With so many learning technologies available today to address the demands of the learning ecosystem, determining what’s needed to create the most efficient processes for your team and the best experiences for your learners can be difficult.
That’s one reason we love this new learning tech stack model, “Layers in a Learning Technology Ecosystem,” by Fosway Group, a leading HR Industry Analyst in Europe. In Fosway’s new graphic, core functions in the learning ecosystem as well as the technologies to support them—from learner facing to back-office, and others in between—are clearly defined.
“Layers in a Learning Technology Ecosystem” graphic by Fosway Group. Click image to enlarge.
We also love this learning tech stack model for its inclusion of the Training Management layer (powered by the Training Management System, or TMS) as an essential core component of collaborative learning and the learning technology ecosystem.
Training Management System technology, along with Learning Management (the LMS), Learner Experience (the LXP / LEP) and other technologies for content, analytics and delivery are complementary systems. And, they work together to create a must-have stack of learning tech that can be combined to meet an organization’s specific needs—depending on back-end operational needs, business goals, and desired front-end learner experience.
>> Get Fosway Group’s full slide deck here. It’s full of results from their latest research and insights into the current learning tech ecosystem! <<
Managing Training Operations: Training Management Software in the Learning Tech Stack
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Let’s focus in on Classroom Training Management and the Training Resource Management System’s role. In Fosway’s “Layers in the Learning Tech Ecosystem” graphic, the central functions of Training Management are noted as:
- Training Resource Management
- Training Budget Management
- Training Logistics Optimization
- Event & Intervention Management
- Training Financials and Cost Management
That’s a lot to manage!
It’s no wonder that technology to optimize instructor-led training operations is included as a core learning technology. And, for good reason. There’s a huge amount of back-office effort, and training budget, required to run ILT programs.
Worth it? Absolutely! We all know the many benefits of instructor-led training, most notably, that it’s one of the most effective training delivery methods. The questions now become: What can be done to optimize, reduce costs, and automate training operations? And, is it possible to actually do MORE ILT or vILT… with less?
>> Read more in this two-part series: The Learning Tech Ecosystem Explained <<
The Training Management System: Core Layer in the Learning Technology Ecosystem
Most organizations have the best LMSs for administering and delivering eLearning to their learners. And, to increase engagement and give their learners a superior and more interactive experience, many are now adding the Learning Experience Platform (LXP/LEP) to the front-end of their learning tech stack. These tools both address eLearning.
But, when it comes to Instructor-Led Training, there’s a big gap on the back-end that needs to be filled. That’s where Training Management Software comes in.
To take ILT operations to the point where optimization, cost savings and measurable transformation of business results are taking place, a Training Management Software is required…
We find that most organizations are currently managing their classroom training operations with Excel, Outlook calendars, and sometimes in part with their LMS. But, to take ILT and VILT operations to the point where optimization, cost savings, and measurable transformation of business results are taking place, a Training Management System Software is required, as it offers the depth of features and functionalities to make this happen. The Training Management System complements the LMS, LXP/LEP and other learning technologies to provide a back-end solution, specifically for ILT, in the learning tech stack.
>> Learn more about the differences between a Training Management System and Learning Management System <<
Watch David Wilson, Founder and CEO of Fosway Group, explain his take on Training Management System technology in the learning tech stack, and how it complements the LMS:
Prefer to read? Here’s what David says about the training management system in the learning tech stack:
How would you position training management in the learning technology ecosystem, and does it overlap with the LMS?
From a Fosway perspective, the way we look at learning ecosystems is probably a little different from other organizations. We’ve been tracking the learning technology market for well over 20 years, and it’s never just been around an LMS and content or training admin system, for example. It’s always quite diverse and complicated, it’s an ecosystem. From a learning management perspective, the LMS has been a dominant part of that story for a long time. But in reality, LMSs in themselves have been an evolving entity. Many started managing just the e-learning side, then many started adding the instructor-led activities as well, and classroom training admin tools as part of the ecosystem.
Now, more and more are becoming much more diverse and supporting more learning channels. So, we can talk around learning management system suites, a suite of tools managing modern learning activities in a general sense. But, within that, there are some areas of disruption. So, the way we look at classroom training management is potentially a specialist area within it. It’s a general capability that a lot of the learning suites have, but it’s not an area of deep competence generally. That becomes very important when talking to big organizations who are spending lots of money on this activity, it’s very complicated to manage it, in a decentralized way anyway.
So, having a specialized tool within that makes a lot of sense. It also enables them to focus on multiple or disruptive agendas at once. They can focus on things like training optimization on one level, things like training experience and others, solving more than one problem. We see it all as being part of the learning tech ecosystem as a whole. We see this as being really relevant particularly for larger organizations. In terms of the training management specialization, how it fits into their broader ecosystem. Whether that’s through specialist components, or what. It’s a key component of the leading suites in the market. It needs to integrate into the ecosystem and needs to share data around learners, learner activity, and classes and sessions, etc. It’s a tightly integrated part of it, bringing specialist essential tools to the table that really enable you to manage and optimize at scale.
Another relevant piece is that in certain countries that are regulatory structures in place, which really focus on things like training, management, reporting, budgeting, and financial structures around it. So, in those environments, it takes disproportionate importance as well because often it’s being used to provide the regulatory reports and structures to manage things like training spend in a way that is supplementary to what an organization would normally do.
What’s Next?
A Training Management System like Training Orchestra is a great place to start. For over 15 years, we’ve been helping 600+ organizations worldwide manage their instructor-led training operations and over $6B in training budgets. Training Orchestra can help you optimize classroom training management operations by increasing resource use, optimizing session and resource scheduling, controlling costs, and by making the most of time and resources.
In addition to these features, Training Orchestra has easy, out-of-the-box integration with the LMS, as well as quick integration with other HR systems such as the Learning Experience Platform (LXP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Human Resources Information System (HRIS) and Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP).
Contact us to learn more, or to talk about your project. We’re happy to help!
Additional Resources:
- Fosway Group’s full Learning Systems Report
- Digital Learning’s Reality Research by Fosway Group and Learning Technologies
