E-learning is becoming an increasingly valuable tool for businesses trying to weather the current economic downturn, Total has claimed.

Commenting on a new report from Educa Berlin which indicates that remote training and development programmes are becoming a preferred option among many firms, Christophe Binot, e-learning manager at the French oil major explained that out of class courses deliver a better return on investment.

"The newest solutions make it possible to turn a PowerPoint presentation into a course for a thousand employees within two hours," he claimed.

Meanwhile, Charles Jennings, global head of learning at Thomson Reuters, insisted that "'do more with less' is today's corporate byword", a process which remote training and development strategies are well positioned to facilitate.

Total employs more than 10,000 new employees every year across 500 professions in 130 countries.

It also specialises in subsidised internships and sandwich training courses that serve students and young graduates.