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LMS Success: Selecting Your Ideal Learning Management System
Learning management systems are chock-full of incredible tools that will bring your training program to the next level. But many training managers aren't sure how to choose an LMS that will complement company needs. This session will discuss how to identify appropriate systems, what questions to ask LMS vendors, and critical issues you should address before signing a contract. A comparison of top learning management systems will be provided as a handout. We will also discuss how to set goals for the LMS and get company leadership on board with the implementation process. Application on the Job: Identify appropriate learning management system vendors. Create a list of questions and goals to guide discussions with potential vendors. Review the LMS contract for common red flags. Introduce the system to company leadership and get their buy-in.
LMS Success: Selecting Your Ideal Learning Management System
- 1. With Katrina Baker,Resources of Fun Learning LMS SUCCESS: SELECTING YOUR IDEAL LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
- 2. Based on bookLMS Success! Available in the TechKnowledge Bookstore and on Amazon. “It’s an informative (and amusing) guide to selecting, implementing and administering an LMS.” “This book should be given to all employees who are involved in the LMS decision making process, even in the midst of the implementation.” Excerpts from Amazon.com Reviews
- 3. Analyze Your Company’sNeeds • Decide what you want the LMS to accomplish • “Sell” the LMS to leadership by explaining system capabilities Select an LMS Vendor • Questions to guide discussions with potential vendors • Efficiently narrow down vendors • Review the LMS contract for common red flags Our Class Agenda © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 4. Analyze Your Company’s Current& Future Needs
- 5. Consider the Scopeof Your LMS How many employees or students do you have? Will your company be delivering most classes through an online format? Wish list: What problems do you want to solve for your training team? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 6. Consider Your e-LearningContent Videos Documents Interactive Games Assessments & Surveys Virtual Classes © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 7. Ask Leadership toFurther Define Scope Will all employees have access to the LMS? What is the projected growth of the employee base? Will you provide content that is closed captioned or otherwise modified for accessibility? Will content be delivered in one language or several? Do you need the system to deliver specific reports regarding employee course completion? Will the LMS deliver sensitive or proprietary content? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 8. Efficiency, Effectiveness & Accuracy Whenselling the concept of an LMS, focus on the… …and give concrete examples.
- 9. Six Clever Waysto Use an LMS Deliver classes to a broad base of employees. Keep up with company growth. Ensure compliance courses, such as harassment trainings, are automatically assigned and completed on time. Make it easier for employees to find and register for upcoming instructor-led classes. Auto-assign a curriculum for new employees so they can start learning immediately. Create competition by releasing training stats by team every quarter. Reduce the expenses created by instructor-led classes (Check out the handout for a sample ILT budget!) © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 10. What are threecritical goals for the LMS? Use these goals as a starting point. Develop a list of vendor selection criteria.
- 11. LMS Vendor SelectionCriteria
- 12. Possible Categories forLMS Vendor Criteria Vendor Overview •Pricing (First year and annual cost following first year) •Number of developers/technical support representatives •Support hours •Cloud-based or hosted locally? •Responsiveness during selection process •Service Level Agreement (SLA) provided? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 13. Criteria Categories: Interfaces Userinterface appearance and features Manager/supervisor interface appearance and features Admin interface appearance and features © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 14. Criteria Categories: Management& Protocols Instructor-led classroom management Online course uploads and protocols Mobile functionality (HTML5) © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 15. Criteria Categories: Curricula& Automation Continuing education rules and tracking Competency profiles and curricula/learning tracks Automation and notifications © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 16. Criteria Categories: Security& Network Security • Is the level of security appropriate for the content that will be stored in the LMS? • Are you going to maintain the LMS on your own server, or use the LMS vendor's server? Network • Do you want employees to access this content from home, or only on the company network? • How will the LMS interact or link to existing company systems? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 17. Criteria Categories: OtherFeatures Social and gamification features Assessment capabilities Reporting capabilities Available languages © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 18. For a fulllist of criteria, check out… Available in the TechKnowledge Bookstore and on Amazon. The LMS Selection Checklist
- 19. The LMS VendorSelection Process
- 20. The Process ina Nutshell Round One: Research Ten Vendors Round Two: Initial Contact with Six to Eight Vendors Round Three: In-Depth Analysis of Three Vendors Round Four: Negotiation and Contract Execution with Chosen Vendor © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 21. Round One: TenLMS Vendors Links to LMS vendor lists are available in today’s handout Take a gander at the handout for signature features of some major LMS vendors Research ten vendors on Internet. Attend introductory tutorials, such as those offered by Blackboard © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 22. Round One: Research Requestclient references. Call two references per vendor. Is the vendor responsive, willing to innovate, technically reliable? Research on the Internet. If the vendor is publicly traded, are they financially stable? Have they been around for a few years? What is the size of their client base? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 23. Round One: VendorQuestions Walk through the “standard user experience.” Is the LMS vendor willing to customize your system? In what ways? How easily can you transfer existing training data into the new LMS? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 24. Round Two: Sixto Eight LMS Vendors Set up initial phone interviews with 6-8 LMS vendors Expect to speak with the LMS vendor’s customer service representative © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 25. Round Two: VendorQuestions Discuss your top three LMS priorities and critical selection criteria (deal-breakers) How long will it take to build your system and make it available to employees? Implementation timeline? © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 26. Round Three: ThreeLMS Vendors Narrow to three LMS vendors and set up another call with each Request to speak with a representative who has in-depth technical knowledge Present vendors with your full list of selection criteria (and RFP if you have one) Request a Statement of Work (contract) that includes a Service Level Agreement (SLA) © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning
- 27. Round Three: ReviewAnswers to Selection Criteria © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning Which vendors offer all or most of your desired LMS features? How responsive have the vendors been throughout the selection process? Pricing (First year implementation cost, and annual cost following first year) Number of developers/technical support representatives Support hours Cloud-based or hosted locally? (Security)
- 28. Round Three: Contract& SLA © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning If your company grows rapidly, will per-user costs become a burden? Are there any guarantees regarding cost increases when the contract is up for renewal? How does your company regard the length of the contract? Can the first-year implementation cost be spread across multiple payments?
- 29. Round Three: Contract& SLA, Cont. © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning Does the Service Level Agreement (SLA) guarantee enough system up-time and vendor responsiveness? If the vendor violates their SLA, at one point can you legally terminate the contract? Compare all associated costs of the potential vendors
- 30. Round Four: Selecta Vendor © 2015 Resources of Fun Learning Both parties negotiate and sign the contract Lay down a timeline for system implementation and integration Involve executive leadership as needed Congratulate your team!
- 31. Thank you forattending! Questions? Please e-mail the instructor directly at katrina.baker@yahoo.com or tweet @rofl411. Your feedback is appreciated!