• Level 2: Great for learners who are ready to go beyond the basics and enhance their files by using more advanced features.
• Level 3: Advanced users will extend their knowledge into higher level and more specialized capabilities to create, manage, and revise large, complex files as well as present their information in a more sophisticated manner.

Learn to Use Specific Features and Perform Popular Tasks
Have you heard of a particular task, but can't perform it? We also offer dozens of shorter, topic- and task-driven courses designed to fill in holes in a user's application knowledge. This flexibility allows users to more quickly obtain the knowledge and skills they need to be more efficient in their work.
 

Support a Mixed Version Environment
Many organizations run two or even three versions of Microsoft Office software, which is why we continue to support numerous versions of this popular suite, including Office 1997, 1998 (Macintosh), 2000, 2002 (Office XP), 2003, 2004 (Macintosh), 2007, 2008 (Macintosh), and now of course 2010.
 

Provide Further Support for Office 2010 Users
Our self-paced Office 2010 e-Learning courses combine multimedia techniques, audio, video, interactive quizzes, and online testing. They feature interactive demo exercises that allow learners to practice their new skills. But if you need additional performance support for your Office 2010 users, our K-Cards (quick reference cards) provide a just-in-time resource and include task-driven, step-by-step instructions and shortcuts. Our KnowledgeHub LMS provides another performance support solution in the form of discussion forums where learners can ask questions and get answers as they progress in learning about Office 2010.

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant for more information about Element K's learning solutions for Microsoft Office 2010 as well as your other desktop application learning needs.

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E-Learning Courses

Element K's award-winning e-Learning content includes robust multimedia content, software simulations, business simulations, quizzes, assessments, and more. And our massive libraries continue to grow each month! Experience some of our e-Learning courses for yourself at our demo center.

The latest e-Learning course additions are grouped by general topic area and listed under the primary current offering headings. (Those courses that have also been added to old primary offerings are indicated in parentheses).

Business and Soft Skills

Business Professional: Management & Leadership (Element K Series: Business Skills)

• Business Case Writing 2: Debriefing a Sample Business Case
• Managing Conflict with Peers

NASBA - Business Professional Self-Paced Tutorials

• Approaches to Budgeting – NASBA
• Budgetary Control – NASBA
• Depreciation Accounting – NASBA
• Estimation of Working Capital Requirements – NASBA
• Finalization of Accounts – NASBA
• Financing Working Capital - Short Term Secured Sources – NASBA
• Financing Working Capital - Short Term Unsecured Sources – NASBA
• Fundamentals of Financial Statements – NASBA
• Management of Accounts Receivables – NASBA
• Management of Cash – NASBA
• Management of Inventory – NASBA
• Overview of Working Capital – NASBA
• Petty Cash Accounting – NASBA
• Preparation of Budgets – NASBA
• Reconciliation of Books – NASBA

The Quality Group - Lean & Six Sigma Black Belt and The Quality Group - Lean & Six Sigma Green Belt

• Descriptive Statistics: Self Assessment (The Quality Group) (Second Edition)
• Inferential Statistics: Self Assessment (The Quality Group) (Second Edition)

Compliance

POV Learning Collection

• Bill 168 - Violence and Harasssment in the Workplace - Mangager package (POV Learning)

Privacy and Security Awareness - MediaPro

• Security Awareness (MediaPro)
• Security Basics (MediaPro)

Design and Media

Adobe Pack Course Collection (Adobe Pack)

• Adobe® Photoshop® CS5: Photo Printing and Color (Macintosh)

Design and Media Course Collection (Design and Media)

• Adobe® Photoshop® CS5: Photo Printing and Color (Macintosh)
• Adobe® Soundbooth® CS5

Desktop Applications

Desktop Applications Course Collection (Office Productivity)

• Microsoft® Office 2010: Transition from Office 2003
• Microsoft® Office Outlook® 2010: Transition from Outlook® 2003

Microsoft Office Pack Course Collection (Microsoft Office Pack)

• Microsoft® Office 2010: Transition from Office 2003
• Microsoft® Office Outlook® 2010: Transition from Outlook® 2003

IT Professional

IT Professional Course Collection

• Administering Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 for Linux (Course 3088) (Novell)
• Advanced Groupwise Administration (Course 8013) (Novell)
• Building a Sentinel Solution (Course 8304) (Novell)
• Configuring and Deploying Patch Management with Novell ZENworks 10 Configuration Management (Course 8609) (Novell)
• Configuring Novell eDirectory as the ID Vault for Identity Management (Course 8305) (Novell)
• Deploying Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 for Linux (Course 3090) (Novell)
• First Look: Introduction to Novell Cloud Manager (Course 1404) (Novell)
• First Look: Novell Identity Manager 4 (Course 1400) (Novell)
• First Look: Novell Sentinel Log Manager (Course 8316) (Novell)
• First Look: SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 (Novell)
• First Look: SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 (Novell)
• First Look: SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (Novell)
• First Look: SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 (Novell)
• Identity Manager Roles Based Provisioning Module (Course 9002) (Novell)
• Implementing Open Enterprise Server 2 for Linux (Course 3089) (Novell)
• Implementing Password Management: How to Stop That Phone From Ringing (Course 8302) (Novell)
• Introduction to Domain Services for Windows (Novell)
• Introduction to Dynamic File Services (Course 8710) (Novell)
• Migrating from RedHat to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 (Course 8011) (Novell)
• Migrating from Unix to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (Course 9052) (Novell)
• Novell Access Manager 3.1 (Course 9000) (Novell)
• Novell GroupWise 8 Administration (Course 3105) (Novell)
• Novell GroupWise 8 End-User Training (Course 8704) (Novell)
• Novell GroupWise 8: Hardening GroupWise Security (Course 9508) (Novell)
• Novell GroupWise 8: Migrating to Linux (Course 8707) (Novell)
• Novell Identity Manager 3.5 Administration (Course 3091) (Novell)
• Novell Networking and Services (Course 2000) (Novell)
• Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 SP1: Migration Strategies (Course 8701) (Novell)
• Novell Open Enterprise Server: OpenSLP Demystified (Course 9509) (Novell)
• Novell Open Workgroup Suite - Small Business Edition 2 Administration (Novell)
• Novell Privileged User Manager: Administration (Course 8204) (Novell)
• Novell Storage Manager 2.5 for eDirectory (Novell)
• Novell Teaming 2.0: Administration and Application Development (Course 8010) (Novell)
• Novell Teaming 2.0: Securing Novell Teaming (Course 9511) (Novell)
• Novell Teaming End-User Training (Novell)
• Novell ZENworks 10 Configuration Management Administration (Course 3098) (Novell)
• Novell ZENworks 10 Configuration Management Advanced Administration (Course 8004) (Novell)
• Novell ZENworks 10 Configuration Management Core Concepts (Course 8600) (Novell)
• Novell ZENworks Application Virtualization: Apps on a Stick (Course 8513) (Novell)
• Novell's Guide to the LPIC-1 Certification Using SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (Course 3112) (Novell)
• PlateSpin Forge 2.5 (Course 8251) (Novell)
• PlateSpin Migrate 8.1: The Premier Multi-Hypervisor Tool for Workload Migrations (Course 8255) (Novell)
• PlateSpin Recon: Consolidation Assessment and Data Center Management (Course 8415) (Novell)
• PlateSpin Workload Management Administration (Course 8008) (Novell)
• Quickly Configure a Linux High Availability Cluster on SLES 10 (Course 8401) (Novell)
• Red Hat 5 to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11: Migration Overview (Course 8012) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise 10: Troubleshooting Techniques (Course 8403) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 Administration (Course 3102) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 Fundamentals (Course 3101) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 Administration (Course 3104) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 Help Desk Administration (Course 8009) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Administration (Course 3072) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Advanced Administration (3073) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals (Course 3071) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 Administration (Course 3103) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 for Solaris Administrators (Course 9058) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 Quickly Configure Highly Availability Cluster with SLE 11 HA Extension (Course 9210) (Novell)
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11: Certified Linux Engineer (Course 3107) (Novell)
• Upgrading to Novell GroupWise 8 (Course 3093) (Novell)
• Using Novell Access Governance Suite (Course 8202) (Novell)
• Using the Compliance Management Platform Analyzer and Resource Kit (Course 8300) (Novell)
• What's New in ZENworks 10 Configuration Management (Course 8608) (Novell)
• ZENworks Application Virtualization Administration (Course 8611) (Novell)

[NOTE: the Novell courses listed above are not included in the earlier Computer Professional library offering.]

Networks and Operating Systems Course Collection (Networking and Operating Systems)

• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 1 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 2 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 3 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 4 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 5 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 6 of 7)
• CompTIA® A+® Certification: A Comprehensive Approach for All 2009 Exam Objectives (Windows® 7) (Part 7 of 7)
• Configuring and Managing Active Directory Certificate Services (6867)
• Configuring and Managing Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (6868)
• Configuring and Managing Active Directory Federation Services (6869)
• Configuring and Managing Active Directory Rights Management Services (6870)
• Introducing Identity and Access Management Solutions (6866)

Programming and Web Development Course Collection (Programming and Web Development)

• Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA)

Security Course Collection (Security)

• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 1 of 7): Information Security Awareness
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 2 of 7): Information Security Assurance
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 3 of 7): Application and Network Security
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 4 of 7): Server and Network Communication Security
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 5 of 7): Firewall and Intrusion Detection
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 6 of 7): OPSEC and Physical Security
• GIAC Information Security Fundamentals (GISF) Certification (Part 7 of 7): Organizational Policies and Disaster Management

Localized Courses

Business Professional (Español) Course Collection (Element K Series: Business Skills (Español))

• Cierre de la venta (Español)
• Crear equipos empresariales dinámicos (Español)
• Entorno laboral positivo (Español)
• Entorno laboral positivo: Crear un entorno laboral positivo (Español)
• Entorno laboral positivo: Superar un entorno laboral negativo (Español)
• Seleccionar la solución para un problema (Español)

Element K Series: Safety (Español)

• Comunicación de Riesgos (Edición Global) (Español)
• Operador de Carretilla Elevadora: Estándares de Seguridad (Edición Global) (Español)
• Seguridad contra Incendios (Edición Global) (Español)
• Seguridad Eléctrica (Edición Global) (Español)

Business Professional (Francais) Course Collection (Element K Series: Business Skills (Français))

• Bâtir des équipes commerciales dynamiques (Français)
• Compétences de leadership (Français)
• Compétences de leadership: Bâtir une équipe gagnante (Français)
• Compétences de leadership: Diriger avec confiance (Français)
• Compétences de leadership: Se positionner pour diriger (Français)
• Compétences en collaboration (Français)
• Conclure la vente (Français)
• Environnement de travail positif (Français)
• Environnement de travail positif: Créer un environnement de travail positif (Français)
• Environnement de travail positif: Surmonter un environnement de travail négatif (Français)
• Examiner le problème (Français)
• Le BAba des finances pour les cadres non financiers: Introduction au monde des finances (Français)
• Maintenez l'équilibre entre vie professionnelle et vie personnelle (Français)
• Optimisation des RH (Français)
• Optimisation des RH: Communiquer efficacement (Français)
• Optimisation des RH: Créer des plans de développement (Français)
• Optimisation des RH: Créer et entretenir des effectifs talentueux (Français)
• Optimisation des RH: Gérer des employés (Français)
• Relations avec les employés (Français)
• Relations avec les employés: Communiquer pour établir des relations efficaces avec les employés (Français)
• Relations avec les employés: Comprendre les lois du travail (Français)
• Relations avec les employés: Satisfaire les employés (Français)
• Sélectionner la solution à un problème (Français)

Business Professional (International English) Course Collection (Element K Series: Business Skills (International English))

• Building Dynamic Business Teams (International English)
• Closing the Sale (International English)
• Collaboration Skills (International English)
• Financial Basics for Non-Financial Managers: Introduction to Finance (International English)
• Maintaining Work-Life Balance (International English)

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about our various collections of e-Learning courses.

Real World Blended Learning Subscriptions

To have the greatest return, your disparate training materials need to function as a coherent whole. Subscribers to Element K's Real World Blended Learning can experience the learning industry's most integrated set of blended learning materials, available via one easy subscription. The latest courses added to Element K Real World Blended Learning subscriptions include:

• 084548 Adobe® Acrobat® X Pro: Level 1
• 084949 Adobe® Photoshop® CS5: Photo Printing and Color (Macintosh)
• 085719 Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA)
• 085720 Introduction to Hibernate
• 084574 Microsoft® Office 2010: Transition from Office 2003
• 084567 Microsoft® OneNote® 2010
• 084696 Microsoft® SharePoint® Foundation 2010: Level 1

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about Element K's Real World Blended Learning Subscriptions.

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Brainbench Exams

Element K has integrated skills testing from Brainbench, the industry-leading online testing solution. Brainbench exams can provide results including boosting training ROI, differentiating skills assets, establishing skills accountability, and speeding self-improvement. Brainbench standard assessments provide the ideal tool for measuring the skills, ability, and personality traits of employees, candidates, and training participants. Each standard assessment typically includes 40 questions and takes approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour to complete.

The most recent Brainbench exams added to our library are:

• Javascript 1.8

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about the Brainbench offering.

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getAbstract Book Summaries

One of our most innovative partners, getAbstract, provides book summaries of the latest and most important books in business. Most of us don't have time to read every interesting book that comes along, but with getAbstract, you don't have to. Book summaries are available in a variety of formats, including PDF, audio content, e-readers, and more. Experience business book summaries for yourself at our demo page. The latest getAbstract additions include:

• Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future by Robert B. Reich
• Austerity Business: 39 Tips for Doing More with Less by Alex Pratt
• Be Excellent at Anything: The Four Keys To Transforming the Way We Work and Live by Tony Schwartz, Jean Gomes, and Catherine McCarthy
• Blur: How to Know What's True in the Age of Information Overload by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel
• Build It Big: 101 Insider Secrets from Top Direct Selling Experts by Direct Selling Women's Alliance
• Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings by Philip A. Fisher
• Confronting Collapse: The Crisis of Energy and Money in a Post Peak Oil World by Michael C. Ruppert
• Data-Driven Marketing: The 15 Metrics Everyone in Marketing Should Know by Mark Jeffery
• High Financier: The Lives and Time of Siegmund Warburg by Niall Ferguson
• Leaders as Teachers: Unlock the Teaching Potential of Your Company's Best and Brightest by Edward Betof
• Obama's Wars by Bob Woodward
• Obstacles Welcome: Turn Adversity to Advantage in Business and Life by Ralph de la Vega
• Standing in the Fire: Leading High-Heat Meetings with Clarity, Calm, and Courage by Larry Dressler
• Successful Onboarding: Strategies to Unlock Hidden Value Within Your Organization by Mark A. Stein and Lilith Christiansen
• The Art of Action: How Leaders Close the Gaps Between Plans, Actions and Results by Stephen Bungay
• The Boomer Retirement Time Bomb: How Companies Can Avoid the Fallout from the Coming Skills Shortage by Donald L. Venneberg and Barbara Welss Eversole
• The Compromise Trap: How to Thrive at Work Without Selling Your Soul (Bk Business) by Elizabeth Doty
• The Image of Success: Make a Great Impression and Land the Job You Want by Lizandra Vega
• The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires by Tim Wu
• The MBA Reality Check: Make the School You Want, Want You by Evan Forster and David Thomas
• The Rise and Fall of an Economic Empire: With Lessons for Aspiring Economies by Colin Read
• The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home by Dan Ariely
• Who's Got Your Back: The Breakthrough Program to Build Deep, Trusting Relationships That Create Success – and Won't Let You Fail by Keith Ferrazzi

Contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant to learn more about the getAbstract products.

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Did You Know?

Did you know that Element K's Compatibility Assurance Program provides the flexibility and integration options for you to implement content according to your platform requirements? We recognize that our clients use a variety of learning and performance management systems to deliver content and that content is just one part of a larger learning, development, and talent management strategy. In partnership with the most successful and progressive names in learning and talent management, this program certifies interoperability between our learning products and most major content delivery platforms. Because Element K content is created in compliance with AICC and SCORM integration standards, you can be confident that training will run seamlessly on your system, helping you to maintain a close alignment of learning with performance gaps, goals, and career planning. Benefits of our compatibility assurance program include: a plug and play set up that makes deployment time negligible, full integration of Element K content (including e-Learning, virtual labs, online books, etc.) into your native learning catalog, automatic updates, real-time tracking and reporting through AICC- and SCORM-compliant communications, and a SaaS solution that avoids physical hosting and maintenance of content. Meet your business objectives and provide your workforce with the competencies they need without the technical challenges!

To learn more, visit our website or contact your Element K Account Executive or Learning Consultant.

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For more information on Element K:
http://www.elementk.com or call 1-800-434-3466.
Element K, 500 Canal View Blvd., Rochester, NY 14623

Copyright 2011 Element K Corporation. All rights reserved. Element K and the Element K logo are trademarks of Element K Corporation. Products or other names may be trademarks of their respective proprietors who may not be affiliated with Element K. Element K is part of NIIT, a global talent development corporation operating in 44 countries.