Wilmington, N.C.-based CourseUp!, a developer of computer-based training and knowledge delivery solutions for franchise organizations and professional associations, has picked SumTotal® Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:SUMT) to provide technology for delivering, among other things, instruction on how best to launch and run a franchise. As part of the contract, CourseUp! purchased SumTotal’s ResultsOnDemandTM and SumTotal’s ToolBook® Instructor 9.0.
“ResultsOnDemand will underpin how we transfer knowledge from a corporation to its franchisees,” said CourseUp! President Arnold Murdock, Ph.D. “Traditionally, franchise organizations have passed knowledge to franchisees through conference calls, face-to-face meetings and manuals. Relaying information with phone calls and manuals is not the best way to teach someone about the intricacies of running a franchise. We feel our customers will benefit from the speed and ease offered by ResultsOnDemand.”
ResultsOnDemand is SumTotal’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for analyzing performance and delivering learning over the Internet. ToolBook Instructor 9.0 is the newest version of SumTotal’s product for developing software simulations and e-learning content.
According to Dr. Murdock, the online services delivered by ResultsOnDemand may include developmental programs on such topics as merchandising, accounting and management.
Dr. Murdock says companies also call on CourseUp! to supply technical skills training to their franchisees. So CourseUp! purchased ToolBook® for developing online assessments and scenario-based training.
“With ToolBook and ResultsOnDemand, we can develop training content for franchisees and track the use of that content over time,” added Dr. Murdock. “The one-two punch of ResultsOnDemand and ToolBook gives us a user-friendly software solution for providing e-learning that’s better than anything we could find on the market.”
“And ToolBook is great for integrating multimedia assets such as audio, video and Adobe Flash. This, combined with Toolbook’s OpenScript language, allows us to develop high-end interactive training materials,” Dr. Murdock said. “We feel the content we build with ToolBook will run flawlessly on ResultsOnDemand because the same company makes both software products.
“ResultsOnDemand is cost-effective too,” said Dr. Murdock. “It’s hard to get into a system of this caliber at this cost. We loved the idea of SumTotal handling the server side of things as well. As a small organization, it was extremely attractive to have SumTotal handle the technical aspects of running ResultsOnDemand.”
“We believe companies choose our software so they can quickly deliver the critical learning that workers need to achieve business goals,” said Sanjay Dholakia, senior vice president for corporate and business development at SumTotal. “We feel our software strategically steers users to what they need to learn. For employers, that translates into things like a boost in sales, better employee retention or improved workplace safety.”
About SumTotal Systems, Inc.
SumTotal Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:SUMT) is a global provider of talent and learning management solutions. SumTotal deploys mission-critical solutions designed to align goals, develop skills, assess performance, plan for succession and set compensation. SumTotal’s solutions aim to accelerate performance and profits for more than 1,500 companies and governments of all sizes, including six of the world’s 10 biggest pharmaceutical makers, six of the 10 largest automotive companies in the world, four of the five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, three of the world’s top five airlines, five of the six largest U.S. commercial banks and two of the world’s top five specialty retailers. Mountain View, Calif.-based SumTotal has offices across Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. For more information about SumTotal's products and services, visit www.sumtotalsystems.com.
SumTotal, the SumTotal logo, and ResultsOnDemand are registered trademarks or trademarks of SumTotal Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Safe Harbor Statement/ Forward-Looking Statements
Information in this press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the anticipated benefits, results and performance of SumTotal’s products and solutions, such as ResultsOnDemand and ToolBook Instructor 9.0. These statements represent SumTotal Systems' expectations or beliefs concerning future events. These statements are not historical facts or guarantees of future performance or events and are based on current expectations, estimates, beliefs, assumptions, goals and objectives, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by these statements, including but not limited to: (i) unknown errors or bugs in ResultsOnDemand or ToolBook Instructor 9.0; (ii) the inability to fix in a timely fashion unanticipated bugs, errors or defects that materially impact the functionality or usability of SumTotal’s software; (iii) the acceptance of SumTotal’s software and future product offerings, both in the United States and abroad; (iv) the ability of SumTotal’s employees to successfully implement SumTotal's solutions; (v) the actual benefits and performance of ResultsOnDemand and ToolBook Instructor 9.0; (vi) the compatibility of ResultsOnDemand and ToolBook Instructor 9.0 with other computer programs and systems; (vii) the ability to successfully address technological developments and standards both in the United States and abroad; and (viii) other events and other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in SumTotal’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company’s annual report for fiscal year 2006 on Form 10-K filed on March 16, 2007, its quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on August 7, 2007, its Prospectus Supplement filed on Form 424B2 filed on May 21, 2007, Form S-3/As filed on September 28, 2006, and October 2, 2006, and its Form 8-Ks. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are made as of the date of this press release, and the company assumes no obligation to update the information in this press release to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this release.