IT's Learning LMS: Global Strategy and Competitive Advantage

Introduction to IT's Learning

IT's Learning is a leading provider of a cloud-based Learning Management System (LMS) operating across the globe. The company was founded in 1998 at Bergen University in Norway by a group of students who sought to understand why digital tools were rarely used in their school. Being computer engineers, they resolved to address that gap by developing a learning management system as part of their master's project (IT's Learning, n.d.). In its initial stages, the system was a single platform through which teachers could share academic files and resources while students could complete and submit their assignments. As the system quickly gained traction, IT's Learning was formally established with a vision of promoting the effective use of technology to significantly enhance education. Through its cloud-based LMS, IT's Learning has grown into a digital learning platform that supports teachers and students in managing the learning process, developing multimedia resources, and sharing academic information and work online (EQT AB, 2017).

Strategic Issues in International Expansion

Since its formation, IT's Learning has continued to grow in line with its vision of promoting the adoption of technology in education. The company has engaged in several initiatives to expand its operations beyond Norway. In most cases, IT's Learning markets its digital learning platforms and solutions through resellers, which has facilitated expansion both within Norway and in other parts of the world, particularly Europe (Bloomberg, n.d.). Major countries where IT's Learning currently operates include France, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and the United Kingdom. This expanded international presence is attributable to effective strategies for global operations.

However, IT's Learning has encountered significant strategic issues as it expands into countries beyond its home market. According to Dewhurst, Harris, and Heywood (2012), operating in the global environment through expansion generates strategic challenges. IT's Learning's decision to expand was fueled by the global opportunity to promote the adoption of digital tools in education worldwide. The company identified global expansion as a crucial element for enhancing overall growth and competitive advantage. The global environment presents numerous opportunities for business growth and profitability given the interconnected nature of the modern business world. As a technology company, recent advancements created a suitable opportunity for IT's Learning to extend operations to other countries, particularly in Europe. The principal strategic issues experienced in this international expansion include market competition, the choice of expansion strategy, and cultural differences.

Competition in the Market

One of the major strategic issues facing IT's Learning as it expands beyond its home country is market competition. The learning management system market comprises more than 60 different providers and is estimated to be worth approximately $860 million. The European and United States segment, where IT's Learning seeks to expand, is estimated at approximately $173 million. Competition is a significant strategic issue because the largest LMS providers account for nearly 50% of the market, while the remainder is comprised of smaller LMS product vendors, enterprise resource planning vendors, training outsourcing firms, and consulting firms.

Leh (2016) notes that the LMS market is increasingly competitive because educational professionals, vendors, and practitioners continue to develop different measures to promote lifelong learning and enhance learner experiences and outcomes. Large and small companies compete for the same market segment because modern learners want to consume just-in-time resources and leverage collective knowledge in a reliable, inexpensive, and immediate manner (Leh, 2016). According to Matthews (2016), the international LMS market continues to be highly competitive and dynamic due to increased investments, acquisitions, and mergers among providers. These trends contribute to intense competition, generating a significant strategic challenge for IT's Learning as it expands globally. The firm faces stiff competition from two major rivals — Blackboard and Class Frontier — as well as LMS systems customized by individual learning institutions.

Expansion Strategy

The second major strategic issue is identifying a suitable expansion strategy for market entry. For its initial growth in Norway, IT's Learning utilized a strategy of providing its products to higher education institutions. When expanding to the Netherlands in 2007, the firm had to adapt its approach because of specific market conditions. Similarly, when entering France, IT's Learning had to contend with significant cultural differences. One measure the company has employed as part of its expansion strategy is product diversification. Suttle (n.d.) states that product expansion and diversification are among the growth strategies companies use when entering new markets. Product expansion involves adding new features or product lines to boost sales and profits, whereas product diversification entails selling new products to new markets. IT's Learning relies primarily on product expansion as the foundation for entering new markets. For example, in its expansion to the United Kingdom, the company added filters to its LMS to screen out improper language. The importance of selecting an appropriate expansion strategy is underscored by the recognition that entering a new market requires extensive planning to address differences in language, culture, and regulatory requirements.

Cultural Differences

The third strategic issue is cultural differences, since every country has distinct languages and customs that affect how learning systems are established and used. Culture is a critical dimension of international trade and plays an important role in international marketing (Ahmed, Ullah, and Allam, 2014). The significance of cultural differences as a strategic issue for IT's Learning stems from the fact that every country has its own values, beliefs, traditions, and customs. In the LMS market, cultural differences negatively affect how students participate in digital learning platforms and online courses (Liu et al., 2010). According to Guang and Trotter (2012), cultural factors affect communication and competitive success in international markets.

For instance, when IT's Learning initially developed its LMS, it incorporated features that reflected cultural differences in international markets such as the United Kingdom, where an e-safety program was added to identify and remove improper language. As an innovator, IT's Learning considers language and cultural factors when developing its cloud-based LMS and its various features. Addressing cultural differences ensures that the system reflects the values, beliefs, traditions, and customs of each specific market. Cultural differences are particularly critical because of how culture affects businesses in multiple ways, including language barriers and pricing challenges (Deari, Kimmel, and Lopez, n.d.).

Norway as a Home Base for a Global Digital Learning Platform

IT's Learning was founded and remains headquartered in Norway, which presents both advantages and disadvantages regarding its suitability as the home of a global digital learning platform developer. At the time the company's cloud-based LMS was developed, the Norwegian education system had not yet adopted technology widely, despite rapid technological advances. Most learning systems in use at that time were conventional and did not fully meet the evolving needs of educators and learners. As IT's Learning has since expanded globally, Norway continues to act as the home base for this global developer of digital learning platforms. The suitability of Norway in this role, however, warrants examination through both its advantages and its disadvantages.

Advantages of Norway

One major advantage of Norway as a home for a global developer of digital learning platforms is its substantial innovation market. When IT's Learning was developed, technological adoption in Norway's education sector was relatively low, meaning competition in the LMS market was limited. The learning management system was an emerging market yet to be tapped. Very few technology companies were providing LMS products to meet the evolving needs of educators and learners. For instance, when IT's Learning was formed, some institutions such as the Norwegian School of Management were using Blackboard's LMS — a system widely reported by lecturers to be less user-friendly and more complicated than alternatives. Given these conditions, Norway offered, and continues to offer, a substantial innovation market that promotes the development and improvement of digital learning platforms for global use.

A second advantage is Norway's Norwegian Agency for Digital Learning in Higher Education, which actively promotes the development and use of digital learning platforms (Korten, 2016). This agency makes Norway a particularly suitable home for a global digital learning platform developer by funding research and development initiatives that contribute to increased technology adoption in education. It stimulates innovative and competent utilization of information and communication technologies (ICT), which serve as the foundation for developing effective digital learning platforms to support teachers and students. The agency also promotes the development of high-quality digital learning resources that can be deployed globally (Norwegian Centre for ICT in Education, n.d.), creating an environment where global developers can thrive through innovative practice.

A third advantage is the establishment of a national IT strategy and infrastructure that promotes the adoption and use of information technology in higher education (Korten, 2016). Through this strategy, the Norwegian government actively supports the development and effective use of technology in the higher education sector. Importantly, digital skills are included as one of the basic skills in Norway's national curriculum (European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, 2016). Since digital skills require the use of digital resources, tools, and media, the government thereby supports the development of digital products for learning. These factors collectively enhance Norway's suitability as a home for a global digital learning platform developer, providing companies like IT's Learning with a supportive environment in which to create and refine digital learning products.

A fourth advantage is Norway's long-standing commitment to ICT-supported learning and continuous education. The country has a well-established tradition of ICT-supported learning through several national programs focused on lifelong learning (Kjeldstad, 2016). A country report has indicated that ICT is viewed as an important tool for promoting equity in educational opportunity (Norway Country Report, n.d.). Because the government actively promotes ICT-supported learning, Norway provides a suitable environment where a global developer of digital learning platforms — such as IT's Learning — can establish and grow operations, and where innovative platforms can be developed to enhance ICT use in higher education.

Disadvantages of Norway

Despite these advantages, Norway also presents disadvantages that limit its suitability as a home base. First, digital platforms developed in Norway require significant modification to be viable in global markets because of language and cultural differences. Companies like IT's Learning are compelled to adapt certain aspects of their digital products when entering new countries — a process that adds cost and complexity. For instance, when introducing its cloud-based LMS in the United Kingdom, IT's Learning was required to incorporate additional features to filter inappropriate language because of cultural differences.

Second, Norway has not established a robust framework for incorporating educators into the development process for digital learning platforms. Despite significant national investment in ICT-supported learning, there remains a notable lack of uptake in teachers' use of such technologies (Krumsvik et al., 2016). This limits the ability of companies like IT's Learning to develop truly effective digital learning platforms. For example, when IT's Learning was founded, existing digital learning platforms such as Blackboard were rarely used by educators because they were complex and not user-friendly — a problem attributed in part to insufficient teacher involvement in the development process and poor educational technology adoption. The absence of a suitable framework to promote technology uptake and teacher involvement in the creation of digital products represents a structural weakness in Norway's suitability as the home of a global digital learning platform developer.

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