Pharmacia

Need:

Pharmacia is a first-tier pharmaceutical company. It boasts annual sales in excess of $13 billion and employs 43,000 people in 52 countries. In moving to make training and development more readily available to its worldwide workforce, Pharmacia realized it needed an e-learning solution that would provide high-quality and cost-effective development resources to those in geographically dispersed locations.

Solution:

Pharmacia worked with DDI to develop an e-learning portal, called PharmaLearn. Available through the Pharmacia international intranet, employees anywhere in the world can access the system at any time. Users can select their respective job category and then view a list of available development resources, which are categorized by job-relevant competencies. They also can view development resources that support five behaviors—"Best Managed Behaviors"—which align with the company’s values. These listings cull selections from two sets of resources: a directory of 132 online courses, and a tailored version of OPAL®, DDI’s online performance and learning system. In addition to the self-study courses, PharmaLearn links to two OPAL® components: Advisor: Your Personal Resource for Handling Tough Work Situations® and Developer: Your Online Mentor for Professional Development®. The Advisor component includes practical tips and guidelines, 232 learning tools, and 164 topics, separated into 13 groups. The Developer component offers 345 skill-building exercises to reinforce knowledge and transfer it to the job.

Results:

  • More than 5,500 employees accessed the PharmaLearn system within its first few months—exceeding projections.
  • The PharmaLearn system earned advocacy of senior executives and paved the way for the introduction of a robust learning management system (LMS).
  • PharmaLearn provided development resources to help the Pharmacia workforce navigate the uncertainty of the impending acquisition of the organization by Pfizer.