Quick facts about BDO Denmark: 

  • Industry: Accounting/Consulting
  • HQ: Vejle, Denmark
  • Established: 1903
  • Web: www.bdo.dk

Challenge: On-demand learning in Microsoft 365

BDO Denmark is a leading consulting and accountancy firm where learning, training and knowledge sharing are critical for client service. The Learning & Development team needed to modernize the learning experience, opening up access to more on-demand training and self-learning at BDO.

The team sought a modern learning platform that would integrate seamlessly with BDO Denmark’s Microsoft 365-powered digital workplace, allow for the easier administration of learning, and empower subject matter experts to quickly create course material to share with their teams.

Learn365 has transformed learning and knowledge sharing at BDO Denmark, meaning it is faster, more agile, more efficient and more engaging! Courses are now visible to everybody through the course catalog. Learn365 has truly opened the door to the modern classroom

Sonny Moric, Senior Director, Lead of Learning & Development

Solution 

Previously learning at BDO Denmark had been predominantly classroom-based managed through an old custom solution and manually handled webinars in Skype. However, increasingly digital course material and content from third parties were being shared. Sonny Moric, Senior Director, Lead of Learning & Development, explains:

We wanted to provide on-demand learning that was available 365 days per year, supporting the development of competencies for all employees. We wanted to provide access to SCORM material, video, podcasts, livestreams, webinars and other digital content. Our old system couldn’t handle this.

A new learning platform also had to make life easier for the learning team. Sonny Moric comments:

We wanted a system that was more modern and handled multiple processes automatically, without the need for manual interactions.

The new solution also had to seamlessly integrate with Microsoft 365, allowing easy access and the ability to target training to different AD groups. Learn365 emerged as the perfect fit for BDO Denmark and the team started working on the implementation:

We had Learn365 up and running in four hours – it was plug and play!

After spending some time adding courses, Learn365 launched to all 1,350 employees in October 2019 as a central pillar of the “BDO Academy.”

Results: Improved self-learning at BDO

  • 200 courses, 17 training plans, 22,000 enrollments
  • Reduction in manual administrative tasks
  • Experts can create courses independent of the learning team

In its first year, Learn365 has become the core platform for learning and knowledge sharing at BDO Denmark with over 200 courses available, 17 training plans created and over 22,000 enrollments within the first year alone. And a wider variety of different learning is now available and self-learning at BDO is a daily practice.

We’ve simply carried out more training due to the easy accessibility of the system. It’s also dramatically reduced the manual and administrative tasks that the L&D team have to carry out. We use Learn365 is so many different ways, including pre-boarding, onboarding, professional training, IT training and leadership development. Our blended training plans cover multiple types of learning, including classroom-based training, videos, webinars, assignments, presentations and quizzes. Our entire four-year course for trainees can be found on Learn365.

Additionally, a course relating to internal security is also carried out with a quarterly report sent to BDO Denmark’s internal compliance unit; this is then used in reporting to authorities in Denmark.

Most employees access Learn365 through BDO Denmark’s integrated SharePoint intranet pages. Sonny Moric comments:

Learn365 is so integrated with Microsoft 365 that they do not realize that they are actually inside the system.

However, access through the LMS mobile app and Microsoft Teams has grown over the past months. Learn365 has revolutionized the delivery of learning at BDO Denmark, dramatically reducing the amount of classroom and face-to-face training. Sonny Moric explains:

Previously our tax specialists would deliver learning by visiting all 31 of our offices throughout Denmark. Now learning can be made and delivered in less than a day. The time and cost savings are huge.

Learn365 has also helped BDO Denmark to reduce its carbon footprint. The L&D team estimates that the reductions in travel facilitated by Learn365 could be as much as 36,000 tons of carbon emissions per year. Learn365 has proved invaluable during the pandemic, ensuring there was no interruption in learning. Learners use our on-demand learning at the time that suits them. This can be from early in the morning to later in the evening. We also see people taking courses in their downtime, such as travelling between offices.

The opportunity to quickly reach everybody has been essential. During COVID-19 we were able to offer courses every single week and also keep everybody informed of any changes that might impact our clients.

Sonny Moric, Senior Director, Lead of Learning & Development

One of the most profound impacts of Learn365 has been that experts can create learning content independent of the learning team. This dramatically accelerates the speed it reaches staff. Namely, this is important when clients expect information about tax and business developments quickly.

Learn365 empowers our organization to effortlessly create courses. Subject matter experts can easily create a professional update using PowerPoint or a video recorded on iPhones and get it out to staff on the same day. It’s low-cost and high-speed and means we can share knowledge with all employees at the time it matters. Previously it could take up to three months to deliver learning to staff.

Empowering employees to share their own knowledge is also helping BDO Denmark achieve the company’s long-term strategic ambitions. Sonny Moric comments:

In BDO we have a global strategy to become advisors of the future. We can only get there by sharing our knowledge across the company – Learn365 is one of the technologies that is making that happen.

Future: A tailored BDO Denmark LMS

Looking to the future, Sonny Moric sees Learn365 continuing to grow in use with more courses being added by specialist teams throughout BDO Denmark. “Next year we expect to have over 400 new courses, both small and more comprehensive.”

The team also hope to leverage Learn365’s integration with Microsoft 365 to provide more learning options. Sonny Moric explains: “We plan to use Microsoft Stream to live stream training and allow staff to choose whether to attend learning events in person or watch it online.”

Going forward, Sonny Moric also believes Learn365 will continue to have more influence over the way people work.

Learn365 has been very powerful so far, but there is more to come! It’s started to change behaviors, reducing the need for meetings and travel, and is even impacting the way we communicate across the business. Learn365 will continue to bring learning and knowledge into everything we do and ensure we can better serve our clients in an increasingly moving world.

About 

BDO Denmark is among the market leaders with business advisory, consulting, and accountancy, and services to small and medium-sized enterprises and the public market. Today, the company employs more than 1,700 people, including more than 150 state-authorized public accountants.