April 30, 2018

De Beers

Inspirational interactive e-learning for The De Beers Group Institute of Diamonds

The Challenge

Ridgeway were approached to create an inspirational interactive e-learning platform for The De Beers Group Institute of Diamonds. De Beers wanted to offer inspirational online courses to root professionalism back into the industry, to give it some of the desired rigour and to reassert authority. They aimed to share their unrivalled knowledge to industry members and other interested parties across the globe through a first-class education hub.

The Strategy

The Ridgeway team worked through key stages with De Beers to define goals, objectives and the learning outcomes. Many stakeholder and user interviews across the globe were conducted to ensure the platform met the needs of both De Beers and the users. Next the team gathered information about the types of customers who would use the online education hub and their motivations for doing the course. This persona identification was coupled with identifying the learning preferences. Once these were defined user journeys were mapped out which enabled Ridgeway to define the course structure.

Our Work

De Beers’ goal was to offer a superior learning experience via a variety of stimulating interactive and data rich learning content whilst providing exceptional CX experience. The Diamond Foundation Course consists of eight modules which span across different elements of the diamond industry, from how diamonds grow and are mined, through to how they are marketed and sold to the end consumer.

Each module consists of interactive and engaging features to stimulate learning and turn complex scientific material into easy to understand and enjoyable content. Using interactive hot spots, video and animated illustrations -the online course delivers a superior blended learning experience that facilitates studying.

The assessment process has been created to assist the learning of the user, therefore there is no fail or pass, rather additional support is given when necessary. The process is interactive throughout to make it as enjoyable as possible. Users can download summary notes and achieve a certificate of completion at the end of their studies.

The De Beers website is built on Kentico EMS and utilises many out of the box features including security and authentication mechanisms, custom modules, contact and account management and activity tracking. The core of the site utilises Kentico’s flexible content management system to manage structured course content comprising of many interactive features built using web parts and widgets alongside custom integration.

The site enables users to purchase both online and offline courses. This involved using Kentico’s flexible ecommerce checkout process utilising features such as product management, discounts, taxation and payment integration.

The online course has been translated into Chinese, Turkish and Italian with other languages in progress. Kentico cultures and translation services, including the Google Translate integration have been used to achieve this.

De Beers’ aims are to become leaders in educational material in the diamond industry and to educate jewellery retailers and other industry members about the diamond process. This high standard of education will better equip them to provide a first-class service to customers and ultimately sell better quality diamonds. The end result is an inspirational online course which positions De Beers as leaders in the industry and provides the desired rigour and authority. The Diamond Foundation Course reinforces the rich knowledge and credibility that the De Beers team have, and will allow people across the industry to undertake training and gain confidence when operating in various parts of the diamond market.

The eLearning course is just the beginning, as De Beers plan to expand their portfolio of education solutions for the industry. As their digital partner Ridgeway will be working with them to bring these future developments to life.