9 Best Extended Enterprise LMS Tools for To Try in 2024

There are three major groups that businesses are trying to train through enterprise learning management systems (LMS) in 2024: Customers, Partners, and Employees. 

Training customers allows organizations to streamline onboarding, reduce customer loss, and improve retention and the overall customer journey. Training employees allows them to maintain their workforce fully informed about various product use cases so that they can effectively build, sell, and generate growth for your company. Employees also undergo training for onboarding, compliance, safety, and security across the organization. 

And partners? They’re like dealers, re-sellers, and suppliers that may need to be informed about how to use the product so they can create proper sales or distribution programs related to your product(s). 

A learning management system (LMS) can be a powerful tool to streamline your business operations when used effectively. So, we’ve compiled a list of our top 9 best Extended Enterprise LMS tools for you to try in 2024.

Skip ahead:

• Summary of top 9 tools for extended enterprise LMS
• What is extended enterprise LMS?
• Benefits of extended enterprise LMS
• List of Top 9 Extended Enterprise LMS Platforms
• Advanced Feature Checklist for Extended Enterprise LMS Platforms
• Choosing the Right Extended Enterprise LMS for Your Business 
• Case Studies: Success Stories with Extended Enterprise LMS
• Future Trends in Extended Enterprise LMS 
• Conclusion

Summary of top 9 tools for extended enterprise LMS

What is an Extended Enterprise LMS?

Most LMS tools are designed to educate a single group. In larger organizations and enterprises for example, an LMS might be used for the single purpose of onboarding employees through a set of standardized training materials. 

However, an Extended Enterprise LMS takes this a step further by allowing you to create educational content for multiple groups such as customers, employees, prospects, and partners. This opens up a world of opportunities for your organization when it comes to use cases for your LMS. For example, an Extended Enterprise LMS can be used for: 

• Customer Education
• Partner Education
• Lead Generation 
• Employee Training

Benefits of an Extended Enterprise LMS

 Extended enterprise LMS platforms have a few major benefits, including:

• Scalability and flexibility. Enterprise-level systems are designed to support a large number of trainees at one time. There are features to help managers and product teams streamline grading and reporting on employee or partner training programs which avoids the need to manually review every assessment. It’s also much easier to adapt training materials to different regions of the world with built-in translation support, for example. 

• Enhanced training outcomes. With a broader feature set, you can adapt to different learning needs and can begin to automate some tasks such as reminding employees about upcoming training deadlines. This ensures that trainees can access the learning tools that they need such as subtitles or slowed-down audio, for example. It also generates a higher overall likelihood that courses will be completed on time and with high accuracy! 

List of Top 9 Extended Enterprise LMS Platforms 

1. Thinkific Plus

Thinkific Plus is an enterprise-grade product that allows you to build, manage, and even monetize educational content organized into courses.  You can use it for revenue generation, employee training and onboarding, or improving customer retention through education! 

Key features and benefits:

• Create diverse learning products that meet the needs of your audience.
• Manage audiences so that everyone only sees the content and tools they’re supposed to.
• Revenue generation and eCommerce tools to help drive online sales.
• Integrations with 90+ apps to automate and streamline your operations.
• Advanced security to keep your data safe.
• Dedicated customer success team with industry expertise to ensure you know your way around the product and achieve long-term success. 

Pricing:

• Customized per organization – request a call with a Thinkific Plus solutions team member to receive a quote

User ratings:

• Capterra: 4.4/5
• G2: 4.7/5
• eLearning Industry: 4.6/5

2. TalentLMS

TalentLMS is a great platform for building large training programs, especially if your organization is distributed globally. Partners, customers, and employees can all be hosted and trained through the platform.

Key features and benefits:

• Drag-and-drop course builder which makes it easy to design new learning products
• Localize the learning experience through built-in translation support
• Improve sales through role-play activities as part of the training development plan
• Create personalized course paths by assigning specific prerequisites or assessments

Pricing: 

• Starter – $89 per month/company
• Basic – $189 per month/company
• Plus – $369 per month/company
• Premium – $569 per month/company
• Enterprise – customized pricing

User ratings:

• eLearning Industry: 4.7/5
• G2: 4.6/5
• Capterra: 4.6/5

3. iSpring Learn

iSpring Learn is geared towards organizations that want to build a strong employee training program. You can use it for new hire onboarding, compliance training, or upskilling, for example. 

Key features and benefits:

• Automation and insights tab to save time on reporting
• Smart user groups allows members to be automatically assigned to courses
• Training management hierarchy so admins and team leaders can check on progress
• Employee engagement newsfeed drives social learning

Pricing:

• iSpring Suite – $770USD per author/year
• iSpring Suite Max – $970USD per author/year
• iSpring Suite Premium – $1970USD per author/year
• Volume pricing available

User ratings:

• Capterra: 4.6/5
• G2: 4.6/5
• eLearning Industry: 4.7/5

4. Cloud Academy

Cloud Academy specializes in employee training for large tech teams. It leverages integrations to make it easy to manage and build cloud and software development programs right from within the platform, while training employees on best practices.

Key features and benefits:

• Baseline skill assessments to immediately identify gaps
• Training development plans to build a consistent career growth path
• Pre-hire assessments that ensure you’re choosing the right candidate
• Customize content to mirror your production environment

Pricing:

• Individual plan – $51/month
• Small teams plan – $89 per user/month
• Enterprise plan – custom pricing

User ratings:

• G2: 4.7/5
• GetApp: 4.6/5
• Gartner: 4/5

5. Workramp LMS

Workramp LMS is designed to be a single platform that can host all employee and customer training needs. Use it to develop and retain top talent, enable your sales teams, build knowledge in your customer success department, and certify your resale partners. 

Key features and benefits:

• Use pre-built LMS content for employee training programs to save time
• Host live training events for your customers directly from the platform
• Integrate into platforms like Workday or BambooHR to streamline onboarding or offboarding
• Offer certifications to partners who have completed product training courses

Pricing:

• Customized pricing per business

User ratings:

• G2: 4.4/5
• GetApp: 4.6/5
• Software Advice: 4.5/5

6. Absorb LMS

Absorb LMS is driven by AI to help admin save time when managing a high volume of training programs. Use the tool for compliance training, onboarding support, or building employee product knowledge. 

Key features and benefits:

• Learner-first experience that prioritizes accessibility and ease of use
• Mobile learning applications to study on the go
• Detailed reporting and analytics so admins can make data-driven decisions
• Access to existing content libraries like LinkedIn Learning and Skillsoft to leverage pre-built course templates

Pricing:

•  Customized pricing per business

User ratings:

• Gartner: 4.5/5
• G2: 4.5/5
• eLearning Industry: 4.5/5

7. Looop

Looop by 360Learning is another AI-driven extended enterprise LMS platform that helps deliver internal and external training programs. It can be used in sales programs, customer training development opportunities, compliance training, and more!

Key features and benefits:

• Automation inspired by marketing tools that deal with high amounts of data
• Integrations with communication platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams
• Curated certification pathways to help students achieve their learning goals
• Get learners to prove their new skills through built-in video assessments

Pricing:

• Customized pricing per business
• All plans include a free trial

User ratings:

• G2: 4.9/5
• GetApp: 4.9/5
• Capterra: 4.9/5

8. PluralSight

Pluralsight is another feature rich platform that’s focused on empowering internal tech skills. It can help train technical teams in areas such as security, cloud transformation, software development, machine learning, and more.

Key features and benefits:

• Custom learning paths curated for specific skills development areas
• Cloud-focused learning that works within cloud environments like Azure or AWS
• Investment strategy tools that help you determine where to place more training budget
• Hands-on lab environment to ensure employees know how to use their new skills

Pricing:

• Starter team plan – $33.25USD per user/month
• Professional team plan – $48.25USD per user/month
• Enterprise team plan – customized pricing

User ratings:

• Gartner: 4.3/5
• Capterra: 4.6/5
• GetApp: 4.6/5

9. Cornerstone Learning

Cornerstone’s goal is to provide a one-stop-shop for all things related to enterprise-grade learning and development programs. Their platform offers an opportunity to consolidate everything related to governance, assigning, automating, and tracking that relates to training.

Key features and benefits:

• Build unique learning paths for employees such as return-to-work or DEI programs
• Set up specific portals for various branches, regions, or franchisees to offer a catered experience to customers and partners
• Monetize your content through an eCommerce marketplace

Pricing:

• Customized pricing per business

User ratings:

• eLearning Industry: 4.3/5
• Gartner: 4.1/5
• G2: 4.1/5

Advanced Feature Checklist for Extended Enterprise LMS Platforms

There are a ton of different features to look for in an extended enterprise LMS solution. Read the checklist of features organized by category and then see the table to view which products have those features! 

1. User Interface & Experience
   • Intuitive Design
   • Custom Branding
   • Mobile Responsiveness
   • Multilingual Support
2. Content Management
   • Course Creation Tools
   • Pre-built Course Templates
   • Multimedia Support (video, audio, etc.)
   • Content Import/Export Capabilities
3. User Management
   • Bulk User Upload
   • Group/Role Management
   • User Progress Tracking
   • Automated User Enrollment
4. Training & Assessment Tools
   • Interactive Quizzes & Assessments
   • Gamification Elements
   • Certification Management
   • SCORM & xAPI Compliance
5. Reporting & Analytics
   • Custom Report Building
   • Real-time Data Analytics
   • User Progress Reports
   • Compliance Tracking
6. Integration & Scalability
   • API Access
   • Integration with CRM/HR Systems
   • Scalability for Large User Bases
   • Cloud Hosting Options
7. Customer Support & Training
   • 24/7 Customer Support
   • Dedicated Account Manager
   • Online Help Resources
   • Training Webinars or Tutorials
8. Security & Compliance
   • Data Encryption
   • GDPR Compliance
   • Regular Security Audits
   • Backup & Recovery Options
9. Pricing & Licensing
   • Transparent Pricing Structure
   • Free Trial or Demo
   • Flexible Licensing Options
   • Volume Discount Availability

Feature Checklist Table

(Note: ✓ indicates the feature is available, and a blank space indicates the feature is not available or not clearly specified.)

Choosing the Right Extended Enterprise LMS for Your Business

Since there are so many extended enterprise LMS solutions on the market today, you can leverage these guiding principles to help you find the right tool for you:

• Scalability. Make sure that whichever solution you choose is going to work with your organization in the long-run. Consider global implications such as multiple time zones or languages, and consider the cost of having a higher number of employees or partners using the tool at one time.

• Integration with technology. You likely have a set of tools such as customer relationship management (CRM) software that allows you to conduct business, or a project management tool like Jira that helps you stay on top of projects. Find a LMS that can integrate with your existing tools, as well as the tools you’re adopting down the line.

• User onboarding. How easy will it be for the users of the LMS to adapt to the new tool? If it’s too hard, they won’t find success in the product. Try to find a vendor with onboarding support such as a template library, how-to videos, or a dedicated customer success manager that can help make the onboarding process easier for your team.

Case Study: Success with an Extended Enterprise LMS

Like the idea of an extended enterprise LMS but not sure how it would work in practice for your organization? See these real-life examples of implementation to help guide you.

CFI trained 7 million financial analysts online

The Corporate Finance Institute (CFI) used Thinkific Plus to offer budding financial analysts all the tools that they would need to excel in their field. Tim Vipond, the Co-Founder of CFI leverages Thinkific Plus to build an online academy because financial analysts previously didn’t have a centralized place to learn modern best practices or connect with other industry professionals. Their courses are now trusted by institutions such as Deloitte, HSBC, and Amazon to upskill their employees! 

Future Trends in Extended Enterprise LMS 

Like a lot of industries, the LMS space is continually growing upwards. In 2023, the market value was estimated at $18.26B and is expected to have a CAGR of 14.6% until 2023, showing a fast growth rate! Some things that we expect will drive the market growth for extended enterprise LMS is:

• High levels of personalization. More often, people are driven to hyper-personalized experiences. This is especially true when it comes to anything with technology and learning! Hyperpersonalization makes users feel like content is more relevant to them, which drives engagement.

• New ways to stay engaged. LMS tools that find new ways to attract and maintain attention will continue to grow. Gamification is a popular way of generating interest from users and leads to higher course completion rates. 

• Leveraging of AI and automation. Artificial intelligence is on the rise and it’s about to hit the LMS market too! There are many ways that AI can support learning programs. For example, it could drive deeper insights about trainees or product users, or it could help generate new course content in reduced time.

Conclusion

Extended enterprise LMS platforms can do a lot to help your customers, employees, and partners scale your business! Seek out a tool that works with your existing technology, is easy for your teams to start using, and will be able to scale as you grow.

Don’t forget to collect feedback from your LMS users along the way too, as they can likely give you some great insight on how to improve your learning products. 

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