Chief Learning Officer - November 2007 - (Page 60)

business intelligence other HR software or include more employees on the current system. Companies that already have an LMS installed continue to look for additional functionality and improved flexibility. Companies are seeking greater benefit for their learning dollars, whether that comes from investing in more modules or new releases of their systems. Although many companies are investing in custom content-development services, they are spending somewhat less than last year. At the same time, CLOs are spending more on learning-related technical services as a result of spending more on learning-related technologies in general. Nearly every technology purchase includes IT consulting and systemintegration services to ensure a smooth rollout and end-user adoption. Figure 4: Top Learning Services Investment Areas Training Administrative Services Mentoring Services Needs Assessment and Analysis Services Strategy Consulting Services Learning-Related Technical Services Custom ContentDevelopment Services Other Reliance on External Providers A majority of organizations (56 percent) plan to increase reliance on external service and content vendors to help reduce costs. Companies expect to increase their use of hosting services and custom content development in 2008. These two areas have been the most popular uses for external vendors for the past several years. Compared with last year, more companies indicate there will be no change in their use of external providers, which suggests enterprises are finding the right balance between internal and external services. 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% If Money Were No Object … In spite of the slowing growth in budgets, CLOs don’t appear to be particularly needy: “Even if money were no object, we are looking for learning-related service(s) and technology that best fit the needs of the organization.” CLOs and business leaders fight with “the speed of change, and new initiatives changing the business is where we have to slow down — too much change, too fast.” Learning leaders think technology and integration are their best hopes for achieving business impact. “A killer LMS,” along with “an integrated competency management, talent management, performance management, learning management suite,” are the best approaches to cost-effectively increase the organization’s ability to learn and change. Independent of economic conditions, learning professionals are conservative when managing their learning budgets. They prioritize and identify the “best” technologies and services that will yield the maximum benefit to the company in both the short and long term. Because organizations differ, CLOs attempt to provide development opportunities by aligning offerings with corporate strategy and working with experienced vendors to determine that perfect investment portfolio for their own company. What they have in common is a sense of obligation to maximize the benefit they provide their organizations and commitment to improving their offering to increase relevance and value. Some companies are budgeting for and installing a companywide LMS, replacing the three, four or even five installed systems they already have. Companies cite synergies, economies of scale and cost savings for consolidating their systems. Global competition in both the marketplace and for talent increasingly seems to justify consolidating all solutions into a single LMS. Many companies are looking to integrate LMS with learning content management system (LCMS) and talent management suites in 2007 and 2008. Organizations realize how powerful it can be to have learning technologies talk to one another and complement one another’s functionalities. November 2007 For example, although the capability of an LMS to track learning completed is significant, it is doubly valuable when integrated with a WPM system to compare performance levels of those who have participated in learning with those who have not. Cushing Anderson is program director of Learning Services Research at IDC, a global market intelligence and advisory firm. He can be reached at editor@clomedia.com. I www.clomedia.com I Chief Learning Officer 60 Learning Services Led by Content Development Technical Services CLOs increasingly are spending on learning services such as custom content development and learning-related technical services. (See Figure 4) http://www.clomedia.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Chief Learning Officer - November 2007

Chief Learning Officer - November 2007 Editor's Letter Table of Contents Imperatives Selling Up, Selling Down Strategies Take Five Rediscovering the Essence of Learning Cornell University Maintains Productivity While Pursuing Higher Education CLO Profile How Loyalty and Employee Engagement Add Up to Corporate Profits A Strategic Foundation The Evolution of the LMS Ariba: Growing Sales Skills in Conjunction with LMS Technology Leveraging Change to Build Productivity Equinox Fitness: Leveraging Change to Build Productivity Tangibles or Intangibles: Where’s Your Value? Raising the Stakes: The Strategic Role of the CLO Case Study Business Intelligence Case Study Advertisers' Index Editorial Resources In Conclusion

Chief Learning Officer - November 2007

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.