Foreword

While choosing and implementing a learning management system (LMS) is certainly not a life or death situation, your decisions and actions along the way (and the consequences) often make the process seem like one. LMS selection, implementation, and management are tough jobs. Choosing wisely, based on knowledge, experience, and proven practices, can go a long way toward avoiding an LMS experience that could be almost as bad as drinking from the wrong Grail.

But that’s easier said than done. As a speaker at many e-learning conferences and corporate meetings, I usually ask my audience if they have an LMS. Almost all raise their hands. I then ask how many are on their second LMS. More than half the hands are still in the air. When I get to a third or fourth LMS, and there are quite a few handsstill raised, I start to wonder why there’s so much churn in LMS purchases. The reasons, of course, are varied, but over the years, a common thread has become clear:

“We bought before we thought.”

There is no doubt that the LMS world is fraught with challenges and tough decisions. After all, you can spend a boatload of money on the software, and then another boatload on implementation. You don’t just need savvy in LMS technologies; you also need to build support for your LMS investment.

When seeking an LMS, you need to get three things right. First, you need an overall learning strategy that the LMS can support. The LMS itself is not a strategy, but it can be a good strategy enabler. Then, you need to select the right LMS for your organization—not just for today’s needs, but for future ones as well. Buying an LMS can be a bumpy road—and a very expensive one—or it can be an easy, well-paved superhighway. And finally, you can’t just get an LMS and declare victory; you need to implement it correctly. Turning on an LMS without careful consideration of how it will be used can spell disaster.

Steve Foreman, a leader in LMS strategy, selection, and implementation, tackles the process head-on. After dozens of soup-to-nuts LMS projects in large corporations, small businesses, and government agencies, he knows a thing or two not just about LMS products and technologies, but also about the value that a solid LMS can bring to a training department and the organization as a whole.

Steve brings his experience to bear in a clear set of steps to acquire and implement an LMS. For trainers and their managers, the book provides a pathway for making sure the selected LMS is the right one and implemented correctly. For IT professionals, the book details some of the major technical issues that must be addressed for the LMS to fulfill its mission. For senior managers, the book represents best practices in LMS acquisition and implementation that can improve effectiveness and save money by doing it right the first time.

And do not fear: This book is not LMS hype. Steve does not tout one LMS over another or push you to rush into buying a certain LMS type. He has seen enough LMS mistakes to know that not every organization needs the same things from an LMS—and some might not need one at all. Every LMS selection and implementation is unique to the organization doing the project. This is not a cookbook either, but you should consider all the ideas in The LMS Guidebook for a successful project.

Steve takes a realistic look at LMS initiatives—the good and the bad—to come up with recommendations for making it all work. Even if this is your second or third LMS, you will likely find information and checkpoints that you weren’t aware of that will help you do a better job this time.

The book has lots of technical information and LMS jargon, some intended for trainers and some for IT professionals. There is no way a successful LMS project can work without addressing some serious technology issues, so Steve doesn’t shy away from any of them. That’s why the included glossary is so robust.

If this is your first LMS selection and implementation project, it’s probably a bigger undertaking than you first realized, but this book can help you make the right decisions, the first time. If you’ve been through this before, you still probably don’t know where all the pitfalls are, but you have certainly gained a healthy respect for them. The LMS Guidebook can help you avoid the mistakes of the past.

Like all software and software vendors, the LMS market is in a constant state of flux. New players replace (or merge with) old, technologies evolve, and organizations find new uses for their LMS while, at the same time, getting rid of some of the old uses. If you think this is going to be simple, think again. And start planning. An LMS is a big-time IT investment, and you will have a lot riding on this.

You will need to skirt some land mines on your LMS journey, but the destination is a host of great opportunities for your organization and the learners you serve. Steve knows the best route and is marking the trail. Now all you have to do is follow it.

Marc Rosenberg, PhD
Hillsborough, New Jersey
December 2017