10 Most Desired LMS Features Released

By: Justin Ferriman • May 9, 2012
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Everyone these days wants their LMS to do something unique or something special. Wouldn’t it be nice if these “LMS wishes” were put together in one place?  Well, now they are.  A recent study released by RedTray  believes they have found the top 10 most wished LMS features.  The results of their study can be found in an ebook that they put together.

According to their study, the following are the top 10 features people want from their LMS:

  1. Reporting
  2. Learner support tools
  3. Calculating ROI on training spend
  4. Collaboration tools
  5. Course reviews and ratings
  6. Social media
  7. Competency management
  8. Ask an expert
  9. Learning certification paths
  10. Virtual classrooms

Not a bad list, and quite frankly, I liked some of the ideas (specifically the “ask an expert” option).  Interestingly, I didn’t see anything that directly related to the new Tin Can API project, but I suppose an argument could be made that item #10 is kind of related.

Another one on the list that stuck out to me was #3 regarding calculating ROI for training.  This is something I bring up in conversations on this site as well as on LinkedIn, and it seems to always bring out some strong opinions.  Personally, I fall into the category of people that believe Instructional Designers, Trainers, and others in our industry owe it to the client to show ROI in some capacity. Be it in dollars and cents or some other fashion. 

I think a ROI component in a LMS would be nice, but I also think it might not be practical.  For example, using the Kirkpatrick method for measuring impact (ROI) is far too complicated… but I suppose that’s why this list is called a “wish” list.

the last thing I found interesting is that 43.4% of people participating in the study currently host their own LMS, yet 45.3% of people would prefer a SaaS LMS.  I think at the very least this tells us is that change is difficult.  There are tons of SaaS LMS options available out there, but people are staying with their own hosted versions. 

I suppose my biggest concern with the study is that it really lacks the sample size for the results to be seen as an accurate pulse of the learning industries LMS desires.  The study only surveyed 175 people, and all these people were from the learning industry.  I’d be interested to know what the other side (non learning professionals) want out of a LMS… but perhaps that’s another study. 

If you want to see the survey for yourslef, you have to submit your name and work email (the form will not accept “gmail”).  Not that this is a big deal, and I can appreciate that they want to grow their mailing list.

Enjoy.

Justin Ferriman

Justin started LearnDash, the WordPress LMS trusted by Fortune 500 companies, major universities, training organizations, and entrepreneurs worldwide. He is currently founder & CEO of GapScout. Justin’s Homepage | GapScout | Twitter