In past years, educational institutions relied on the traditional classroom-based model of teaching. This model allowed instructors to engage directly with students. Moreover, thanks to the physical presence of students in class, it was possible for learners to engage in direct and fulfilling interactions with fellow students. Over the past few years, more and more institutions have been adopting the online model (Schrum & Sleeter, 2013). Essentially, this model involves leveraging digital technology to deliver courses remotely. As opposed to the classroom-based model, the online approach does not require learners to be physically present for class. Another benefit of the online approach is that it has allowed institutions to deliver instruction in a cost-effective and convenient fashion. It is worth noting that online learning is not without its drawbacks. Customer service challenges are among the hardships that institutions which have adopted the online model grapple with. Udemy is among the online platforms through which students gain access to academic content. This platform has witnessed an impressive uptake as thousands of students sign up for its classes. However, Udemy has been embroiled in controversies that threaten to hamper its growth efforts. In particular, the controversies make it difficult for the platform to deliver excellent customer service.
Description of Organization
Udemy is among the organizations that are using the internet and other digital technologies to deliver high-quality content to thousands of students across the globe. In the following section, key details about the organization are provided.
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Primary Stakeholders
To understand the operations and the impact that an organization has, it is important to explore its primary stakeholders. There are a number of key stakeholders whose efforts have helped Udemy to establish itself as the preferred provider of online learning. Investors are among the key stakeholders. Some of the notable investors include Stripes Groups, Norwest Venture Partners, Lightbank, and Naspers (“Company”, n.d). The main role that these investors play is providing Udemy with the funding that it needs to continue to provide content. Firms which wish to enhance the skills and knowledge of their employees are another stakeholder that work closely with Udemy. PayPal, Lyft, MetLife and Volkswagen are among these firms (“Company”, n.d). The partnerships that Udemy has established with these companies allow it to deliver curated courses that address the particular needs of the companies and their employees. Udemy’s leadership team is another important stakeholder whose effort and dedication is responsible for the dominance that the platform enjoys in the online learning industry. Kevin Johnson serves as the Chief Executive Officer (“Company”, n.d). Other members of the leadership team include Archie Abrams, Claire Hough and Dinesh Thiru, among others. The thousands of students who have signed up for the courses that Udemy offers are perhaps the most important primary stakeholders. In 2016, Udemy’s student population stood at an impressive 14 million (Witkin, 2016). The success that Udemy continues to register indicates that it has taken measures to ensure that all the needs of its various stakeholders are adequately addressed.
Vision and Mission
The vision and mission statements of an organization capture its purpose and the goals that it wishes to achieve. Udemy’s mission reads as follows: “to improve lives through learning” (“So you’re Thinking”, n.d). Through this statement, Udemy makes it clear that its operations are designed to have a social impact. The platform seeks to enhance the lives of learners through quality content. A search for Udemy’s vision statement did not return any relevant results. However, the university’s vision can be gleaned from its values and the mission statement. Some of the values that guide the university include learning, empathy, taking ownership, innovation and passion (“So you’re Thinking”, n.d). It can be said that the university’s vision is to become an institution that imparts into learners the values of innovation, passion, empathy and an appetite for learning. Given the strong values and the mission that governs Udemy, it is easy to understand why the university has been able to appeal to students who wish to enjoy the convenience of online learning.
Code of Ethics
A code of ethics outlines the values and the conduct that the stakeholders of a particular organization are expected to uphold at all times. A search for Udemy’s code of ethics revealed that the platform has not developed such a code. However, using the information that the university has made available, it is possible to construct a code. As noted above, the organization is guided by such values as taking ownership, passion, innovation and empathy. These values can be used to determine the code that the university relies on to promote ethical behavior. One could argue that among other things, the university requires learners and instructors to demonstrate empathy and take responsibility for their actions. Furthermore, it could be that Udemy’s stakeholders are expected to be in the forefront of innovation and learning. Combined, these values probably constitute the university’s code of ethics.
Customer Service Challenges
Challenges
Focusing on the needs of its learners is undoubtedly one of the factors that have driven Udemy’s success. However, as it seeks to improve lives through learning, the university has faced challenges in customer service. Among these challenges concerns authenticity and honesty. Recently, allegations have emerged that some of the content that Udemy avails to its learners are pirated (Lee, 2015). Various individuals have claimed that Udemy charges its users for courses that they offer without crediting or compensating the original creators. For example, Rob Conery lamented that he discovered that Udemy was offering a course that he developed at a discounted price (Lee, 2015). It is unfortunate that the case of Conery is not isolated. Other content creators have also claimed that Udemy removes such items as watermarks that help to identify the creators. Udemy’s blatant violation of piracy and copyright laws underscores the problem with online education. Online universities operate in an environment that is largely unregulated. It is therefore fairly easy for the universities to disregard the need for excellent customer service. The piracy and copyright infringement claims are indeed a customer service issue. When customers pay for a product, they expect that all the information that accompanies the product is accurate and truthful. By selling copyrighted content, Udemy misled its students. Furthermore, the university betrayed the trust and insulted the hardwork of the instructors who work tirelessly to create content of high quality.
The claims of piracy are not the only customer service challenge that threatens to stall Udemy’s growth. Fake user reviews are yet another challenge which raises questions about the University’s commitment to customer service. To gain an in-depth understanding of Udemy’s treatment of its students, an examination of user reviews was conducted. Consumer Affairs offers dozens of reviews by students who are dissatisfied and deeply disappointed with Udemy’s quality of service (“Udemy”, 2018). While the students raise a range of complaints, one of the most common allegations is that Udemy entertains and actively encourages fake reviews. Instructors rely on these reviews to lure learners into signing up for their programs. There are some learners who claim that Udemy sacrifices student wellbeing and growth for profits. If these allegations and lamentations are true, it will point to Udemy’s utter failure to safeguard the wellbeing of its learners. Firms that are committed to customer service go great lengths to ensure that their clients receive value for their money and that they do not suffer any harm. It is clear that Udemy has little regard for customer service.
Responding to queries and complaints for customers is one of the fundamental pillars of customer service (Barlow & Moller, 2008). A review of Udemy’s treatment of customers suggests that the university does not understand the important role that complaints can play in helping a firm to improve customer service. As noted above, Consumer Affairs collects reviews of customers regarding their experience. A significant number of Udemy users complain that the company is slow to respond to their queries and complaints (“Udemy”, 2018). Many of the users feel that the systems that Udemy has designed for receiving customer feedback are inadequate and ineffective. The complaints of these users indicate that unless it fixes its customer service practices, Udemy risks losing its market dominance to other online universities with a serious dedication to their customers.
Response to Challenges
It is nearly impossible for any firm to satisfy all the needs of all of its customers. However, there are measures that firms can institute to preserve customer loyalty. In response to the challenges discussed above, Udemy instituted some measures. Reiterating that it relies on alerts from users regarding pirated content is how the university responded to allegations that some of the courses that it hosts violate copyright (Lee, 2015). This response is clearly inadequate and does not go far enough to address the complaints raised. Setting up an email system through which non-users can report pirated content is another tool that Udemy uses to assure content creators that the university is serious about tackling piracy. While welcome, this measure is also ineffective. Overall, the basic measures and tools that Udemy has adopted reflect the university’s lack of seriousness and dedication. Any business that is truly committed to customer service would take concrete steps to win back the trust of its customers. There is no question that Udemy is a university that is guided by greed and a desperate desire for profits. The company’s questionable tactics hurt its customers and will pose a serious risk to its profitability in the long run. It is important to note that Udemy has been consistent in its dismissal of the complaints and allegations that users and members of the general public raise. For example, users who lamented that the university relies on fake reviews and has not invested in customer service are met with silence and inaction from the university. Udemy’s approach to customer service shows that the university has little respect for its students and instructors.
Recommendations
From the discussion on the actions that Udemy took in response to the challenges that it faces, it is evident that these actions will do little to secure the university’s future. If Udemy is to remain competitive, it should adopt a raft of measures which promise to help it reclaim its image. Tibert Verhagen et al. (2014) authored an intriguing article in which they detail a best practice that could benefit such firms that operate in online environments as Udemy. Verhagen and his colleagues recommend that these firms should create teams of virtual customer service agents. Essentially, these agents are employees who are tasked with the mandate of offering personalized service to a company’s customers on an online platform. The authors predict that through the efforts of such agents, online companies can expect to witness improvements in customer satisfaction levels (Verhagen et al., 2014). Moreover, as the agents attend to the needs of customers, they enable the customers to feel valued and give the companies a social presence. By adopting the recommendation that Verhagen and his colleagues propose, Udemy will vastly improve the quality of its customer service. Through its virtual customer service agents, the university will be able to respond to customer queries and complaints in a prompt fashion. Ultimately, Udemy will establish itself as a firm which truly values its customers.
Ricky Boyd (2012) is another scholar whose article sheds light on the measures that educational institutions can take to enhance the experiences of their students. The recommendations that he offers are rather simple yet effective in improving the customer service performance of the institutions. One of the recommendations that Boyd offers is that the institutions need to treat their students with respect and dignity (Boyd, 2012). When they are respectful in their interactions with their students, universities essentially demonstrate their understanding that the students help to deliver the bottom line. The discussion on how Udemy responded to its challenges showed that this university does not acknowledge the impact that the students have on its financial performance. If Udemy is to regain the trust and confidence of the students, it needs to treat them with respect and recognize their dignity. Responding to queries in good time and setting up functioning mechanisms for processing complaints are some of the steps that the university can take to show respect. As it does this, not only will Udemy redeem itself; it will also guarantee its future and position in the online education industry.
Rampant piracy and copyright infringement have been identified as among the main customer service challenges that Udemy faces. To address this challenge, the university should develop and adopt a stringent screening process. Some of those whose content has been sold by Udemy without their authorization lament that the university’s screening process is rather lax and ineffective (Entis, 2015). As part of the new screening process, Udemy could require instructors to produce evidence proving that they created the content and that they own the copyright. This measure will go a long way in ensuring that content creators benefit from their work. In an earlier discussion, Udemy was criticized for its failure to do enough to tackle piracy. In the interest of fairness, it is important to acknowledge that the university has taken some steps to combat copyright infringement. Attaching watermarks and using a proprietary media player are among these steps (“What should I do”, n.d). The fact that Udemy continues to face criticism for its poor handling of allegations of piracy indicates that the steps that it has taken are inadequate. It is clear that the university needs to do more. It could be that the university is unable to eliminate piracy entirely. However, there are some simple yet powerful gestures that the university can use to reaffirm its commitment to protecting intellectual property. For example, when it receives complaints, the university should apologize and offer assurance that it will take action.
In conclusion, online learning is the future of education. An increasing number of institutions are adopting the online model in their quest to expand their reach. Udemy is among the universities which are redefining the delivery of content. Through digital technologies, this university is able to deliver thousands of courses to millions of students across the globe. If it sustains its momentum, Udemy will undoubtedly achieve its mission of improving lives. However, there are some hurdles that could hinder the fulfilment of this mission. The university’s failure to give customer service the seriousness that it deserves is among the hurdles. Udemy has been embroiled in scandals involving pirated content and poor treatment of students. Its response to these issues has been inadequate at best and unacceptable at worst. For Udemy to continue to thrive, it needs to display seriousness. The firm should create a team of customer service agents while treating its students with respect. Through these simple measures, Udemy will be successful in making clear its commitment to excellence in customer service.
References
Barlow, J., & Moller, C. (2008). A complaint is a gift: recovering customer loyalty when Things go wrong. Oakland, CA: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Boyd, R. L. (2012). Customer service in higher education: finding a middle ground . The Mentor. Retrieved August 15, 2018 from
https://dus.psu.edu/mentor/2012/06/customer-service-in-higher-education/
Company. (n.d). Udemy. Retrieved August 15, 2018 from https://about.udemy.com/company/
Entis, L. (2015). Udemy addresses criticism over its handling of pirated content. Entrepreneur. Retrieved August 15, 2018 from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/253373
Lee, D. (2015). Anger at ‘stolen’ online courses on Udemy. BBC. Retrieved August 15, 2018 From https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34952382
So you’re thinking about joining Udemy? (n.d). Udemy. Retrieved August 15, 2018 from https://about.udemy.com/udemy-news/udemy-mission-culture-philosophies-team/
Schrum, K., & Sleeter, N. (2013). Teaching history online: challenges and opportunities. Organization of American Historians Magazine of History. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oahmag/oat020
Udemy. (2018). Consumer Affairs. Retrieved August 15, 2018 from https://www.consumeraffairs.com/education/online-courses/udemy.html
Verhagen, T., Nes, J., Feldberg, F., & Dolen, W. (2014). Virtual customer service agents: using Social presence and personalization to shape online service encounters. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 19 (3), 529-545. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12066
What should I do if I find a course on a pirate site? (n.d). Udemy. Retrieved August 15, 2018 From https://support.udemy.com/hc/en-us/articles/229604108-What-Should-I-do-if-I-Find-a-Course-on-a-Pirate-Site-Witkin, P. (2016). A year of Udemy: 2016 in review. Udemy. Retrieved August 15, 2018
From https://about.udemy.com/udemy-for-business/a-year-of-udemy-2016-in-review/
