LMS
An LMS, or learning management system, is the platform where you distribute, track and report on training. Learn what an LMS does, who it is for, and how to tell whether your organization needs one.
What is an LMS?
An LMS, or learning management system, is the platform where you store, distribute, track and report on training. The authoring tool is where courses are built. The LMS is where they are delivered to people, and where you find out what happened.
In practice it answers administrative questions: who has been assigned this training, who has completed it, who is overdue, and whose certification expires next month. It is the difference between believing your people are trained and being able to show it.
What an LMS does
- Distribute: assign the right training to the right people or groups.
- Host: hold courses, documents and classroom sessions in one place people can find.
- Track: record completions, scores and attempts.
- Report: turn that data into something you can hand to an auditor or a director.
- Remind: notify people automatically when training is due or a certificate is about to lapse.
Who an LMS is for
Most corporate systems are built around employees: people with a company email address, a contract and a record in the HR system. That works until you need to train everyone else. Contractors, franchise staff, partners, resellers and customers often have no company account, and adding them to the corporate system is slow or simply not permitted.
This is why many organizations run a second, lighter environment alongside their corporate LMS, rather than forcing every external audience into a system that was never designed for them.
How to tell whether you need one
If your training lives in shared drives and email threads, if you cannot answer "who has completed the safety module" without building a spreadsheet, or if certifications lapse before anyone notices, you have outgrown manual tracking.
FLOWSPARKS offers an LMS built for exactly the audiences a corporate system leaves behind, including people without a company email address, and it can be up and running in about a week.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between an LMS and an LXP?
An LMS is built around assignment and compliance: you push training to people and track completion. An LXP is built around discovery, where learners browse and choose for themselves. Many organizations run both, for different purposes.
Do small organizations need an LMS?
Once you cannot answer who completed which training without building a spreadsheet, you have outgrown manual tracking. Headcount matters less than your compliance requirements and how often certification has to be proven.
Can an LMS train people outside your organization?
Corporate systems usually cannot, because they assume a company email address and an HR record. Training contractors, partners or customers generally needs a system designed for users without a company account.
.avif)
Are you looking to step up your digital training efforts inside your organization?
Schedule a demo and discover how FLOWSPARKS helps create and deliver engaging e-Learning experiences backed by strong instructional design principles in multiple languages without a hassle.
More interesting reads
.avif)
FLOWSPARKS Integrates with Google Cloud Translate API
After our announcement of the new feature with DeepL API, we are proud to present the integration with Google Cloud Translate API. This allows our clients to translate their e-Learning to 135 languages with the click of a button. The ‘translation by online service option’ enables our clients to manage and translations processes to save time and cut costs.
3 Examples on How to Improve Compliance Training and Processes
Compliance is an integral part of most organizations. Think of the Code of Conduct, cyber security, or ethics. Often, most employees are not enthusiastic about reading long documents with legal language, but it just simply must be done. How do you ensure that compliance training is not just a box-ticking exercise, but that the participants actually learn something from it? And are there even ways you can make compliance more fun?
Automatic Translations of Your e-Learnings in FLOWSPARKS
Are you just starting to create digital learning content or are you a seasoned professional? In any case you need to think about rolling out your course to your target audience. If you are using an authoring tool that is not integrated into your Learning Management System (LMS) or HR system, it means you must integrate your content on the platform your users have access to. Read this blog and find out how.
What are the advantages of E-Learning?
More and more companies are offering online learning (e-Learning) to their employees. If your organization wants to remain flexible and efficient, it's a good idea to take a closer look at the advantages of e-Learning. Read more about it in this blog.
4 Examples on How to Improve Safety Training and Processes
Many organizations have to deal with security measures at different terrains and locations. Not only for their own employees, but also for external parties, visitors or contractors. A good way to make everyone aware of the applicable measures is a (short) safety training course. But how do you do this? Continue reading for examples and get new ideas.
Are You Looking for a Knowledge Management Solution?
With knowledge management, you organize information or knowledge. A simple description, but that does not mean it is easy to put into practice. There is a great deal of knowledge floating around in an organization. With knowledge management, you ensure that supply and demand for information come together. Read this blog for tips and tricks.
Integrate Your Learning Management Systems and HR Systems
Are you just starting to create digital learning content or are you a seasoned professional? In any case you need to think about rolling out your course to your target audience. If you are using an authoring tool that is not integrated into your Learning Management System (LMS) or HR system, it means you must integrate your content on the platform your users have access to. Read this blog and find out how.
All about LTI
Regarding e-Learning standards for communication there are several acronyms that are well known and some that are less known. Chief Customer Success Officer Christophe takes the time to discuss an e-Learning standard that he feels is less known but should be THE standard: LTI.
3 Tasks on How to Improve Your Learning and Development
Let’s start with the bigger picture. Organizations invest in infrastructure, technology, and new business opportunities. However, it’s shown that investing in staff might just be the thing that gives your organization the edge. That’s the area where the challenges of the Learning & Development department lie. Continue reading for more learning and development insights.
Why Employee Training Is Important
There are organizations that simply offer training because they have to. Think of training for compliance, hygiene, or privacy guidelines. If organizations want to take it one step further, they also offer training giving employees the chance to develop themselves, give confidence and keep them satisfied. Read about more benefits and tips in this blog.