Best Practices for Transitioning to a New LMS

The number one thing I would recommend is getting influencers onboard as early as possible.  The influencers should be drawn from every group that needs something from the LMS. Try to get them into the product selection phase starting with surveys, focus groups, etc.  If you can’t do that, then bring them in to give them a voice in configuration.  The earlier you can involve them, the easier it will be to get adoption. Think of every group that could torpedo the new system and get their input and genuine buy-in.

It’s also important that they do not see themselves as a rubber stamps (or even scapegoats) for decisions that have already been made, so their involvement and input needs to be genuine and authentic. If they really don’t have a say over certain aspects, then define those limitations right up front so that they know how much influence they actually have.  I’m sure some of us have been put in positions where this wasn’t the case and have the scars to prove it.

While you will naturally need to “sell” the system internally, be very careful not to oversell it. I’ve been through multiple rollouts where the LMS was being sold as a panacea to all the things people didn’t like about their old system. That is the best way to set yourself up for failure. At the same time, there’s a fine art of learning to how to couch a “no” in positive terms while being truthful. Be honest about the limitations of your new system, but immediately follow up with your problem-solver hat on for how we might be able to do something similar by (for instance) leveraging the API to get a particular result.

(LMS Heresy warning) Often the focus by everyone is going to be on the LMS itself, which is usually not what matters most to the learner. Learners are far more interested in the content and the aesthetics, while admins tend to focus on feature/function stuff that makes their lives easier in terms of tracking and reporting. You will benefit by having separate teams focused on technical setup and content so that you can make the right first impression.

If possible, phased rollouts are preferable to cut-overs. Roll out the system first to a low-risk test group that has a high likelihood of success. Give those users an easy way to provide feedback so that you can spot the issues that will need to be addressed before making a larger rollout. You’ll need to start your rollout with a skeleton set of QRGs, job aids, user guides, Loom videos, and build out your FAQ. At first you’re guessing what people will need to know, but you’ll quickly find that things you thought were obvious weren’t. Understand you’ll also be identifying some of your squeaky wheels who need to be won over for the next phase.

Historical records are probably one of the most painful parts of rollouts.  I’ve done four major rollouts of new systems (and several minor ones), and the issues usually come up here. Every LMS handles these differently, and some in surprising ways. Not every LMS lets you have multiple completion records for the same course. The systems vary considerably in what they call things, how much SCORM information can be reported out of the old system, and imported, etc. Do not rely on what a salesperson tells you, but test everything before you promise a particular outcome.  (You *did* get a test/sandbox system in your contract, right?)  You may be best served by getting a database dump of all the old completions and starting fresh in the new system.  Whatever you decide, you need to communicate those expectations as positively yet honestly as you can.

Measuring adoption may be difficult. One way is by surveys. You may find that management will have a different perception than non-management learners (both are important in different ways). Hopefully you’ve been communicating with your management and general user population (perhaps through your influencer group) all along, and should have a pretty good idea of how things are going, and the surveys will not surprise you. Expect that your real adoption success isn’t going to be measured by how many pieces of new content you load, or even how long users spend in courses. Your most meaningful adoption numbers are a function of what your original goals were in selecting a new system.  If you were trying to replace X hours of ILT with eLearning, how well were you able to do that?  If you were trying to increase sales of courses, were you able to do that?  If you were trying to meet a compliance objective, how well did you accomplish that?  If you’re not hitting those goals, think about what the roadblocks are and how to best overcome those.