Epic partners with Cabinet Office in new e-learning leadership initiative

A unique web-based programme on the hot topic of leadership is stimulating widespread interest in both public and private sectors.

PRIME: Leadership has been created by Epic, Europe's leading developer of e-learning programmes, in partnership with the Centre for Management and Policy Studies (CMPS) - part of the Cabinet Office which works to equip public servants to deliver the Government's change agenda, and e-government specialist iMPOWER. Content for the programme was developed in collaboration with the prestigious Lancaster University Management School. PRIME: Leadership has already achieved sales to eight major government departments and has been widely acclaimed for the quality of its content and instructional design.

Much interest has been expressed by Epic's private sector clients and a version specifically for corporates is currently being developed.

Commenting on the launch of PRIME: Leadership, Sir Richard Wilson, Head of the Home Civil Service, said: "Public servants face growing pressures. In addition to their traditional skills, our senior executives need to manage complex projects with a multitude of stakeholders, seek out opportunities to innovate and adapt and, above all, focus on the delivery of services to customers. At this critical stage of public service reform, PRIME will help public servants develop these skills in a consistent, accessible and highly engaging way."

Director General of CMPS, Professor Ron Amann added: "We are breaking new ground. This is the first time government has used electronic learning to develop the strategic leadership skills of our public servants. The interest in PRIME indicates a major cultural shift at senior levels of the Civil Service."

Donald Clark, Epic, said: 'Some have doubted the ability of e-learning to deliver soft skills and high level learning. This project has proved that leadership is a great candidate for e-learning as developing leadership capabilities involves a process of self-revelation and reflection that can rarely be accomplished effectively in the classroom.'

The programme empowers individuals in developing their capacity as strategic leaders, taking an open-ended yet highly interactive approach to a challenging subject area previously thought by many to be 'off limits' for e-learning. In an area of training where there is often no right or wrong answer, and where a rigidly instructional methodology would therefore be inappropriate, PRIME: Leadership allows learners to follow their own learning paths. It employs a diverse range of learning methods including tutorials, case studies, scenario-based simulations, off-line exercises and links to qualified sources of information. Together with the 20 hours of e-learning there is also a sophisticated collaborative learning system for on-going learning.