Online courses directory (801)

The free online course Diploma in Services Management introduces the topic of managing business services, how to make business services more effective and efficient, how businesses can achieve excellence in customer relationships by designing and developing effective and efficient service processes for their customers. The course begins by introducing you to the topic of service management and the elements of service management such as how best to serve customers in the modern business environment, what the product service systems are, what the service act comprises of, and how to ensure seamless service to customers both within and outside an organisation. You will then learn how businesses can use marketing elements to shape demand patterns for a service. You will learn about consumer behaviour and how important elements of service processes such as queuing and waiting lines can be re-designed to greatly improve customer experience and also increase service productivity and efficiency. You will learn how to develop an effective positioning strategy for a business service and how to use positioning maps to analyze competitive strategy. You will then learn about branding and what is meant by a 'brand'. You will learn about the key features of a successful brand and how they can be applied to a business service. You will examine the various components of strategic thinking and how to develop and implement a strategic plan. The course then introduces you to the dimensions of service quality and the elements of customer satisfaction. You will learn how to classify quality and customer satisfaction under the headings of 'hard', 'soft' and 'outcome' quality. You will learn about the benefits of implementing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and how to develop an effective CRM strategy to improve service quality. Finally, the course describes the service innovation process and how building quality into services improves their efficiency and effectiveness. This course will be of great interest to all business service professionals and business owners that offer services to customers and who would like to learn more about managing and improving business services.<br />

The Diploma in Six Sigma is free and online. It is a Six Sigma quality management training course that describes a set of techniques and tools which seek to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of defects (errors) and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes. Each Six Sigma project carried out within an organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has quantified value targets, for example: reduce process cycle time, reduce pollution, reduce costs, increase customer satisfaction, and increase profits. In this free online Diploma course the learner will be introduced to important Six Sigma concepts such as using control charts, Design of Experiments and Taguchi methods which are very important tools used in Statistical Process Control (SPC); Benchmarking which is the process of comparing one's business processes and performance metrics to industry bests or best practices from other industries; How Six Sigma processes are powerful tools that managers can use to identify and solve supply chain problems. This free online Six Sigma training course will be of great interest to all professionals who work in the areas of Six Sigma, Quality Management and manufacturing who would like to learn more about the techniques and tools used in Six Sigma projects. It will also be of great interest to all learners who would like a career in the area of Six Sigma and quality control.

The importance of social media marketing for businesses and organizations is no longer questioned. It has become a worldwide trend in which helps businesses and organizations connect with their customers online. <br /><br />ALISON's free, online social media courses cover the concepts and application of social media marketing and will equip you with the skills to plan and implement a successful social media marketing strategy while offering you social media certification.<br /><br />Social media marketing course topics include the use of email marketing, affiliate marketing, using social media tools such as Twitter, podcasting and blogging, and how to use Facebook to create a business page and get it noticed by current and potential customers.<br /><br />This free online course will be of interest to people who wish to learn more about social media marketing or to advance their career prospects in the social media marketing arena while obtaining social media certification. <br />

Social workers are committed professionals who work in partnership with individuals, families and groups experiencing marginalization, disadvantage or social difficulties. This course will give you a thorough knowledge and understanding of what social work is, the skills needed to be a social worker, and what social workers do.<br /><br />There are also video and audio based case studies which will help you further enhance your understanding during this social work online course.<br /><br />ALISON's free Diploma in Social Work Studies online course is ideal for professionals who are already in a health-related or care-giving occupation and who want to learn more about social work, and for learners who are interested in social work as a career.<br />

The free online course Diploma in Sociology introduces you to societies and their structure, how cultures evolve and what social processes cause them to change. The course begins with an explanation of what sociology is and gives an overview of the three main theories in sociology. You will learn how culture is defined, what differentiates one culture from another and what is common to all cultures. You will then be introduced to inequalities in society and how these inequalities have come to cause social stratification in countries across the world. Next you will explore sociological factors that affect race, ethnicity and minorities as well as gender and gender identity, and the range of prejudices and discrimination that occur in these areas and why they persist. You will learn how sociology defines family, the variation in family structures and you will explore the social impact of changing family structures. The course then reviews the role of religion in society and how it has brought about social change. The world of work and the economy are explored with a focus on capitalism and socialism, both in theory and practice. You will get an understanding of how society changes through social movements and how sociology defines deviance or non-conformity. You will explore how new technologies impact society globally, particularly the divide between those who have early access to new technology and those who don't. You will look at the changing role of the elderly in society and the impact it has on their lives. You will also learn about crowds and collective behaviour along with the emerging norms in a society. Finally, you will look at how sociological research is carried out using different research methods and techniques. This free Diploma course will be of great interest to professionals working in areas as diverse as medicine, politics, law, urban organization and marketing. It will also be of great interest to all learners who would like to know more about how cultures and societies evolve and change.<br />

In this free online course Diploma in Software Testing you will learn about strategies that are used for testing software. You will learn about the verification and validation processes of testing and the difference between the two. You will learn about the different levels of testing. You will learn about system testing and its categories and strategies. You will learn about integration testing, when it is applied and how it works. You will learn about the difference in testing an Object-orientated program compared to the traditional procedural program.<br /><br />The course begins by introducing you to software testing concepts. You will learn about the effort involved in testing and where during the software development life cycle testing starts. You will learn about the verification and validation processes of testing, and about the different testing levels and what the different levels test. You will learn about the pesticide effect for software testing, and the software development life cycle V model, and its strengths and weaknesses. You will learn about the fault model and how it outlines the types of faults in a program. You will learn about test cases, design &amp; planning and strategies for test cases. You will learn about unit testing, what it is and what parts of the program it tests.<br /><br />Next, you will learn about Black box testing strategies. You will learn about equivalence class testing and how it works. You will also learn about special value testing, combinatorial testing, decision table-based testing, and pair-wise or all-pairs testing methods. <br /><br />You will learn about different white-box strategies. You will learn about coverage based testing techniques and which is the strongest and weakest of these techniques. You will learn about the Modified condition and decision coverage testing also known as MC/DC testing. You will learn about path testing and about creating control flow graphs. You will learn about dataflow testing to test variables in your program. You will learn about introducing faults into a program for mutation testing. You will learn about how mutation testing works, its drawbacks and terminology. You will learn about integration testing, what it is and different approaches to this type of testing. <br /><br />Finally, you will be introduced to the levels of testing above unit testing. You will learn about different types of system performance testing methods and how they work. You will learn about regression testing, when it is performed and why. You will learn about testing Object-Orientated programs and features of OO programming such as inheritance and polymorphism. You will learn why some testing methods for procedural programs will not work with OO programs. You will also learn about the different integration testing strategies for testing you OO program.<br /><br />This course will be of great interest to any programmer who wishes to learn about testing methods that can be used to test software programs they have written. <br /><br />

Statistics and statistical methods play a major role in the work environment in areas such as business, science, finance, economics, engineering to mention just a few. It is very important that people are comfortable with reading statistics and using statistical methods. This free online Diploma in Statistics will give you the knowledge and understanding of basic statistical methods such as sampling and collecting data, probability, distributions, regression analysis. By completing this course you will gain the knowledge and understanding to confidently read statistics and apply statistical methods within your daily working environment.

The free online course Diploma in Strategic Management introduces you to the concept of how top management can use strategic practices and procedures to achieve major goals and initiatives within an organisation. The course begins by explaining what a mission statement is and how clearly stated mission statements add focus to the organization's efforts. You will learn how a strategic plan helps determine long-term decisions including an organization's objectives, goals and course of action. You will learn the difference between operating decisions and strategic decisions and what a strategic management decision process involves. The course then introduces you to the decision making process involved in strategic management. You will learn about important decision making steps, from determining the mission or purpose of an organization to specifying objectives and goals to formulating a strategic plan and through to monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the strategic plan. The course then introduces you important topics in strategic management, such as strategic competitiveness, strategic risk, strategic flexibility, and internal and external analysis and what role they play in the decision making process. The course reviews the concept of implementing strategy and describes who will carry out the strategic plan and what should be done to align the company’s operations in a new direction. You will then learn about business functions and the factors differentiating Stage I, II and III companies. The course introduces you to the important issues involved in corporate strategy such as directional strategy, portfolio strategy and parenting strategy. Finally, you will learn about tools and techniques that are used as part of the corporate strategy process. This free Diploma course will be of great interest to all professionals working in management and who are involved in making strategic decisions, and to all learners who would like to learn more about the role of strategic management in business. <br />

This free online course Diploma in Stress Management offers you a comprehensive review of the principles associated with assessing and reducing your stress. You will learn about different types of stress, sources of stress, and personality factors associated with stress.<br /><br />The course begins by introducing you to stress and the history and genesis of stress research. You will learn about the differences between eustress and distress. You will also be able to explain the importance of how stress can be helpful to an individual. You will learn about the different types of stressors and why some people return to their resting rate sooner than others after a stressful situation. <br /><br />Stress can affect many people in different ways and therefore it is important to be able to recognise that what may work as a stress release for one individual may not work for another individual. The course explains disorders that can be caused by stress and the symptoms to look out for. You will learn about the different parts of the brain and which of these parts are triggered by stress. You will also learn the role of the endocrine system during a stressful period and be able to explain how stress can have a number of effects on the immune system. <br /><br />Next, you will learn how to differentiate between stress and anxiety. You will learn how behaviours are related to anxious thoughts and how to manage these thoughts. You will also learn about assertiveness and how your reaction to different situations can be seen as aggressive or passive.<br /><br />Finally, different types of coping strategies and explains how coping strategies differ from one individual to the next. You will learn about the difference between adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies. You will also learn about the difference between problem-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies, and how to implement relaxation techniques to help you cope with stress. <br /><br />This course will be of great interest to all learners who would like to learn techniques for dealing with personal stress. <br />

The Diploma in Supply Chain Management course is a free online Diploma course that explains what supply chain management is and how it can be a key component in organizational success. You will learn how modern supply chain ecosystems now comprise of a network of companies, countries and their governments, social and political organisations, natural, industrial (clusters), financial and human resources, delivery infrastructure including logistics and IT, and knowledge of the industrial environment. You will see how within these ecosystems, each configuration is unique to the particular enterprise that owns that supply chain. It is said that in today's market, firms don't compete, supply chains do. This course explains what supply chain design is and provides insights on how to design supply chains to give them competitive advantages over competing supply chains. Supply risk involves adverse and unexpected changes to any elements of a supply chain ecosystem. The aim of SCRM is to reduce supply chain vulnerability by identifying and managing risks within the supply chain and external to it. The course gives examples of resource uncertainties, characteristics of Wicked problems, and describes the elements of a cyber attack. It also lists the six strategies to reduce overall risk exposure. This free online Diploma course will be of great interest to all professionals who work in the areas of operations management, logistics, procurement and information technology, and to all learners who are interested in developing a career in the area of supply chain management.<br />

The free online course Diploma in Sustainable Business provides a broad overview of the core concepts of sustainability. It highlights some of the benefits, opportunities and challenges associated with sustainable business practices. It also discusses many real-world business examples of sustainability in action. <br /><br />The course begins by introducing you to the concept of sustainability and sustainable business and explaining why running a sustainable business is a popular and beneficial venture. You will learn about the Triple Bottom Line; a business’s contribution to social justice, environmental quality, and economic prosperity and how it is addressed by the sustainable business. You will learn the science behind business sustainability. You will learn how sustainability involves having an understanding of the relationship between business, humanity, and nature. You will also learn about Earth’s history and ecology and the importance of healthy ecosystems to human society. You will learn why a sustainable business should consider the impact of their actions on the earth’s key resources. <br /><br />Next, you will be introduced to the concept of accountability in business and learn why accountability is essential in running a sustainable business. You will learn how businesses use sustainability reporting in order to communicate and be accountable for their actions. You will learn about how sustainable businesses deal with human resource issues. You will learn about the relationship between finance and running a sustainable business. <br /><br />The course continues by introducing you to the process of entrepreneurship and how entrepreneurs can run sustainable businesses whilst undertaking sustainable practices. You will learn the importance of innovation when running a sustainable business. You will learn about the sustainable fuelling company Simply Green Biofuels and follow its journey from the beginning, learning about challenges it faced and success it achieved. Through this you will gain a stronger understanding how sustainability can be linked with entrepreneurship and how sustainability entrepreneurship can be a successful and worthwhile venture.<br /><br />Finally, you will be introduced to the practice of sustainable business marketing. You will learn that ways in which a business creates a strong sustainability marketing strategy in order to be successful. You will be introduced to the marketing mix and how it can be based on sustainability principles for an effective sustainable marketing approach. You will learn the importance of market segmentation in order to tailor marketing efforts to consumers that are best aligned as potential buyers or customers of a product or service. You will learn about the various market barriers and business risks that need to be considered when marketing sustainable products and services.<br /><br />This free Diploma in Sustainable Business will be of great interest to business professionals, marketers, and eco-entrepreneurs who would like to know what is involved in running a sustainable business and how this can benefit the economy, society, and the environment.

Sustainable development is a type of economic growth pattern where the use of resources meets the needs of the human population while conserving the environment at the same time. Sustainable development means resources are used in such a way that both current and future human needs can be met. This free online Diploma in Sustainable Development reviews a diverse range of topics including what exactly sustainability is and what systems of practice are most commonly used, and in particular, examines the importance of sustainable development in counteracting global climate change. Two very important issues in sustainable development are energy sources that meet current and future demands, and water conservation. The course reviews both non-renewable and renewable energy sources and examines how current and future demands for energy can be met for a growing global population. Water is a vital resource for all countries and the course reviews how supply and demand for water by industry, agriculture and people can be met. This course will be of great interest to all professionals interested in international development, and in the sustainability and environmental sectors who would like to learn more about global sustainable development. It will also be of interest to the general learner who is interested in how current and future demands for the earth's resources by a growing human population can be met.<br />

Being an effective teacher requires a variety of skills but some of the most important are the ability to communicate effectively with students, motivate students to learn, and implement successful instructional planning within the classroom. <br /><br />ALISON's free online Diploma course will help you further explore and understand the importance of these skills, and how they impact each individual in the classroom. You will learn how to recognize different elements of communication, such as verbal, non-verbal and unintended. You will also learn about the different theories on motivation and how to create a classroom environment that incites determination and enthusiasm. You will learn about instructional planning and how to make the learning experience most beneficial for your students. <br /><br />ALISON's free online course will be of great interest to all educators and trainers who want to learn more about effective teaching skills and how to apply them in an educational setting.<br />

Tourism is a major global industry worth over one trillion dollars in revenue annually and it is an important part of the economies of many countries and regions around the world. With huge markets such as China yet to reach its full potential, the tourism industry will continue to grow in importance. The first part of the course describes the formation of the tourist industry as well as outlining its sectors and employment opportunities. The next part of the course explains the needs of both business and pleasure travellers. Following this, the ways that tourism businesses/destinations can market themselves effectively is described. The final section explains how the travel industry packages and sells tourism products through retail and online channels. This free Diploma course will be of great interest to all tourism professionals who would like to learn more about the growth and importance of the tourism industry. It will also be of great interest to all learners who are interested in a career in the tourism sector.<br />

This free online Diploma in Visual Basic Programming course offers you a comprehensive review of the information you need to develop your own applications as a software developer. You will learn everything from installing Visual Studio onto your computer to formatting the way time displays in an application for an end user.<br /><br />With the rapid increase in the development of technology, there is more of a demand for software developers in the working industry. In this course, you will learn how to write your own code to create a functioning application for your designated end user. In a Step-by-step process, you will be taken through the different levels of learning Visual Basic. You will learn a number of different ways to write your code in order to get different outcomes for the end user. The course will also teach you the various ways of displaying your code, different statements and expressions, and everything you need to know about the .NET framework class library.<br /><br />This course will guide you through video tutorials which allows you to see how to write your code. You will be able to pause and rewind the videos which will allow you to learn the content at your own pace and therefore, ensuring you get the best learning experience from this Alison diploma course. This course will benefit those wishing to start a career as a software developer, students interested in learning about building applications, or software developers wishing to improve their skills on Visual Basic.<br />

Having a business presence on the Internet has become a necessity in today’s world. This free online diploma course from ALISON will guide learners through the initial steps of setting up an online business, from choosing a web hosting account for your site through registering your domain name. The course will then explore some of the essential tools in building your site, including HTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and Adobe Dreamweaver. Also covered are affiliate and e-mail marketing, as well as the use of social media such as Facebook to help build your business. The Diploma in Web Business Development and Marketing is ideal for anyone who always wanted to set up a Web business but felt they lacked the skills, or for those with a desire to further their understanding of how online businesses work.<br /><br />

ALISON’s free online Diploma in Web Design course is ideal if you’ve always wanted to create your own website but lacked the skills or knowledge to do so. Aimed at both the novice and intermediate web-designer, this comprehensive, easy-to-understand course will enhance your understanding of web development tools and techniques.<br /><br />Topics covered include the essential tools for web page development including HTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and Adobe Dreamweaver. It also examines the practical steps needed to build a website such as registering a domain name and choosing a hosting account.<br /><br />On completion of the ALISON free online course, you can obtain a Diploma-level qualification to enhance your skill set, resume and career prospects.<br /> <p> </p>

Workplace safety and health policies are key elements of any modern business or organization. They can help ensure employee well-being as well as foster a productive work environment.<br /><br />ALISON's free online health and safety certification course guides you through the important aspects involved in workplace safety and health and is ideal for anyone wishing to attain certification or gain a greater understanding of the topic.<br /><br />Topics covered in this free online course include behavior-based safety for supervisors and managers, workstation ergonomics, back safety, and the keys to maintaining a drug-free workplace.<br /><br />You will gain a thorough understanding of key aspects such as risk analysis, hazard identification and control, safety education and training, and best practice policies for the implementation of effective safety programs. Also included is a case study that focuses on the management of safety and health in schools.<br />

<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>Developed by award-winning teaching fellow Russell Stannard, this free online course teaches you how to create professional animated multimedia videos for your business or place of employment, or simply to entertain your friends and family. Start the course and begin making professional animated videos today!<br />

This course is presented by professional marketer Kate Rodan, co-founder of Proactive Solution, a health-science company dedicated to researching and developing products for dermatological and skincare problems. In this free online course, she talks about how the company strategically goes about researching and developing new products. The example for the course is researching a market need for dermatological problems such as skin acne that are not being met by existing products. Kate discusses the value of effective market research and the benefits of using market research techniques such as customer surveys. She demonstrates how infomercials were very successful as a marketing tool in reaching her company’s target audience and how infomercials helped educate their target audience about their skin problems, and opened up new business opportunities for the company. This course will be of great interest to business professionals and entrepreneurs interested in learning more about using marketing techniques to reach targeted audiences, and how to create new business opportunities by reacting to what your customers are saying. At the end of the day, they are the very best advisors.<br />