Business

IDOL Talent Connects Certified Instructional Designers with Companies Seeking eLearning Solutions

Published

2 years ago

August 19, 2024

Matthew Wiles

Credit: IDOL courses

By: Mae Cornes

As companies increasingly seek innovative eLearning solutions, the demand for skilled instructional designers is rising. IDOL Talent, a unique staffing agency connected to IDOL courses, effectively bridges this gap by connecting certified instructional designers with businesses needing comprehensive eLearning solutions. IDOL courses initiated this program as part of its broader mission to transform the field of instructional design and online learning.

The Genesis of IDOL Talent

Founded by Dr. Robin Sargent, IDOL courses has rapidly become a leading instructional design education provider. Recognizing the need for a streamlined process to connect graduates with employers, Dr. Sargent launched IDOL Talent. This staffing agency uses the robust training provided by IDOL Academy, making sure that businesses receive top-tier instructional design services from well-prepared professionals.

“IDOL Talent was created to address a clear need in the market,” Dr. Sargent explains. “Companies often search for skilled instructional designers, but they find it challenging to locate qualified candidates. IDOL Talent makes certain our graduates are ready for the job and easily accessible to potential employers.”

Training and Certification: A Comprehensive Approach

IDOL Academy, the flagship program of IDOL courses, offers a thorough curriculum designed to prepare students for the demands of the instructional design field. This career school includes practical training, mentorship, and opportunities for real-world application.

The Academy’s comprehensive method is reflected in its impressive statistics: over 3000 students were trained, and 100% of graduates landed jobs within six months.

The curriculum covers essential software skills, multimedia production, and advanced instructional design techniques. Students also receive 1:1 career coaching and build extensive portfolios through real-world externships. These elements guarantee that graduates possess the skills and readiness to demonstrate their capabilities to potential employers.

Connecting Talent with Opportunity

IDOL Talent’s model is straightforward yet effective. It is a conduit between companies needing instructional design services and IDOL Academy graduates ready to step into these roles. This benefits both parties: businesses gain access to a pool of well-trained professionals, and graduates find employment opportunities that match their training.

Companies like IBM, Coursera, and International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) have already partnered with IDOL Talent to fulfill their instructional design needs. These partnerships underscore major organizations’ trust in IDOL Talent’s ability to provide qualified candidates.

Real-World Impact

The impact of IDOL Talent extends beyond individual placements. Establishing that companies have access to skilled instructional designers, IDOL Talent significantly enhances the quality and effectiveness of corporate training programs. This leads to improved employee performance and greater organizational success.

Dr. Sargent notes, “Our goal is to create a win-win situation. Companies get the proficiency they need, and our graduates get the opportunity to apply their skills in meaningful ways. We find it incredibly rewarding to see the positive outcomes for both sides.”

Challenges and Solutions

One of the challenges IDOL Talent faces is maintaining a steady pipeline of qualified candidates. The rigorous training provided by IDOL Academy guarantees that graduates are well-prepared, but the rapid growth of the eLearning market means that demand often outpaces supply.

To address this, IDOL courses continually update its curriculum, reflecting the latest industry trends and input from hiring managers. This guarantees that graduates are always equipped with current skills.

Another challenge is making sure that the placement process is smooth and efficient. IDOL Talent employs a robust matching system to align candidates’ skills and experiences with employers’ specific needs. This system has proven effective, but IDOL Talent must make ongoing adjustments to keep up with evolving market demands.

The Future of Instructional Design

As the field of instructional design continues to progress, IDOL Talent is poised to play a crucial role in shaping its future. The agency’s success highlights the growing recognition of instructional design as a critical component of corporate training and development.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a steady growth rate for instructional design positions, driven by the increasing adoption of eLearning across various sectors. IDOL Talent’s ability to provide well-trained professionals positions it as a critical player in this expanding field.

IDOL Talent is a vital resource for companies seeking effective eLearning solutions. The agency facilitates advanced and effective corporate training programs by connecting businesses with skilled instructional designers. Under the leadership of Dr. Robin Sargent, IDOL courses and IDOL Talent are meeting current demands and paving the way for the future of instructional design.

“Our mission is to support the continuous improvement of workplace learning,” says Dr. Sargent. “Through IDOL Talent, we’re helping companies achieve their training goals while providing our graduates meaningful career opportunities. It’s a dynamic partnership that benefits everyone involved.”

If you’re interested in learning more about instructional design, whether it’s to use it in your current career or you are looking to transition careers, we are hosting a webinar on August 15th at 6pm EDT. Sign up here to learn more about what IDOL Academy can do for you.

Business

Ipsos Helps Brands Understand How They Get Customer Experience Wrong & Why It’s Costing Them Millions

Published

4 weeks ago

June 26, 2026

Matthew Wiles

For brands looking to succeed in the modern business ecosystem, the customer experience (CX) is not something companies can afford to ignore. CX is a direct driver of revenue, loyalty, and growth for organizations.

Ipsos, one of the world’s leading market research firms, helps brands understand that failing to focus on the customer experience can lead to lost sales, which in turn can translate to not only millions in lost revenue but also lost trust and credibility in the market.

How brands still get CX wrong

“The customer decision and desire to do business with brands directly affect the bottom line,” says Brad Christian, Chief Commercial Officer at Ipsos – Experience Practice.

Customer experience may sound like a simple concept, but many brands still get it wrong. CX goes beyond surveys and feedback. Leaders who fail to connect feedback in a meaningful way to goals such as retention, repeat visits or purchases, advocacy, and operational performance fail to deliver on their service promises. The emotional and functional disconnect can spell trouble for brands. The most polished advertising campaigns cannot make up for a frustrating customer interaction or a promise that a business cannot fulfill.

According to Ipsos’s internal research, many customers today see service as too automated and impersonal. More than half report that their experience is worse than promised.

These findings don’t just result in disappointed buyers. They result in lost customers, negative feedback, and a long-term impact on the business as a whole.

“Brands have to manage the entire customer experience across each and every touchpoint,” explains Christian.

Poor CX can be expensive

Executives can often underestimate how expensive a history of poor CX can be. Global losses can reach into the billions while leaders wonder what went wrong. In an age of rapid social media communication, a single negative interaction can spell disaster for a company, leading to reduced customer spending or the entire loss of its most loyal customers.

Those losses are not just reflected in lost revenue, however. Customer acquisition and marketing dollars can also be lost as companies continue to spend money trying to retain their customer base, often skipping right over the experience part of retention.

Poor customer experience can be a deep operating problem that creates a domino effect, decimating businesses from the inside out. These poor experiences can impact not only present and future customer acquisition but also business leaders and employees.

CX matters more in today’s business landscape

The customer experience has always mattered, but it may matter more to brands trying to make it in a modern, ultra-competitive, digitally-driven business landscape. Good experiences encourage repeat purchases, boost loyalty, and increase the likelihood that customers will go online and recommend a brand to others.

“Customer experience isn’t an isolated function,” says Christian. “It’s ‌part of a larger system that ensures that brands measure and manage customer experience data and then act on that data to drive action where customer experience gaps exist.”

Brands also have to seek to understand today’s customers, who expect experiences that are seamless, authentic, and relevant. As more and more companies hop on the automation train, they will want to reassure their customers that the human element that many people consider important still exists.

At Ipsos, six drivers of strong customer relationships form the bedrock of the company’s CX platform, something that they refer to as the “Forces of CX”: certainty, fair treatment, control, status, belonging, and enjoyment.

Customers want to feel that if they have an issue with a brand, it will be handled and that their concerns will be understood. They don’t want the customer experience to feel like a battleground; they want it to feel fair and human.

“Customer experience isn’t just a nicer experience,” says Christian. “It ties directly to specific financial outcomes, whether that be increased sales, greater market share, or stronger brand loyalty.”

How Ipsos helps businesses deliver customer experiences that matter

Ipsos turns customer feedback into reliable, actionable, decision-ready information. The company goes beyond simple satisfaction metrics and implements voice-of-the-customer programs, journey analytics, relationship feedback, and quality research.

“Brands don’t just need data,” Christian says. “They need measurements as to how they are delivering on their brand promise and predictive modeling to tie financial performance measures to those measures to help them determine where to invest to maximize the customer experience and understand what financial impact those investments might deliver for the business.”

Ipsos measures the interactions that matter ‌most and shows brands how each interaction can affect retention, share of spend, and efficiency. For brands that are trying to reduce the guesswork behind CX, Ipsos helps them move beyond cosmetic fixes to achieve real, meaningful change.

Customer expectations can shift on a dime, influenced by society, social media, and even changing trends. Ipsos helps brands meet those rapidly changing customer expectations with hard evidence and comprehensive metrics.

Today’s brands need to understand how to get the customer experience right. Ipsos has the insights needed to drive home the deep importance of CX in today’s marketplace.