Blog | Insights from IDC

The top 10 ranked criteria from IDC survey respondents were: instructor quality, quality of presentation, quality of materials, relevance of material, ease of finding content needed, information from a trusted source, breadth of learning, course schedule/availability, appropriate course length, and self-paced elearning option.

The top four criteria were all in the ‘quality’ category. Interestingly enough, having a self-paced elearning option ranked much higher than other delivery methods including lab environments and on-site classrooms. Responses in recent pre-pandemic years showed elearning ranking much lower in the overall score.

IDC also asked the same respondents to rate their current vendors on the same characteristics to understand importance versus capability. What they found was that vendors are generally successful with quality and offering. But, with services, end-to-end learning services and IT process training are important yet unsuccessfully delivered. With delivery, only self-paced delivery is both above average importance and successfully delivered. Other delivery options are both less important and less successfully delivered. 

IDC evaluates this criteria because it helps them evaluate vendors across a wide spectrum of providers and in different geographies in what they call IDC MarketScape. IDC MarketScape includes an analysis of the most well-known IT training firms with portfolios that are appropriate to organizations considering transformation initiatives. As part of the study, IDC MarketScape looked at the factors expected to impact the success of a company’s training efforts in both the short term and the long term. 

The IDC MarketScape* positioned Pluralsight in the Leaders category, noting in the report that “Pluralsight Skills and Pluralsight Flow products provide training solutions to tech leaders to help them deliver on critical objectives.” 

You can download an excerpt of the IDC MarketScape report here.