Your members likely turn to your association for professional development opportunities, including professional training, certifications, and continuing education credits. In a 2019 ASAE Research Foundation study, “The Role of Associations in Workforce Development,” both managers and employees said they look to associations as leading sources of industry-specific training. However, the educational landscape is evolving and becoming increasingly competitive. 

To fully serve members’ educational needs, it may be time to evaluate your learning management system to determine whether it includes all the features and functionality you need to provide learning programs that stand out from the crowd. Here are a few scenarios that might indicate it’s time to upgrade your LMS:

• Your membership is growing, and you can’t meet the increasing demand for educational programming.
• You have members around the nation, and you want to provide an educational experience for every member, regardless of location.
• You’re looking to increase nondues revenue by offering a wider variety of educational opportunities to members.

A robust LMS allows associations to create and host courses, manage registration, track members’ progress toward learning goals, and keep a record of member credentials. But advancements in online learning have made the educational landscape increasingly crowded, and your association may need to ramp up its offerings to keep up.

Here are a few features that might be missing from your LMS:

A robust LMS allows associations to create and host courses, manage registration, track members’ progress toward learning goals, and keep a record of member credentials.

Built-in course authoring. This feature allows associations to create a unique curriculum, tweak successful courses, and adapt them to accommodate new topics. Look for an LMS that is highly customizable and has duplication features so you can easily replicate course content and materials.

Adaptive learning. In an LMS with adaptive-learning features, courses evolve as the user advances. The system relies on algorithms to deliver customized resources and learning matched to an individual’s needs. Typically, adaptive learning requires an entry assessment to gauge a learner’s baseline of abilities and proficiencies.

Social learning. Social learning happens through observation, interaction, and engagement with other learners. Frequently, this type of learning can take place online via communities or message boards or through other gamified elements. These experiences often help motivate learners by allowing them to interact, engage, and compete as they work together.

Internal and external credit tracking. Continuing education is a requirement in many professions, so your members might already have some CE credits and certifications earned elsewhere. A comprehensive LMS system can track both internal and external credits so that all learning is accounted for and up to date.

Configurations and integrations. A fully configurable LMS solution allows you to seamlessly brand an e-learning platform to your association. It also provides a cohesive view across many different member interactions.  Look for software integrations that connect data points between an LMS and other databases, such as your association management system. This type of integration can lead to higher member engagement and personalization in the future.