| Through this study, the researcher examined the federal government's need to advance employees and managers competency levels. Federal agencies face new challenges, such as effectiveness in performance, fiscal constraints, changing demographics, and changing management models. As such, the selection of the qualitative phenomenological research method supported the understanding of the lived experiences of federal employees and managers, and their engagement with an e-learning course. Management comprehends the cost efficiencies that e-learning brings, but struggles with employee engagement and how to define the return on investment for learning to equal positive results. Selection of the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) supported two emphases---the lived experience of participants, and the interpretation of those experiences by the researcher or participants. Interviews involved eight participants who had experiences with e-learning programs, which allowed the researcher to identify how agencies determine effectiveness of programs. The population consisted of federal e-learners in the core-based statistical area, comprised of Washington, D.C., Maryland, Northern Virginia, West Virginia, also known as the National Capital Region and the greater Richmond-Petersburg, Virginia region. The participants were between the ages of 18 and 65 and from various ethnic groups. The findings of the study indicated that a majority of employees were interested in learning new information but did not enjoy the repeated annual training sessions that offered little to no new information. Employees liked the flexibility offered with e-learning, but felt they learned more in an instructor-led or blended learning environment. Managers indicated that education was essential and were worried about employees' focus and learning outcomes when using online courses. All participants believed that the student was responsible for their learning experiences. E-learning is developing into a method used to train and improve employee job performance and efficiencies by combining different learning techniques and disseminating information and courses. Based on the literature reviewed, future federal government studies could include mixed or quantitative experimental and correlation research to analyze variables that influence lived experiences and performance enablers. |
