Foreign Ministry engaged in e-learning
- Induction training gives information on employer and on Finland
Prewise and the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs have collaborated to produce an e-learning package for local non-Finnish speakers working in Finnish diplomatic missions abroad. The English-language induction programme gives the foreign employee basic information on the Finnish Foreign Ministry as an employer as well as providing general information about Finland and Finnish history and culture.
Heterogeneous target group
The Finnish Foreign Service has more than 80 diplomatic missions around the world. In addition to personnel posted from Finland, the missions employ large numbers of local people, some Finnish, but the majority nationals of the country concerned. Generally, these people do not previously know much about Finland. Consequently, the missions have long felt the need for some form of induction training which will tell the non-Finns in the mission about the Finnish Foreign Service and also about Finland and its culture in general.
Finnish diplomatic missions employ about 1,000 local people; of these, about two thirds are not Finnish-speaking. These non-Finnish speakers do not form a homogeneous group; their duties, educational backgrounds and language skills vary enormously. Many of these employees work in a clerical capacity, but there are also chauffeurs and domestic workers, for instance. The volume of people needing training, the heterogeneous nature of the group and the locations around the world meant that e-training became the chosen training mode, when different training alternatives were discussed.
Staff is enthusiastic about the method of learning
The e-induction course was implemented in English, since it is the most common language used in Finnish foreign missions. Not all the locally employed people can be taught in English, and if there is sufficient demand, the course can be drafted in other language versions, too.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs introduced the e-induction course during the fourth quarter of the year. Currently, the course is in use in places as diverse as Hanoi and Buenos Aires. Network-based induction training is a quick and easy way for the Ministry to boost the competence of its staff, since Prewise takes care of the administrative services during the training and also supports and encourages the trainees.
The trainees have adopted the new learning method with great enthusiasm. Feedback has been very positive, and new ideas and even requests for new courses have been received.
Text: Laura Antila