The Case for Off-the-Shelf Learning

Purchasing pre-built learning is like joining a well-travelled road. The library of courses is already constructed and spans many subjects: compliance, workplace safety, communication, leadership, and more.

Speed is the greatest benefit. You can deploy learning in nearly no time. If you must reach a compliance deadline or train a large number of employees in a hurry, off-the-shelf content gives you quick results.

Affordability is another benefit. Looking at the same content, most organisations license it, so you share the cost of development with thousands of others. That makes it affordable to learn at a professional level. And since vendors update their content, you don’t have to worry about legal or regulatory changes; they take care of it.

There’s also the advantage of scope. Libraries usually hold hundreds of courses, so you have access to topics that you wouldn’t have the time or skills to develop in-house. It’s a simple way of doubling your organisation’s learning provision overnight.

But limits do exist. General content is not always applicable to your learners’ daily workplace. A course about an office worker might not apply to a warehouse team. When examples and scenarios are inapplicable, engagement is dead. Licensing frameworks also become expensive as you expand. The cost advantage is lost when your audience reaches into the thousands.

Off-the-shelf learning is wonderful for broad, universal needs, but it’s not necessarily the best for topics that require context or emotional involvement.

Why Create Your Own Content

It’s a different type of experience creating your own learning. It takes more effort, but the payoff can be worthwhile.

When you design courses around your firm’s processes, products, and values, the content is immediately applicable. The students recognize themselves in the examples and understand how the training applies to their work. That sense of ownership makes it more engaging and memorable.

Custom learning also supports reinforcing culture. You can design scenarios that are consistent with your values and use your tone of voice and branding. This builds consistency over time between the way people learn and how they execute on the job.

There’s also a strategic dimension. For some organisations, learning isn’t just an in-house activity; it’s in the product. A professional association that certifies members or a technology company that educates partners both rely on learning as a core business product. In those cases, owning intellectual property is key.

Of course, time and money are needed for development. One course can take weeks or months to create, depending on the complexity. Upfront development costs more, and updates are never done. If processes or systems change, so must your courses. Without an update schedule, even wonderful-looking content can be outdated in an instant.

Creating your own learning is most sensible when depth, cultural alignment, or strategic advantage is the goal.

Why So Many Organisations Choose Both

In practice, the most sage approach is often a combination of both. Most organisations buy off-the-shelf learning for universal needs and create their own for bespoke ones.

This blended model provides you with the best of both worlds. Buying provides scale and velocity. Creating provides relevance and connection. The outcome is a balanced learning environment that provides both reach and impact.

Take an airline. It will outsource a general level of cybersecurity awareness training because everybody who works for them needs the basics. But it will create its own emergency and safety training, tailored to its planes and protocols. One enforces compliance. The other saves lives.

Being able to do both allows organisations to be adaptive, speeding up when they must, yet continuing to build long-term learning assets that are authentic to their nature.

How to Select What to Buy and What to Create

A couple of speedy questions can help:

Is the training general or industry-specific?

If the topic is general to all sectors: time management, Excel, or anti-money laundering, buying makes good sense and saves time.

If it’s industry-specific, such as your customer flow or specialised systems, then it’s time to create your own content.

Is it depth or is it speed that’s most important these days?

If you must put learning out quickly, off-the-shelf content is your best option.

If you’re producing learning assets which will grow up with your organisation over the long term, doing it yourself is the option.

By answering these questions upfront, you bring clarity to your content strategy. You’re setting where to invest time and where to save it.

Final Thoughts

There is no single correct solution to the buy-versus-build dilemma. Each has its strengths and weaknesses. Off-the-shelf learning gives you speed, variety, and lower up-front investment. Creating your own gives you relevance, cultural fit, and strategic control.

For most companies, the reality is compromise. Use off-the-shelf material for generic skills that keep people up-to-date and productive. Create your own for the things that set your business apart.

When you arrive at that balance, your LMS isn’t a platform anymore. It’s a living environment for development, a journey that connects learning to real performance and lasting influence.