Recommend a good Learning Management System (LMS)?
Discussion
I've been thinking about how to improve the training we offer to new starters, as well as refresher training and more advanced training for existing members of staff.
So far we have done the usual things e.g. written some process documents, made some videos etc which we follow up in small groups.
I was thinking it would be ideal to host this material in a system so the user could take a test afterwards to check their understanding. Looking online, it seems there are a variety of existing solutions for exactly this need, called Learning Management Systems (LMS).
There seems to two main variants - hosted/subscription services and open-source solutions. Most of the software solutions seem mainly aimed at educational organisations rather than businesses which is what I think I would need.
Does anyone have any experience of these types of software in terms of how effective they have proved to be, and whether there are any particular software solutions you would recommend?
So far we have done the usual things e.g. written some process documents, made some videos etc which we follow up in small groups.
I was thinking it would be ideal to host this material in a system so the user could take a test afterwards to check their understanding. Looking online, it seems there are a variety of existing solutions for exactly this need, called Learning Management Systems (LMS).
There seems to two main variants - hosted/subscription services and open-source solutions. Most of the software solutions seem mainly aimed at educational organisations rather than businesses which is what I think I would need.
Does anyone have any experience of these types of software in terms of how effective they have proved to be, and whether there are any particular software solutions you would recommend?
My partner is currently a VLE (virtual learning environment) coordinator (in education) and has been an LMS Coordinator.
Moodle is a blank canvas and would possibly offer a good start for you. They're open source and you can buy support packages, for example Learning Pool will offer a subscription / helpline to troubleshoot and help with layouts and whatnot.
The thing you really need to consider is the long term investment. Open source is great if you have somebody who broadly knows what they're doing, if you're happy to put them through some courses to build skills, or somebody who is very IT literate, perhaps can write HTML in the instance of Moodle. In any instance open source or subscription you will need to accept the site needs full time management and will need to dedicate a full time position to ensure it works.
A lot of companies fall foul of purchasing the open source options and then fail to maintain them, because of a lack of skill or a lack of time. They become dated and clunky very quickly. Staff use them as a data dump and those who are supposed to be engaging won't / don't, it becomes hard to find things within the site etc.
You'll need to also factor in how your workforce will react to online learning and testing. Some people don't have the digital skills to feel comfortable, and accordingly will disengage, might be worthwhile doing some sort of survey ahead of time to find out how people like to learn or be tested as this may help instruct your decision making on the actual platform. You might want to consider questions such as will all of your staff like multiple choice questions, questions preceded by reading or would they prefer to answer questions as they go via a SCORM approach?
Almost all LMS's will appear to be education focussed because they are just that, a learning and development tool, so I'd try not to be too put off by that, it doesn't always mean they are solely for use by the education sector.
If you're thinking a subscription type might be better for you, then I'd recommend you to pay particular attention to the support offered as standard and the features included. My partner recently went through a tender process for her VLE and there was a huge difference in support hours across the short listed companies. Some will offer help setting up, some will offer help transferring content if you have any else where, and some won't etc etc.
Hope this helps in some way. Happy if you want to contact with any additional questions / further advice.
Moodle is a blank canvas and would possibly offer a good start for you. They're open source and you can buy support packages, for example Learning Pool will offer a subscription / helpline to troubleshoot and help with layouts and whatnot.
The thing you really need to consider is the long term investment. Open source is great if you have somebody who broadly knows what they're doing, if you're happy to put them through some courses to build skills, or somebody who is very IT literate, perhaps can write HTML in the instance of Moodle. In any instance open source or subscription you will need to accept the site needs full time management and will need to dedicate a full time position to ensure it works.
A lot of companies fall foul of purchasing the open source options and then fail to maintain them, because of a lack of skill or a lack of time. They become dated and clunky very quickly. Staff use them as a data dump and those who are supposed to be engaging won't / don't, it becomes hard to find things within the site etc.
You'll need to also factor in how your workforce will react to online learning and testing. Some people don't have the digital skills to feel comfortable, and accordingly will disengage, might be worthwhile doing some sort of survey ahead of time to find out how people like to learn or be tested as this may help instruct your decision making on the actual platform. You might want to consider questions such as will all of your staff like multiple choice questions, questions preceded by reading or would they prefer to answer questions as they go via a SCORM approach?
Almost all LMS's will appear to be education focussed because they are just that, a learning and development tool, so I'd try not to be too put off by that, it doesn't always mean they are solely for use by the education sector.
If you're thinking a subscription type might be better for you, then I'd recommend you to pay particular attention to the support offered as standard and the features included. My partner recently went through a tender process for her VLE and there was a huge difference in support hours across the short listed companies. Some will offer help setting up, some will offer help transferring content if you have any else where, and some won't etc etc.
Hope this helps in some way. Happy if you want to contact with any additional questions / further advice.
ferrariF50lover said:
My partner is currently a VLE (virtual learning environment) coordinator (in education) and has been an LMS Coordinator.
Moodle is a blank canvas and would possibly offer a good start for you. They're open source and you can buy support packages, for example Learning Pool will offer a subscription / helpline to troubleshoot and help with layouts and whatnot.
The thing you really need to consider is the long term investment. Open source is great if you have somebody who broadly knows what they're doing, if you're happy to put them through some courses to build skills, or somebody who is very IT literate, perhaps can write HTML in the instance of Moodle. In any instance open source or subscription you will need to accept the site needs full time management and will need to dedicate a full time position to ensure it works.
A lot of companies fall foul of purchasing the open source options and then fail to maintain them, because of a lack of skill or a lack of time. They become dated and clunky very quickly. Staff use them as a data dump and those who are supposed to be engaging won't / don't, it becomes hard to find things within the site etc.
You'll need to also factor in how your workforce will react to online learning and testing. Some people don't have the digital skills to feel comfortable, and accordingly will disengage, might be worthwhile doing some sort of survey ahead of time to find out how people like to learn or be tested as this may help instruct your decision making on the actual platform. You might want to consider questions such as will all of your staff like multiple choice questions, questions preceded by reading or would they prefer to answer questions as they go via a SCORM approach?
Almost all LMS's will appear to be education focussed because they are just that, a learning and development tool, so I'd try not to be too put off by that, it doesn't always mean they are solely for use by the education sector.
If you're thinking a subscription type might be better for you, then I'd recommend you to pay particular attention to the support offered as standard and the features included. My partner recently went through a tender process for her VLE and there was a huge difference in support hours across the short listed companies. Some will offer help setting up, some will offer help transferring content if you have any else where, and some won't etc etc.
Hope this helps in some way. Happy if you want to contact with any additional questions / further advice.
Very helpful and informative answer - thank you.Moodle is a blank canvas and would possibly offer a good start for you. They're open source and you can buy support packages, for example Learning Pool will offer a subscription / helpline to troubleshoot and help with layouts and whatnot.
The thing you really need to consider is the long term investment. Open source is great if you have somebody who broadly knows what they're doing, if you're happy to put them through some courses to build skills, or somebody who is very IT literate, perhaps can write HTML in the instance of Moodle. In any instance open source or subscription you will need to accept the site needs full time management and will need to dedicate a full time position to ensure it works.
A lot of companies fall foul of purchasing the open source options and then fail to maintain them, because of a lack of skill or a lack of time. They become dated and clunky very quickly. Staff use them as a data dump and those who are supposed to be engaging won't / don't, it becomes hard to find things within the site etc.
You'll need to also factor in how your workforce will react to online learning and testing. Some people don't have the digital skills to feel comfortable, and accordingly will disengage, might be worthwhile doing some sort of survey ahead of time to find out how people like to learn or be tested as this may help instruct your decision making on the actual platform. You might want to consider questions such as will all of your staff like multiple choice questions, questions preceded by reading or would they prefer to answer questions as they go via a SCORM approach?
Almost all LMS's will appear to be education focussed because they are just that, a learning and development tool, so I'd try not to be too put off by that, it doesn't always mean they are solely for use by the education sector.
If you're thinking a subscription type might be better for you, then I'd recommend you to pay particular attention to the support offered as standard and the features included. My partner recently went through a tender process for her VLE and there was a huge difference in support hours across the short listed companies. Some will offer help setting up, some will offer help transferring content if you have any else where, and some won't etc etc.
Hope this helps in some way. Happy if you want to contact with any additional questions / further advice.
jeremyc said:
What kind of business, and what type of staff/roles are you trying to improve the motivation and performance of?
Not really trying to improve motivation. Aim is to create a tool with three main objectives;i) Training new-starters how to use company software proficiently
ii) Training on company procedures/policies
iii) Training on supporting knowledge and information to aid their general understanding and knowledge of our market/competitors/industry
Following on from the suggestion by ferrariF50lover, I've asked one
of my developers to setup Moodle so I can see if that is a suitable platform.
EddieSteadyGo said:
jeremyc said:
What kind of business, and what type of staff/roles are you trying to improve the motivation and performance of?
Not really trying to improve motivation. Aim is to create a tool with three main objectives;i) Training new-starters how to use company software proficiently
ii) Training on company procedures/policies
iii) Training on supporting knowledge and information to aid their general understanding and knowledge of our market/competitors/industry
Following on from the suggestion by ferrariF50lover, I've asked one
of my developers to setup Moodle so I can see if that is a suitable platform.
Roughly how many would be using the LMS?
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