6 Essential Elements to Determine the Best LMS Platform for Your Company

If you’ve found yourself on this page, you might be in the market for a new LMS platform or you’re looking to upgrade your current system. Navigating the world of LMS technology can be daunting because there are countless options out there. Even more challenging, many companies have revamped how they do business, opting to work remotely long-term or to incorporate hybrid schedules.

We’ve witnessed an incredible digital acceleration in the last year, largely due to the pandemic, and many companies are catching up. Legacy LMS systems don’t offer the digital tools companies need to operate in our increasingly complex corporate environments. Even further, many legacy LMS systems haven’t been updated for years and leave their customers stuck with outdated tools.

We’ll come right out and say it: of course, we are partial to our own platform, we created it. That said, we want to help you find the best e-learning platform that will meet your needs. Our LMS was recently ranked among the best. When we look at enterprise LMS platforms across the board, we think there are six essential qualities that set the best tools apart. If you’re in the process of finding a new LMS tool, you should be looking for these six things.

An LMS should offer a simple, streamlined digital user experience

Your employees already have enough tools on their plate to manage everyday tasks. When searching for an LMS platform, look for simple systems that are streamlined and provide a sophisticated digital user experience. Practically speaking, that means you’ll want a system that can manage varying forms of content, that users can comfortably operate, and where all of the content can be played or viewed from the same system.

One of the greatest grievances of legacy LMS platforms is that they require learners to open multiple tabs, download documents, click links that redirect to new browser windows, or take quizzes on separate platforms. This clutters up the learning environment and can contribute to employee stress while learning. All of this detracts from the learning experience and will, overall, impact retention. LMS training will be more effective if the process is simple and streamlined, so the learner can focus on retaining the content.

Related post: Embrace “The New Normal” in Employee Training with a Collaborative, Accessible, and Personalized LMS Platform

ExpertusONE’s digital content player operates within the platform—on both desktop and mobile devices—so that learners can interact with all of the content from one place. Depending on course content, learners can take quizzes, watch videos, read through guides or documents, and communicate with teachers all from the same place. Even further, training managers (whether that’s a designated HR team member or a department manager) can monitor an employee’s learning status within the LMS. They can even send course completion reminders to employees from the platform itself.

The best LMS software corresponds with common workplace apps

Long gone are the days of siloed work environments. If we’ve learned anything in the last year, we’ve learned that we need accessible tools, smart organization, and clear communication in order to succeed at work. One of the best things you can do for your employee training strategy is to invest in LMS software that integrates with common workplace apps. Some apps—like Slack, Salesforce, and Microsoft Teams—are so widely used that learn tech developers have engineered their platforms to interact with those applications.

Related post: The Future of Corporate Learning Rests on This Type of Tool: App-based LMS

Invest in a learning management system that your employees can use within the apps that they already operate on a daily (probably, hourly) basis. The ExpertusONE LMS platform can be operated from Slack, Salesforce, and Microsoft Teams so that employees can manage their courses and tasks from the same place. This reduces the burden of context switching and promotes focus and productivity.

Find an LMS that helps employees upskill

Recent workplace studies showed that one of the greatest factors impacting an employee’s satisfaction at work is whether or not they feel a sense of belonging. Employees want to stay at companies where they feel they are part of a community. Conversely, employees are leaving companies that don’t invest in building a team culture. One of the best ways companies can invest in their employees, and show them that they are a valuable part of the team, is to invest in their future. It’s important to show employees that you care about them beyond their work at the company.

The best LMS platform can help companies communicate this to their employees by providing opportunities for upskilling. Within ExpertusONE’s LMS system, employees can choose from a selection of available courses derived from an expansive catalog. Should training managers and companies choose to provide bonus content—separate from those mandatory corporate training courses—learners can take advantage of new opportunities and better themselves in their fields. Companies can provide business management courses, professional development, productivity training, or even extended certifications that employees can use to stay competitive. The ExpertusONE training platform uses artificial intelligence to learn the employee’s preferences and interests so that the software can then recommend courses based on their unique needs. Based on the AI-driven data, courses are automatically recommended to the learner and the selection is easy to navigate. These opportunities for upskilling show employees just how important they are to the company’s overall success because the company is willing to devote time and resources to the learner’s personal development.

Learning management systems must have in-platform video conferencing

Can you imagine weathering the last year-plus of work without video conferencing? Certainly not. Now, in 2021, video conferencing is an essential workplace tool. This will continue to be the case in the years to come. If you’re looking for the best LMS platform for your company, you should prioritize video conferencing capabilities. As mentioned before, employees already have too many tools to use throughout the day.

With in-platform video conferencing, learners can interact with peers and managers more easily. Whether working through content or wanting to discuss new material further, learners will find that in-platform video conferencing is more engaging than simply clicking through a set of presentation slides to learn a new concept. No matter which platform you choose, prioritize video conferencing because it is an essential tool in the modern workplace.

Every company needs a mobile-first learning management system

Mobile-first is a critical component of any learning management system. Learners are on the go, using their phones for work, and managing many tasks at once. Before you pick a new LMS platform, make sure that it has a design that corresponds with mobile learning. Learners should be able to operate the platform from a mobile device, download courses to complete even when not connected to WiFi, and message managers or team members from the app.

Mobility is especially important for managers because they can monitor course completion and learner progress from the app. This is essential for companies and departments working to meet extensive training goals. ExpertusONE’s mobile LMS app makes learning on the go simple for both employees and managers. Even further, managers can track progress and follow up with their team members all from the app.

The best LMS platforms have interactive elements

Learning managers understand this: boring content means low retention. If your company is still using an outdated, legacy LMS platform that offers no interactive elements, then you will likely experience low rates of retention. Many learners need to interact with content to understand it and apply it to their workplace lives.

ExpertusONE’s learning management system has an HTML5 Rapid Authoring Tool that makes it easy for course creators to add interactive elements like quizzes and videos. These are essential components to the modern learning experience and can foster engagement.

Wherever you are in your search for the best learning management system, keep these six elements in mind. Companies are using LMS platforms to promote engagement, encourage company culture, and facilitate employee growth. In 2021 and beyond, corporate learning is more engaging, more impactful, and yields a greater reward—if you have the right LMS platform on your side.