Sitting down to write my quarterly piece for this newsletter I have to confess to finding myself rather preoccupied. CrossKnowledge's acquisition of Mohive may not be the only news in the industry, but it looms large in my mind, as you might imagine.
As teams from both companies labour over the integration of our two operations, I thought it would be interesting to interview Mickaël Ohana, the CEO and co-founder of CrossKnowledge, and to share any insights with you.
What was the reasoning behind the acquisition? Where do CrossKnowledge come from? What edge can they offer our customers? Mickaël gives his answers to these questions and more below.
If you have further questions about what this all means for you, please do email me personally and I'll do my best to answer.
LU: Could you explain the reasoning behind your acquisition of Mohive?
MO: Well, we reviewed all of the key players in this particular sector, and concluded that Mohive has the superior technology. Your platform combines simplicity, solidity and ergonomics, and that really sets it apart from the competition. The calibre of your client list also bears witness to your expertise and provided an additional seal of quality.
"Your platform combines simplicity, solidity and ergonomics, and that really sets it apart from the competition."
By acquiring Mohive, we're confirming our ambition to be the leaders in the knowledge transfer and skills development for large global organisations. CrossKnowledge will be able to master the whole chain - content, technology and services - therefore becoming an integrator of distance corporate learning in every world market where we have a presence. We also acquired Epistema in February 2009, and have invested heavily in their R&D, which makes us the happy owner of one of the leading training platforms in the market, the Epistema LMS.
LU: And what are the benefits?
MO: By joining CrossKnowledge, Mohive will benefit from the structure and investment power of an international group, particularly in the area of R&D. From our point of view, we want to speed up the process of innovation so we can offer even more up-to-date solutions to our customers, and acquiring Mohive will help us to do that. Also, your solutions are perfectly compatible with our existing products, which are all viewable on PC, Mac and Smartphone.
LU: Tell us more about CrossKnowledge.
MO: CrossKnowledge is a French company, founded in 2000 by four associates: Hervé Goudchaux, Pascal El Grably, Steve Fiehl and myself. I like to think that we're pioneers in the new distance learning technology market. Certainly, the company was born out of a discussion about the practicalities of training and how these had little or no bearing on strategic organisational needs.
"We design distance learning training solutions and products for managers and leaders... What makes us unique is that we offer training that supports international concepts and techniques."
Over the past 10 years, we've become the European leader in the field of management skills development using new technology. We currently have almost 300 employees, more than 150 international clients and 1.5 million users worldwide. As well as our French head office in Puteaux, on the outskirts of Paris, we have a presence in the UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Italy and, through strategic partnerships, in Morocco, India, China, Japan and Canada.
LU: What value do you feel CrossKnowledge will add for Mohive customers?
MO: Basically, we will bring additional choices to Mohive clients for we do not only have the most complete catalogue of top of the range learning objects developed by the best professors and management professionals in the industry, but we also offer a variety of training, technological and services solutions that are capable of managing and integrating the whole set of needs in terms of skills development and knowledge transfer within large organizations at a global scale.
Also, our expertise is recognised by international institutes and certification centres such as the EFMD (European Foundation for Management Development), the ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management) and the ITTA (IT Training Academy). In simple words, we help businesses develop their human capital and therefore contribute to their overall economic performance.
LU: And what type of training do you offer?
MO: We have the most complete catalogue in the market on management and leadership-related topics, with more than a hundred management and leadership themes and over 10,000 educational resources available in 15 languages. We've also enriched our catalogue with additional resources like desktop and languages training thanks to partnerships with 'best of breed' editors in each field.
LU: What benefits do you aim to deliver for your customers?
MO: Essentially, we help businesses achieve their strategic goals by developing the skills of their managers and leaders using advanced educational tools, proven efficiency and cost-effective solutions. We set out to increase the opportunities available for teams to acquire the skills they need, while optimising the costs involved. We also help to ensure that our clients' skills development programs align more efficiently with an organisation's strategic goals, while ongoing evaluation improves the effectiveness of those programs.
LU: What part does Web 2.0 play in your strategy?
MO: The arrival of Web 2.0 is much more than a technological revolution - it's a profound cultural change, and something that managers and trainers in any organisation should take very seriously. We've embraced these new technologies and the perspectives they make available - especially the way they put the learner at the heart of the training system. Social media encourage the long-term participation of employees, clients and partners. And by creating a culture of exchange, Web 2.0 opens up opportunities for businesses to speed up the decision-making process, to increase their capacity to innovate and their commercial productivity, and to boost competitiveness through improved reactivity.
"Creating a culture of exchange opens up opportunities for businesses to speed up the decision-making process, to increase their capacity to innovate and their commercial productivity, and to boost competitiveness through improved reactivity."
LU: Are you active in this area yourself?
MO: Certainly. Bringing innovation into educational technologies is part of our DNA. Our best example would be the solution called Knowledge Community, which offers a range of content, services, training and sharing tools through community portals dedicated to strategic themes or key populations.
LU: Finally, have you got any events or announcements that might interest our readers?
MO: Yes, we're running a half-hour live webcast on our Mentored Action Learning courses on May 26th. We know that adults learn from experience and by trial and error - it's a simple enough observation. But we've taken this as the basis for a new teaching format that develops skills on the ground over a three-month period.
The basic idea is to carry out a real job directly related to the subject - with the support of a qualified teacher. This puts the needs of trainees first, while still meeting operation needs to control cost and quality.
If you want to join the webcast on Mentored Action Learning contact us with your details at events@crossknowledge.com.
Further information about CrossKnowledge.
Mickaël Ohana is in charge of Business Development and CrossKnowledge's strategy. He was formerly a consultant for McKinsey.