Top 7 Benefits of Learning Management Systems for Organizations
Top 7 Benefits of Learning Management Systems for Organizations
A Learning Management System or LMS is a software application that functions as an online virtual classroom and facilitates the documentation, administration, reporting and delivery of e-courses or online courses.
eLearning has become integral to professional development, and as employees are quickly becoming tech-savvy, more companies are giving up on traditional models of learning in favor of LMS.
There are multiple benefits to using online training courses to help employees expand their knowledge base. Not only is the potential for learning options limitless, but one can also access the expertise of experts across the globe. Furthermore, an LMS system is far more cost-effective than investing in personal training.
With that in mind, here are the top seven benefits of using LMS in your organization:
1. Lowers Costs
Organizations typically spend a considerable amount of money on staff training and development. A central LMS provides a database that tracks the details of company investment in employee training and development. In addition, there will be no more need for printed materials, accommodations for travel and on-site facilitators. Moreover, training administration will be conducted with greater ease.
2. Provides Access to Interactive & Engaging Multimedia Content
The times when you sat in a conference room and spent hours listening to an instructor are long gone.
Today, learning experiences are comprised of robust learning management systems that offer features like video conferencing, podcasts, video tutorials, threaded discussions, interactive learning, and HTML courses.
The large variety of media is available for interactive learning to serve multiple learning needs and preferences. LMS is highly student-specific and ensures an engaging experience during the learning process.
Also, program outcomes are more consistent with an LMS, which are discussed below.
3. Central Tracking and Reporting of Training Programs
An LMS offers excellent reporting tools, which allows administrators to easily track each employee’s progress. It is possible to track how quickly employees are moving through the courses, areas they are struggling with, and qualifications that will soon expire. Even better—a good LMS will save all these reports in a single and easily accessible database. The tracking and reporting capabilities of these systems is by far one of the most beneficial aspects of their adoption.
4. Automates Mandatory Training & Improves Compliance
Organizations are required to provide mandatory training to employees on issues of health and safety, anti-harassment and bullying, diversity and inclusion, etc. Compliance training requires a lot of “tick-all-the-boxes”; delivering training via traditional decentralized methods is time consuming, laborious, error prone, and management intensive. An LMS eliminates unnecessary complexity and the need to tick boxes by making use of automation in scheduling, booking, delivery, tracking and reporting of mandatory training.
5. Provides Personalization Options & Easy Access to Information from Anywhere
LMS makes organization-specific training possible. Companies can add their corporate image and brand to the platform, and tailor the platform’s features to suit their needs. Different portals and user IDs encourage personalization and can be created without the need for additional installations. A platform can be multilingual or monolingual and can function simultaneously with web access. Courses, multimedia content, archives, calendars, etc. can be accessed with a single mouse click, anytime and anywhere. The content is available 24/7 and offers a seamless learning environment.
6. Provides Consistent Learning Experiences
An LMS creates a virtual learning environment that can be replicated for all participants. Users can set the order of modules, create time limits, share training materials and ensure uniform content for all employees at all company locations.
7. Enables Integrating Social Media for Collaborative Learning
An LMS makes it easy to integrate social learning into the employee training strategy. Because the LMS is online, organizations can include links to Facebook and Twitter pages, LinkedIn groups, online forums, etc. to encourage collaborative learning, which may be beneficial to employees and help advance company goals. Additionally, administrators can easily and quickly expand courses with an LMS and then deploy them to all participants through notifications on various social media platforms. This is in stark contrast to traditional learning methods, where updated manuals or handouts need to be sent out to each participant.
Verdict
Not all LMS platforms are the same and it is important to look for a vendor that best understands the needs of your particular company. Keep in mind that finding the ideal LMS is the only way to truly reap the benefits of an LMS. So, make use of free trials, research the features and pricing, and read as many reviews as possible. If you do your homework in advance, you are sure to get the most out of the LMS you select and create a program of successful eLearning for your employees.