What is LMS implementation and why is it important?
Launching a new learning management system (LMS) takes careful planning, including the assembling of a dream team of superstars who will make the implementation happen smoothly and efficiently. If you're a small organization, your internal dream team may be a mighty party of one. If you’re a larger organization, then roles are likely distributed across different departments and people. Either way, the importance of a customized LMS implementation plan cannot be overstated. With the help of your new LMS provider and an onboarding specialist dedicated to your organization, you'll be put on the right path to ensuring the long-term success of your learning and development program. In addition to an onboarding specialist, a team leader, an eLearning developer, a training administrator, and an IT expert are good to have as part of your LMS implementation crew.
The team decision in choosing an LMS
The importance of assembling the right team is crucial, as their insights and expertise will ultimately determine the success of your LMS implementation plan. In this article, we'll delve into why these individuals are vital, how they contribute, and what information they need to make informed decisions. Moreover, we'll address the burning question: Why should each stakeholder genuinely care about implementing an LMS? It is imperative to ensure stakeholder buy-in for this project, as their support is necessary to guarantee the commitment and readiness required for the successful adoption of the learning platform. Without stakeholder buy-in, the ROI of your learning platform may be compromised, and the adoption rate could be low.
The roles on an LMS implementation team
The success of an LMS implementation depends heavily on the team that is assembled to carry out the task. Each individual plays a critical role in ensuring the smooth and efficient launch of the new learning management system. Let's take a closer look at the key roles on an LMS implementation team, which include establishing clear communication lines to offer the most accurate and in-depth information to the end-user. This won't only help the end-user, but it'll also allow the process to run more smoothly.
- Onboarding Specialist: This individual is dedicated to your organization and works closely with your team to understand your specific needs and requirements. They help in customizing the LMS to align with your organization's goals.
- Team Leader: The team leader oversees the entire implementation process, ensuring that tasks are assigned and deadlines are met. They provide guidance and support to the rest of the team, making sure everyone is working towards the common goal of a successful LMS implementation.
- eLearning Developer: This role focuses on creating engaging and interactive learning content for the LMS. The eLearning developer uses their expertise in instructional design and multimedia to design courses that effectively deliver knowledge and facilitate learning.
- Training Administrator: The training administrator is responsible for managing user enrollments, tracking progress, and generating reports within the LMS. They ensure that learners have access to the right courses, monitor their performance, and provide necessary support throughout their learning journey.
- IT Expert: The IT expert ensures the smooth integration and implementation of the LMS with your organization's existing technology infrastructure. They handle technical aspects such as data migration, system configuration, and troubleshooting any issues that may arise during the implementation process.
LMS onboarding specialist
It all begins with your LMS onboarding specialist. The onboarding specialist oversees several key tasks essential to getting your new learning platform off the ground. Some of these tasks include:
- Acting as a dedicated point of contact during the onboarding phase
- Ensuring your organization's admins are trained on the system
- Providing best practice recommendations
- Coordinating the onboarding project, deliverables, and timelines
- Finding opportunities to leverage additional functionality (e.g., integrations, new features) to maximize your use of the system
- Assisting in identifying KPIs
Once your onboarding specialist is ready to turn over the reins to your internal L&D department and LMS service representative, your behind-the-scenes team will perform several key roles to ensure your LMS remains relevant and helpful to your workforce.
Role and contribution
The LMS onboarding specialist serves as a project leader, a training facilitator, a strategic advisor, a coordinator, an innovator, and a performance analyst. They oversee the onboarding project, train administrators, offer strategic guidance, coordinate project elements, identify opportunities for system growth, and help establish KPIs. Their multifaceted contributions are indispensable in ensuring your LMS remains relevant, efficient, and aligned with organizational objectives.
Why they care
Your LMS onboarding specialist is pivotal in ensuring the smooth and successful implementation of your Learning Management System. They care because their expertise and dedication streamline onboarding, empower administrators, optimize system performance, coordinate projects, identify growth opportunities, and enable data-driven decision-making.
Team leader
The team leader oversees the efficient running of their new LMS. Two areas of management are required:
- Project management: Creating a schedule, identifying milestones, and tracking progress. The team leader will create project specification documents, hold planning and implementation meetings, and take responsibility for keeping things on track.
- People management: Resolving schedule conflicts, removing obstacles, and providing guidance to team members.
Whether one person fills both of these roles, or they are divided between two team members depends on your resources and needs. If organizational scaling is a significant cause or intended effect of your learning platform, you'll likely need multiple people to fill this role. That way your leaders will be better prepared to manage incoming learners.
Role and contribution
Team leaders, often high-level executives or senior managers, set the strategic vision for the LMS implementation. They provide essential guidance and align the project with the organization's broader goals. Their role is pivotal in securing budgetary support and ensuring that the LMS aligns with the long-term objectives.
Why they care
A successful LMS implementation can enhance employee training and development, boost productivity, and contribute to the company's bottom line. It allows them to see their strategic vision in action, making their role more effective and the organization more competitive.
eLearning developer
As decisions are made concerning how learners access and use the LMS, and eLearning courses are migrated or created in the new LMS, someone should look out for the learners to ensure a positive user experience. This person will have extensive knowledge of their old LMS platform and their new one. Migrating existing content can be complex, but with the help of the onboarding specialist, the eLearning developer will have a partner in managing interoperability testing and integrating courses. The eLearning development might also manage assessments and learner surveys to gauge LMS value and suggest improvements. As more content is integrated or created, you may call on instructional designers and eLearning content creators, curriculum managers, or other specialists who focus on the content and the design of coherent learning paths.
Role and contribution
The eLearning developer focuses on the quality and relevance of educational materials within the LMS. They ensure that the content aligns with learning objectives and user needs. This stakeholder also oversees content updates and quality assurance.
Why they care
eLearning developers understand that the LMS is a vessel for delivering valuable knowledge. A successful implementation means improved content delivery, better learning outcomes, and continuous improvement in training materials.
Training administrator
The training administrator is also an eLearning professional, but this role focuses on LMS configuration and administration rather than course content or migration. Rest assured that your onboarding specialist will lead in-depth tutorials on the new LMS with your organization's lead admins. From here, the admins who were trained by the onboarding specialist can go forth and pass their expertise on to others. The training administrator will ensure that your implementation meets certification and SCORM compliance requirements, set up user profiles and audience tracking, configure notifications, and establish course assignment and registration protocols. Later in the rollout, your team may call on additional LMS administrators, as well as team members who can conduct user acceptance testing or perform quality control functions. The extra support can ensure that migrated content works properly.
Role and contribution
The training administrator represents the voice of the workforce. They understand the needs, preferences, and pain points of employees. This stakeholder ensures that the LMS aligns with the learning needs of the workforce and contributes to employee engagement and satisfaction.
Why they care
Training admins understand that a well-implemented LMS can lead to enhanced learning experiences, skill development, and career growth opportunities for employees. A happier and more skilled workforce often translates into higher retention rates and reduced recruitment costs.
IT expert
The role of an IT expert varies, depending on whether your LMS is implemented as software as a service (SaaS)—which would entail a minimal IT role—or hosted on-site. The IT leader handles security, including user account authentication. This role also migrates data from the legacy LMS, ensures data security, integrates the LMS with a talent management or other HR system, and addresses security around other integrations, with web conferencing systems or external eLearning libraries, for example. Additional resources might be needed in areas like network management, systems integration, or database management.
Role and contribution
The IT expert brings technical expertise to the table. They evaluate the compatibility of the LMS with the existing tech infrastructure, ensuring a seamless integration. They also play a critical role in data security and system performance.
Why they care
IT experts recognize the importance of a smooth and secure LMS implementation. A well-integrated LMS minimizes technical disruptions, enhances data security, and streamlines the learning experience. It's their domain, and they're invested in its success.
Managing and aligning stakeholders
Managing and aligning these diverse stakeholders requires a well-thought-out plan. Here are some key strategies:
- Communication: Maintain open and transparent communication channels with all stakeholders. Regular updates, meetings, and progress reports are essential.
- Needs assessment: Continuously assess the needs and expectations of each stakeholder. Understand their pain points and motivations.
- Alignment with objectives: Ensure that the LMS implementation aligns with the organization's overarching objectives, reflecting the leadership's vision.
- Flexibility: Be prepared to adapt and adjust the implementation plan as needed. Stakeholder priorities may evolve over time.
- Education: Educate stakeholders about the benefits of the LMS, demonstrating how it directly impacts their areas of responsibility.
Stakeholder checklist
Create a checklist outlining the responsibilities and key considerations for each stakeholder. This ensures everyone understands their role and contribution.
Post-implementation roles
Once the LMS is successfully implemented, these stakeholders continue to play crucial roles:
- Leadership visionary: Ensures that the LMS aligns with evolving organizational goals and provides ongoing support.
- Employee champion: Gathers feedback and assesses the impact of the LMS on employee development and engagement.
- Tech guru: Maintains the technical integrity of the LMS, addressing any issues or updates.
- Learning content Expert: Continuously improves and updates learning materials to keep them relevant.
Assembling a dedicated LMS dream team and effectively managing these stakeholders is key to a successful implementation. When everyone is aligned, informed, and invested, your organization can harness the full potential of its learning management system.
Involvement in the implementation process
Different stakeholders should be involved at various stages of the LMS implementation process. The leadership visionary and employee champion, for instance, should be engaged from the very beginning, while the tech guru and learning content expert may come into play during the technical setup and content creation phases.
The basics of an LMS project plan
Develop a comprehensive LMS project plan that outlines timelines, responsibilities, and milestones. This plan serves as a roadmap for the entire team.
Plan for the unexpected
No team can anticipate every need or pitfall, especially if LMS implementation teamwork is concentrated among fewer people. But assembling a core team to own the project is a crucial step toward ensuring an efficient and successful rollout of your new LMS platform.
Meet the Absorb onboarding team
The Absorb Software client onboarding team is solely focused on assisting you in getting live on Absorb LMS and having a great experience from day one. The onboarding team has dedicated project managers, trainers, and system specialists to ensure that everything is working effectively toward the targeted go-live date. During the relationship, the core focus is to ensure that you're implementing best practices, having a seamless transition from any prior systems, and realizing the full value and potential of Absorb LMS right out of the gate. There's a lot of work to be done when launching a new LMS. By tapping Absorb experts, you'll never have to go it alone!
