hen you design and implement something new, you want to know that it works, right? Otherwise your hard work could all be for nothing and you might not even know!

This applies to training, learning and development strategies. If you’re developing new training courses for your teams, then you need to know that your team members are finishing your courses with the right knowledge and skills.

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Software for team training that includes the ability to add a quiz are a dime a dozen. But there’s a big difference between the best and worst assessment software on the market. It only takes a quick google before you’re overwhelmed with options.

That’s why we’ve created a quick guide on the top five factors to guide your decision.

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#1 Software that integrates

Introducing new software to an organisation is often enough of a challenge on it’s own. Don’t make it any more difficult than it needs to be! 

When looking for assessment software, you want to find a solution that integrates with your existing technology. If you have a Learning Management System already in place, then you’ll want to find software that exports courses and assessments as SCORM 1.2 packages.

If you don’t have an LMS, you can find an all-in-one solution that offers course/assessment creation tools combined with a lite reporting system. These solutions are great for small to medium size businesses on a budget as they package everything you need into one online solution.

If you’re looking for an even cheaper option, you can look for software that allows you to deliver courses and assessments with an online link (URL), though this can limit your ability to collect data about your learners.

#2 A foundation in learning science

eLearning can get a bad rap sometimes, and sadly, it’s because there are a lot of badly designed courses out there. Too many “solutions” have been designed by people looking for a quick buck with no real experience with designing learning experiences.

When looking for assessment software, make sure to look for a commitment to learning science-based design. Online learning has a robust body of scientific research into how to design learning and assessment experiences that are effective and engaging. The best tools incorporate this methodology into the design of their software and support their customers with additional resources to help you create excellent assessments.

#3 Accessible for everyone

For people living with physical or intellectual impairments, navigating digital products can be an enormous struggle, if not outright impossible. That’s why it’s critical to look for training software that is accessible for everyone.

Creating accessible assessments and training is dependent on many visible and “invisible” factors that are coded into the software. These include features such as alt text, keyboard navigation and text-to-speech compatibility. 

How can you know if a piece of assessment software is accessible? Look for the international web accessibility standards called WCAG 2.1. WCAG 2.1 comes in three levels: Level A (basic accessibility), Level AA (highly accessible) and Level AAA (super accessible). Level AA or AAA will guarantee your assessments can meet a very standard of accessibility.

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#4 Consistent branding

Every organisation knows how important branding is. It’s not just for your customers either - consistent internal branding creates a strong identity and connection between your workers and your organisation.

When applied to training courses and assessments, internal branding boosts the professional feel and quality of the experience for your team. Teams that feel that they are being delivered high quality courses are more satisfied and engaged with the learning.

The implications are clear: look for a tool that allows you to use your organisation’s logo, colours and general branding in your assessments and training courses so that you can create consistent, quality learning experiences.

#5 The right pricing model

No one organisation is exactly like the other, and you can probably easily think of things that make your organisation unique. That’s why it’s important to find a solution with the right pricing and payment model.

Course creation tools take a number of different approaches to pricing that are usually targeted to organisations with different goals. As such, most pricing models will usually scale such that they benefit either small or large businesses.

Similarly, software can often focus either on charging according to the team creating the courses, or the number of people taking the courses. The former tends to benefit organisations with an LMS, while the latter usually goes with the all-in-one create-and-report solutions mentioned earlier.

Overall, it’s important to know the needs of your organisation, including how many creators and how many learners you expect to have, so that you can find the software with the most effective pricing model for your organisation.

Choosing the best assessment software

When you choose the right assessment software, you can have the confidence to know that the needs of you, your organisation and your learners will be met. Good assessments are engaging, accessible and effectively demonstrate what your learners know, and good software fits into your existing stack at the right price.