Editorial
The learning tech space has always been noisy, but in 2023, it’s noisier than ever. For learning and people leaders trying to decide which tech to buy, how to integrate it and what features to enable, it can feel like a total jungle.
Why is there so much noise, and why is it so hard to make good buying decisions?
We at RedThread Research just finished an extensive dive into the learning tech market, and we found three big reasons for the noise and confusion. Luckily, we also found some ways for learning and people leaders to navigate the chaos.
Reason 1: L&D Functions Are Supporting a Much Broader Definition of “Learning”
The concept of employee development has broadened significantly in recent years. Sure, the traditional types of learning, including classroom and e-learning, still exist, but data, technology and changing mindsets are making it possible to scale and track several other types of learning. Coaching, skills, opportunity marketplaces, collaborative learning, enablement and employee dashboards are gaining momentum in an already boisterous market.
This broader definition of learning means the learning tech landscape is also evolving, embracing a much more holistic approach that empowers employees in diverse ways. It’s refreshing to see a growing emphasis on skills, coaching and alignment with the organization’s goals.
For learning leaders, this means that choosing a learning management system (LMS) that will work for the next 10 years is no longer enough. L&D leaders are thinking about how to link more pieces of tech together to support this new definition of learning. In a study we did a few years ago, we asked 32 leaders to show us their learning tech ecosystems. They used, on average, 11 different learning systems — a number that’s probably increased in the last few years. These kinds of interconnected ecosystems are, obviously, much more challenging to put together and support over time than a single piece of tech.
Related Article: Corporate Learning Finally Has a Seat at the Table
Reason 2: There Are More Choices Of Vendors And Functionalities Than Ever Before
The sheer volume of learning tech solutions also makes buying decisions more difficult. We have identified 426 learning tech providers, which we know isn’t all of them. Since about 2010, the number of learning tech providers has surged, and the growth isn’t showing signs of slowing down.
It’s not just that there are more vendors. There are more functionalities, too. When we last looked at learning tech in 2021, we identified 32 unique functionalities offered by learning tech vendors. In 2023, that number jumped to 35 functionalities. Figure 1 shows all of them.
Complicating things even more, on average, vendors are each offering more functionalities within their solutions. Back in 2021, more than half (52%) of vendors offered one to five functionalities. By 2023, half (50%) offered 5-15 functionalities.
This incredible wealth of options — among vendors, functionalities, and vendors offering overlapping functionalities — makes choosing tech that’ll work for your organization all the more difficult.
Related Article: 3 Things You Need to Know About the Fast-Growing Skills Tech Market
Reason 3: Vendors Mostly Sound the Same
Maybe it’s because everyone uses the same SEO keywords, but providers’ marketing messages (and websites) look remarkably similar. This makes it more difficult for buyers to distinguish who does what and how.
And when we asked vendors, “What are the top three things that set this solution apart from your competitors?” their responses used strikingly similar language. They talked about skills (and used related trending terms like upskilling and reskilling). They mentioned their integrations, data and analytics capabilities, and they talked about how they affect employees’ overall learning experience.
It is often not until we’re talking to a vendor in a briefing that we understand their value propositions and what differentiates them from others. These conversations are critical because they provide opportunities to dig deep, ask lots of questions and allow vendors to clearly articulate what makes them different. We recommend learning leaders do the same.
To Make Better Choices, Ask Lots Of Questions
To help learning tech buyers make better decisions, learning tech providers need to describe exactly what they do better — and learning leaders need to get better at asking deeper questions.
Question 1: What exactly are we trying to enable, and how can tech get us there?
Leaders shouldn't simply buy an LMS or a learning experience platform (LXP); instead, they should carefully investigate how their employees are currently learning and want to learn, identify the tech functionalities that enable these ways of learning, and then look for technology providers that can help them do it.
Figure 2 offers a way to do this. RedThread has identified six learning behaviors—things that L&D functions should focus on enabling employees to do — as well as two “admin” behaviors that help L&D functions keep the train on the tracks. The 35 functionalities we mentioned earlier are then mapped to each of those key behaviors.
Thinking in terms of these behaviors and the functionalities that support them can bring clarity to decisions about what technologies might be best suited for a given situation or organization. It also gives L&D functions a greater understanding of what the tech does and where there may be overlap with other technologies they invest in.
Question 2: What resources are available?
It’s also helpful to dig into what resources you might need to implement a given piece of learning tech — not just in terms of money, but also in time, number of people involved, cognitive load on employees, and so on.
For example, while you may believe that a fully integrated ecosystem, including an LXP, LMS, coaching platform, separate skills platform and talent marketplace, would offer employees the best possible development, IT leaders may be unable to support it. Likewise, while an internal mentoring program would probably help employees connect with the organization and learn from one another, circumstances may preclude many people from dedicating so much time to it.
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Thinking through all the types of resources that might be needed, what’s available and where you may need to conserve resources can help learning leaders make choices that work for their organizations.
Question 3: Where can we simplify?
Throughout the relatively short history of learning tech, we’ve seen a pendulum pattern: Organizations go after a platform. Then they realize it doesn’t completely meet their needs. So they go after the best in breed and try to integrate different systems. Then they decide it’s too complicated. So they go back to a platform.
While integrations continue to get easier and more seamless, with all the noise, we’re seeing organizations swing a bit back toward the platform—or at least a narrowed-down set of technologies that they’ll support. It’s not a bad strategy, given the chaos right now. We’ve organized the tech landscape to be able to see what all providers do and where their functionalities may overlap. Look at your current ecosystem and see where you’re doubled up. It may be time to sunset some stuff. In the very wise words of Vidya Krishnan, the CLO at Ericsson, “Sometimes things just die. And that’s OK.”
The learning tech space has exploded. As organizations expand their definitions of development and as learning tech providers find ways to support that expanded definition, we think the L&D leader’s job will get more complicated. To succeed, they need to understand the market: who is playing, what they’re offering and most importantly, what questions they should be asking.
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