With training budgets down, boost e-Learning

By Carl Done and Jennifer Ring-Pérez

Corporate learning management systems (LMS) have transitioned from being an optional IT system for a few large companies, to a foundational and even critical business and management system for all corporations.

“Don’t let complexity drive up costs or tarnish an otherwise good user experience. ”

It should be no surprise that at the central point for a corporation’s learning management system (LMS) is the same department at the center of its training, compliance management and employee performance and development initiatives — the Human Resources department.
Learning Management Systems ranked highest for perceived value of HR solutions among all the respondents surveyed by Bersin & Associates¹ (June 2009), and among 59% of multi-functional HR Leaders specifically. This high rating of LMSs was consistent with talent management and leadership professionals.

Even with this high level of importance, jump starting the corporate e-Learning initiative remains challenging and confusing. In 2009, while training budgets were down 11% from 2008 and training headcount was reduced (4% for small corporations, 8% for large)², the online delivery of training increased at a percentage rate significantly higher than overall training budget reductions.

Unfortunately, despite the increase in e-Learning, overall budget constraints resulted in a net decline in quantity and reach of employees who received training.

So this begs the question: How do you close this deliverables gap in a time of increased budget constraints?

The answer is simple: accelerate your company’s shift to e-Learning. This training model is able to reach more employees anytime and anywhere using a core delivery and tracking system to maximize results and accountability.

HR at the Center of E-Learning

Regardless of the size of organization or your level within it, your role as an HR professional may be a multifunctional one that includes Chief Learning Officer or professional, training, or organizational development. No matter what, though, most HR professionals will partner, at the very least, with others in these roles as well as the IT department when selecting an LMS. As a result, understanding what to look for in an LMS is critical:

At its core a learning management system is not that complex. Most simply put, a strong LMS must be able to distribute training materials to a large or targeted audience, facilitate on-line display and testing of those materials, and report back to the user and appropriate management on the completion status and results.

Here are some simple questions to consider for the optimal LMS to meet your needs as well as the others:

• How does the LMS allow you to assign learning materials or training to employees?
• Do you push out training and allow employees to request training in a “pull” approach?
• Do you need to assign classes by an employee’s role, title, hierarchy in the organization or on an individual basis?
• Do you want email notifications to be sent automatically to employees and their managers based on parameters you set, such as due dates?
• Do you need to demonstrate that employees meet regulatory and statutory certification requirements?
• Do you need to test employees? What about manually grading tests? Do you need custom grade scales or multiple-attempt vs. single-attempt testing?
• Do you need the LMS to integrate with your talent management systems?
• How do you create training content? Do you create content internally, buy from a 3rd-parties, or both?

The complexity is always in the unique features your organization requires. Don’t let complexity drive up costs or tarnish an otherwise good user experience. As you move forward, consider these top features that your LMS should provide:

1.    Deliver Content to Your Learners
An LMS should allow you to easily distribute and track learning materials and courses to your employees. And, the architecture should be based on a simple and intuitive interface that facilitates both a learner-initiated or PULL process and a professional or corporate-driven PUSH process of materials and assignments.

2.    Manage and Report on Results and Outcomes
Reporting is critical to businesses especially those delivering compliance training. Being able to customize reports based on the different needs of a specific department or organization is even better. The best reporting should be able to track delivery and completion of training, and outcomes, certification, accreditations and regulatory compliance. Both a “grade book” approach to track course outcomes and a “transcript” approach to track an individual’s aggregated results are standard.

3.    Manage the Training Plan
A strong organizational structure will allow you to create intuitive workflows and learning plans, a quality search experience, and maintain revision control processes and system. Additionally, an LMS should allow you to:

• Define a learning plan with the option to include prerequisites or defined work flows that guide a learner through a curriculum.
• Bundle learning materials and courses into a curriculum or certificate program.
• Define automated email notifications to Learners, Instructors and Managers on the status of assignments, testing or other LMS system events.
• Provide a personalized unified catalog of courses, learning materials and curriculum.
• Assign due dates based on business rules customized by job title, time in position, organizational unit or other variables.

4.    Integrate with IT, HR and other Business Process Systems
The modern LMS has moved beyond being a standalone monolithic application to a system that participates in and with other systems, policies and processes already deployed within your organization.  Keep it simple.  Don’t reinvent the world – allow HR systems to remain the “system of record” and instead have the LMS synchronize to its data and structure.

5.    Compatible with SCORM Standards and Media Flexibility
Many organizations are turning to external content developers as a way to address budget constraints and reduced resources. The best LMS should be flexible and use the international e-Learning SCORM file formats to be compatible with internal and external content, including Microsoft Office, PDF and Flash file formats, which have become defacto file formats for learning materials. A flexible LMS means being ready for new formats as new technologies become available.

6.    Provide End User Client Compatibility and Accessibility
Accessibility is a foundational assumption of e-Learning. For companies that span the globe or have employees in multiple sites, e-Learning can be available to all of them. An LMS should not require employees to download specific client software or use on a defined PC or system. While the LMS may be “served up” with some specific requirements, the client access should be provided for multiple browsers (Microsoft IE, Firefox, Safari, etc.), and platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, iPad).

As a key stakeholder, take charge and act boldly. The deliverables gap can be closed, and productivity and efficiency can be attained, even in today’s environment of tight budgets.  Choosing the right LMS can have a significant impact on your business and even be a competitive advantage.

References:
1.    Josh Bersin. Bersin & Associates. The Career Factbook for HR and Learning Professionals. 2009.
2.    Karen O’Leonard. Bersin & Associates. The Corporate Learning Factbook^®. 2010