What Is Learning Management and Why Is It Critical for Modern Businesses?

Employee training and learning management play a key role in business success. In what will be the first in a four-part series, we’ve answered the questions, what is learning management, and why is it essential for your business?

What is learning management?

Essentially, learning management means coordinating and delivering training and education for employees. It’s about providing an infrastructure to enable professional development in your business.

A learning management system (LMS) is a digital platform for tracking and automating employee training. Therefore, you can use LMS for a wide variety of functions for professional learning management, like:

• Registration and access
• Course management
• Educational resources
• Skill-based learning
• Progress reviews

The different types of LMS

People learn in different ways. We know this even more now. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that there are a few different categories of learning management systems. That said, you’ll find specific platforms like our own Learn365 fit into some of these categories. Different types of learning management systems include:

• Installed LMS (internal system)
• Cloud-based LMS (third-party vendors)
• Integrated LMS (such as Teams integrations)
• Mobile learning apps
• Open-source platforms
• Enterprise LMS for large businesses

How to evaluate learning management software

Our learning management definition should give you some idea of what’s important. For more detail, here’s a rundown of your priorities when looking for a new LMS:

• User-friendliness: Accessible systems support even the least tech-savvy staff, and prevent training abandonment.
• Progression tracking: Milestones keep people engaged, while LMS tracking data keeps you informed.
• Custom user experience: Individual profiles let people set their own goals and choose which courses to join.
• Integration compatibility: Integrating your LMS with existing tools will limit disruption for employees.

The best LMS will depend on your business and its goals. For example, a hybrid or remote business might prefer a system able to integrate with their tools, while organizations with diverse skill sets may need something more customizable.

The importance and benefits of effective learning management

What is learning management if not an employer’s due diligence? It plays a crucial role in employee onboarding. But it’s also essential for their long-term professional development, for promoting accessibility and filling skill gaps in a timely manner.

Ever-changing skills needs

According to LinkedIn’s 2023 Workplace Learning Report, professional skill sets have changed by 25% since 2015, which is projected to double by 2027. The current AI trend is merely the latest example of how virtual tools continue to streamline work. The sooner you start planning reskilling, the smoother it’ll be to keep everyone’s training up to date.

How learning management benefits your business

Of course, you might still be wondering, “what is learning management going to do for my business?”

If that’s the case, then here are some clear-cut ways it can benefit your company:

Enabling better employee performance

Deloitte’s 2024 Human Capital Trends Report showed that 84% of employees in high-performing businesses agree they get the training they need. That said, only 5% of executives in general agree that their companies are doing enough to prepare employees for changing work demands.

Training lets people engage with the latest tools and methodologies in a safe, professional environment where they can make mistakes and ask questions. Additionally, formal learning management can prevent the formation of self-taught bad habits which may cost efficiency.

Increased employee loyalty

A study from Workplace Intelligence and Amazon found that 74% of Millennial and Gen Z employees would change jobs due to a lack of skills development and career mobility.

Supporting learning shows you care about employee professional development. It increases their merit for internal promotion, and reassures them their career won’t stagnate.

Greater recruitment potential

Whether it’s in-person, on LinkedIn, or Glassdoor, people talk. Getting a reputation for enabling skill-based learning can make you much more attractive as a potential employer. Where a competitor might hold the edge in salary offers or fringe perks, you can still win talent over with a better training program.

How to improve learning management in the workplace

The question is, what is learning management supposed to look like when done right? Here are some steps you can take to get the most out of a learning-focused workplace culture.

Tailor learning to the individual

You won’t get far with a one-size-fits-all approach. People in different roles have differing skill needs, and even people working together may have different strengths, weaknesses or professional preferences. Talk directly to your people about which courses interest them.

LMS user management software makes this easier by automating key functions. You can tag employees by role or stated skills and interests so the system adds them to relevant courses without needing further input.

Make training more accessible

What is learning management worth if only some employees benefit from it? For instance, office-based workers in hybrid businesses may have disproportionate access compared to remote colleagues.

That’s why you should take a remote-first approach. If they can access it, anyone can. Integrations like LMS in Microsoft Teams offer the perfect agile learning hub.

Centralize knowledge resources

Employees completing the courses they sign up for is great. However, the real sign of a learning-focused work culture is when your people take independent steps to keep learning. The best way to support this is to collect educational materials that anyone can access.

This enables proactive self-learning. If someone has a question, all they have to do is search your company’s knowledge directory.

Learning management use cases in Microsoft 365

What is learning management without real examples? Here are some organizations that have achieved success using Learn365 for their learning management in Microsoft 365.

Aston University drove learning adoption

2,000 staff at Aston University were stuck using multiple manual systems with a host of documentation issues which made it hard to engage with learning. They turned to Learn365 as a solution compatible with Microsoft 365. Since implementation, they have:

• Gotten hundreds of staff to learn every day
• Expanded their course catalog
• Enabled employees to manage their own learning via a dashboard
• Centralized learning resources
• Used analytics to support compliance processes

Priva supported accessibility

As a global sustainable tech company, Priva needed to have a small team to create accessible learning for thousands of employees and end-users across the world. Working with Zensai and Learn365, they managed to achieve:

• Training for people in 59 different countries
• Over 5,000 active learners and 33,000 course participants
• An overall pass rate of 75%
• Annual savings of 21.19 Euro for partners and customers
• Annual Co2 reduction of 55 tons

BDO Denmark enabled self-learning

To enable a culture of self-learning, consultancy, and accounting firm BDO Denmark needed to modernize its approach. They used Learn365 to replace their old system of manually running Skype seminars with easily accessible knowledge resources. Within a year, they managed to:

• Offer year-round accessible resources (podcasts, webinars, all other digital content)
• Provide access to over 200 courses and 17 training plans
• Gain more than 22,000 enrollments