Many organizations that have a legacy learning management system tend to feel comfortable working with it as they have grown accustomed to it. They know the system inside out as a result of using it for a long time and have a sense of confidence while using it. However, most of these older LMSs lack more advanced features and options that a modern LMS might be able to provide. But the comfort of using the same system for a long time might force your organization to overlook the benefits of a new system, limiting your online learners’ experiences and their scope of learning.
Implementing and running an LMS is resource-consuming; for example, the LMS pricing models can be pretty expensive. This factor makes it important to invest in the ideal LMS that can cater to all the needs of your organization without forcing you to invest in additional tools to make up for the inadequacy.
So, here are some signs that can mean that it is now time for your organization to switch to a new LMS.
Usage of the LMS has Reduced
The only successful learning management system is those that are actively used. When you start noticing that the LMS has been ghosted by your employees, you must know that there might be an issue. However, it is also important to remember that just because the LMS has been abandoned by your online learners doesn’t mean that it is time to change it and get a new one. The LMS might even be just fine and rather you might be having issues with engaging the online learners. Engagement issues are fixable by making changes to the kind of eLearning courses you are providing and making them more interesting and interactive.
However, if you have already done everything that you could and the LMS is still not something that interests your online learners anymore, the problem might be bigger than just the lack of engaging elements in your LMS. Observe if your online learners are trying to avoid using the system actively and understand why it is happening. The best way to understand this is to send in feedback forms to know what the online learners want from the learning management system. At the end of it, if you feel that the current LMS is not adequate for the requirements of your organization, it might be a sign that it’s time to get rid of the LMS for a better one.
Too Complicated to Use
User experience is a very crucial factor of any software or application. Back when the importance of UX wasn’t recognized yet, mostly all applications, systems, and software were complex and difficult to use to a certain extent. As everything was clunky, people did not mind a little inconvenience. But as the UX experts started bringing in learning technologies with better experience, users started getting used to the ease of use.
In today’s world of easy-to-use software, most people do not tolerate any complexity and clunkiness in the systems and software. If your LMS has a poorly designed UX, you may expect that users, both online instructors, and online learners, will hesitate to use the system. As the usage decreases, the LMS will be abandoned, never to be used again.
Lack of Personalization
Every learner is different with unique learning needs and requirements. Thus, personalization has become one of the most important elements of eLearning practices. So, make sure that your learning management system offers options to personalize the eLearning experience for each learner. If your current LMS doesn’t offer much scope for personalization, every user will get the same experience. Such a system will not be able to cater to everyone and the learning process will not mean anything to them on a personal level. This can again create disengagement as the online learners will find the eLearning course irrelevant.
While investing in a new LMS, make sure you do your research to find out the best personalization features available in LMSs. These features will help you create more personalized eLearning courses. They can also empower your online learners with options to customize their eLearning accounts and add personal details, like profile photos and basic introductions for a more personalized feel.
It’s become just an Archive
There are chances that your learning management system will end up being just an online archive for your online learners. As online learning material might seem boring and the platform itself has no interactivity, the usage of the system will die down as the online learners start actively ghosting it. Even when the online learners will have a doubt, they wouldn’t turn to the LMS and rather try to ask for guidance from their peers.
With the rise of social media platforms, it is understandable that human beings like communicating with each other. Thus, to make sure that your eLearning platform keeps running successfully, make sure that it has options for online learners to interact and collaborate. If your current LMS falls short on providing an interactive platform, it’s time to change it.
Unresponsive Design
You may have the most perfect LMS in the world but without mobile responsiveness, everything falls apart. In the modern scenario, online learners prefer eLearning platforms that can be accessed from anywhere, at any time as the new workforce believes in on-the-go multitasking. Access to the LMS through their mobile devices can mean that they can learn at their own pace and incorporate the learning process in their daily lives. If your eLearning platform is not designed for multiple mobile devices like smartphones and iPads, there is a huge possibility that your online learners might not prefer using the system. And the abandoned system will again lead you to a question, ‘Is the LMS not good enough?’
Ineffective Training
One of the biggest consequences of an inadequate LMS is the fact that the training provided through the system will be ineffective. Ineffective training is not just a wastage of resources but is also harmful for the organization as a whole. In a corporate scenario, if you want your b to thrive, you will have to ensure that all your employees are well trained to do their jobs most efficiently.
If you use a legacy LMS, you might find out that the system doesn’t offer options to track and analyze the progress that your online learners are making. However, compared to an old LMS, the modern-day LMSs are way better as they come with various features that can make the training way more effective. This is why most eLearning experts prefer the latest technology to create and distribute solid online training.
Conclusion
Your LMSs can have many reasons to become ineffective and thus abandoned by online learners. But this doesn’t happen suddenly. If you observe, you can see certain tell-tale signs of a failing system. These signs may be an indicator that the LMS you are using is an outdated one and doesn’t cater to all your online learners according to their needs. In such scenarios, it is better to get rid of the existing LMS and invest in a new one to prevent the wastage of resources any further.