Cruise Holidays has rolled out a comprehensive learning management system for franchise owners, frontline agents and independent contractors. The system is the most wide-ranging online training program ever offered by Cruise Holidays, and it reinforces Cruise Holidays’ growing reputation within the travel industry as a technology leader.

The system, named CU Online, stands for Cruise University Online, which plays off Cruise Holidays’ initial classroom training program for new franchise owners, called Cruise University. However, CU Online will be utilized far beyond new franchise owner training; it will be used by existing owners and agents to increase knowledge on the following topics: vendors and products, destinations, Cruise Holidays’ proprietary programs and services, marketing, public relations, sales, business operations, technology and more.

The system enables users to register for sessions, view completed courses and print certificates of completion. Cruise Holidays headquarters can track coursework, and franchise owners can assign and monitor the progress of their agents’ learning. Most courses end with a brief multiple choice test to ensure comprehension of the material.

“The introduction of a learning management system allows for an entirely new level of evaluation of content retention as well as tracking of completion,” said Mark Schiffner, Cruise Holidays Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

There are already more than 65 lessons in place on CU Online, with dozens more expected over the coming weeks. Many of the initial courses focus on CruiseWeb. CruiseWeb is Cruise Holidays’ client management and back office system. CruiseWeb lessons are brief and meant to teach specific tasks. “Some courses are as short as 90 seconds. We know that time is one of our agents’ most important assets, so this allows them to pick out the specific topic they want to learn about,” said Schiffner.

Furthermore, CU Online is integrated into CruiseWeb, meaning agents can access the learning environment directly from their daily tasks. For example, an agent entering new client information into CruiseWeb can watch in real time as CU Online walks them through how to enter the client’s name, address, birth date and other pertinent information.