Xcel Energy Reduces Training Costs and Enhances Compliance Efforts With Plateau 4 LMS
Plateau Systems helps nation's fourth largest combined utility rapidly consolidate enterprise learning after merger, creating efficiencies and strategic benefits
ARLINGTON, VA August 14, 2002 In the first six months of using Plateau 4 Learning Management System (LMS) to manage enterprise learning, Xcel Energy has realized a Return on Investment (ROI) that more than covers the cost of the software and its implementation. Plateau 4 LMS has significantly reduced Xcel Energy's total training costs, travel expenses and contract instructor fees by managing and delivering a blend of online courses and classroom training.
Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) implemented Plateau 4 LMS in January to manage learning for 13,000 employees at more than 40 different plants in the United States. Created by the merger of Minneapolis-based Northern States Power Co. and Denver-based New Century Energies, Xcel Energy needed a platform to consolidate all of the disparate learning and compliance training efforts left over from the merger. The nation's fourth largest combined natural gas and electric utility turned to Plateau Systems to implement an enterprise software application that would allow it to schedule, manage and deliver both e-Learning and instructor-led learning - and track all training related to regulatory compliance.
Plateau performed the enterprise implementation in three months - including the transfer of legacy data from three retired systems and a full integration with Xcel Energy's PeopleSoft human resources software. The company is currently running 26 online courses through Plateau 4 LMS, covering everything from regulatory compliance to on-the-job safety, workplace discrimination and the use of new software applications.
Plateau 4 helps us see where we are across the whole corporation in terms of regulatory compliance and learning in general, said Daniel Marshall, project director of Xcel Energy's e-Learning/LMS department. It is much easier now to get an accurate picture of where we stand as an enterprise. The software enables us to tie learning directly to corporate goals and strategies.
Rather than having to travel to a central training facility, Xcel Energy employees and contractors across the U.S. use Plateau 4 LMS to access their personal development plan through a Web browser, self-enroll in courses and complete them via the Internet. Xcel Energy also uses Plateau 4 LMS to manage all revisions to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and pipeline-related tasks, ensuring the company is in full compliance with regulations set by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal and state regulatory agencies.
Plateau 4 LMS' ability to manage training as a set of job-related or nested qualifications allows Xcel Energy to fully comply with the comprehensive Pipeline Operator Qualification (POQ) law enacted as part of the Pipeline Safety Act of 2000. This law requires companies to identify pipeline safety tasks, establish best training practices and report compliance on demand. Plateau 4 LMS puts unique time stamps on all learning events, creating a bulletproof audit trail that meets all the standards set in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49.
About Plateau: Plateau's enterprise-class software manages all of an organization's learning and knowledge on one scalable platform. Plateau 4 Learning Management System (LMS) is built on Web-based J2EE/EJB architecture, and is the engine behind the largest e-Learning initiatives in the corporate, non-profit and government markets. Plateau 4 LMS automates the management and delivery of online and classroom learning, organizational knowledge and competencies for clients including the American Red Cross, Motorola, Union Pacific and the U.S. Air Force. Plateau is listed as a leader in LMS evaluations from Gartner Inc. and META Group. The company is headquartered in Arlington, VA.
About Xcel Energy: Xcel Energy is a major U.S. electricity and natural gas company with operations in 12 Western and Midwestern states. The company provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.2 million electricity customers and 1.7 million natural gas customers through its regulated operating companies. In terms of customers, it is the fourth-largest combination natural gas and electricity company in the nation. Company headquarters are located in Minneapolis. More information is available at www.xcelenergy.com.
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