The Challenge
Unifying Training Across a Growing Organization as a Small Team
After Alera Group’s formation, the company faced a significant challenge: how to provide consistent and effective learning and development programs for employees across diverse office locations. Previously, many of these independent offices had little or no Learning Management System (LMS) infrastructure. As a result, the new, larger organization was relying on ad-hoc training methods, with limited coordination between regional offices.
Kelly MacMillan, Organizational Development Business Partner at Alera Group, explains, “We were managing training for over 4,400 employees with a team of six. Our goal was to create a world-class onboarding experience and centralize training content, but it was challenging.”
The problem was further compounded by Alera Group’s rapid expansion. Acquisitions were happening frequently, and there was an urgent need to onboard new employees quickly while maintaining a high standard of training. Without a centralized platform, training delivery was inconsistent, and the process was highly manual, straining the resources of the Organizational Development team. Additionally, there was a growing need for leadership development and compliance training to support the company’s ambitious growth strategy.
Kelly MacMillan
Organizational Development Business Partner
The Solution
Streamlined Onboarding at Scale with Seismic Learning
To address these challenges, Alera Group implemented Seismic Learning to centralize and automate the onboarding and training process. The primary focus was building a comprehensive new hire onboarding program to ensure every employee received the same high-quality experience, regardless of their location or the size of the office.
The new hire onboarding program included 14 critical lessons, ranging from benefits and compliance to corporate culture and professional development. The content was delivered seamlessly through Seismic Learning’s smart groups and automation features, which eliminated the need for manual assignment.
“The smart groups and automation have been game changers. As soon as employees join, they’re automatically enrolled in relevant lessons. It used to be so manual, and now it’s seamless,” Kelly explains.
The automation reduced manual administrative tasks by 60%, allowing the team to focus on higher-impact areas such as leadership development. Additionally, with Seismic’s integration into Alera’s payroll system, 100% of new hires were immediately enrolled in their onboarding programs. This shift enabled employees to access key training materials even before their first day, improving readiness and engagement.
Kelly notes the efficiency gains:
“Before Seismic Learning, we had to manually assign lessons for every new hire, which delayed the process. Now, everything is automated and new employees can start training on day one.”
Beyond onboarding, Seismic Learning became a critical tool for delivering leadership training through the Foundations of Management program. This program, delivered across Alera’s seven regions, used Seismic’s event management tools to schedule in-person and virtual leadership development sessions. With Seismic’s ability to track attendance and progress, the team was able to ensure consistency across all offices.
“The leadership development program has been a big win for us. It allows us to offer a unified training experience, no matter where our employees are located,” says Kelly.
Looking ahead, Alera Group is excited to implement Aura Copilot, an AI-driven feature within Seismic Learning that allows subject matter experts to create lessons easily, reducing the burden on the Organizational Development team.
“Our team isn’t made up of instructional designers, so Aura Copilot will help subject matter experts easily create lessons. It’s going to save us so much time and expand our content offerings,” Kelly adds.
The Results
Efficient Enablers and Happier Hires
Since implementing Seismic Learning, Alera Group has experienced several key improvements:
• 25% increase in new hire satisfaction, as measured by Culture Amp surveys.
• 60% reduction in manual administrative tasks, thanks to automated processes.
• The Foundations of Management program delivered consistent leadership training across Alera’s seven regions, boosting managerial effectiveness.
These improvements have enhanced the overall employee experience, reduced legal risks through centralized compliance tracking, and streamlined onboarding processes, making Alera Group’s Organizational Development team more efficient.
Alera Group plans to expand its use of Seismic Learning by introducing Aura CoPilot to further streamline lesson creation and content management. This will empower subject matter experts to create high-quality content quickly, driving self-service learning across the organization.
Kelly sums it up:
“For a team of our size, Seismic Learning has been a game-changer. We’ve been able to elevate our training programs, and we’re excited about what’s next.”
