The TopClass Blog

You bet it is! When an association or company is considering learning management systems one of the first concerns is the ability to track and maintain a learner’s training history. In today’s environment associations are being relied on more and more to provide training courses for their members. With that comes the need to prove to employers, boards, regulatory agencies and even the courts that certain training has been offered and completed. Therefore a comprehensive training history capability should be a major component of any LMS an association is considering to implement.

Value for Members

Offering your members a complete training history through your LMS gives your members a single, easy-to-access record to produce a report that shows all of their training. This can be important for members that are changing jobs and want to be able to show perspective employers their qualifications. It is equally as important for those that are applying for certifications that may be required for their current job roles.

A complete training history should show the completion dates, level of qualification, associated credits and certificates of completion for all courses and programs completed by the learner. If a certification has an expiry date, this and any renewals should also be clearly displayed in the training history. A good Learning Management System will also allow the learner to enter details of blended learning programs, and external training completed in addition to any online courses completed within the LMS environment, like the example below from TopClass LMS:

Being able to produce an up to date training history for your members can show them where they stand in relation to their peers. For many, this gives them a great deal of satisfaction which reflects well on the Association and the LMS. The training history should also enable learners to identify any gaps in their training or any opportunities for specialization. This can lead to increased engagement in continued professional development programs, as the learner is empowered to manage their own professional development, and can request more relevant courses from the Association’s eLearning catalog to meet their needs.

Value for the Association

Training history is also important for the Association. With a comprehensive training history capability in the learning management system, staff members can determine which courses are popular or under-subscribed, giving insight into what training members want or need. It will also show how relevant the Associations current offerings are to their members, and which courses may need a refresh or total revision. Associations can then employ resources more efficiently to ensure their course catalog is attractive for members.

Being able to identify courses of interest to members, and any gaps in training programs offered, means that Associations can begin to generate additional revenue through marketing and sales of training programs to members. Using the Course Catalog in the LMS in combination with the training history, associations can cross-sell, upsell, and offer discount or special-offer bundles to members to increase revenue from training, as shown below in TopClass LMS:

With a more relevant and engaging course offering and a single, easy-to-access record of their training history, learners will have excellent reasons to continually return to the association website and LMS. Members will clearly see the value provided by the association, helping you to grow and retain your membership.

Finally, being able to automatically produce member training history, progress and certification reports, and even certificates of completion reduces a large workload for many associations whose staff may already be stretched thin.

An Association Learning Management System like TopClass LMS streamlines administration, processing and reporting functions, to free up association staff for more important activities, like creating innovative eLearning content to engage and add value for members.

To learn how TopClass could add value to your association, request a demo today!