Learning management systems: a new beginning in the management of learning and knowledge

In the knowledge economy, a firm’s intellectual capital represents the only sustainable source of competitive advantage. Accordingly, the abilities to learn and manage the learning process are key success factors for firms. The knowledge management approach to learning in organisations which seeks to facilitate the sharing and integration of knowledge has achieved limited success, primarily because it has focused on ‘knowledge as a resource’ rather than on ‘learning as a people process.’ A strategic ‘people-oriented’ approach to the management of learning is now emerging in many organisations and this has, in turn, led to the appearance of a new breed of Information Systems (IS) known as ‘Learning Management Systems’ (LMS). Based on an in-depth case study of the implementation of an LMS by a major multinational, this paper proposes an empirically tested framework for ‘learning in organisations’ that places LMS in context and highlights the roles that LMS can play in the support and management of learning.