Learning Management Systems: Bigger Is Not Always Better

When it comes to Learning Management Systems (LMS), bigger or more complex and expensive does not equal more efficiency or better results.
Read this article by Lindsay Edmonds Wickman to find out more:
Learning management systems (LMS), in many cases, are the bane of learning organizations. Instead of simplifying the learning process, they tend to over complicate it. When learning executives enter the relationship, they are filled with hope, but those hopes are quickly dashed as the LMS becomes yet another burden instead of a solution.
“People are investing in LMSs thinking this will improve their return on investment in learning, but I think that is a very questionable assumption,” said Bob Becker of Becker Multimedia, a creative services firm specializing in corporate learning. “I think learning management is very important, but the cost and the labor that are going into [it] are out of proportion to the benefits that are possible to achieve.”
Organizations can spend between five and six figures on the initial implementation of an LMS, Becker said, but satisfaction results are low: At least three out of five LMS customers have not had an exceptional experience. So why does virtually every learning organization have one?
“There really is no other way to administer a large curriculum to a dispersed population. You can’t do it manually with a tablet and pencil. You need an LMS,” Becker said. “The need is real, [but] the appraisal or assessment of the need by LMS vendors is sometimes imprecise or exaggerated, and the promises made to users of LMS [tend] to be overstated.”
With LMSs, bigger is not always better. In fact, Becker advocates for a simpler, more straightforward approach.
“LMS tends to become a problem when the needs are inflated and the system becomes too complicated and too ambitious to deliver on its promises,” he explained. “Organizations that are conservative and critical about their learning management strategy can do it well and spend very little money getting it done. We’re doing an LMS implementation now for a very large company, and we are doing it very simply, very straightforwardly and very inexpensively. So we know it can be done and others are doing the same.”
One obstacle to a successful LMS is integration. Trying to get your LMS to interface with a number of other applications can present problems, Becker said. Additionally, an LMS can impose certain standards on an instructional system. Typically, when an LMS is installed, everything has to conform to it. This can be difficult when involving different departments, different people and different vendors that like to do things their own way.
“It’s a little bit like herding calves,” he said. “Trying to get everybody to comply with and conform [to] the standards of your learning management approach can be an obstacle. It’s so easy to get too fancy with LMS and try to make it do more than what is reasonable to expect from it. I believe that using it for fewer things and making it a relatively modest, straightforward and simple solution is one way to avoid that complexity.”
If learning executives go with a simpler LMS, they will spend less on it, making it easier to attain a return on investment.
“If you keep your cost very low getting into LMS, you will more than achieve your return on investment in a very short period of time,” Becker said. “If I’m not spending $250,000 on an LMS but instead $25,000, I’ve got a lot less to do to make up that expenditure.”
The full article is available at CLO Mag.
What you can do:

1. Keep it simple stupid….. Seriously keep it simple.
2. Keep your costs low
3. Get a hosted LMS application

We recommend eLeaP Learning Management System (LMS). See why at www.eleapsoftware.com

Learning Management Systems - Don't get LMS before you read this.

Over the past two decades, the Internet has had a tremendous effect on humanity. It has dramatically changed almost every facet of life, from industry to communication to entertainment. A major benefit of the Internet revolution has been the increased accessibility to education. It is now inexpensive, easy and effective to take courses and training programs online. Online learning programs are known as Learning Management Systems or LMS, and a popular one is the eLeaP™ Learning Management System (LMS/LCMS), developed and headed by President Don Weobong.

The general trend in corporate and business education is moving away from a training mindset and structure and towards a learning and performance philosophy. The most prevalent learning systems that corporations are using to educate their staff are known as Learning Management Systems. These systems are far more than a training manual; rather they are a completely facilitated education system.

The cream of the pie, of course, is that online Learning Management Systems carry a rather light price tag compared with the costs incurred from traditional corporate training. In the past, companies typically consulted experts in certain fields and paid exorbitant rates in order to train its employees in a particular skill. In fact, experts and consulting firms typically charge over $10,000 for only four or five days of work (or fewer). Online e-learning platforms and training programs like eLeaP™, on the other hand, can be acquired and implemented, starting at only $125. This difference is huge.

LMS offers extensive course management along with collaborative learning and online training. These LMS can function on a number of operating platforms such as Microsoft .NET and Java EE. LMS are highly important for the spread of Internet-based education. The virtual learning environments currently in fashion are simply a variant of the LMS. These virtual learning environments provide the user with an outline of the course structure, its duration, how the courses are graded, and the assessment of scores.

Most LMS are web-based to allow for the 'anytime any place' access to learning for students. They are highly favored by regulated industries in which training is a necessity (such as financial services). They are also entirely performance based. As such it means they are extremely easy to assess a student’s progress and development, and are completely suited to corporate training.

A completely functional LMS will include a control panel that shows managers what their employees are learning, a system that enables knowledge sharing throughout the company, a system that recommends the best way to learn depending on the student’s abilities, a system that transfers information to portable and mobile devices such as PDAs, and a system that allows employees to learn in any language.

The best way to get started for individuals or organization is to seek some of the best Learning Management Systems in the industry and actually trying them out. Also research what other successful professionals or companies in your field are training with. But there’s no substitute for personal experience – the popular eLeaP™ Learning Management System offers a great 30-day Free Trial for both individuals and organizations seeking to learn and improve their skills in their fast paced industries. With a secure, scalable, and on-demand e-learning platform, the Free Trial also includes free setup and easy-to-use training, and is jam-packed with rich and powerful capabilities and features. This may be your first stop if you’re looking for good value and maximum results in your and your employee’s career development.

With eLeaP™ Learning Management System’s comprehensive and secure web training and e-learning program, training managers need not be technically oriented to develop, manage, and measure the progress of all users in their interactive training courses and learning programs.

Learning Management Systems are viewed by many as the key to creating a much more efficient and effective workforce in a short period of time. The growth of web based education has helped expose LMS to a wider audience. LMS are now viewed as an industry in itself, and constitute a market share of approximately $500 million. They are the prevailing source of online courses for with in the United States of America.

The LMS style of corporate education is growing at a tremendous rate; it has overtaken training modules in the United States as the number one form of corporate education. Its performance-based style and wide range of features, which encompass every area of education, are perfect for corporate education.

Learn more at www.eleapsoftware.com

Why you need written, documented company policies

When was the last time you reviewed your organization's policies? If you're like many employers, writing or updating policies is at the bottom of a lengthy "to-do" list. And, you may even question the value of having written company policies because of the apparently conflicting advice concerning their usefulness.

On one hand, many HR experts advocate having written policies as a way of communicating your organization's values and practices to employees. Alternatively, a growing number of attorneys are warning clients that poorly drafted policies may land you in court. So, whom should you believe?

The short answer is both groups. Upon closer consideration, these positions are not contradictory. Well-written policies and employee handbooks can both serve as an effective communication device and help you stay out of court, or at least give you a better chance of prevailing if you end up there. In contrast, poorly executed policies can create unintended contracts and be used as evidence of noncompliance in court.

Learn how to write an employee handbook.

How about delivering your employee handbook or company policies? Have you considered using a learning management system to deploy your policies? Most learning management systems enable tracking and reporting. So not only can you create an ongoing delivery system, you can also monitor or track employees who have not viewed your employee policy. What better compliance tracking and documentation than downloading and printing your employees access and completion records.