It is key for RTOs and corporate trainers to find a platform that is both flexible and functional. Without these two features, your life could be more challenging than necessary.
Whether you have a system in place or are still searching for the one. Here are a few pointers to find the right Training & Learning Management System for your organisation.
Flexibility: Why is it important?
Flexibility is not just important, it is vital that any system you implement still allows your organisation to grow and evolve. A system that is rigid with little or no capacity to modify the functionality will rarely be able to respond to your needs.
Over time, you have developed processes and procedures to suit your business. Investing in software that forces you to compromise your business processes for no better reason than to match the peculiarities of the software should sound the ‘inflexibility’ alarm bell. On the other hand, a flexible solution that allows you to cost-effectively configure and customise through easy-to-use settings will enable you to reap functional benefits while maintaining your tried and tested methods.
10 Warning Signs a TMS lacks Flexibility
- Field labels that are irrelevant to you but can’t be changed.
- Having to complete unnecessary steps to perform what should be simple actions.
- Fixed and inappropriate wording presented to your clients that you can’t remove or change.
- List items limited to only what the vendor provides.
- Having to go back to the vendor for minor and trivial changes.
- Being asked to use inappropriate fields and forms to perform unrelated tasks.
- Inability to capture custom fields.
- Entering the same data in multiple places or systems
- Rigid workflow processes that don’t work the way you do.
- Templates and notifications that don’t suit your business.
Functionality: Does it really do what you need it to do?
Software that doesn’t even do the basics right is never going to deliver the outcomes you want. If you were to put those basic into a checklist that defines the workhorse of your business, it might look something like the 13 Point Core Functionality below.
We constantly see in the training software space, excellent user interface often with very little consideration going into the full functionality of the system. Whether all users can manage and work in the software or not, you want every function to be easy to use, without compromising the system basics.
You probably want many ‘nice-to-have’ features that you can work through with the vendor, but your ‘basic’ requirements must be met. It’s vital to have this list front and centre. It’s easy to get side tracked with flash and bling if you don’t have a clear picture of what you need.
13 Point Functionality Checklist
As a training organisation, it’s likely you need a system to provide the following 13 areas of core functionality. Use the following checklist to assess your current systems and decide whether it’s functional for your business.
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Functionality |
Yes/No |
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1 |
Secure student data collection & storage |
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2 |
Schedule curricula items for classes and timetables |
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3 |
Allocate qualified and capable resources |
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4 |
Analyse & Plan individual and team training needs |
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5 |
Course design and Set up |
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6 |
Enrolments, Attendance & Results |
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7 |
Billing & Financial reporting |
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8 |
Staff Matrix & Personal Development |
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9 |
Communication streams |
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10 |
Document management |
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11 |
Compliant data collection & validation |
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12 |
Issue certificates and awards |
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13 |
Generate meaningful reports |
To Bluegem, the key is to understand and analyse your organisation as a whole and provide a solution that ensures all areas of functionality are captured in the scope of work. Ensuring you do an audit of your current systems to meet this checklist is critical.
Have you got the basic functionality? If not, you need to look at re-evaluating your current system and future needs to allow your organisation to grow and evolve
Final Thoughts
To have a practical, well thought out, functional and flexible training system is what every RTO or Corporate Training organisation strives for.
Hopefully this checklist and warning signs have given you some food for thought about your current systems. Every system needs to do the basics perfectly. After all, they are the basics. Make sure your current solution isn’t leading you down a path to nowhere and is providing you with the system you need and deserve.
For more tips and tricks like these, download our eBook ‘21 Vital Questions To Help You Select the Right Training Management System’.