Create e-learnings for your LMS with an authoring tool

Creating e-learning content that does work

Do you want to quickly and reliably create e-learning content that does work within your existing learning environment? With a good ‘authoring tool + LMS’ workflow, you build interactive training courses, publish them as SCORM packages and let them run smoothly in the LMS you already use. This makes content creation scalable, keeps your organization in control and prevents vendor lock-in – in short: working smarter with your current learning platform.

Why an authoring tool and your LMS are smart together

Many organizations face a choice: build everything into the LMS or create separate content and then link it. An authoring tool solves the practical problem: You develop didactically strong, interactive modules in a tool made specifically for content creation, and then publish to your LMS via a standard such as SCORM. SCORM ensures that the package is recognizable, interchangeable and playable in virtually any LMS.

Key benefits of the authoring tool + LMS combination

• Develop faster: authoring tools speed up production through templates, interactions and quiz builders. Many tools also offer export to SCORM or xAPI, so your content can be used immediately in your LMS.
• Compatibility and portability: a SCORM package coming out of your authoring tool can be uploaded to any
  SCORM-compatible LMS
  – you are not tied to one vendor.
• Quality and governance: content remains centrally manageable (versions, updates, T&L checks) while designers do their work in a specialized environment.

AI-driven authoring tools: faster, smarter and scalable

Today, authoring tools exist that use AI (generative models) to produce initial versions of e-learnings in a fraction of the time – from script and learning objectives to quiz questions and storyboard suggestions. You export these AI-generated modules as easily as hand-crafted content to SCORM or xAPI, making them immediately deployable in your authoring tool + LMS workflow.

A concrete example is
Collow Creator
, which uses AI to accelerate content while designers and subject matter experts continue to ensure quality and didactics. Important: AI speeds up production and personalizes at scale, but a human-in-the-loop remains crucial for instructional design, validation of review, and adapting to local context or compliance requirements. This combines the speed of AI with the control and reliability you expect from your LMS.

Our uniquely developed eduAI technology makes it possible to develop e-learnings based on different types of input. For example the web, PowerPoint presentations or PDF files. eduAI interprets the knowledge and converts it into a training course including videos, infographics quizzes and for example code challenges for IT training. Via SCORM or xAPI, for example, you then publish the training in your LMS.

How it works together technically (briefly)

In the authoring tool, you build a course and choose your publication settings (e.g., SCORM 1.2 or SCORM 2004). The tool exports a zip file containing an `imsmanifest.xml`-that is, the SCORM package. You upload this zip file into your LMS; the LMS then provides the runtime API that uses the content to report back progress, scores and status. This keeps everything in your LMS visible and manageable, while the content is created outside the LMS.

When do you choose SCORM – and when xAPI?

SCORM is (still) the most practical choice if you want to distribute standard courses within your existing LMS: it is widely supported and easy to implement in most corporate LMS environments. xAPI and cmi5 are more powerful for tracking learning events outside the LMS (mobile apps, simulations, performance support) and offer richer data through an LRS. In many cases, a hybrid approach works best: SCORM for the backbone of completed courses;
xAPI
for tracking learning activities outside the traditional course environment. ([xapi.com][6])

Practical tips: how to get started with an authoring tool + LMS workflow

1. Choose an authoring tool with SCORM export: popular options such as Articulate Storyline, Adobe Captivate and iSpring support SCORM (and often xAPI/cmi5), ensuring interoperability. Always test the export in your LMS.
2. Publish as SCORM and test: upload the SCORM zip to a test environment in your LMS. Check that scores, start/stop times and rounding are returned correctly.
3. Preserve modularity: build short,
   reusable modules (SCOs).
   . This makes updates faster and increases deployment across different learning paths.

Pitfalls to avoid

• Don’t think all authoring tools are identical: check export settings (SCORM 1.2 vs. 2004), responsive support and accessibility.
• Don’t forget privacy and data retention: SCORM itself does not regulate privacy; make sure your LMS and organizational rules clearly define what learning data you store and for how long.

A concrete example of workflow (briefly)

• Author creates content in the authoring tool (text, video, interactions, tests).
• Author exports to SCORM (zip).
• L&D uploads the package to the existing LMS and publishes the module within the appropriate learning pathway.
• The LMS records completion and scores; reports and compliance summaries remain centrally available.

Why this is relevant to your organization

For organizations that already have an LMS, the combination **author tool + LMS** is the most pragmatic way to produce e-learnings quickly (and professionally) without demolishing your existing infrastructure. You retain control over participant administration, reporting and learning paths in the LMS, while your designers remain agile in a specialized auto environment. This lowers costs, speeds time-to-learning and makes updates easy – exactly what modern L&D needs.

Conclusion – this is how you tackle it with Collow.ai

Want to quickly create e-learnings that run securely and reliably in your existing LMS? Start with an authoring tool that supports SCORM (and preferably xAPI), publish to your LMS, and add an LRS where necessary for richer data. At Collow.ai, we support teams in choosing the right authoring tool, technically publishing to SCORM, and designing modular content that fits seamlessly into your LMS. Interested? We’d love to think with you.