Putting a fresh coat of paint on something can transform the look of it. But underneath it is still the same thing. As L&D professionals approach the UK’s biggest learning technology event and marketplace, Learning Technologies 2019, it might be worth remembering that.
The words ‘learning experience platform’ represent that fresh coat of paint. And as a concept, it sounds good and far more marketable than incumbent learning technologies, such as learning management systems. Experience platform sounds a lot more exciting than that.
Exciting as it sounds, it pays to understand what ‘learning experience platform’ means when you talk to vendors so that you are in the know from the outset. You might get lucky and find that you are talking to someone who has built a platform from the ground up that does enable you to create learning experiences (whatever they are). Or you might find that you are talking to someone who is offering little more than a learning management system. You need to know the difference yourself.
If you are wondering what a learning experience platform is, then Josh Bersin describes its attributes here. How many of these attributes are already available in learning management systems? Quite a few.
Rather than being wowed by a name, I’d consider the business problems you are trying to overcome, then find tech that can help. Clarity on that will ensure you to find the right vendors, whatever they call their technology.
