Choosing an LMS is an exciting prospect. When you begin looking at the various options, you might be surprised to discover all the things an LMS can offer. The only tricky part is narrowing down your search to just one software that does everything you need; custom branding, in-depth reporting, and viewing on mobile are just a few of the traits you should be looking for.
What To Look For In An LMS
1. Flexible Reporting Features
One of the main reasons that businesses invest in an LMS is that they want to gain more oversight of staff training. That's why it's crucial for the LMS you choose to have excellent reporting features that allow you to report on many facets of training. This may include course progress, content completion, attendance by department or role, and more.
Additionally, you need to be able to give access to these reports to the right people. A manager should be able to report on their own team's training but perhaps not see the activity of those outside their department. This is usually done via Reporting Officer roles within the LMS.
Ensure that the system you choose offers flexibility around these roles so that you can limit the departments an individual can report on and perhaps even the types of reports they can view.
2. Mobile-Friendly
In business today, employees work outside the office more than ever. People want to access training materials from wherever they are, whether in the office, at home, or on the go. Your LMS should facilitate this by being fully mobile-friendly.
With courses available on mobile, staff can access training materials whenever and wherever suits them best.
3. Simple To Maintain
The goal of implementing an LMS is to make life easier for your staff, which is it's vital that you find one with plenty of flexibility around how it is maintained.
It may be the best option for your company to have the LMS externally managed so everything is fully set up for you and you can start using it immediately. Or perhaps you'd like to manage LMS administration in-house to retain complete control over the system. Seek a provider that offers you the choice – have it all done for you, or do it yourself.
Some LMS can also be linked to an HRSS feed, meaning that when new staff are added to your HR system, this will automatically flow through to create new accounts in the LMS. This type of setup means you can not only save time on manual administration but also provide new staff with a seamless onboarding experience.
4. Customisable Options
No two businesses are the same, so no two LMS should be the same! An LMS should support the structure of your business, no matter what that looks like. With the right technology, you can assign training only to those in certain departments or with specific job roles. For example, your admin staff won't need the same training as your technical team.
Additionally, the more customisable learning is, the better. Some LMS can support training materials in many different formats, including PDFs, videos, SCORM files, and even customised courses you can build yourself in the software. This allows you to easily reuse existing material and create new training that looks great and is simple to follow.
5. End User Experience
When reviewing LMS options, the first thing you will notice when you log on is the end user experience. What does the LMS look like? Does it feel like it fits with your business? An LMS should be able to offer a personalised experience for end users, not look like an off-the-shelf product.
Users will need to be able to easily find and complete training. A sense of achievement through earning certificates or badges as they complete courses can also add to the end user experience.
After many months of research into all of the services an LMS can provide, the team at Follow My Lead discovered that price and minimum user numbers are a barrier to entry for many small businesses. So we decided to change that by offering our smaller clients Voyager LMS, our LMS platform that offers all of the features you need at a fraction of the cost.
With Voyager Learning Management System, you can manage all staff training from one central location, including videos, training registrations, and eLearning courses. Detailed reporting offers you insight into who has completed training and when.
Want to see Voyager in action? Book a demo by clicking the button below.
LMS Advisory Services
Our bigger clients may be able to sign up directly with an LMS provider. Follow My Lead is here for you during that process, whether you need advice on defining your requirements, selecting an LMS or implementation.
Interested in knowing more? Contact us today!