Training Industry Magazine - September/October 2020 - 31

functional areas of interest for L&D (talent
development, formal learning, knowledge
sharing and performance support).

IMPACT ON LEARNING
PLATFORMS AND TOOLS
If we extend the four functional areas
to the associated learning tools in the
market, it is broadly classified as seen
in Figure 2 on page 32. The grid has
four quadrants - each representing a
specific set of learning tools:

Talent management systems
(TMSs) for talent development

Learning management systems
(LMSs) for formal learning

Learning experience platforms
(LXPs) for knowledge sharing

Performance support systems
(PSSs) for performance and
workflow support

TALENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
TMSs are HR-based and focus on recruitment and skills development. These
tools are associated with employee
development efforts, such as leadership
development and performance management. TMSs take a top-down approach and
are limited in what they can offer, because
they don't directly link to courses on the
web or the organization's learning system.
This lack of integration means TMSs have
far less of an impact on learning than other
tools in the quadrants.
LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
LMSs are often key to a traditional
eLearning approach. For a long time,
they were the main channel for L&D
departments to push and manage
learning throughout their organizations.
LMSs are designed to support L&D
by managing learning initiatives. They
are not designed with learners in
mind. Some LMSs try to get around
this by improving their interfaces or
adding features that encourage a

FIGURE 1. LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT DIAGRAM OF CHANGE
SKILLS

SUPPORT

TALENT DEVELOPMENT

INFORMAL

PERFORMANCE SUPPORT

TOP-DOWN

BOTTOM-UP

FORMAL LEARNING

FORMAL

more learner-driven model. However,
those changes are mostly cosmetic. At
their core, LMSs remain administratorcentered and database-oriented. This
doesn't make them particularly useful
for learners themselves.

ORGANIZATIONS
ARE SHIFTING THEIR
ATTENTION AND BUDGETS
TO INFORMAL LEARNING.

LEARNING EXPERIENCE
PLATFORMS
With learners taking charge of their
own development, employees want
to be able to decide what, how and
when they learn - from eLearning and
microlearning courses to curated web
content. As a result, employees want
to find the right content at the moment
they need it. That's where LXPs come
in. They're platforms with smooth user
interfaces and intelligent algorithms.
They also enable workers to discover
content, get recommendations and find
experts in their domains.
LXPs are a world apart from traditional,
top-down LMS tools. You could use the
analogy of streaming shows on Netflix
versus watching TV channels with fixed

KNOWLEDGE SHARING

LEARNING

KNOWLEDGE

programming schedules. Does that
mean LXPs are the magic bullet for all
corporate learning problems? Probably
not. As expert David Perring points out:
"LXP is certainly not business smart, or
fit for purpose for workflow resources or
performance support. It's the equivalent of
walking into the library and searching for
a book when what you really wanted was
to simply land on the pages you needed."
LXPs are a glorified version of the LMS.
It's a highly engaging user experience,
often with the same content. It's a
mountain of content without any context
for learners' needs in the flow of work.
This can become a problem. Workflow
support and on-demand, just-in-time
help for employees is where we see the
development of learning tools heading.
PERFORMANCE SUPPORT SYSTEMS
PSSs - sometimes referred to as
workflow support tools - aim to improve
performance by helping employees
solve problems on the go. They offer
workers the practical information they
need to solve a particular learning need
while working. The attention to these
solutions is rapidly growing.

IMPACT ON
KNOWLEDGE CREATION
AND DISTRIBUTION
Most formal eLearning courses are
created by instructional designers.

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Training Industry Magazine - September/October 2020

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