| Abstract: | The term MOOC, an acronym for massive open online course, has been nearly ubiquitous in recent discussions about online education and distance learning. Some articles have questioned the MOOC's tentative role as “the future of education,” while others have framed it as a disrupter of traditional higher education. Research in earlier years trended toward the ways in which MOOCs may be changing the landscape of higher education. However, in the past two years, greater consideration has been focused on how MOOCs may play a role in the corporate world. The year 2012 may have been deemed “The Year of the MOOC,” but many saw 2014 as “The Year of the Corporate MOOC.” Despite MOOCs reaching their prominence as disrupters of traditional higher education, MOOC providers are now aggressively pursuing opportunities in the corporate sector. This presents a great opportunity for corporations to drive this relatively new learning platform and to tailor it to meet their organizational needs. The potential uses for MOOCs in the corporate world are vast. MOOCs can expand corporate training options, offer new recruiting techniques, and provide innovative marketing and branding channels. This article identifies the features of MOOCs, briefly reviews the history of the MOOC movement from academic MOOCs to corporate MOOCs, and discusses the possibilities for extending the MOOC format to a corporate training and employee development environment. |
