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We live and work in an alphabet soup of acronyms, and L&D is not escaping the trend. Most recently, there’s been heightened emphasis around LXP vs. LMS and which is best for companies. And while it’s an important conversation to have, it is just as vital to first understand what it all means.
In an attempt to engage and retain talent, organizations are increasingly seeking to cultivate dynamic learning environments. That’s where LXPs — learning experience platforms — come in.
But what happened to the LMS — or learning management systems — that we’ve just gotten used to?
Let’s take a dive into these learning technologies to better understand what they are and how they differ — and which one best resonates with your organizations needs.
What Is a Learning Management System (LMS)?
A learning management system is a digital platform that streamlines the delivery, tracking and management of workplace training programs. Commonly adopted by businesses to enhance workforce skills and knowledge, learning management systems allow L&D professionals to design, disseminate and oversee structured learning content while offering employees a centralized hub for accessing courses, feedback and progress.
What Is a Learning Experience Platform (LXP)?
A learning experience platform is a digital solution that supports and amplifies personalized, self-driven learning in the workplace.
LXPs curate a variety of learning and development resources — from blog posts to videos to podcasts — and use AI-driven recommendations based on individual learner preferences and needs.
By creating a dynamic and user-centric environment, learning experience platforms facilitate continuous skill acquisition, knowledge-sharing and collaborative learning.
Related Article: What Is a Learning Experience Platform: Key Features, Benefits and How to Choose
LXP vs. LMS: So, Whats the Difference?
When it comes to LMS vs. LXP, theyre both learning platforms designed to fit into the flow of work. But how do they differ?
"The greatest challenge to this question is the answer is and continues to change at a rapid pace," said Christopher Lind, VP and chief learning officer at ChenMed and host of Learning Tech Talks.
Here are some of the main differences:
| Learning Management System (LMS) | Learning Experience Platform (LXP) |
| Administrative-driven | User-driven |
| Structured learning environment | Personalized learning journeys |
| Offers social learning features | Typically lacks social features |
Administrative vs. User-Driven
According to Reworked’s LXP Market Guide, the LMS operates as a “learning gatekeeper,” one that tracks digital butts in seats.
While many LMS vendors are adding fun features such as gamification, learning paths and user reviews to make their platforms more engaging, their core function remains administrative.
LXPs, on the other hand, are user experience-driven. While L&D teams might populate the learning experience platform with a catalog of content, any employee with access to the platform can add user-generated content, review courses and collaborate with other users and content creators. “This is what makes the LXP a truly engaging, user-centric environment,” read the Reworked report.
Structured vs. Personalized Learning
Learning management systems are great for managing structured, formal training material and courses. They work well for onboarding, compliance training, product training and professional certification. However, users dont often have the opportunity to add content and wont receive personalized recommendations based on their usage of the learning platform.
A learning experience platform, however, excels at content creation and promotes user-generated materials. Using built-in recommendation engines powered by machine learning, LXPs offer relevant and personalized suggestions that cater to various types of learning, career goals and preferences. These learning platforms adapting to individual learner needs is key to continued employee engagement, according to Reworked.
Social Learning vs. Solitary Engagement
While today LMS and LXP have blurred lines, the traditional learning management system has long focused on structured training programs and lacked social features. "However," said Lind, "over time, LMSs began enhancing their products to compete, since consumer expectations rose and purchasing a separate LMS and LXP was out of reach for many organizations."
LXPs are considered social learning networks, prioritizing collaboration from the start. These networks are a place where employees voluntarily go to see whats new, share and read content reviews, and participate in leaderboard competitions. "This is how technology supports learning as part of the company culture," the Reworked guide states.
Ultimately, said Lind, "it can be extremely hard to distinguish between what was formerly considered a pure LXP and a hybrid LMS. Furthermore, since experience is a very broad term, the term LXP now encompasses a broad spectrum of technologies."
Related Article: Here’s Why Choosing Learning Tech Is so Hard, and What You Can Do
How to Choose Between an LMS and an LXP
Looking at the vast landscape of learning technologies available, you might wonder which is best for your organization. When it comes to choosing between an LMS vs LXP, Lind said many organizations still require the former for compliance and legal purposes.
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With that in mind, he said, two questions arise:
- Is your organization operating at a level of maturity that requires the advanced capability of a pure LXP?
- Or, would the benefits of an LXP justify the added resources and expense?
Consider Your Organization's Maturity
"When I think about maturity, it has to do with the way the L&D operates more than the size of the function or the organization," explained Lind. The lowest level of L&D is order taking, he said — that is, gathering information from the business and packing it into the form factor requested, maybe upgrading it slightly. And at the highest end of the spectrum is a strategic people problem-solving function.
"If an L&D function is still operating more heavily on the order-taking end of the spectrum," said Lind, "they’ll never see the full benefit from the LXP since a true LXP is strategically and proactively connecting the dots between business gaps and the skills of the employees that they need to close the gap." And thats just not possible, he added, when youre preoccupied with taking and filling orders.
Look at Available Integrations
One important yet overlooked factor to consider when evaluating any technology is the maturity of its integrations, said Lind. While the need has existed for a while, he explained, theres greater recognition by organizations that learning technologies do not hold the position of "front door" in the employee experience.
"Instead, its the plumbing and electric that should meet employees where they are and feed them with the development and support they need in the systems theyre actively using," he said. "This is still a significant opportunity area since many platforms invested heavily in developing products designed to be the destination when they largely belong behind the drywall.”
Decide if the Investment Is Necessary
Not all organizations will need the extra functionality that comes with an LXP.
Many hybrid LMS have very similar features and functionality to LXPs, said Lind — meaning you might not need to invest in a new tool. "Furthermore," he said, "given LXP is becoming a catch-all term for new generations of LXPs, it is possible some organizations could leapfrog both a traditional LMS and LXP by having their needs better met by an LXP 2.0."
Related Article: 5 L&D Technology Trends to Keep an Eye On
Choosing Continuous Learning Experiences
Navigating the nuances between a learning management system (LMS) and learning experience platform (LXP) requires a keen understanding of an organizations learning needs and culture.
When deciding on the best learning platform or tool, organizations need to assess their maturity, strategic goals and available resources before making a decision. The best platform will seamlessly blend with the organizations goals and values, ensuring a continuous learning journey and worker adaptability.
