Category: Blog

Alright, let’s get back to first principles, peel back the jargon and ask the question;

“What is an LMS?”

While a few years ago, LMS was a relatively niche part of the market, it’s now projected that 98% of companies plan to use an LMS by 2020.

This resource is designed as an introduction to the LMS system that will answer:

1. What is an LMS?
2. What is an LMS used for?
3. What makes a good/bad LMS?
4. How do I choose an LMS?

What is an LMS?

So let’s start with the basics and ask the question, what does LMS stand for?

Well, LMS stands for Learning Management System.

And a Learning Management System is a software application for managing the delivery and tracking of online learning and online training.

More specifically “the https://www.wyzed.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/staffdevelopment-768×407-1.jpegistration, documentation, tracking, reporting, and delivery of educational courses, training programs, or learning and development programs.”

The Learning Management System concept emerged directly from e-Learning.

So in other words, an LMS is an online software that you can load content in to, and use to train different groups of people (employees, customers, partners) for a variety of different purposes (Team growth, compliance, safety, productivity gains, business automation etc.)

If you’d like to have a go at using a simple yet modern LMS yourself, you can try Wyzed LMS for free here.

And if you need help with anything you can follow this guide to creating your own online course (in 5 simple steps) right here.

What is an LMS used for?

But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s ask another really important question;

What problems does an LMS solve?

AND

What do businesses use an LMS for?

Well, quite simply, have you ever needed to get information from one person(s) head to another person(s) head, then an LMS is a possible tool for you.

In any business operating today, no matter the size or industry or service, passing along knowledge between stakeholders lays at the core of any business.

Here are some examples:

• Teaching employees new skills and critical business processes
• Training contractors/outsourced individuals on your procedures or processes
• Training customers and clients on how to use our products or services
• Providing training as your core business (Training Centres, Universities, Coaches etc.)

Now, the thing is that these challenges have existed since business was even a thing.

And over the years people have used the tools available to them to accomplish these tasks.

But really for the last few hundred years, things haven’t changed much.

Businesses have traditionally used face to face 1:1 on the the job training, using written documents and clunky spreadsheets to deliver and keep track of it all.

To better understand today’s LMS platforms, let’s take a quick trip through the history books to see how we got here today.

A Brief LMS History

The early days…

Interestingly enough, some of the earliest forms of distance education, similar to the principles behind modern LMS, actually dates back to 1723 when Caleb Ogillips, a professor of shorthand, offered teaching materials and tutorials in the Boston Gazette.

This sort of distance education training evolved ever so slightly with the new emerging technologies of penny post service and varied across a range of courses and teachings offered by various individuals over the next few hundred years.

eLearning as we more closely see it today, really began to emerge in the early 20th century. Early appearance of audio-video communications systems were used for remote teaching. And in 1909, Edward Morgan Forster published his story, ‘The Machine Stops’ where we explained the benefits of using audio communication to deliver lectures to remote audiences.

This further evolved as in 1970, Sidney L Presset developed the first teaching machine which offered multiple types of practical exercises and question format. Then, as the format grew, Professor M.E. Zerte transformed this original machine into a problem cylinder able to compare problems and solutions.

But all of this, while bears some similarities to the aspects of modern LMS systems, is still missing two critical aspects – that of the computer and the internet.

The next big change (computers!)

In the 1980’s, this all began to change though as computers became ever more available in daily use in higher education institutes.

It was quickly understood how this new technology could transform how technical and educational information was transmitted to students for learning.

Between the 1970s and 1980s, educational venues were quickly considering the idea of computerising courses.

And with the computer firmly established as the new frontier of learning, the way was paved for the final iterations before we find today’s modern LMS software.

The 90’s – early 00’s…

Early on in this period, there were broadly descriptive terms for this such as computer-managed instruction(CMI), and integrated learning systems (ILS), computer-based instruction(CBI), computer-assisted instruction (CAI), and computer-assisted learning (CAL).

These terms really just describe early iterations, but it wasn’t until FirstClass developed by SoftArc, that things really catch up to what we know today. FirstClass was originally used by the United Kingdom’s Open University in the 1990s and 2000s was used to deliver online learning across Europe being one of the earliest internet-based LMSs.

From there, it was a quick hop and a skip to the first real proper, and fully featured LMS system  called EKKO. It was developed and released by Norway’s NKI Distance Educational Network in 1991.
This quickly caught on, and in 2000, the University of Zurich revolutionized the concept of digitised learning by introducing the first open source LMS called OLAT.

Once that was done, Microsoft developed the first SCORM-certified learning suite SharePoint.

Today and beyond…

Once this milestone was achieved by Microsoft, LMS  as we know it today has rapidly evolved in the way that content is created, how these systems integrate with our ever-digitised workplaces, and more detailed features and benefits to suit our modern workplaces.

Modern Features (How an LMS actually works)

So, let’s go back to an early part of our conversation when you might have wondered “how do modern LMS systems help me train people?”

Well, each one has its own unique features and benefits but we can still divide them into a few categories to help us narrow down which of these tools different LMS systems work. And of course, help us choose which one is best for us.

Firstly, let’s explore some important aspects to ensure that you get the best system.

Scorm vs Non-Scorm

If you’ve done any research, or spent much time exploring the world of LMS, one term you’ll have come across, and something even mentioned earlier in this article, is SCORM.

So, what is SCORM content? Well SCORM stands for Sharable Content Object Reference Model. Basically, SCORM is elearning content that is developed using special software programs and is akin to coding for software. It creates specific learning content that can be used across any LMS software that uses SCORM.

Now, there is a lot more to this, but one of the advantages of using SCORM is that it allows you to easily use SCORM content across different LMS platforms that support the SCORM format. This makes changing platforms really easily and ensures that you don’t need to recreate new content if you move to a newer or better platform.

However, it does come with it’s own set of tradeoffs. The biggest one is that creating SCORM content on these special programs requires special expertise and knowledge. You will need to find a professional who has experience developing this type of content and that can make it very expensive and time consuming to create.

On Premis vs Cloud

We’ve all heard about the cloud right? Has anyone found the cloud yet? Haha, just kidding.

But it is important when you’re looking at LMS systems to know the difference.

Essentially, an on-premise solution is where you house the software on your own servers.

These servers are usually tucked away in some room in your office whirling away!

This makes it nice and secure where you can control who has access to your LMS system but, like SCORM, it requires professionals to be able to set up and maintain this type of system.

On-premise can also be more expensive as often there is a larger upfront fee to set the software up for your needs and more work to maintain new features that the software provider might launch to keep things fresh and modern.

Whereas Cloud, everything is handled on remote servers that whoever you’re purchasing the software off of, manages for you.

So you just login in, and off you go.

It means that you don’t need to worry about speed issues, updates are done automatically, and these systems are often priced on a per user basis which makes things a lot simpler!

eLearning Design Elements

So, as we’ve already talked about, modern LMS allow you to create online courses your learners to go on and complete learning objectives.

Let’s look here at non-SCORM software given that they are the way of the future!

Most modern LMS systems will give you a range of elements to create your courses when completing instructional design.

Elements is just a fancy way of talking about the different building blocks these different softwares will provide you to assemble your courses with.

While different systems will offer different options, common examples of these elements include:

• Multiple choice quizzes
• Videos
• Inserting text
• Pictures
• Providing a space for learner to upload content into your system
• Forums/Discussions
• And many many more!

By combining different elements together, you can create courses as different and unique as you require to teach and train to your objectives.

The art and science behind the combination of these different elements is called Instructional Design and is worthy of a whole library of resources on what to do, and what not to do.

Managing your users/learners online

Of course, at the core of any system, no matter how you’ve arranged the learning elements together in your courses, the user is really the heart and soul of any system.

As mentioned before, often in LMS systems, users are referred to as learners given the nature of what the user is pursuing in your LMS system.

Typically, there are 4 different types of users that you might find in your system.

1. Super User/Master User: Usually this is the person who has total control over the entire system and helps to maintain the high level access and functions of your LMS systems for security and convenience factors.

2. Administrators:The second type, are users setting up your courses and managing the https://www.wyzed.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/staffdevelopment-768×407-1.jpegistrative side of your system. These individuals might be HR, Sales Managers, Instructional Designers, Learning & Development Professionals, subject matter experts, and anyone else who can chip in to help build and maintain your system.

We often encourage our clients to make sure that they bring in, and leverage, a rich collection of individuals from inside and outside of your organisation to help build and maintain your system.

This diversity of background and experience will help to make sure that the content is rich, meaningful, and can be tailored to achieve the learning objectives of the learners who will be going through and consuming the course content.

3. Training Facilitators:The next type of user you might find might be managers, trainers, or individuals who are helping to facilitate the training. These types of users may have different levels of access or oversight as you tailor your LMS based on it’s configurability. Often these users will track your learners as they complete courses to make sure everyone is on track with all their learning objectives. Think of them like a virtual teacher kinda thing.

These users are integral to help ensure that the learning is smooth, impactful, and provides a conduit for a blended approach to learning that can be a great recipe to ensure that the learner absorbs and understands the content to the maximum potential.

4. Learners: And of course, the learners themselves. These are the individuals who are going through to consume the content. The ones who are watching the videos, reading the text, participating in the forums, and completing the quizzes you have created.

The brass tracks

Wow! We’ve talked about a lot of things here today, but let’s boil this down to a few key questions you need to think about as you look for your very own LMS system.

Who exactly who you’re going to be training and what they will be learning?

Depending on if you need to train external stakeholders, employees, or customers, different features will be more important than others.

What is your, or your team’s, level of expertise using an LMS system?

This one is really important as there are some LMS systems out there that are very complex, or rely on SCORM.

All of which requires special professionals who know how to build and manage this type of learning environment.

Choosing an LMS system that meets all your needs but also isn’t unnecessarily complex is critical to ensuring success.

What types of content you need, or have, that you will use to build out your courses in your new LMS.

Different systems will provide different content types (elements). Often we talk about how the medium (the software) is just as important as the message (the learning) as elements can either enhance or detract from the learning that you want to happen in your system. So choose wisely!

LMS Summary

So there you have it, the 30,000 ft view of the LMS, it’s history, and various uses.

If you’d like to learn more please feel free to chat to any of our LMS business consultants here.

And again if you’d like to try a simple modern LMS yourself you can do so for free here.

Have you ever wanted to provide more value to your clients, while reducing your active work hours?

If the answer is yes (and it should be!) you need to check out the Scaling your business podcast by Nudge Coach.

To fill you in, Nudge Coach is an awesome digital coaching platform.

What’s a digital coaching platform you ask? Basically it’s the future of health and fitness coaching, but here now.

Nudge Coach let’s coaches, health care providers, and practitioners keep track of their clients fitness and health all from one simple app.

Using the Nudge Platform, you can sync up a range of fitness tracking devices (fitbit etc.) from your clients and get live data as they move through their day, receive alerts, and contact them as needed.

You can then track their health over time, and work out customized health goals for each client based on the solid data that Nudge Coach provides. Put simply it gives you the information and insight you need to take your health and fitness coaching to the next level, without relying on infrequent and time consuming manual measurements of each client.

Pretty awesome right?

So naturally Nudge Coach’s podcast is about scaling your business and setting up systems that both make your life easier now, as well as set you on a path for increasing success in the future.

“We got to chat about easy ways to provide more value to your clients (and make more money) without even needing to be there.”

We got to have an awesome chat about how we’re currently seeing people systemising their services with online courses and classes, and easy ways to provide more value to your clients (and make more money) without even needing to be there.

You can watch the podcast below, or download the episode from iTunes.

Watch

Summary

[2:20] how to strategically iterate based on customer feedback,

[4:20] the ways businesses are getting the most value from their online training courses,

[6:05] what businesses are charging for access to their online training courses for customers,

[8:20] using online training to make sales and marketing processes more scalable, lead capture, lead nurturing, [read our ‘how-to’ blog post on this topic here]

[16:20] how the Wyzed revenue model and pricing model evolved,

[18:45] what the next phase of product growth has to look like to scale their business further, 3rd party platform integrations, online membership management tools,

[20:45] how this enables the next generation of fitness and wellness businesses,

[26:00] what software tools and platforms Wyzed use internally to run their business,

[32:00] and more lessons for product companies to remember.

Get In Touch!

If you’d like to learn more about digital coaching you can contact the friendly people at Nudge Coach here.

And if you’d like to speak to someone about ways you can systemise and scale your own business, feel free to book an appointment with Wyzed here.

Henry Ford once famously said,

“The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave, is not training them, and having them stay.”

Staff development can pay huge dividends to your business. It is something that you need to invest time and money in.

Of course there is a risk that developing staff will see some of your best and brightest move on to other opportunities, but a development program will always ensure that there is someone to take their place.

“The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave, is not training them, and having them stay.”

Research shows that company profitability is linked to a happy workforce.

A consistent focus on staff development and training will create a motivated, skilled workforce capable of delivering the results that you need. Well – trained motivated staff will feel you are committed to their development and they will return the commitment back to you in spades.

As former Xerox CEO, Ann Mulchay once said, “Employees who believe that management is concerned about them as a whole person – not just an employee – are more productive, more satisfied, more fulfilled. Satisfied employees mean satisfied customers, which leads to profitability.”

Viewed in this context, staff development becomes a critical element in your business planning and operations. It will deliver benefits to you in the following key five areas.

Greater Staff Engagement

Extending the skills of your existing staff makes them feel like a more valuable commodity to the business. It engenders greater confidence in their abilities and their potential for advancement.

This confidence and understanding leads to more “buy in” , all of which promotes a more harmonious and effective workplace.

This engagement provides flow­on benefits in several ways. Engaged, motivated staff want to come to work. They are happy in their job and are more likely to be an advocate for your business to potential customers and employees alike. This makes them much more likely to suggest new innovative ways of completing tasks, adding even more unexpected value.

Improved Efficiencies

An obvious benefit of greater skills and improved knowledge is a lower error rate, which results in greater profit margins.

Perhaps a greater long­term benefit is the potential to adapt more quickly to changing circumstances by having a workforce capable of quickly adopting new technologies and work methods.

An engaged team will be much less likely to resist change and will be more open to new methods. What’s not to love about that?

Reduced Employee Turnover

The old saying that retaining a customer is much more profitable than attracting a new one, can be applied equally to staff. Retaining staff and keeping turnover to a minimum is critical if you intend to maximise the returns on your business.

The costs of employee turnover are massive when you take into account the associated direct and indirect costs. Direct costs could include such line items as:

• costs of advertising the vacancy
• recruitment agency fees
• possible fees to consultants for conducting aptitude tests, reference checks and medicals examinations
• termination payout amounts, such as pro rata long service leave and pay in lieu of notic

Indirect costs can be even more costly when you take into account such factors as:

• Loss of productivity caused by other employees having to cover duties
• Initial induction costs including training and https://www.wyzed.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/staffdevelopment-768×407-1.jpegistration aspects
• Termination costs including processing of final payments and superannuation https://www.wyzed.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/staffdevelopment-768×407-1.jpegistration processing times
• Initial loss of productivity. It will take some time for any new employee to “get up to speed”. While this will vary from individual to individual and from job to job, you realistically have to factor in that it may take some time for the employee to be at least 75 percent as effective as the person that they are replacing.
• Inevitable loss of productivity in final stages of employment. Once an employee gives notice, there will be a drop in output. It’s difficult to quantify, but they will already be focussed on the next stage of their life and making plans for that.

Their obligations to you are no longer high on their priorities list.

With these costs in mind – the costs of an ongoing staff development program that aims to engage and motivate employees should be seen as an investment in the business rather than a simple expense.

Better risk management

The resultant greater engagement of staff brought about by staff training and development creates tangible benefits in the areas of risk management and safety. Engaged staff are more likely to identify risks of a financial and physical nature.

Risk identification, reduces the likelihood of costly incidents. Innumerable studies have also shown that disengaged staff are twice as likely to have an accident at work. You can also ensure that employees are up to date and informed on such issues as sexual harassment and equal opportunity.

Improved Business Profile

The best form of advertising is word of mouth.

Employees who appreciate being treated well and given the opportunity to improve will share their positive experiences about your business. Every time they cast your business in a positive light they do two things.

They give your business free advertising as an ethical business committed to staff development and they also make your business an attractive place to work at for potential new employees.

Seems to me that Henry Ford knew actually what he was talking about, way back when.

Think back to the last staff training session that you attended.

Was it engaging? Did you learn anything?

Do you think preparing staff training sessions would be an easy gig?

Before you decide that delivering training is a walk in a park here are some important facts about the your trainer’s life that you probably haven’t considered.

“Good trainers never claim to have all the answers, but welcome questions that they can’t answer with a promise to find out.

1. Your trainer knows some subjects are boring

Compliance reasons dictate that some subject matter simply has to be delivered in a training format and let’s face it delivering some of this stuff is your trainer’s worst nightmare.

Undoubtedly they’ve spent hours agonising over how to make that dull, boring subject interesting and engaging. Sometimes they even pull it off. If they don’t, it isn’t for lack of trying.

2. Your trainer will have favourites

It’s not intentional. Some people just click better than others. When participants engage and interact, your trainer is likely to feed off that energy.

They’re human and will respond to where the positivity is coming from. It’s only natural that they view those engaged participants in a more positive light than others who simply seem disinterested. You can overcome this by ensuring you become one of your trainer’s favourites.

3. Your trainer is prepared to take risks

Of course they are. It comes with the territory. Standing up in front of a crowd and speaking is never easy. Not only are trainers not afraid to speak to a crowd, they know and understand that they have to engage the audience to have an impact.

Sometimes they might go out on a limb and try something different to get a reaction or to get buy in. Sometimes those efforts work, sometimes they don’t, but rest assured your trainer is trying their best to deliver a positive result.

4. Your trainer is not an expert

Good trainers never claim to have all the answers and they welcome those questions that they can’t answer, with a promise to find out. While trainers rarely claim to be an expert on a particular subject, they are well prepared to deliver a training session on an aspect of that subject.

They’ve researched and prepared their session to help you get better at what you do.

5. Your trainer understands that you may not “get it” the first time

Nothing is easy the first time and everybody learns at different levels. Besides, on any given day some people, for whatever reason, won’t be totally switched on.

Your trainer structures presentations accordingly to reinforce key points and to give you a clear understanding of what is required. They encourage questions for a reason – make use of their time. He or she will appreciate it.

6. Your trainer reads a lot

Training is not a job that you can just improvise on the spot. Lessons have to be planned and researched. That means a lot of reading. Almost always done in the trainer’s own time.

It may come as a surprise to you, but trainers don’t come ready made with complete knowledge about a subject. Often they have to do the hard yards researching and learning a specific topic so that they can present it to you in a coherent fashion.

7. Trainers spend time on social media

They’re also professional enough to realise that social media channels are public spaces that can be used for effective collaboration and work-related chats. Some trainers even use mediums like Twitter to encourage dialogue with trainees.

8. Your trainer is an easy target

Trainers want you to succeed for good reason – self preservation. They are judged on outcomes. When things go wrong in the workplace one of the first “reasons” rolled out by both management and staff on occasions is inadequate training or poor training.

When the wheels fall off a project it sometimes can be easy to blame the trainer rather than supervision, inadequate planning or a host of other management failings. Your trainer is aware of this. You can rely on them to be well prepared and to have documented that preparation.

9. Your trainer is not a robot

They don’t just come to work, switch on and deliver perfect sessions. They too struggle with juggling the demands of their personal and professional lives.

The car doesn’t start, the kids are ill and there’s unexpected bills just as often for the trainer as anybody else. Professionals act as they must, not as they feel. Your trainer embodies that philosophy. Training is delivered with passion and integrity without betraying all the personal stuff rising to the surface.

10. Your trainer doesn’t necessarily agree with policy

Nor will they betray their feelings in this regard. Not all policy is good policy, but your trainer is there to deliver the message and ensure that you understand what is required of you, according to policy. They did not conceive it or write it. They’re just the messenger.

If you don’t agree with a policy that is at the heart of some training program being delivered, your trainer can’t change the training or the policy. Save your breath. Absorb the training and if you really have a beef about some aspect of policy raise it with your direct supervisors or management.

When you next attend a training session, remember that your trainer is investing their time and energy in your improvement and that their presentation was not thrown together in five minutes. Take the time to thank them – they’re sure to appreciate it.

Thank you for reading this.

If you own or run a small business, employee training is one of those costs you probably try to avoid.

It’s costly to backfill, it takes staff away from core duties, and you don’t always know whether it will have been time well spent until afterwards.

Because of this, many employers either don’t understand (or live in denial of) the fact that employee training is extremely important.

Not convinced?

Ok, Imagine you just found out you need an operation and are having the interview with your prospective surgeon…and he lets slip that he doesn’t have the proper training. How do you feel?

“Any workers can make mistakes, but in many industries not training workers properly puts management in direct legal risk.”

You’d check out of the hospital faster than Jiminy Cricket!

…You wouldn’t let an engineer build a bridge without the right training.

…You wouldn’t send your kids to a school where the teachers weren’t trained.

The list goes on. So, most of us admit it eventually, staff development is important.

How do so many of us end up with problems in this area? Hint, its not a hiring problem. Business managers don’t usually hire unqualified employees, but they do hire under-qualified workers, and worse, we all let standards slip over time.

An employee can become underqualified for several reasons:

• Our company is too busy to train right now
• When there’s a lot of changes in a business such as technology
• We don’t have enough money to pay for training

Yes, It takes materials, money and time to train employees. In many cases, third parties are required for the job training. There’s an investment of time which is un-billable as well as other costs. Some employers don’t train employees because of their past negative experiences. The training may not have been done correctly or the wrong topics were taught. When training fails it’s a high cost for the company.

However, If you don’t train your employees, this is also a serious risk. Here’s why untrained employees are costing you far more than you think:

1. Untrained is Unhappy

When you have employees that feel like they underachieve, feel inadequate or unsupported, they tend to feel unhappy. If you want staff buy in to your vision and mission, you need to train them. This ends up costing money and time for the company.

2. Production Value is Lower

An untrained employee won’t be able to solve problems to the same degree as someone who is properly trained. The performance and dollar per hour value of that employee tends to be lower than it would if the employee was given professional development.

3. Inconsistency is Inefficiency

You can spend more money and time when you have an untrained employee. It ends up taking them longer to complete the work assigned to them and the consistency just isn’t there. Even basic tasks can be done faster with training, and the more complicated the process, the more important the training.

4. Mistakes and Damaged Goods

You’re not losing money with training. An employee without the right training causes mistakes and wastes time which does cost you money. There’s materials and time lost when an employee makes a mistake. In some cases, there’s an inadequate product which is delivered to the client. The damage to you

5. Legal Liability

Any workers can make mistakes, but in many industries not training workers properly puts management in direct legal risk. Staff, clients, customers and the public are all at increased risk of accidents and mistakes if employees are not well supported and educated on their roles and responsibilities.

6. More Miscellaneous Expenses

Untrained workers are less likely to look for issues in service delivery or ways to improve customer experience. These expenses can be harder to track and mistakes may take more time to fix. If things were done right the first time, there wouldn’t be added costs. Trained workers are more likely to think about improving your business offering and make your clients happier.

7. Lost Clients

If you have untrained employees, the degradation to product or communication quality you can lose clients and customers. Staff could be selling out of fit or talking to customers with entirely the wrong language. This impacts your customer experience and erodes client base as they expect more from you as a company.

There you have it, 7 scary reasons not to ignore employee training and skills development. So…what then?

Solution: Better Quality Work with Quality Employee Training

When you have a trained workforce, you have workers which are learning new skills and this can cut production time, improve consistency, reduce costs, reduce mistakes, and build up a confident workforce. This all creates a safer working environment, happier, more passionate staff and a better customer experience.

When you invest in the skill set of your employees, you’re making an investment in your company. When you have trained employees, everyone benefits.

If you need help to implement an online training platform for your staff, then Wyzed can help. It’s what we do best.