Getting a Handle on Learning Content Management Systems
Quote: "BODIES ALONE do not determine the value of human capital. It is the combination of the information that employees possess, their ability to act appropriately on that information, and their ability and willingness to share it with the rest of the organization that determines its value. A company's competitiveness is largely determined by the quality of its people, the quality of their information and how tightly the two are linked."
Comment: Performance support (EPSS), knowledge management, and elearning will converge (eventually). Elearning develops organizational competence (often in explicit skills), KM adds new information to the system (both tacit and explicit), and EPSS ensures that employees have access to organizational resources when needed (and that the resources are "fresh"). This article posits the notion that the convergence will happen via an LCMS (learning content management system). Perhaps my view of an LCMS needs to be revised, but I think the author is wrong. An LCMS is primarily a tool or system for storing and retrieving learning objects. As such, it requires a fairly complex process of metatagging documents and resources...too involved for people to use to record thoughts/observations/experiences. Blogs fill that roll much more effectively.
I think that an LCMS is part of an overall strategy for knowledge and learning - but it is mainly a developers resource. Tools are needed for users (don't like that term...but have nothing better...) to quickly record knowledge...and quickly search. What would that look like then? LCMS + LMS + blogging + collaborative tools + search + effective interface that integrates the components and makes it a transparent process for the end user...thoughts?
Posted by gsiemens at January 16, 2003 10:05 AM