The Top Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems (2024 Update)

The Top Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems (2024 Update)
eLearning Industry.com
Summary: Although you may not be able to tell the differences between a standard and an extended enterprise LMS, you definitely know who your external partners are, and the type of online training you would like to provide to them. In this article, you'll encounter a list of the top extended enterprise Learning Management Systems, as well as a list of 8 questions that will guide you through the selection process so you can determine the extended enterprise LMS that is right for you, evaluate your options, and invest wisely. Let's start off with what an extended enterprise LMS really is and dig into its benefits.

Top-Notch Extended Enterprise LMS Software For Superb Training Delivery

Are you looking for a smart eLearning solution to help train your extended enterprise? Interconnection plays a big part in today's market. Most companies have built up an extended network of customers, vendors, suppliers, investors, external partners, and local communities. If this also applies to you, you already know that training this extended enterprise network is hard. However, your company's products, services, and values need to evolve in today's competitive environment. In the years to come, extended enterprise online training is expected to become a common practice. And that stands for all companies that want to reinforce their brand image. After all, it gives a competitive advantage to pioneer organizations that enter this field.

To make your extended enterprise LMS software selection process easier, eLearning Industry took matters in its own hands. In fact, we decided to determine the best LMS software on this topic. The procedure was not simple. Our team of experts had to do a lot of research and testing. Now that we did all the work, you can get a better picture of which top-notch solutions are. Most importantly, you can find the best fit for your organization.

In the following list, we've gathered the top LMS choices for extended enterprise training. For other use cases, you can check out our full LMS directory.

The Best Extended Enterprise LMS Vendors

The Top Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems (2024 Update)

If your company is listed among the Top Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems, feel free to add this badge to your website!

1. Docebo
4.6/5 (134 reviews)
Behind Every Happy Customer, Partner, And Team Member Is A Great LMS

Docebo Extended Enterprise enables learning outside the four walls of your organization, extending its reach to partners, customers, and members.

Check out trusted LMS user reviews on eLearning Industry or simply start your Docebo free trial today!

Highlights

  • Keep Your Partners Engaged And Aligned With Your Brand
  • Delegate Administration While Controlling Content
  • Open New Revenue Streams
  • Set Up Multiple Custom Domains

By opting for Docebo you can:

  • Keep your partners engaged, aligned with your brand, and current with your products and services.
  • Boost your customers' adoption and renewal of your product.
  • Increase the value of your membership programs by providing continuous learning opportunities and certification programs.

Highlights

  • Keep Your Partners Engaged And Aligned With Your Brand

Train and engage partners with AI-powered learning in a way that makes their learning activities successful, increases their adoption of your products, and improves the value of your membership programs by providing continuous learning opportunities and certification programs.

  • Delegate Administration While Controlling Content

Assign administrative rights to customers and partners so they can manage tasks (adding, removing users, assigning courses) while maintaining control over knowledge assets. AI automatically tags your content to reduce admin times and categorization, while deep global search makes it easy for learners to uncover content that's of value to them.

  • Open New Revenue Streams

Sell learning content to generate new revenue, while producing deeper connections with your partners and reducing customer churn.

  • Set Up Multiple Custom Domains

Docebo allows you to set up multiple custom domains. Docebo's Extended Enterprise functionality allows you to rebrand your platform to show customized branding elements for each domain, as well as manage multiple authentication mechanisms and groups of administrators for multiple domains.

Plans And Pricing

  • Deploy your extended enterprise training programs faster and start producing results sooner
    Automate, centralize, and organize external learning activities for multiple audiences in a single learning system.
  • Propel partner and customer commitment
    Tailor training for partner and customer channels through uniquely branded, personalized portals for each audience within a single, centralized platform.
  • Grow as you go
    Scale as your extended enterprise training requirements evolve while strengthening your SaaS ecosystem by integrating your learning platform with existing business systems.
An Award-Winning LMS To Help You Provide Training Outside Your Organization

Adobe Learning Manager can manage end-to-end training effectively across employees, customers, and partners. With Adobe Learning Manager you can upgrade the skills and drive the effectiveness of your partner organizations by extending your learning programs to your external ecosystem.

Check Adobe Learning Manager reviews in eLearning Industry's directory!

Experience extended enterprise capabilities in Adobe Learning Manager through this free 30-day trial.

Highlights

  • Easy Setup Of Learning Structure
  • User Group Reporting
  • Multi-Tenancy
  • Migrating From Your Old LMS
  • Adobe Connect Integration
  • My Team View

Provide your departments, divisions, and resellers autonomy with their own instance of a customizable LMS, while having a bird's eye view of learning initiatives across the groups. Give learners access to courses developed in-house, available off-the-shelf in Adobe Learning Manager, or those offered by other third-party content providers.

Highlights

Here are the salient features of Adobe Adobe Learning Manager:

  • Easy Setup Of Learning Structure

Reuse modules across courses to create structured learning paths. Combine virtual or live classrooms and eLearning courses into learning programs and certifications.

  • User Group Reporting

Create customized user groups to get different views of learning data based on specified attributes. Track performance of different user groups, such as departments, external partners, and roles, and compare against other user groups or their own learning objectives.

  • Multi-Tenancy

Provide your departments, divisions, or clients with their own LMS instance, which they can customize, brand, administer and manage while sharing seats, catalogs, and reports.

  • Migrating From Your Old LMS

Use a step-by-step wizard to migrate your existing LMS users, content, and learning data to Adobe Learning Manager. Continuous iterations of data migration ensure zero downtime for your learners.

  • Adobe Connect Integration

Integrate with Adobe Connect Virtual Classrooms. Create and schedule sessions, launch your session with a single click, automatically track attendance, completion, and time spent, and view post-session recordings all from within Adobe Learning Manager.

  • My Team View

With Adobe Learning Manager, all people managers get access to a consolidated summary of their direct and indirect teams' training progress and performance. Get insights into your organization's skills summary and its adherence to compliance training. Easily identify team members who are likely to miss deadlines and take proactive action to intervene.

Plans And Pricing

Adobe Learning Manager is ideal for extended enterprises because of its flexible purchasing plans.

  • Registered user pricing
    With this licensing model, you sign up for a fixed number of registered learners within your account. These are licenses assigned to individuals, and they have continuous access to the system. This model is recommended for fixed learner scenarios.
  • Monthly active user pricing
    Adobe Learning Manager also offers active user pricing for organizations that have a floating audience and that do not need continuous access to the system.

To discuss registered user or active user pricing, please contact Adobe's sales team with your requirements. 

Turn Your In-House Experts Into Champions For Customer And Partner Growth

360Learning's comprehensive learning platform enables companies to upskill from within by turning their experts into champions for employee, customer, and partner growth.

Book your demo to discover how you can drive adoption and grow your business.

Make sure to explore 360Learning reviews in our directory!

Highlights

  • Private Groups
  • Customization
  • User Management

Highlights

  • Private Groups

Easily segment your customers into relevant groups or sub-groups equipped with flexible confidentiality settings to ensure privacy.

  • Customization

Personalize your customers' learning journey with private groups that have tailored elements with your logo, custom banner images, welcome messages, and a custom URL.

  • User Management

Admins can assign user admins to invite, delete and manage users within a group, without additional admin rights. Import users one by one, by CSV import, or let learners self-register.

Plans And Pricing

With 360Learning's learning platform, launch custom, private academies for your customers and partners fast. Streamlined user management and flexible provisioning save admin time. With 360Learning's end-to-end eCommerce connector, you can generate revenue from your training.

4.7/5 (250 reviews)
Unlock Your Network's Real Potential, Reach Every Learner With TalentLMS

Take pride in an ecosystem that works with and for you. Connect partners, associates, and customers with training and bring everyone to a uniform standard. Meet the LMS 70K+ teams trust to scale their training.

Invest in your extended enterprise and create a cohesive network of learners. Start free today!

Visit eLearning Industry's directory for recent TalentLMS reviews.

Highlights

  • Regulate Your Training
  • Reflect Your Hierarchy
  • Protect Brand Integrity

Highlights

  • Regulate Your Training

Take charge of training delivery. Create, assign, and monitor courses from the convenience of one platform and never lose sight of your learners' goals.

  • Reflect Your Hierarchy

Create subportals and target your audiences separately. Divide learners into isolated branches so they can only access relevant, personalized content.

  • Protect Brand Integrity

Your training is an extension of your brand. Ensure an accurate portrayal by tailoring your portal to match your image with custom homepages, themes, and way more.

Plans And Pricing

Skip the time-limited trials of other solutions. Test TalentLMS forever, for free. No credit card needed. Or if you want a guided tour, just request a demo and see how the platform will become your new favorite LMS.

Expand Your Training Horizons With LearnUpon's Extended Enterprise LMS

LearnUpon's extended enterprise learning solution empowers your business to extend its reach to partners, members, and customers—all through one centralized solution.

Ready to get started with LearnUpon? A member of their team would be happy to introduce you to their extended enterprise LMS.

Don't forget to check out reviews for LearnUpon LMS in eLearning Industry's directory.

Highlights 

  • Ramp Up Your Training
  • Avoid The Heavy Lift (And Cost) Of Managing Multiple Solutions
  • Extended Flexibility And Automation

Highlights

  • Ramp Up Your Training

Managing and delivering learning online to thousands of people in your business ecosystem in a streamlined, automated way is easier than ever.

  • Avoid The Heavy Lift (And Cost) Of Managing Multiple Solutions

With their extended enterprise portals, LearnUpon is tailor-made for your teams to use together. Automate your work, share data, and unlock seamless user access by integrating LearnUpon with your most used apps in your SaaS ecosystem.

  • Extended Flexibility And Automation

From branding to features and users to course content, have the flexibility to make an environment that's customized for each of your audiences.

Plans And Pricing

Avoid managing multiple solutions; bring all your learning together in one solution while still giving each audience their own space to learn. Automate actions across your SaaS ecosystem with LearnUpon's powerful integrations with customer and partner tools. For pricing options, visit their website.

Deliver Personalized Learning With A Platform Powered By Data

Smarter learning. Better performance. Their innovative AI learning platforms and skills solutions combine integrated technology and adaptive content to produce actionable insight into every learner's performance. Learning Pool's platform is one of the most feature-rich open-source solutions on the market, fully hosted and supported to deliver outstanding learning, easy compliance, and clear reporting.

Optimize employee performance with Learning Pool's data‑driven workplace learning technologies.

Explore Learning Pool Platform reviews in our niche directory.

Highlights

  • Effective Training To Future-Proof Your Business
  • Change How Your Company Performs
  • Maximize The Potential Of Your People

Highlights

  • Effective Training To Future-Proof Your Business

Do you want your team to be ready to take on the challenges of today and tomorrow? This platform helps you align learning to individual needs and business objectives. Time to start making your workplace learning experiences smarter!

  • Change How Your Company Performs

With a learning platform like this, you can deliver personalized experiences at scale. From applying insights into who a learner is and what they know to identifying what they need to learn in real time, they've got you covered. Leverage their AI-powered skills builder for greater impact. Or dive into smart data visualizations and predictive AI in the analytics. 

  • Maximize The Potential Of Your People

An excellent tool for understanding the skills of your people. This platform empowers you to deliver workplace learning at the point of need. Plus, you'll create opportunities for future growth and development within your organization. Automation and AI are your keys to success. Talk about building upward mobility! 

Plans And Pricing

Their award-winning platform has technical flexibility, with multiple language support for your global reach. Also, you get a customizable look and feel. Tailored learning plans and programs cover everything from initial onboarding to leadership training. You'll find blended learning programs all readily accessible across platforms, devices, and locations. Visit their website to explore pricing options.

Deliver Goal-Driven Training To All Stakeholders With iSpring Learn LMS

iSpring Solutions is an award-winning eLearning software provider. For 23 years, iSpring has been at the forefront of the industry, designing eLearning tools to help people and businesses succeed through top-quality training.

Visit the official iSpring Solutions website to discover all the features of iSpring Learn and try the LMS for free. Learn more!

Care to see what other users have to say? Explore iSpring Learn reviews in our directory.

Highlights

  • Flexible Content Delivery
  • Scalability
  • Integrations

Highlights

  • Flexible Content Delivery

Assign relevant content to stakeholders, from compliance and safety training to customer and partner training. Users can learn at their own pace via the native mobile app.

  • Scalability

Train an unlimited number of employees and stakeholders and control user roles effectively based on your organization's structure. Choose the best pricing plan for your budget.

  • Integrations

Streamline your training and business processes with its productivity-boosting integrations with CRMs, HR systems, eCommerce platforms, and project management systems.

Plans And Pricing

iSpring Learn offers a flexible pricing system for extended enterprises. You can choose your pricing plan based on the number of users and added features, such as custom integrations. iSpring Learn LMS starts at $2.55 per user per month, billed annually.

The Rockstar Learning Platform Easily Scales To Meet Your Organization's Needs

Unlock your people's talent with ELB Learning. They offer a comprehensive product suite and services to achieve training goals, including an LMS with easy-to-use admin tools for large enterprises.

Sign up for a complimentary account or arrange a demonstration by visiting elblearning.com.

If you want to see what other users think, visit our directory to read Rockstar Learning Platform reviews.

Highlight

  • Microlearning Module
  • Customization By Region/Group
  • Easy Management

Highlights

  • Microlearning Module

Create microlearning content within the learning platform with their drag-and-drop microlearning module builder. It's easy for SMEs, admins, and learners to share knowledge.

  • Customization By Region/Group

Tailor and deploy training materials for diverse user groups, ensuring adherence to specific regional regulations and requirements.

  • Easy Management

Distribute content seamlessly across desktops, tablets, and mobiles. Automate enrollment, schedule recurring training for compliance, certification, and beyond. Enjoy the convenience of single sign-on integration.

Plans And Pricing

The Rockstar Learning Platform adapts to organizations of any size, catering to large enterprises with offices worldwide. Pricing is tailored to learner and admin numbers, with options for upgrades, including authoring tools, courseware, and data migration.

Extend Learning And Value To Your Ecosystem With Cornerstone Extended Enterprise

Cornerstone Learning enables connection and confidence. They do so by delivering branded customer, partner, and professional training sites to their customers. This is an engaging solution with personalized content and certifications. Plus, you get the ability to monetize training with global eCommerce! Do you want to extend value to your customers, partners, and member network with one of the most configurable and consumer-grade training sites?

Request a demo today.

For Cornerstone Learning reviews, make sure to visit our directory.

Highlights

  • Extend Value To Customers And Partners
  • Multiple Learning Sites
  • Generate Revenue

Highlights

  • Extend Value To Customers And Partners

Engage and retain customers with valuable ongoing training and certify partners on what they need to remain compliant and successful.

  • Multiple Learning Sites

Launch and manage unlimited learning portals to support multiple audiences, brands, and geos.

  • Generate Revenue

Monetize training with consumer-grade eCommerce experiences. Packed up with dynamic catalogs, advanced search, campaigns, flexible subscriptions, pricing, and secure payment options, it's an ideal solution.

Plans And Pricing

Cornerstone knows every business has multiple audiences that contribute to its success, and each one needs tailored learning. With Cornerstone's Extended Enterprise Learning, organizations can inform, educate, and engage their external communities, all from one place.

Powering The Business Of Learning For Customers, Partners, And Professionals

Thought Industries is one of the leading enterprise learning platforms for customer, partner, and professional training. Partner with Ti to drive higher revenue and retention, product adoption, and scale.

Schedule a demo to discover how Thought Industries can help you differentiate and scale your learning business.

For more info, please go through the submitted Thought Industries reviews in our directory. 

Highlights

  • A Platform That's Powerful, Not Complicated
  • Build And Deliver Exceptional Learning Experiences
  • Improve Business Outcomes With A Technology That Grows With You

Highlights

  • A Platform That's Powerful, Not Complicated

One system that delivers the tools you need to run and scale a profitable learning business.

  • Build And Deliver Exceptional Learning Experiences

Build modern learning experiences that engage customers and represent your brand. Deliver the right learning to the right learner in their moment of need.

  • Improve Business Outcomes With A Technology That Grows With You

Measure your impact on KPIs at the heart of your business. Use Thought Industries' expertise to cut your learning curve. Turn on what you need, when you're ready for it. Scale globally and locally.

Plans And Pricing

Ti is an excellent choice if you want to save money since there's no need for third-party content authoring tools! Easy integrations and design solutions allow you to start customizing your tech stack. Best of all? There are no hidden development fees either. A tool built for scale. Manage users for complex business cases and set a foundation for expansion at ease.


Discover The Ideal Extended Enterprise LMS Solution For Your Needs
Save time and money. Compare top LMS tools by features, reviews, and rating!

What Were The Criteria That Determined Which Companies Made The List?

Global recognized LMS experts, including C. Pappas and our editorial team, did a thorough review of each vendor's eligibility and relevant published content (articles, eBooks, webinars). Our committee ranked the best Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems based on the following 9 criteria:

  • Customer support
  • Customer experience
  • Software features
  • Software innovation
  • Customer reviews
  • Economic growth potential
  • Company's customer retention
  • Employee turnover
  • Company's social responsibility

After checking who made our top LMS list, make sure to delve into our insights on which steps you need to take to find your ideal Extended Enterprise LMS solution.

Where You Need To Focus Before Choosing An Enterprise LMS

Make sure to check the compatibility between your extended enterprise LMS and the online training resources you already own. There are several extended enterprise LMS options that support certain file formats. If you do good research, you will be able to integrate existing data easily. Think carefully about which pricing plan would work best for your SMB or startup. You might choose an LMS vendor that charges by the user. Or you might opt for a flat fee to cover your entire team. Request cost breakdowns, and ask for extra information. It will help to see if there might be any extra fees for upgrades later on.

Test-driving the top 3 to 6 LMS vendors that meet your needs is important to make the right choice. So, it is imperative that you find the time to meet up with a vendor's sales team for an LMS demo or even start your LMS free trial. Without further ado, let's present you with the 10 Best Extended Enterprise LMS Vendors!

Next Steps After Reading Our Top Extended Enterprise LMS List

Want a quick way to qualify LMS vendors in order to find the ones that best match your needs? Follow 5 easy steps to get free LMS consulting from the Top 5 LMS Vendors that qualify for your business case.

Want to learn more about the possibilities of an extended enterprise LMS? Download our eBook External Training LMS Selection Guide.  You will discover everything you need to know about how to launch a successful external partner online training program. We'll also share tips on how to find the perfect extended enterprise LMS for your organization; regardless of your size or online training budget. Plus, you'll get insider secrets to choosing the right pricing model and deployment options. Keep reading to find out how to maximize the full potential of an extended enterprise LMS.

Find Your Ideal LMS Fast And Easy
Save time and money. Follow 5 simple steps and find out which LMS vendors match your training needs!

Benefits Of Extended Enterprise LMS Software

An extended enterprise might include your customers, suppliers, business partners, salesforce or freelancers in various fields. An LMS focused on such organizations can surely assist your business in several ways; including all these branches. When researching an extended enterprise, you might stumble upon some misconceptions. For example, some eLearning professionals consider it costly or even impersonal.

However, this is not the case when you opt for external partner success. If you want to be on top of the competition, as a company, you need to reach out. And, of course, educate your extended network efficiently. Your business can use an LMS to deliver business objectives. For example, you can design online certification programs and provide support resources. Also, you can use analytics to track and evaluate your training goals. As a result, you can improve customer service, or even reduce compliance risks.

When it comes to customer-centric organizations, extended enterprise LMS software is the future. More and more businesses choose to dedicate a great part of their training resources to educate their customers.

Extended Enterprise LMS Software Are Ideal If You Need Customization

Any business looking to create customized learning experiences across its workforce should opt for extended enterprise LMS software. As a corporation, you need to provide engaging learning experiences to customers, partners, and all your channel networks. The same goes for your organization's supply and distribution network.

Choosing an extended enterprise LMS will solve several issues that your L&D team faces when trying to create customizable training courses. Who wouldn't want to deliver an engaging compliance training that has a positive effect on your whole value chain? An extended enterprise LMS is your go-to tool. Especially if you need to obtain consistent compliance reporting. No matter where the training is taking place. You see, an LMS for extended enterprises helps distribute training courses to participants all over the world. And, it takes into consideration the need for localization.

Customization is key to the design and implementation of the right content for each and every department of your well-structured business. An extended enterprise LMS software will make it easier to deliver quality training across all channels of your extended network. In addition, such a tool will assist you not only in tracking compliance but also in checking that those operating procedures run smoothly.

That's exactly why we compiled this list of the Best Extended Enterprise Learning Management Systems. After reading this, you can find out which one best matches your needs. Even if you need extreme customization, there are many solutions. Ready to increase the potential of your extended enterprise network?

How Extended Enterprise LMS Software Improves Customer Experience

Using the right LMS for your business network will make things even easier when it comes to Customer Experience. By choosing the ideal LMS solution for your business, you can reach your entire network. Using a tailored online training that aligns with your goals will also help to show your brand value. You can create a better Customer Experience by giving customers the chance to learn through your organization.

Extended enterprise LMS software can assist you in creating a better experience by offering great service, in addition to establishing a clear brand connection. In this way, you'll manage to create a positive outcome, where customers will have the opportunity to share their views within their networks. In case you have a complex product that demands intensive training, you can use an extended enterprise LMS to create your customer training. By taking such a step, you can not only save money but also improve the Customer Experience.

An LMS Ideal For Product Knowledge And Customer Training

Getting deeper into product knowledge will help customers digest the appropriate information. Creating a customer training experience, on a personal level, will keep your consumers engaged. Apart from improving your product usability, you also improve your customer service. This will certainly increase brand loyalty as well.

Don't forget that by providing customer training with an LMS, you are offering a better ROI on your products. By choosing an extended enterprise LMS software, you can deliver training anytime, anywhere. Last but not least, this approach empowers consumers. It might also result in the creation of an active online support community. Increased customer loyalty is the key to getting better feedback. More importantly, this will help keep your customers happy.

Retaining Top Talent In Your Extended Network

All is well when creating training programs for your in-house staff; but, what happens to your extended network superstars? Obviously, employees who work in your main headquarters can get all the training resources they need. Now you need to do something about your extended enterprise assets as well.

In order to retain and help your external workforce to advance, you need to assist them in getting the same benefits. Whether it is a remote sales team or franchise, an extended enterprise LMS can help you retain top external talent. Extended enterprise LMS software might be the solution you are looking for. Especially if your organization needs to train multiple audiences under one Learning Management System. What's great about extended enterprise systems is the fact that users can create profiles within defined portals. This makes it easier for employees to take any courses they have selected.

Creating Unique Learner Portals

Most LMSs use a setup based on hierarchy regarding their portals. You can create sub-portals from your parent portal, according to your employee training plan. Such a setup is also helpful when delegating the management of each sub-portal. This makes it easier to move from one level to the other.

The way you organize and design your portals is up to you. You could use a top-level portal to train your in-house employees. Anything that has to do with compliance training, employee onboarding, etc. can be included here. Then, you can use a sub-portal to train learners who are part of your extended enterprise.

Partner training can be handled perfectly with extended enterprise LMS software. From contractors to resellers, dealers or any other type of partner, you can use such a tool to effectively train each person. There is no better way to strengthen and grow your business than by training your extended workforce.

SMBs And Startups Can Benefit From Extended Enterprise LMS Software

An extended enterprise LMS might be the ideal tool to structure your online training even if you don't own a large organization. Such a solution will help you share online training resources with your external sales teams, according to requirements. There are certain criteria to help you choose the ideal extended enterprise LMS for your small- to medium-sized organization.

The two basic factors you need to pay attention to are:

  1. Finding an extended enterprise LMS that meets your price range while managing to deliver desired results
  2. Figuring out ways to measure the performance of an extended enterprise LMS software in the most accurate way

Obviously, you'll need to spend some quality time researching LMS vendors. The key is to determine which LMS features will align with your training analysis. You'll also want to unravel which pain points you can solve by making the right LMS decision. In order to get the right extended enterprise LMS fit for your SMB or startup, you need to do your homework. You have to streamline the overall process in order to make your decision in the least time-consuming way possible.

First of all, you have to know your limits. Yes, you got that right. The budget is the main issue here. You have to decide how much you are going to spend on your extended enterprise LMS software. Make sure to check online resources and see how you can cut your online training costs. The LMS platform that you choose should address your goals and business needs. Make sure you take note of all the advantages and downsides of the platform you're going to invest in. LMS vendors who focus on extended enterprise offer unique services regarding customer support. So, choose your LMS wisely.

How To Get The Most Out Of Your Extended Enterprise LMS: 8 Questions To Ask

Obviously, all these extended enterprise LMS insights will take time to digest. Until you make your decision on which extended enterprise LMS can solve your L&D issues, I encourage you to question several aspects. On the quest to finding the ideal LMS software for your workforce, you'll need to be knowledgeable and clear on what you want to achieve with such a tool.

Here is a list of 8 crucial questions to ask before you decide to proceed with extended enterprise online training and with your search for the most suitable extended enterprise LMS for your organization.

1. What Are The Benefits Of Training My Extended Enterprise Network?

You can only have minor expectations from an external network unless you establish a crystal clear relationship between you and them. Extended enterprise online training helps you get on solid ground with your company and your external partners by clarifying goals and expectations and giving both parties the opportunity to get to know each other. This way, you'll build a relationship of loyalty and trust. This can only be achieved in open communication settings, where your external partners are aware of the core values and procedures followed within your organization so that both external partners and customers can avoid false expectations.

In addition, through extended enterprise online training, your organization gets measurable indications of the actual behavior and performance of external partners. Such information helps them make plans and predictions for the future, enabling them to adjust their marketing and communication strategy for each group accordingly.

2. Is Extended Enterprise Online Training Affordable?

Extended enterprise online training isn't free. It's an investment and must be viewed as such, as there are extended enterprise Learning Management Systems that may seem somewhat expensive. However, when you are training external partners and customers, there is always revenue to be had. There are two basic reasons for this: (1) synergy across the network is achieved more easily and (2) your brand awareness spreads widely, giving added value to your products and having a positive effect on your ROI.

3. How Much Customization Does An Extended Enterprise LMS Need?

Knowledge attained from an extended enterprise online training program must always be connected with your brand's name. Your colors, slogans, logo, and company name should be all over the extended enterprise LMS you use. Remember, there is a dual purpose for this: First, to provide knowledge and skills to your external partners and customers. Second, to make them partakers of your corporate identity. Therefore, an extended enterprise LMS software that can be easily customized is always a must.

4. Should The LMS Vendor Provide Security And Support Services?

Given that an extended enterprise LMS is, by default, supposed to grant access to multiple users from all around the globe, security is of utmost importance. Due to the very nature of extended enterprise Learning Management Systems, it is necessary that the LMS vendor is able to guarantee "security valves" and support services that will provide on-the-spot help as soon as possible. If not, this may put at risk the credibility of your extended enterprise online training program, creating negative implications for your brand.

It is always a good idea to test the support services offered by the LMS vendor during the LMS trial period. Come up with inquiries matching the training requirements of your organization and make sure that the services offered are those you need. Last but not least, try to foresee not only potential requirements of your remote learners, such as offline access, localization issues, etc., but also the limitations your remote learners are likely to face, such as authentication issues, secure access, etc.

5. What Type Of Reporting Should I Expect From Extended Enterprise LMS Software?

LMS reports are a must-have when attempting to train such a diverse group of remote learners. They offer insight as to whether your online training course and your external partners are heading in the right direction, and they provide information about what your audience has learned from the extended enterprise online training. In the case that faults are detected, you will have sufficient feedback to analyze what went wrong and be able to take corrective actions. Some indicative LMS reports your extended enterprise LMS may provide range from simple LMS reports, such as learner participation, performance scores, course completion, and user satisfaction rates to more advanced ones, such as certification tracking.

6. Do I Need To Have IT And Programming Knowledge To Successfully Implement An Extensive Enterprise LMS?

Over the past years, Learning Management Systems have come a long way, offering features that people with little or no programming knowledge at all can manage. Given the increasing demand for extended enterprise Learning Management Systems, LMS vendors have realized that most companies lack specialized personnel to successfully implement an extended enterprise LMS platform. Therefore, they identified the need to not only facilitate the implementation process for their clients but also to provide IT staff and online support services for every step of the implementation process. Depending on their pricing policy, this service may be charged for an extra fee or may be included in the package.

7. How Do I Achieve Learner Engagement With An Extended Enterprise LMS?

Smart design and witty branding are essential to start with. This is why you must search for an extended enterprise LMS that is easily customizable, user-friendly, and device-responsive. Your external partners should be able to familiarize themselves with the learning environment and engage with your online training content without any technical obstacles in their way.

8. Do I Need An Extended Enterprise LMS With eCommerce Features?

This depends on whether you plan to offer extended enterprise online training for free or for a fee. Think about who your target audience is and if there is a chance that the online training content you include could be of interest to wider audiences. Unless you have decided to offer extended enterprise online training only to your external partners for free, you should select an extended enterprise LMS with eCommerce features, such as a shopping cart, an online payment gateway for credit card payments, etc.

eBook Release: External Training 101: Everything You Need To Know BEFORE Buying Your Next Extended Enterprise LMS
eBook Release
External Training 101: Everything You Need To Know BEFORE Buying Your Next Extended Enterprise LMS
Learn how external partner training can improve your profit margins and discover how to find the perfect extended enterprise LMS platform and create a more accurate budget.

The List Of Lists In Retrospect

All in all, we hope you have enjoyed this ride with us. Please let us know your thoughts about those who have made this list. All featured vendors continue to strive to be an industry leader in the eLearning field. While gathering information to make a list is valuable, it is also highly important for us to hear from our users.

Feel free to leave a review regarding the above-mentioned participants.

Originally published on June 5, 2018