Is your online training program cost-effective and efficient? Or does it drain your resources? Learn 7 ways a Learning Management System can help.

Resources are at a premium in today’s economy. With corporate downsizing and budget cuts, it may be hard to justify buying a new Learning Management System. However, there are several reasons why buying a Learning Management System makes sense for organizations, large and small, even if you’re working with limited resources. Here are 7 notable Learning Management System benefits.

1. Savings On Time And Money

Most businesses incorporate training programs in one of two ways: A common method consists of in-house training staff, classroom infrastructure, and printed material. A second method involves a hired instructor to come onsite to conduct the class. The costs for this method include instructor fees, airfare, and accommodations. Both methods are costly.

When employees attend live presentations, production downtime lasts from one to two hours, depending on topic complexity. In the case of employee noncompliance, personnel must issue follow-up communication, schedule additional class time, and ensure attendance. By utilizing a Learning Management System, the allotted training budget no longer supports service fees and infrastructure. Production downtime is minimized and noncompliance is easier to track. Another cost benefit is seen in the in-house instructor. The time used by the instructor is reallocated for preparing updates to existing online training material or creating new online training material for further online training.

2. Training Adapted To Individual Needs

Training requirements fluctuate over time. Your company expands, you need to keep up with current regulations, or you identify gaps that must be addressed immediately. One of the Learning Management System benefits is that they can host onboarding online training, government rules/regulation, health and safety, and even multiple site consistency. With large companies, the new hire rate may call for monthly training. Plus, retained employees require yearly refresher training, which is sometimes governmentally controlled. These refresher courses are often provided monthly to accommodate individual hire anniversaries. Cost-efficiency declines when in-class training is conducted on such a frequent basis.

3. Flexibility Of Training

The individual employee gains complete flexibility of their schedule by utilizing a Learning Management System. With remote access abilities, the individual can get the training they need anywhere and at any time, using a variety of devices, such as iPhones, tablets, and computers. All of these options increase productivity giving employees autonomy in managing their own training schedules. There are two additional Learning Management System benefits regarding online training: First, the ability to stop and start the online training session. When the employee returns to the LMS platform, they will automatically return to the last screen they left the online training course at. This flexibility allows them to utilize small increments of downtime efficiently. Second, the ability to access the online training materials multiple times for continued reinforcement.

4. Compliance Metrics

When employees control their schedules, they are more likely to complete the online training. Therefore compliance statistics improve. Tracking LMS metrics is also simplified for training needed for specific laws, policies or regulations. Another measurement that can be tracked is the time each individual spends on the Learning Management System.

5. Track The Effectiveness Of Online Training Material

Once a large group has gone through online training, tracking assessment results through your Learning Management System can be a valuable source of information about the effectiveness of the online training course. Another good idea is to conduct a quick online survey through your LMS, asking direct feedback about the effectiveness of the online training course. For example, ask online learners to participate in a five-minute online survey to gain insight on what works and what doesn’t.

6. Talent Retention

With high turnover within the workforce, an efficient LMS can help retain top individuals. To accomplish this, create a broad base of online training materials, including company-specific knowledge for advancement, self-improvement of soft skills, scenario-based learning, and just-in-time online training. Soft skills are broken down into two categories: self-management and people skills. Examples of self-management skills are stress management, and problem-solving. People skills may include, teamwork, presentation skills, leadership, negotiation, and networking. By implementing online training courses to meet these skills, employees become better and more productive. Scenario-based learning is interactive, based on the responses given. Employees can adapt a better method to handle situations based on the feedback they receive from the online training simulation. When emergencies arise, there is no time to schedule and take in-house training to gain knowledge for that emergency. In this case, the employee may feel inadequate to handle unforeseen challenges.

7. Deploy Extended Enterprise Training

Learning Management Systems also allow you to deliver online training resources to external partners, such as remote sales teams and even consumers. As such, in-house employees aren’t the only ones who benefit from a flexible LMS platform. For example, franchisees are able to get all the online training resources they require to onboard new staff members and uphold company compliance. Likewise, customers have access to product demos and online training tutorials so that they can make better purchasing decisions, enhancing consumer loyalty and trust.

Two of the biggest Learning Management System benefits are time and money saved. Streamlining the online training process cuts down on both categories, so these resources are better utilized within the organization. Tracking LMS metrics becomes easier and more profitable. Employees benefit in multiple ways through an LMS, such as flexibility, talent retention endeavors, and multiple platform applications.