How to Avoid an LMS Handover Hangover

Navigating a seamless handover is a critical skill in any professional setting. Whether passing the baton in a project, team, or role transition, the art of delivering a handover goes beyond a mere relay of information.

There are many forms a handover can take – but whether it’s a casual coffee chat, an immersive work shadowing experience, or an extensive how-to booklet, certain universal tips remain applicable for all handover formats.

Keeping these in mind will ensure the person receiving the handover is confident and well-informed and that the organisation continues to be supported and run smoothly. In this blog, we’ll specifically look at a handover for a Learning Management System (LMS) Administrator in our learning platform Birch but some of these points can apply to other roles and contexts.

Top tips for a smooth handover

Access and overview

• Ensure the person has been given access to and a run-through of:
  • the service desk
  • knowledge bank and
  • support ticket process

Building support networks

• Meet with other Admins and/or users (e.g. Trainers) who work in the backend of Birch. This will help to build a support network for the new administrator so they can ask questions about specific organisation processes.

Documentation

• Identify and share any support documents that have been created.

User management

• If applicable, discuss the communities that are set up and the parameters of a person being assigned to that community.
• Run through how users are created for your organisation – you may have a combination of imports and manual setup. You may also have two different communities one with Single Sign On (SSO) and the other via the local form (sign-up page)
• If your organisation uses APIs to manage users and generate reports outside of Birch, ensure the new administrator understands what this means and looks like.

Configuration and best practices

• Run through how goals, streams, elements, rules, and renewals are set up for your organisation. Be specific to ensure consistency in management and future-creation practices.
• Decide on naming and external ID conventions – consistency is key to avoid inconsistent ‘dirty data’.
• Be aware of and/or understand any organisational learning/training matrices which will likely inform the goal/stream setup and renewal settings.

Workflows and triggers

• Look through the messages that are set up (both default and configurable) to understand the workflows that trigger them.

Reports and templates

• Discuss and practice setting up reports, creating and sharing templates.
• Understand the actions available in reports i.e. extracting a list of non-compliant staff or contacting them directly through the system.

Additional support

• Refer them to the four online Birch User guides for System Administrators, Learners, Trainers and Managers.
• Be proactive and contact us for additional support and training.  B Online Learning provide formal System Administration training as well as ad-hoc training for a specific area/function of Birch.

Mastering the art of a seamless handover is key to organisational success. No matter the handover format adhering to some universal tips like the ones shared above will help ensure a smooth transition.