5 LMS software solutions that help organizations improve skills gaps 

Despite giving employees L&D opportunities, HR pros find skills gaps within their company and it’s not technical skills as you would think. Instead, they find knowledge gaps in two main areas:  management/leadership development (79%) and soft skills (72%), according to our HRMorning survey, and they’re looking for ways to overcome those gaps. 

One tool HR pros are using to close the gaps: Learning management systems (LMS) software. 

How can LMS software help HR pros overcome skills gaps? 

HR pros know that providing professional development opportunities is crucial in retaining talent. In fact, according to our survey, companies offer various learning and development (L&D) initiatives from live virtual training (64%) to in-person conferences (55%) to third-party self-paced learning courses (63%). They’ve also tracked the success of those efforts through employee satisfaction surveys (47%) or employee performance metrics (28%). 

LMS software not only allows companies to create and track their L&D programs, but they also have features to help identify skills gaps and recommend personalized learning plans. Plus, they include access to content libraries on leadership development and soft skills. 

Top 5 LMS software that helps build skills 

We’ve found five key LMS solutions that can help organizations improve their skills gaps. 

1. BizLibrary 

BizLibrary is an online learning platform that helps companies efficiently implement their L&D programs. In addition to its LMS software, it has two other solutions: BizSkills and BizAcademy. 

Companies can provide upskilling opportunities (e.g., employees looking to move into management) with the BizSkills platform. The software comes with a library of over 500 prebuilt job roles, a skills library with over 1,500 skills and a content library that carries over 5,000 prebuilt lessons. HR pros (or a designated L&D manager at their company) can set up the employee’s learning path by combining their job role with their current or new skills and the courses they’ll need to take. 

BizAcademy is a leadership training program that provides both live and on-demand training sessions. It has a four-week certificate program that covers remote leadership, executive leadership or inclusive leadership, as well as a 16-week certificate program for both new and current managers. Future leaders can listen in on presentations by subject matter experts, network with their peers, complete practice materials and receive feedback with coaching sessions. 

Also, worth noting: BizLibrary has its own content library on various topics, such as business skills and leadership skills. Some soft skills topics? Workplace communication, empathy and conflict resolution. 

2. Brainier 

Brainier is a customizable LMS software that uses machine learning to recommend learning paths and ongoing content to employees. In addition to its LMS features, Brainier has curated content bundles to address a company’s L&D needs. While the bundles include four topics, two relevant to HR are HR basics and leadership development.  

In addition, Brainier partners with many content providers, so companies can choose relevant topics. For example, MindScaling provides interactive business leadership content on things like leading a multigenerational workforce. There’s also Management Coach, a series of five-minutes videos on tips for managers on having difficult conversations with their employees. 

3. Cornerstone 

Cornerstone’s LMS software lets companies plan, deploy and track their learning initiatives. Its features include personalized learning paths, social collaboration and analytics.  

Cornerstone also has a content subscription, Content Anytime, that groups microlearning content in various topics, such as professional skills and management/leadership skills. Some of its professional skills courses include proactive communications, managing emotions in the workplace and active listening. Cornerstone’s leadership topics range from managing a remote workforce to future leadership skills to a course for first-time managers on influencing people. 

Another solution to note: Cornerstone’s Skills Graph helps organizations address skills gaps and provide career development tools to their employees. With only an employee’s current job title and their job history, Skills Graph automatically develops a skills profile with recommended learning plans. In addition, managers can see ratings on an employee’s various skills, so they can identify any skills gaps and offer coaching or other professional development opportunities. 

4. Skillsoft 

The Skillsoft Percipio learning experience platform (LXP) uses curated learning paths and machine learning to provide employees with recommended courses. However, we want to point out its custom leadership programs that provide leaders necessary skills. It’s aimed at all employees to help them succeed in their careers, and it provides a mix of formal training, personalized coaching and practice with skill-based learning paths.  The leadership program has four components:  

• Skillsoft Leadership Development Program (curated leadership skills content from subject matter experts) 
• Skillsoft’s business skills content library 
• A coaching program that pairs managers/leaders with an executive coach, and  

• Skillsoft’s role-based and skill-based learning paths 

Skillsoft has a separate solution for evaluating skills gaps called Skill Benchmarks. Employees simply fill out an assessment that asks questions regarding their skills in their current job, and based on the assessment’s results, they’ll get a personalized recommendation on courses or content that helps them develop or improve their skills. Companies can opt to have employees retake the assessment every 30 days or at a frequency they choose. 

5. TalentLMS 

TalentLMS is LMS software for smaller businesses and includes features, such as content creation, an assessments engine, reporting and social learning. It also has a built-in content library, TalentLibrary, that organizations can purchase as an option. TalentLibrary includes a collection of over 700 ready-made courses on many skills. For example, it has a Leadership Training Essentials collection of 10 courses on topics, such as delegation, leadership types, decision making and accountability. In addition, TalentLibrary provides courses on specific soft skills (e.g., collaboration, critical listening, resolving conflict). 

If you’d like to learn more about our HRMorning survey results, click here.