LMS Implementation

1. Analyze your Ead/eLearning Readiness

1 Stages of LMS Implementation :Organizations fail when they delve into eLearning without first analyzing whether they are ready for it. Both the organization and the employees must be “ready” for eLearning . A detailed analysis of an organization’s ” eLearning readiness ” will allow the organization to take steps to ensure optimal success. There are 7 critical areas of eLearning readiness that your organization should consider before starting the implementation process. Are they:

• Psychological readiness.
• Social readiness.
• Environmental readiness.
• Human resource readiness.
• Technological readiness.
• Financial readiness.
• Content readiness.

2.Build a Business Case or Strategic Planning

Your eLearning initiative should be led by an ” eLearning champion ” from your organization’s top management to encourage and propel the enterprise along the way. Before starting an eLearning project , you will need to make a business proposal to convince decision makers that an investment in eLearning will be worth it – again, to be undertaken by the eLearning champion . This will be a great detailed document for a large corporation, but even if you are a subject matter expert, the same process applies.

Your business case document should be detailed in detail:

• Current training issues and deficiencies.
• Advantages of the new system, how it solves current problems.
• Detailed costs covering planning, pre and implementation training, staffing, new equipment, vendor and consultant costs, and ongoing costs.
• Accumulation of future savings – there should be a comparison of the ongoing costs of doing nothing compared to the new system.

The document should have an introduction explaining what eLearning is and a conclusion putting it all together into a compelling argument for change.

3.Anticipate and Overcome eLearning Barriers

Introducing an eLearning system into an organization will change the way employees learn and the way the organization does business. Such a profound change will encounter barriers, and they can be summarized as follows:

Individual resistance to change.

Moving from fixed, scheduled classroom training to computer-based, anywhere, anytime learning can be daunting for some. They may find it difficult to adapt to technology or have the discipline to learn on their own.

Organizational resistance to change.

eLearning can be seen as something that ” the HR department does”, whereas in reality everyone from the top down needs to embrace and be excited about. There will also be individuals who are exclusive holders of important information who are reluctant to relinquish what they consider “their” area of ​​importance.

Technological barriers.

Students need to feel comfortable with technology, and if not, they must receive appropriate training. There may be connectivity issues or inadequacy of the learning system itself. There may be a lack of instructional or technical backup for students.

It is essential that a professional audit of the company is completed before an eLearning project is initiated to identify, assess and offer solutions to these barriers. This audit will save you a lot of headache and ensure all the benefits of the system.

4.Decide if you want to create or buy the learning

For some companies, this decision will be simple – they don’t have the resources to build, so buying is the only option. However, for companies that think they have the staff and resources, the pros and cons include the following.

Would you buy if:

• A ready-to-use product fully meets your needs.
• You don’t gamble at the risk of building your own and not knowing if it will work.
• There are time restrictions.
• Its built-in resources are best utilized in existing work.

You would create if:

• You have personnel and financial resources.
• Time to plan, develop and implement is not an issue.
• You want to develop training unique to your organization.
• Security is an issue.

In general, even organizations with much better resources are better off using professionals to avoid having to reinvent the wheel all over again.

5.Choose an eLearning partner

In your business plan, you should select possibly three potential vendors. You will have investigated each supplier and made your recommendations based on the following criteria:

• Professionalism and qualification of staff.
• Is eLearning your main business?
• Experience – how long in business, how many systems installed.
• Examples of previous work – include feedback obtained from referees.
• Record of completions on time.
• Budget cost for each supplier.

As is the case with everything in life, the cheapest is never the best, nor the most suitable. It takes time to review vendor offers to ensure you make the right choice. Check out the eLearning Implementation Guide for a complete understanding of how to approach, implement, and maintain eLearning in your organization.

6.Choose your LMS implementation team

The LMS likely addresses various operations within your organization. So when creating a team to oversee the LMS implementation process , connect team members from the various departments such as HR, IT and Learning and Development.

If your LMS works with external partners such as channel partners or contractors, bring those individuals into the team as well. However, experts advise keeping the team as small as possible to ensure that the LMS implementation process remains highly focused.

After assembling the team, establish individual roles. Here are some vital players:

– Team Leader

This person oversees the overall LMS implementation through to completion, working directly with the LMS vendor and dealing with issues that arise.

– Project Manager

The project manager tracks all significant milestones in the LMS implementation process to ensure all deadlines are met.

– eLearning specialist

Its legacy training platform contains many eLearning tools and courses . The eLearning specialist oversees the transfer or development of content to the new system during the LMS implementation.

– T&D administrator

As this individual oversees the T&D program, he or she ensures that the LMS matches organizational objectives through course structure, certification, compliance, and user reporting.

– IT specialist

As the LMS implementation requires a high level of technical knowledge; an IT specialist manages the integration process with other systems in your company.

During the implementation process, the LMS platform partner works closely with its team members. Open communication between your team and your partner is critical. This ensures that implementation coordinates with your objectives and happens on time.

7.Establish an LMS implementation plan and schedule

How long the LMS implementation process takes depends on the type of LMS you choose. An on-premises LMS installed on its own server may take longer than a hosted or cloud-based LMS where the system is hosted on the supplier’s server. The LMS vendor or your IT department can provide a better estimate of the time period.

The number of user accounts and software programs that you plan to migrate and integrate with the LMS also affects the LMS implementation schedule. Be realistic in your timeline and allow enough time to hit each benchmark before the actual release.

8.Prepare for Data Migration

How long the LMS implementation process takes depends on the type of LMS you choose. An on-premises LMS installed on its own server may take longer than a hosted or cloud-based LMS where the system is hosted on the supplier’s server. The LMS vendor or your IT department can provide a better estimate of the time period.

The number of user accounts and software programs you plan to migrate and integrate with the LMS also affects the LMS implementation schedule . Be realistic in your timeline and allow enough time to hit each benchmark before the actual release.

Whether you are migrating from a legacy LMS or implementing an LMS for the first time, one of the key decision centers where courses, data and instructional assets must be transferred to the new system.

Transfer only absolutely necessary courses and data to the updated LMS and archive the rest. Check with your legal department to see which files should be kept. (Course Completion Records and Past Learning Record fall into this category.)

If you are moving from a legacy LMS to a new one, ask your IT specialist to review your instructional resources to ensure they can be integrated into the new LMS . Even if SCORM compliant, courses may need tweaking to work on the new system.

9.Conduct an assessment and provide training

Before completing the LMS implementation process and officially launching the new system, test the new LMS among a handpicked group of users, whether they are internal employees or extended business users such as channel partners or contractors.

For the preliminary LMS assessment, prepare a test case that your administrators and users can run. Document any issues that arise and report them to team members and the LMS vendor .

Then, offer a training program to your internal users and external partners who will be using the LMS . This training can be delivered through an online seminar or in person. Again, your LMS provider provides guidance on what training options are available (check if there are any extra fees involved).

Also during this period, formulate an implementation plan for the LMS implementation with your supplier. Alert all interested parties – perhaps through an email campaign – about the launch and when it will happen.

10.Switch to the new LMS

As one of the final steps in the LMS implementation process, switching to the new LMS can be accomplished in several ways:

• A complete exchange done overnight.
• A phasing out of the old LMS and the entry of the new system.
• Run both systems in parallel before the move.

Either way, alert your colleagues of any blackout periods between when the old system goes offline and the new LMS is up. Discuss with your LMS provider and equip the best LMS implementation switchover process for your needs.

Some experts advise running both systems in parallel, as this preserves data integrity and gives users a chance to feel more comfortable in the new system. When the data is secure and all parts are ready, transition fully to the new LMS

11.Evaluate and finalize

After the LMS implementation process is complete and when the new system has been in operation for a period of time, review how the process went for everyone involved. Identify any technical glitches that may have made the launch difficult and correct them.

Also, perform the following assessment when you complete your LMS implementation : Assess how many users have logged into the system and how they have progressed. Did they complete the courses? How did they score? Scores and user satisfaction don’t tell the whole story of how well the LMS did in terms of the organization’s goals. But at first, these statistics provide information about the technical performance of the LMS, including page uploads, upload time, and overall user experience.

Conclusion

The LMS implementation process does not end at launch. Always look for ways to improve the system, optimize the content, add more courses, and improve the user experience while the LMS is in operation. There is a common misconception that eLearning runs on its own. This is partially true – but the truth is that there’s more to implementing eLearning than just diving headlong into it. What, then, does an organization need to keep in mind when implementing eLearning?

Failure of the eLearning project is not just a matter of wasting money, time and effort – employers and those directly involved in the project are left with a bitter taste of loss, frustration and low morale. eLearning projects fail for a variety of reasons, but they can all be traced back to one root cause: failure to implement eLearning correctly. Implementing eLearning involves following ALL 11 essential steps of implementing eLearning