City of Durham: Expanding Training Access, Evolving a Learning Culture and Improving Employee Satisfaction

Sharon Williams, manager, onboarding and professional development, for the City of Durham, began the search for a new LMS that would enable Durham to better manage training and support true development opportunities for every employee. “Cornerstone was brought to our attention by Regina Youngblood, Durham’s HR Director. Once we saw Cornerstone in action, we were thoroughly impressed,” said Williams. “It came down to Cornerstone and one other competitor. We felt that Cornerstone was the partner that would be the most innovative, supportive, and creative. They also had prior experience with our video-based content provider (an added plus).”

The relationship with Cornerstone was solidified at the outset. Prior to launch, selected LMS administrators participated in an onsite boot camp. “Training was completely high touch. More importantly, Cornerstone was still there after training was over. The night before launch, we ran into a problem at 9 p.m. Our Cornerstone contact responded within minutes and stayed on the phone with us for an hour,” said Williams. “The level of support that we’ve had and the amount of nurturing has been absolutely phenomenal.”

Strengthened brand.

Durham branded Cornerstone as City U Learning, which was paired with City U Engagement and a push-pull strategy to drive platform adoption and ensure message consistency. “Branding the Cornerstone LMS as City U Learning has really helped us market the message to employees that it is up to them (‘all about you’) to learn,” said Williams. “We’re challenging employees to lead from where they are by taking charge of learning and using knowledge to advance their career.”

Improved employee satisfaction scores.

“Employees are excited that there are now options to access learning via multiple modalities (videos, webinars, workshops, etc.) from anywhere and at any time. There is still work to be done, but our employee satisfaction scores are improving.”

Increased training completion rates.

Currently, the city’s training completion rates are between 65-100 percent, depending on the department. “The Police Department has used City U Learning extensively since rollout. They have their own LMS for technical training but utilize the City U Learning platform for business skills development."

“I went to see the Police Department’s senior leaders before rollout. They saw the benefit of having Cornerstone and additional video-based learning options for business skills development. They are now our highest user with a 90+ percent completion rate for core values training.”

Delivered learning to thousands with a staff of two.

Cornerstone makes it feasible for Williams and one other dedicated training resource to manage learning and development for thousands. “We could not track and train 2,500 people without Cornerstone. We have a broader reach and can be more high touch. Cornerstone enables us to do everything more efficiently and effectively.”

Engaged millennials.

With Cornerstone, The City can deliver just-in-time learning, crucial for creating a millennial friendly work culture. “Thanks to our City U learning management system all employees can learn anywhere, at any time, even waiting in line or sitting in a doctor’s office.”