If you’re searching for a learning management system (LMS), there’s plenty of choice on the market. But how many of them are suitable for the highly complex and regulated financial services industry? Generic learning platforms will only take you so far.
A platform built specifically for financial services companies, offers targeted training for professionals based on their role and responsibilities, with content that reflects the latest regulations, and clear metrics to help you demonstrate employee competencies.
Key takeaways
- Choose an LMS built for financial services: Generic learning platforms often lack the specialist compliance capabilities, FCA-specific content and governance features regulated firms need.
- Prioritise automation and audit readiness: Look for workflow automation, integrated policy management, real-time reporting and comprehensive audit trails to reduce administrative burden and demonstrate compliance.
- Evaluate the complete compliance solution: The best providers combine an LMS with expert-developed, regularly updated compliance content, role-specific learning and seamless HR and business system integrations.
- Select a platform that scales with your organisation: Whether you're a growing firm or a large enterprise, ensure your LMS can support evolving regulatory requirements, advanced reporting and governance processes as your business grows.
What financial services firms should look for in a compliance training provider
Compliance in financial services cannot be a tick-box exercise. Choosing a learning platform that is specific to your market, with its own content developed and renewed by experts helps learner engagement, while metrics aligned with your own regulatory obligations and KPIs makes it easier to maintain compliance.
There are a few key questions to ask when making this type of decision. We've outlined some considerations below.
1. Does the LMS support compliance workflows?
A good LMS will mirror your own compliance workflows, rather than creating extra work for your teams. Any gaps or inefficiencies are not only time-consuming to work around; they also create risk through gaps in audit trails that can’t be easily explained, or employees failing to complete training or gain competencies. By automating processes as much as possible, you reduce the chance of something being missed.
We aim to make compliance straightforward by automating recurring assignments, sending intelligent reminders to staff and escalating overdue training directly to managers.
Example of an LMS supporting compliance workflowsThe platform also includes a Policy Hub to distribute corporate policies and capture employee attestations alongside mandatory training. This is what sets the LMS apart from general platforms, which deliver standard inductions and training but don’t support complex staff disclosures and integrated attestations, and aren’t tailored to learners’ requirements. |
2. Are you able to provide a clear audit trail?
During audits, or if a regulatory breach is reported, you need to be able to demonstrate that you followed the correct processes including staff training and competencies. Audit trails, automated certification renewals and secure integrations with HR platforms give you a clear record of what’s been completed, linking training and certification to employees’ profiles and flagging up any gaps.
Lack of integration means you have to manually update your LMS and HR systems, so information could be missed or typed in incorrectly. Skillcast integrates with popular HR systems such as Workday, BambooHR, HiBob, Access People HR, Cornerstone, and enterprise SSO (Azure AD/Entra ID, Okta, OneLogin), as well as standard office systems like Microsoft Teams and Slack.
3. Can you stay audit-ready?
Being audit-ready depends on two things – accurate data, and the ability to surface it quickly. Skillcast’s intuitive user-interface and extensive automations make it easy to add and update information, so you can be confident that it is correct. It also provides deep reporting capabilities with real-time dashboards, downloadable management information and verifiable audit trails.
Along with online training, Skillcast also allows you to centralise offline sessions via Training360 so you have a fully up-to-date record of continuing professional development (CPD) hours. Another feature, beyond training, is the Compliance Register, with gifts and hospitality associated with each employee record.
4. Is there a way to get advanced role-specific training?
Financial services companies need a platform that supports highly-skilled professionals working in complex environments. Skillcast has been developed to meet their requirements by combining precise role-based assignments with advanced reporting and expert support.
The platform automatically directs learners to specific roles, ensuring that the training they receive is relevant and engaging. Some providers deliver AI-enabled training, while 360Learning uses peer-driven collaborative learning. Both have their advantages in terms of efficiency and general upskilling but lack the authority and rigour needed in financial services.
5. Are you buying a platform or the content?
Some platforms provide the LMS infrastructure, allowing you to add your own bespoke content and policies, or buy third-party materials. Examples include D2L, Absorb LMS and LearnUpon.
However, this approach can create unnecessary complexity because you’re responsible for creating or buying and vetting additional modules. FCA training is standardised – so it makes sense to use a platform offering high-quality and sector-specific content.
The reason many financial services firms choose Skillcast is because it combines a powerful LMS with an extensive and continually-updated course library, with more than 400 compliance courses.
6. Is the compliance platform suitable for UK firms?
Financial services firms operating in the UK need training content that specifically meet the requirements of the FCA. Generic providers operating in different jurisdictions might fall down here because they don’t offer the range and depth of UK-specific courses.
Skillcast’s dedicated FCA Compliance library includes more than 70 modules covering regulations such as the Consumer Duty, CASS rules, COBS, CONC and MCOB. Its Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR) training is also tailored to both solo (regulated only by the FCA) and dual-regulated firms (regulated by both the FCA and PRA).
There’s also a SMCR Registers for administrators to issue Statements of Responsibilities, manage fit and proper assessments and track the Conduct Rules efficiently.
Skillcast is located in London’s financial district, with a dedicated UK support team.
Need more help choosing the right platform?
All FCA-authorised firms must comply with the requirements and guidance set out by the regulator – but the platform you choose depends on the size and complexity of your operations.
Small and medium-sized businesses often choose Skillcast because it provides an extensive library of sector-specific content, with a dedicated Policy Hub and easy-to-use metrics, so you don’t need a large L&D team. Large regulated firms opt for which offers a fully integrated governance, risk and compliance platform combining SMCR registers, Training360, enterprise SSO and comprehensive audit reporting.
Other reputable systems include VinciWorks, although it’s primarily for the legal sector. Absorb LMS and 360Learning offer more general onboarding and training.
Written by: Emmeline de Chazal
Emmeline is an experienced digital editor and content marketing manager. She has a demonstrated history of working in both the education management and software industries. Emmeline has a degree in business science, and her skillset includes Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) and digital marketing analytics. She is passionate about education and utilising her skills to encourage greater access to e-learning.
