Comparing LMS Capabilities
In one of my previous postilions I had to analyze and choose a new LMS for our company. At the time I chose a different LMS than I would choose today. In this post I analyze the two systems and detail important aspects of each system related to learner analytics. This post does not analyze every aspect of the two platforms and may become outdated. I highly recommend reviewing the systems for yourself and your organizations specific needs.
About this LMS: This LMS is offered through CUNA (Credit Union National Association). CPD Online offers pre-created courses as well as the ability to upload your own SCORM eLearning. This LMS also offers free courses that lead to nationally recognized certifications in the financial industry (financial advisor, compliance auditor, etc.)
Types of Data collected by LMS: This LMS collects experience data in the following ways: Quiz scores, Time spent on modules and activities as well as the specific time those activities were started/finished, completion rates for the individual courses and learning paths, and ranking of employees based on their number of courses completed. There are also learner analytics that come from both the pre-created and custom created job groups. The courses that are assigned to those job groups can be categorized into specific skills and can provide a report on what skills each learner group is attaining. If you want learner analytics on custom created groups you must add that information when you upload a course, otherwise the pre-created courses already have skills attached. The last type of data collected is the overall program analytics. This can be done by running a company-wide report to review overall skill attainment and course completion.
Data Outputs: This LMS has a dashboard that looks like the CUNA website (colors and icons). The dashboard lists courses that are assigned to the learner, how many courses they have completed already, and how many courses need to be completed. The only visual (besides the number listed in bold for each of those previous categories) is the pie graph which shows how many assignments have been completed out of all the assignments that have been assigned. The dashboard also has a ranking of employee completion and the top 3 employees to complete courses are listed by name on the dashboard. When running reports, the output is a spreadsheet that can be easily converted to Excel (and then used to create charts if needed).
About this LMS: This LMS is created by a private company that creates products related to financial literacy and financial institution compliance. Their product is offered to both Credit Unions and Banks with some minor variability in the courses that are offered. Recently the ability to upload SCORM files was added, previously this LMS had a course creation tool that had very little functionality beyond what you get from PowerPoint.
Types of Data collected by LMS: This LMS collects the same type of data as CPD Online. The only difference I noticed was that BVS does not give data on course “end time” - that information can be figured out by taking the course start time and the course “time to complete” however. I am not sure how helpful having a specific “end time” would be so I do not consider this an issue.
Data Outputs: This LMS has a dashboard like CPD Online. It shows the same data to learners such as: # of courses completed/assigned/late as well as the top employees to complete courses. The dashboard for BVS is a little “cleaner” looking than CPD Online, the colors are more basic, there is a nice balance of white space, and it is easy for the learner to see where they stand in their continuing education. One additional output that BVS has that CPD Online does not have (on their dashboard) is the further education “course recommendations”. These recommendations are supposed to be based on the learner's skill attainment/course completion/and job title; this allows learners to go deeper into content if their company allows them to take the time. All reports that are run on the back end are like CPD Online (Excel spreadsheets)
My Analysis
Which LMS is the best choice (based upon learning analytics abilities)?
Both LMS have quite similar learning analytic abilities. The only major difference I noticed between CPD Online and BVS relates to the user dashboards and the fact that CPD Online offers free financial certifications that are recognized nationally. I think prior to making a final decision, I would want to know the overall employee desire to earn a certification (taking the courses outside of CPD Online can be pricey). The ability to continue and grow in your career can be incredibly motivating to adult learners, so once I knew the actual interest level it would help me make a better decision. If there is not much interest or need for those certifications, I would choose BVS over CPD Online. The dashboards are quite different in appearance from each other, CPD Online just looks like the CUNA website. There is not much differentiation that would tell me that I am in the LMS instead of one of the many other areas of their website. The dashboard for BVS has a simple layout and the analytics are clear to see and understand from the learner perspective. There are clear suggestions in BVS for learners to continue past the required courses and learn skills that are relevant to their positions. Since both LMS are incredibly similar, this decision would be made based on the simplicity of the BVS dashboard and continuing education suggestions based on each learners' analytics. It is easy to use and easy to see the data for the learner.
How do the learning analytics from BVS optimize learning?
The learning analytics that employees have on their BVS learner dashboard optimize learning by giving suggestions based upon their position in the company as well as growth opportunities to move within the Credit Union industry. Adult learners who are motivated to grow in their career will get the most benefit from this, but the training department can also utilize this information to better tailor the courses based upon the learners' interests as well. From the backend, learning analytics optimize learning by providing insight into other trends based upon the learner data such as: when learners are accessing/taking their eLearning courses, how often learners must retake a course due to low score, which courses take more/less time than predicted, and what courses learners are taking voluntarily. If learners are accessing the courses outside of work hours, training departments can make a better effort to ensure all courses function regardless of device. If learners must retake courses multiple times, it may mean that the course is too long, not chunked well, or includes information that is not necessary or pertinent to their position. If learners take much more or much less time to complete a course, it may mean that the content is too easy/hard, the course itself may have navigation issues, or that the learner's current skill levels are not being considered when assigning. Finally, if learners are taking courses outside of their working hours, it could show a broader interest in developing certain skills and would be an effective way to further customize the learning experiences for certain positions within the company.
