What Is an LMS?
An LMS, or Learning Management System, is a tool designed to support the Learning and Development (L&D) departments with their training and development programs, contributing to the company’s growth and prosperity and ultimately driving revenue generation. These are high-reaching educational objectives.
An LMS needs to be a smart and contemporary solution to accomplish all these. The reason is for a platform to witness high user adoption, it must be likable and easy to use. An LMS resonates best with audiences when it employs up-to-date solutions that people are accustomed to. Old-school employee training methods such as paper tests and face-to-face instructor-led training no longer appeal to the modern learner.
To appreciate how LMS software enhances all aspects of enterprise learning, we’ll first delve into what an LMS is, why it’s an indispensable tool, and how to maximize its benefits. Our comprehensive guide to understanding a learning management system is here to assist you.
Defining LMS and Its Key Stakeholders
An LMS, or Learning Management System, is a software-based or SaaS platform that facilitates the management, automation, and delivery of educational courses, training initiatives, or learning and development programs. Essentially, it aids in distributing training materials to various audiences – be it online courses or real-time instructional sessions. Moreover, most systems today are accessible via smartphones.
The backbone of a complete learning technology solution, an LMS works best when it can adapt and scale to meet the diverse needs of your learners. It’s a crucial part of an efficient learning strategy.
Learning management systems are utilized to implement various learning strategies in different formats, such as formal, experiential, and social learning, to manage functions like compliance training, certification management, and sales enablement.
The most efficient LMS accommodates all your requirements and provides a user-friendly experience.
E-learning and web shops have also morphed into significant revenue sources for the extended enterprise by addressing training needs and strategically motivated learning outcomes.
The revolution in the e-learning space is largely due to new advancements in learning technology, which has supported evolving training needs. More sophisticated learning software applications now provide improved data collection and support activities such as mobile learning and Gamification to foster greater engagement, boost productivity, and promote continuous learning and up-skilling.
Online training platforms like emPower eLearning Learn LMS go beyond basic LMS and offer more than simple LMS capabilities by incorporating advanced features such as skill development, extended enterprise, and more, all by leveraging cutting-edge technology in your training platform. This advanced technology evolves to comprehend the actions of each learner’s, thus facilitating individualized, tailored learning experiences. Furthermore, social learning enables students to solicit guidance from fellow learners, pose queries, and work together.
Who Are the Primary Users of an LMS?
LMS platforms are used worldwide, across various industries, and for various enterprise learning use cases. LMS adoption has been rising for the past several years globally. The global LMS market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.4% yearly.
The primary users of an LMS are:
Administrators: These individuals are tasked with the management of the LMS, which includes a variety of responsibilities such as supervising course and content management (which involves creating training courses and learning plans or liaising with 3rd party content providers), allocating specific learning plans to certain learner groups, and monitoring their learning outcomes and progress.
Learners: Just like in higher education or other academic institutions, your enterprise clients, partners, members, or employees are the ones who benefit from learning initiatives (though current solutions also enable learners to contribute, akin to You tube’s user-generated content model).
Learners accessing an LMS can view their course catalog, finish assigned courses, take any assessments, and track their progress. The optimal LMS solutions ensure a smooth and seamless user experience and provide on-demand access, making it as convenient as possible for learners to access what they require. Training can be allocated to learners individually or based on their job function and/or role in the company’s organizational structure.
What are the applications of an LMS? (LMS use case)
On a basic level, learning management systems centralize, distribute, and evaluate learning activities. A cutting-edge learning management system caters to a range of internal and external corporate use cases, including:
Customer training: One prevalent use case for an LMS is for organizations to offer training to their customers. This is especially relevant for software and technology companies that need to onboard users so they can utilize their products efficiently. Continued customer training also adds more value to customers and reduces customer attrition.
Partner training: An LMS can also be utilized to train an organization’s partners and channels (for example, resellers). This is an excellent method to enrich your partnership programs and offer more value to partners.
Member training: An LMS is often employed to increase membership value by developing centralized training content and promoting engagement among your members through digital learning.
Employee onboarding: Perhaps the most frequent use case for an LMS is to function as a corporate LMS that assists new employees with their initial onboarding so they can quickly become productive and contribute to the workplace.
Employee development and retention: This common LMS use case supports talent management and the training and development of existing employees. Within the LMS, courses can be assigned to ensure employees develop the necessary job skills, stay informed about product changes, and remain current on compliance training, among other things.
Compliance training: An LMS is frequently used to ensure employees receive any required training and manage ongoing certification and training programs. This centralized approach reduces risk and aids in avoiding any potential regulatory compliance issues.
Sales enablement: An LMS plays a crucial role in enabling sales at scale by equipping salespeople with the knowledge they need exactly when needed. The platform also accelerates onboarding (which is critical for sales teams) so that new hires can start selling sooner, and you can retain your top performers.
An LMS (Learning Management System) benefits businesses and learners alike.
Key Advantages:
- Decrease in learning and development costs
- Reduction in training/onboarding duration for employees, customers, and partners
- Utilization of AI to save time for L&D administrators
- Compliance maintenance
- Tracking of learner progress
- Evaluation of how learning influences organizational performance
- Enhancement of knowledge retention
- Acquisition of skills and knowledge needed for career progression
- Performance improvement
Stay tuned for the second part of our Ultimate Guide to Selecting the Right LMS
