I'm researching an LMS for our organization that will meet the needs of over 1500 employees. Since there are so many out there, I thought I'd begin by asking the experts who work within LMS what they suggest.
What LMS do you use? or
Is there an LMS that you recommend? Why would you recommend it?
Last year I did a deep research on this... and though, I couldn't test all of LMSs! there's a plenty of solutions...
the real answer is: it depends on what you need to do with your users!
Should they attend several courses, each made of different articulate/captivate scorm packages?
Do you need conditional activities? (in a course, you need to complete a "lesson" before being able to access the following argument);
Should they have a certificate at the end of each course?
Do you need tracking reports of users progress?
You should know there are commercial and open-source LMSs, which if properly installed and customized are really good!
I ended up using a customized moodle installation; this because allowed me to have fast reports, certifications, and the flexibility to have my own installation with 3000-4000 users, sometime in standby; Hosted installations, in fact, generally are "monthly pay for user" based, and this is not good; your users could attend a course in january, another one in june, etc., and this means you should pay monthly fees for a huge number of users which are not connecting....
I really depends...
Anyway, to go straight to an answer:
ABSORB LMS is the best LMS ever made. It really has unbelievable and useful features; it's flash based (graphically enchanting) and this could be a limit for IPAD or mobile used, but they are developing an HTML5 platform... it's a bit expensive, but in my opinion its cost is convenient, compared to other "BIG" LMS's cost ...(like Sumtotal, Plateau or SABA).
DOCEBO and MOODLE are both very good, better than Dokeos, Ilias and Claroline (IF you need SCORM). but it's hard to get them started by yourself.... not really Open source!
SHAREPOINT LMS is a good windows solution (NOT the free Sharepoint learning kit) if your company ICT systems are Microsoft based. but it's not so cheap...
Give more details, I could address specific features....
Right now I am not involved in the LMS buying part of our world but we just signed on with Sencia and the informetica system. They are a Canadian LMS. The reason that we opted for this company is that they are appropriately priced and they meet the layered business needs we have. We are a Group of Companies that all need to be tracked independently in one system and they offered that function. So far their commitments have all been met and as far as I know we have not had any delays (except internal). My very few dealing with them have been positive. My boss is heading up the project so I don't have any specifics but they may be worth looking at.
And there is the Articulate Online too. i know many users are very happy with it too.
First off you are to be congratulated for soliciting opinions and advice in places like this. Choosing an LMS is a big decision... and one you are likely to live with for a long time.
I might suggest the following generic steps...
1) Understand your business structure and needs
2) List the pain points or hot buttons that you think a new LMS might solve
3) Research what other kinds of capabilities are even possible with today's LMSs
4) Have at least 3 vendors do an needs assessment. (Be honest that you are early in the process and looking to learn what's possible. Decisions will come after you revise the list of requirements)
5) Take all of that and create a final list of requirements
On a personal note.... I see the customer service/support issue as an area that is most often undervalued when shoping for a new LMS. Ask direct and probing questions about this area and ask for references you can contact!!! A missing feature is annoying, lack of support and cumbersome processes are catastrophic.
Hi, I would recommend AJ LMSwhich is the best free learning management system & is designed for any education formations: from small distance trainingcompanies up to big colleges and universities. The system allows tobuild courses, import SCORM content, deploy online learning, manageusers, communicate with users, track training results, and more.
I echo that you really need to understand your business needs very deeply before selecting an LMS. I have worked with five different LMSs and each has its own benefits and drawbacks.
I'm a big fan of Moodle because it has such a large community and a ton of useful features. Unfortunately, Moodle's SCORM module is buggy and needs some work still.
I agree with Bob that customer support is a huge consideration. Every LMS has its challenges and if you don't have ready access to a live support person/team it can be incredibly frustrating. If you choose Moodle I highly recommend that you work with a Moodle Partner. They're certified by the Moodle team to install and support Moodle as well as usually being able to customize features for you.
One LMS that I do NOT recomment is SAP Learning Solutions (SAP LSO). Support is expensive, the LMS is limited in terms of SCORM usefulness, reporting is a chore, and the entire system lacks intuitiveness. I can't imagine that you'd consider an SAP solution unless you were already an SAP shop (which is why we have it).
GoSkills is a flexible LMS solution that’s fit for businesses of all sizes and needs. It’s free forever with optional premium upgrades.
GoSkills works with over 1000 businesses, so your organization will be in experienced hands.
The enterprise upgrade allows you to upload custom courses (SCORM, xAPI and other formats), create classroom courses, white-label the platform, create categories, and be supported by a dedicated account manager.
The upgrade is on a sliding scale, so it works out to as little as $3 per learner per month.
If you’re interested in learning more, you can check out our platform here.
6 Replies
Hello Connie.
Last year I did a deep research on this... and though, I couldn't test all of LMSs! there's a plenty of solutions...
the real answer is: it depends on what you need to do with your users!
Should they attend several courses, each made of different articulate/captivate scorm packages?
Do you need conditional activities? (in a course, you need to complete a "lesson" before being able to access the following argument);
Should they have a certificate at the end of each course?
Do you need tracking reports of users progress?
You should know there are commercial and open-source LMSs, which if properly installed and customized are really good!
I ended up using a customized moodle installation; this because allowed me to have fast reports, certifications, and the flexibility to have my own installation with 3000-4000 users, sometime in standby; Hosted installations, in fact, generally are "monthly pay for user" based, and this is not good; your users could attend a course in january, another one in june, etc., and this means you should pay monthly fees for a huge number of users which are not connecting....
I really depends...
Anyway, to go straight to an answer:
ABSORB LMS is the best LMS ever made. It really has unbelievable and useful features; it's flash based (graphically enchanting) and this could be a limit for IPAD or mobile used, but they are developing an HTML5 platform... it's a bit expensive, but in my opinion its cost is convenient, compared to other "BIG" LMS's cost ...(like Sumtotal, Plateau or SABA).
DOCEBO and MOODLE are both very good, better than Dokeos, Ilias and Claroline (IF you need SCORM). but it's hard to get them started by yourself.... not really Open source!
SHAREPOINT LMS is a good windows solution (NOT the free Sharepoint learning kit) if your company ICT systems are Microsoft based. but it's not so cheap...
Give more details, I could address specific features....
cheers!
Right now I am not involved in the LMS buying part of our world but we just signed on with Sencia and the informetica system. They are a Canadian LMS. The reason that we opted for this company is that they are appropriately priced and they meet the layered business needs we have. We are a Group of Companies that all need to be tracked independently in one system and they offered that function. So far their commitments have all been met and as far as I know we have not had any delays (except internal). My very few dealing with them have been positive. My boss is heading up the project so I don't have any specifics but they may be worth looking at.
And there is the Articulate Online too. i know many users are very happy with it too.
Connie,
First off you are to be congratulated for soliciting opinions and advice in places like this. Choosing an LMS is a big decision... and one you are likely to live with for a long time.
I might suggest the following generic steps...
1) Understand your business structure and needs
2) List the pain points or hot buttons that you think a new LMS might solve
3) Research what other kinds of capabilities are even possible with today's LMSs
4) Have at least 3 vendors do an needs assessment. (Be honest that you are early in the process and looking to learn what's possible. Decisions will come after you revise the list of requirements)
5) Take all of that and create a final list of requirements
On a personal note.... I see the customer service/support issue as an area that is most often undervalued when shoping for a new LMS. Ask direct and probing questions about this area and ask for references you can contact!!! A missing feature is annoying, lack of support and cumbersome processes are catastrophic.
Good luck!
Hi, I would recommend AJ LMS which is the best free learning management system & is designed for any education formations: from small distance trainingcompanies up to big colleges and universities. The system allows tobuild courses, import SCORM content, deploy online learning, manageusers, communicate with users, track training results, and more.
Hi there,
I echo that you really need to understand your business needs very deeply before selecting an LMS. I have worked with five different LMSs and each has its own benefits and drawbacks.
I'm a big fan of Moodle because it has such a large community and a ton of useful features. Unfortunately, Moodle's SCORM module is buggy and needs some work still.
I agree with Bob that customer support is a huge consideration. Every LMS has its challenges and if you don't have ready access to a live support person/team it can be incredibly frustrating. If you choose Moodle I highly recommend that you work with a Moodle Partner. They're certified by the Moodle team to install and support Moodle as well as usually being able to customize features for you.
One LMS that I do NOT recomment is SAP Learning Solutions (SAP LSO). Support is expensive, the LMS is limited in terms of SCORM usefulness, reporting is a chore, and the entire system lacks intuitiveness. I can't imagine that you'd consider an SAP solution unless you were already an SAP shop (which is why we have it).
Good luck in your search.
Hi Connie,
GoSkills is a flexible LMS solution that’s fit for businesses of all sizes and needs. It’s free forever with optional premium upgrades.
GoSkills works with over 1000 businesses, so your organization will be in experienced hands.
The enterprise upgrade allows you to upload custom courses (SCORM, xAPI and other formats), create classroom courses, white-label the platform, create categories, and be supported by a dedicated account manager.
The upgrade is on a sliding scale, so it works out to as little as $3 per learner per month.
If you’re interested in learning more, you can check out our platform here.
Hope this helps!
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