Written by In the daily life of a Sales Person in the eLearning industry, it is always interesting to hear what is hot in our marketplace even for products that we don’t sell. This helps us to further understand our clients and our industry. Every day I learn more about the changes in the technology that surrounds us in the training/eLearning world. For the record, my “Hot eLearning Technology Talk, Observations from a Sales Person” are observations collected from daily conversations with prospects and clients. Brookwood does not sell any of these products so these are unbiased observations of what I hear “on the corporate streets”.
Here are some topics that are frequently mentioned during conversations with clients and prospects:
- Popular LMS Solutions
- “Off The Shelf” Content Providers
- Popular eLearning Development Tools
- Virtual eLearning Technology Tools
Popular LMS Solutions:
Cornerstone OnDemand Learning Management System comes up daily in my sales conversations (calls, virtual presentations, meetings, etc.) with prospects and our clients. When I ask what LMS people are using Cornerstone OnDemand is the answer most of the time. Cornerstone OnDemand; “Learning Management System delivers all kinds of learning through a platform your employees will actually use. Provide collaborative tools that engage learners and enable peer-to-peer knowledge capture & sharing to extend learning impact.”
SumTotal Learn comes up often too on my client/prospect interactions. SumTotal; is an LMS Solution that has been around a long time. “To win in today’s agile, competitive environment you can’t rely on old-school learning management systems (LMS) that provide one-size-fits-all training. At the same time, unleashing an over-abundance of learning resources leaves employees frustrated and doesn’t align their efforts with the demands of your business. SumTotal Learn is the only enterprise learning management solution that connects the dots between the skills and competencies people need to be better at their jobs –delivered in the context of what they are trying to accomplish – and, prepares the organization for tomorrow, to measurably improve performance.”
In the Healthcare sector, HealthStream and Relias Management System are mentioned the most.
HealthStream:
“Millions of healthcare professionals across all care settings use the HealthStream Learning Center every day. From powerful automation and valuable reporting to a library of over 20,000 courses, we built the Learning Center with your specific needs in mind. HealthStream handles hosting automatic updates and the delivery of over 20,000 courses from trusted industry partners. Our implementation, training, and support teams are the best in the business. Use their healthcare experience to help you accelerate adoption and boost your return on investment.”
Relias Management System:
“Intuitive learning management, expert course content, and engaging delivery to stay compliant and boost performance. Meeting the Demands of Change Training that impacts the most important challenges in your organization.”
Other Popular LMS Solutions (in no order of merit):
Adobe Captivate Prime:
“It’s a next-gen Learning Management System (LMS) that delivers personalized learning experiences across multiple devices. Align all online and offline enterprise-wide learning initiatives to skill, upskill and reskill your employees.”
Saba:
“is the de facto leader in learning management. Yes, when it comes to learning management, no one delivers quite like we do. But we also know that the learning environment is changing at the speed of business, today’s employees have new expectations, and today’s learning leaders have a whole new world of L&D to manage. That’s why Saba’s comprehensive and continuous learning management ecosystem is built to help you design and deliver the modern experience your employees want, without sacrificing the tools, insights, and connectivity you need to drive a high impact learning program and a high-performance business.”
OnPoint Digital:
“is a global provider of technology-enabled learning solutions for many of the world’s leading organizations. By offering a superior collection of functionality, customization, extensibility, and security, OnPoint delivers user and manager-optimized learning experiences to its customers’ internal and external audiences on their device or platform of choice. Headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, OnPoint has truly pioneered learning technology beyond an online courseware delivery platform into the realm of enterprise mobile, social game-enabled, and xAPI-extended learning solutions.”
“Off The Shelf” Content Providers:
Skillsoft is the provider chosen by many companies that I speak with for their ready-made, “off the shelf” eLearning training needs. I estimate that 95% of the people I speak to state that Skillsoft is their solution in this area. Skillsoft; “Business, Digital, IT and Compliance Learning Solutions. We are your trusted partner and leading global provider of high-quality, innovative, cloud-based learning and performance support resources. Enabling organizations to achieve competitive advantages through superior enterprise-wide knowledge and skills.”
In the Healthcare sector, I hear that Relias offers great courses. In researching their courses I find them to have a focus on Healthcare Compliance, however, they also offer other content and partner with Skillsoft. Relias Management System; “Intuitive learning management, expert course content, and engaging delivery to stay compliant and boost performance. Meeting the Demands of Change Training that impacts the most important challenges in your organization.”
Popular eLearning Development Tools:
Adobe Captivate and Articulate Storyline are far and away the most popular eLearning Development Tools that we use here at Brookwood to develop content and provide support for our clients. We also use and support Adobe Presenter and Trivantis Lectora, and see it being increasingly used by clients/prospects especially where section 508 compliance is required.
Adobe Captivate:
“Smart. From the start, Automatically create fully responsive content using innovative Fluid Boxes. Transform* legacy courses to responsive eLearning with just a few clicks. Deliver beautiful fonts everywhere using Adobe Typekit integration. Productive. To the end, Design all types of content — simulations, HD demos, assessments and more, with just one tool. Create storyboards using Adobe Captivate Draft, turn them seamlessly into attractive courses with more than 75,000+ free eLearning asset.”
Articulate Storyline:
“The world’s best e‑learning solution, Trusted by organizations worldwide, Articulate software, services, community, and content make it easy to create compelling online and mobile courses. Join 550,000+ course creators, Tap into E‑Learning Heroes, the most powerful resource on the planet for course creators. Get thousands of best practices, definitive e‑books and guides, and practical advice on all things e‑learning.”
Trivantis Lectora:
“Since our founding in 1999 as an eLearning pioneer, people and innovation have fueled our growth. Lectora, our first product, blazed the trail as the first authoring software making rapid eLearning simple and cost-effective. From the beginning, our idea has always been to make it easy and affordable to create engaging, destination-neutral “anywhere, anytime” content where you track the results. Today, we offer a complete eLearning solution. Large enterprises, Global 2000 companies, small and mid-sized businesses, government agencies, and educational institutions across the world depend on Lectora eLearning authoring, ReviewLink, and CourseMill learning management solutions for all their eLearning education and training needs.”
Adobe Presenter:
“Transform slides into interactive eLearning; Convert your PowerPoint presentations to engaging eLearning content. Add quizzes, scenarios, and out-of-the-box assets, and publish as HTML5 for access using desktop and mobile browsers. Create high-impact interactive training videos. Track learner performance using leading LMSs.”
Virtual eLearning Technology Tools:
Adobe Connect, Cisco WebEx, and GoToMeeting are the three Virtual Training Platforms that we see most often used by our clients and prospects for Virtual Training. The feedback is that these are the top of the line technology platforms to perform engaging online education programs with.
Adobe Connect:
“Enable mobile learning across devices; Train and participate directly from mobile devices, Deploy interactive mobile experiences including breakout sessions, Enjoy hosting, file sharing, whiteboarding, and emoticons via mobile, Allow participants on a desktop to enter hassle-free with no downloads. Deliver immersive live virtual classroom experiences; Measure live learner participation with engagement monitoring, Brand-able, customizable and persistent virtual classrooms, Streamline live session management with intuitive backstage tools, Maximize engagement with extensive interactive options. Support blended learning with synchronous and asynchronous content, Create curricula with prerequisites and test-outs, Manage enrollment notifications & reminders, Generate course catalogs to enable self-enrollment, Measure effectiveness with detailed learner reports. Create and deploy engaging on-demand learning content, Generate structured curricula with enhanced learner enrollment management, Rapidly generate and deploy content using our Microsoft PowerPoint plug-in Adobe Captivate and Adobe Presenter, Create content once and publish across devices, including SCORM and AICC content, Use the features of a Learning Management System (LMS) at a fraction of the cost with Adobe Connect, or integrate it with your existing LMS.”
Cisco WebEx:
“The world is your classroom., Live or on-demand instruction. Why Cisco WebEx Training Center? Lectures, labs, and small breakout sessions. Testing and automated grading. Built-in, optional e-commerce so you can charge for live or on-demand training. Add Assist Services and get expert help with your program. Train 5 people or 1,000. Learners join online from any device and interact with quick response tools like polling and threaded Q&A. Test and score any time throughout your session Build a library. No time for live sessions? Clone yourself. Record and build a library of on-demand training sessions so people can view or review them anytime. eCommerce at your fingertips. Your expertise is valuable. Use the built-in eCommerce capability to charge for live or on-demand sessions. Expert up. Make the most of feature-rich WebEx Training Center. Get expert help planning and delivering your program — add Assist Services to your package.
GoToMeeting:
“Connect with anyone, anywhere. On any device. GoToMeeting makes it easy to connect with people any way you want. Get More Done; Unlimited meetings. Simplest interface. Clear communication. GoToMeeting will work wonders for your productivity. Decrease Travel Costs; Meet as often as you like without a single plane ticket or drop of fuel. You’ll slash your travel expenses to shreds. Increase Sales; Here’s a simple equation: unlimited online meetings + more time to meet prospects – travel = deals closing 20% faster. Build Better Relationships; HD video, clear audio and a shared screen for unified focus. These are real meetings for real people. One Meeting Link to Rule Them All; Every customer receives a personal meeting room with custom URL – your new base of operations. The Most Secure Solution; With end-to-end encryption, strong passwords and top-rated reliability, no one is messing with your meeting.
Get More Done
Unlimited meetings. Simplest interface. Clear communication. GoToMeeting will work wonders for your productivity.
Decrease Travel Costs
Meet as often as you like without a single plane ticket or drop of fuel. You’ll slash your travel expenses to shreds.
Increase Sales
Here’s a simple equation: unlimited online meetings + more time to meet prospects – travel = deals closing 20% faster.
Build Better Relationships
HD video, clear audio and a shared screen for unified focus. These are real meetings for real people.
One Meeting Link to Rule Them All
Every customer receives a personal meeting room with custom URL – your new base of operations.
The Most Secure Solution
With end-to-end encryption, strong passwords and top-rated reliability, no one is messing with your meeting.
Other Virtual eLearning Technology Tools (in no order of merit):
Saba Centra:
“Connect disparate communities of coworkers, partners, and customers. Leverage collective expertise and energy to cultivate ideas and solve problems in minutes. Build and foster vibrant, social and collaborative communities that truly work together.”
Brookwood Media Arts, Inc. “Brookwood” Disclaimer:
Brookwood is not promoting any of these companies or their technologies as the information contained in this article is only observations from our clients and prospects. Each of the descriptions contained within this document was taken from the company’s website.