The benefits of eLearning are quite well understood. (This previous post lists 12 of them.) But there's one major advantage that many people tend to forget: Online training is less intimidating than instructor-led training.

Most students, and adult ones in particular, learn best in nonthreatening environments. They might be intimidated to try something new for the first time in front of a larger group or even an instructor. Self-paced online training allows them to learn new skills in privacy. Students taking an online course enter a risk-free environment in which they can try new things and make mistakes without exposing themselves. This characteristic is particularly valuable when trying to learn soft skills, such as leadership and decision-making.

A good learning program shows the consequences of students’ actions and where/why they went wrong. After a failure, students can go back and try again. This type of learning experience eliminates the embarrassment of failure in front of a group. Once the learner has completed the online evaluation and feels confident he has mastered the skills, he will feel more confident demonstrating his newly acquired skills in front of his manager, supervisor, or fellow employees.