Application management services have typically been about stability and cost control. But with the rapid advance of technology and the uncertain business climate, AMS has become a strategic partner.
Recent calamities have shown us that companies that lean into difficulties instead of focusing only on survival will experience a much more robust recovery. Now is an excellent time to engage a partner that focuses on adding value rather than merely keeping the lights on.
In a previous article, we wrote about the benefits of stability, predictability, and availability in AMS for SumTotal. We talked about how outsourcing your SumTotal administration will:
- Give you predictable monthly maintenance costs,
- Help you avoid staffing challenges,
- Manage your updates and prepare you for new features,
- Assist you with data management and integrations, and
- Free you from the daily administration grind, so you can focus on improving your services.
Today, we will show you how to unlock the value of AMS for your SumTotal applications.
What is an Application Management Service?
An AMS supports and maintains large business applications like SumTotal. Services include monitoring, incident resolution, user support, updates, and troubleshooting.
AMS provides a single point of contact for managing your learning application—no matter how complex. You don’t need to manage multiple vendors to ensure we met all your needs.
The Benefits of Using an AM Service with Your SumTotal LMS
Using an AMS helps unlock additional value when you partner with a multi-faceted partner who can provide the right services when needed.
The Basics
We consider these benefits “table stakes,” which an AMS should provide without exceeding its maintenance mandate.
Increased Productivity
When you have fewer operational issues, you can focus on delivering value-added services. You get relief from tedious technical details, leading to increased productivity and better use of resources.
Improved User Experience
An effective AM service ensures that all users can access the latest features and functions to get the most out of their learning system experience, resulting in increased engagement and a better learning experience.
Greater Scalability
As you scale your operations, your provider can scale with you. You won’t need to invest in costly new infrastructures.
Enhanced Security
An effective AMS will keep your data safe from malicious attacks. They will help you comply with regulations and protect sensitive data from unauthorized access or misuse.
Data Integration: The First Step to Added Value
SumTotal runs on integrations. It must exchange data with your ERP or HR platform and with every external learning source you use.
SumTotal develops integrations with its partners. For complex integrations, such as Salesforce and LinkedIn Learning, SumTotal provides connector tools in the LMS. SumTotal guides you through setting up and maintaining them to take advantage of updates and improvements.
Many partners provide integrations in the SumTotal Marketplace, where you can get the connectors to core HR platforms, talent management solutions, and talent acquisition platforms. You also will find add-on tools that expand your capability, such as SumTotal Skills Blueprint by Light cast, which powers your transition to skills-based talent management.
The SumTotal repositories on GitHub contain widgets and editors for AngularJS, NodeBB, and other open-source tools.
Engage your AMS to simplify integration management.
You can rely on your AMS to manage complex integrations to streamline your data delivery wherever needed.
Well-managed data integration can have a significant impact on your company. You can enjoy higher productivity and lower risk, with the benefits of having the correct data at the right place and time.
Your AMS will assist you with data governance, so you can stop data errors at the source and create a single source of truth for each dataset. It will make it easier for you to improve compliance with data monitoring and reporting.
You can add new tools as needed and deliver data to your decision-makers and people managers so they can make better and faster decisions.
Drive business value with people analytics.
An application management services provider will have ready access to experts in people analytics. When you engage a provider with that talent, you will have access to data engineers, data scientists, and experts in data visualization.
Most efforts so far have focused on cost savings and efficiency in HR processes. There have been some gains in employee retention, hiring, and other KPIs. Still, most firms have yet to tap the real value in people analytics, which is better decisions about people at every business level.
To succeed, you must deliver deep insights in a way that decision-makers will instantly understand them. Your AMS provider will have experts in data visualization on tap and data scientists to help you get started on the right track.
“The value of people analytics is in the quality of the talent decisions of the organization."
— Nicholas Garbis, VP of People Analytics Strategy at One Model
Conclusion
With an effective application management service in place, you’ll be able to unlock additional value from your learning platform while ensuring maximum efficiency and security at the same time.
By leveraging these tools together, you’ll maximize productivity and scale up as needed without worrying about costs or technical complexities getting in the way.
Is AMS Right for You?
Book a free consultation to find out if an AMS can help you get more value from your SumTotal Platform.
You can call directly or use our calendar link to book your session.
Phenom eCloud is a comprehensive technology solutions provider committed to empowering businesses to overcome challenges, enhance their workforce capabilities, and achieve superior outcomes.
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