Michel achieved a new achievement called “The Ambassador”. He is now number fifteen in the overall standings. But what is even more important, he is one position above his colleague Jorge who is from São Paulo (they have been competing for some time). No, they are not playing World of Warcraft. In fact, Michel is the manager of a supermarket that is part of a well-known retail chain. He achieved the achievement by completing the e-course “The Standards of Service.”
You can launch your own online learning resource and implement the same principles as a game using a learning management system or LMS. In this article we will tell you what it is and how it can help you.
What is an LMS?
An LMS is a platform for digital learning. Its main features can be found in the abbreviation.
L - learning (learning) . With an LMS, you can create a single source of online courses and training materials. This will become a unique source of knowledge in your field so that you can maintain and increase your company's in-house expertise.
M - Management (Management) . You can manage courses and students and even improve your own efficiency.
Unlike file sharing services, an LMS is not just a bunch of files; rather, it's a well-organized system where you manage the training process. To start training, just add collaborators and assign courses.
Have you hired new employees recently? Send them invitations to the onboarding training course. Having problems with low sales? Ask your salespeople to practice with virtual customers.
Thanks to functions such as calendar, you will be able to assign and manage not only online training, but also classroom sessions. In this way, an LMS can be a kind of to-do app designed especially for distance learners.
S — System . Computer system, to be exact. An LMS automates the most boring and tedious work, such as assigning grades, processing statistics and preparing reports. In addition, you can train your employees without leaving the office, managing all processes directly from your work computer.
In other words, an LMS is like your own online university. The system allows you to store and create courses online , gives students access to content, and helps you evaluate results.
Watch the video in English to see how an LMS works and how it can help your business grow.
What type of LMS should I choose?
Now that you know what an LMS is, it's time to find out what learning platforms exist and how they differ. Here is a description of different types of LMSs:
Corporate LMS vs. Academic
Both corporate and academic LMSs provide access to online learning materials and automate different aspects of the training processes, but they have some differences.
Learning Objectives
Academic learning aims to train good students who have a deep knowledge of the subjects and strive to learn more. Here, theoretical knowledge is the ultimate goal. Corporate training focuses on learning related to practical applications, and one of its main objectives is return on investment.
Course schedule
For worker training, time limits are shorter, so an enterprise LMS must be flexible to fit all business deadlines and needs. Semesters, bimonths, and quarters—these are deadlines for educational institutions. For them, the LMS should offer such scheduling units as holidays, race times, and periods.
Certifications vs. grades
An enterprise learning platform usually offers the ability to follow and complete in the form of certifications. An academic LMS typically tracks students' progress through its assessment system. It provides grade books to track attendance and task results, as well as maintain other information for each student on the list.
Tools for social learning
Other functionality that an academic learning platform often provides are features to create groups of students for class projects and open sessions, discussion forums, and an integrated web conferencing tool.
Content updates
The content that students demand is science and humanities-based; that's why an educational LMS does not need to be updated regularly. As market needs change quickly, an enterprise LMS must have the ability to update courses quickly and easily.
Corporate LMS vs. Academic
Both corporate and academic LMSs provide access to online learning materials and automate different aspects of the training processes, but they have some differences.
Learning Objectives
Academic learning aims to train good students who have a deep knowledge of the subjects and strive to learn more. Here, theoretical knowledge is the ultimate goal. Corporate training focuses on learning related to practical applications, and one of its main objectives is return on investment.
Course schedule
For worker training, time limits are shorter, so an enterprise LMS must be flexible to fit all business deadlines and needs. Semesters, bimonths, and quarters—these are deadlines for educational institutions. For them, the LMS should offer such scheduling units as holidays, race times, and periods.
Certifications vs. grades
An enterprise learning platform usually offers the ability to follow and complete in the form of certifications. An academic LMS typically tracks students' progress through its assessment system. It provides grade books to track attendance and task results, as well as maintain other information for each student on the list.
Tools for social learning
Other functionality that an academic learning platform often provides are features to create groups of students for class projects and open sessions, discussion forums, and an integrated web conferencing tool.
Content updates
The content that students demand is science and humanities-based; that's why an educational LMS does not need to be updated regularly. As market needs change quickly, an enterprise LMS must have the ability to update courses quickly and easily.
SaaS / LMS in the cloud vs locally hosted LMS
You can choose an LMS SaaS (Software as a Service) or store the data on the company's own servers. If you decide to host the system yourself, you are fully responsible for all server specifications, uptime and security.
If you choose a SaaS system, it will be your LMS provider that takes care of server capacity, backups and all other things about storing your training data. This is the best option if you don't have an IT staff that can manage the system and handle support, customization, and scalability issues. Instead of spending time managing the LMS, you can focus on creating learning content.