Buying A Training Management Software
Have a look at your current training management system. Does it consist of an outdated Learning Management System (LMS), a stand-alone course authoring tool, and some video creation software? Or is your training program lacking an LMS altogether? Maybe it’s time to implement a new solution.
With all the functionality that cloud-based, all-in-one solutions can bring to your organization, there are lots of opportunities to increase training, improve customer service and generate more sales leads.
But, with so many options in the marketplace for training management software, it’s not always obvious where to start looking.
A Buying Guide To Help Select The Right LMS
More than 500 LMS options are on the market, so simply narrowing down the field can be overwhelming. To help training managers like you with this task, eLearning industry and SchoolKeep partnered to prepare The Complete LMS Buying Guide.
This comprehensive guide helps you identify your training program’s requirements and compare features, vendors, and prices as you begin shopping for the right training management system.
Prepare To Engage With LMS Vendors
Before you can begin your search, it’s important to identify what problem or problems you are trying to solve:
- Do you need to provide onboarding for new employees?
- Do you need to address skills gaps or ongoing training for existing employees?
- Does your organization need to leverage your training management system to attract new leads, retain customers, or train channel partners?
Determine your goals, needs, and expectations before you begin to wade through your LMS options. Then, think about what metrics will help your organization measure Return On Investment (ROI) for your training.
Consider what features you will need in an LMS. Are you looking for robust reporting, mobile access, single sign-on capability, a media library that can support multiple formats, course authoring tools and the ability to integrate with other applications like Salesforce?
Know also who your LMS administrators might be, as their skillsets are a factor. User-friendly, intuitive training management systems not only make it easier for your LMS administration to support, but it can also be leveraged by your sales and marketing teams.
Conducting An LMS Comparison
To undertake a side-by-side comparison of the many LMS options, think about which type of LMS will best serve your company’s style and needs.
First, determine whether a horizontal or a vertical LMS is the best fit. A horizontal LMS promises a "one-size-fits-all" solution that works across many business models, use cases, and industries. A vertical LMS is typically designed to support one industry, such as higher education or health care.
Also, consider what type of software model will work best for your business needs. There are 4 basic deployment models:
- Cloud-based (hosted).
- Installed (on-premises).
- Open-source.
- Custom-built.
A cloud-based model, including the data, program, and applications, is housed and managed off-site on the vendor’s server. Typically, the pricing for a cloud-based LMS is flexible, allowing your training program to expand and contract as needed.
An on-premises or installed LMS, common for a legacy training management system, requires a licensed copy of the LMS installed on the organization’s server.
Open-source, or "free" source code, is available to anyone, allowing the organization to adapt the software as needed. While this gives an organization flexibility to customize the training management software, it also requires in-house technical staff with the skills to modify and support it.
A custom-built system also gives an organization a great deal of flexibility to develop a solution tailored to its specific requirements. Again, a custom-built in-house solution requires in-house technical staff to support it.
The Most Critical LMS Features
When it comes to choosing an LMS that offers the features you are looking for, look beyond the bells and whistles. Focus on the features that bring you the most value first.
Robust analytics and report generation, accessed through a dashboard, are high on many training managers’ list of requirements. Metrics will enable you to measure the success of your training and its impact on your business goals.
A built-in course authoring tool gives you freedom from high-cost stand-alone solutions that typically have a steep learning curve. The ability to create rich text content, graphics, and videos all within one platform will enable your trainers to get courses up and running quickly.
Other Essential Features Include:
- Scalability, so your training program can grow as needed.
- The ability for your LMS to integrate with other applications.
- Mobile capability that enables content to fit on any screen size.
And, finally, determine what customer support accompanies the LMS. Look for an LMS that will understand your business challenges to ensure a smooth deployment and be agile enough to help you after implementation when your business needs change.
Pricing Your Training Management System
Many LMS offerings will use one of two pricing models: all-inclusive or packaged.
All-inclusive pricing options offer customers a single price for all services. It may be based on the number of seats the customer expects to use. Benefits include knowing ahead of time what your expected cost will be. The downside is you may pay for seats and features that you don’t end up using.
With a packaged model, you’ll still pay a flat fee, but you’ll be able to customize the features that you need. With the packaged model, you can choose the options you need without paying for additional features you don’t need. The downside is, in an attempt to save money, you may end up choosing fewer features, limiting the effectiveness of the end product.
But some LMS companies are now offering a third pricing model: metered pricing. This model addresses the peaks and valleys of training by allowing customers to pay only for what they actually use, saving valuable training budget dollars.
With any of these models, consider any additional costs that may come with a new LMS, such as implementation fees, design customization costs, excessive use, and maintenance fees. The cost to get started with a new LMS shouldn’t be a surprise, so be sure to ask vendors to disclose their full pricing model.
Start Shopping For Training Management Software With A Well-Defined RFP
Lastly, when you’re ready to start shopping, prepare a request for proposal that defines your specific requirements. To help you get started, SchoolKeep has prepared this template that will help you clearly document your operational, architectural, and application requirements for vendors.
By defining your requirements up front, you’ll have an easier time narrowing down the field of training management systems. With a well-documented RFP, you will be setting yourself up for a successful outcome.
Conclusion
It can seem hard to know where to start when it comes to selecting the right LMS for your business. With over 500 LMSs on the market, all with different feature sets and value propositions, it’s never been more important to do your homework before buying software.
Unlike other software categories such as Marketing Automation (HubSpot) or CRM (Salesforce), we have yet to see a clear LMS market leader emerge. The market is highly fragmented, which makes it particularly difficult for you (the buyer), to understand what the "best" options out there are. That’s why we decided to assemble The Complete LMS Buying Guide.
