Skillsoft
FormerlySmartForce[1]
Company typePublic
IndustrySoftware as a service
FoundedAugust 8, 1998 (1998-08-08)[citation needed]
Headquarters300 Innovative Way, Suite 201[2],
Nashua, NH
,
United States[3]
Key people
Jeff Tarr (CEO/Director)
Richard Walker (CFO)
Mark Onisk (Chief Content Officer)
Apratim Purakayastha (CTO)[4]
ProductsEducational technology, learning management systems, training content
Number of employees
 (as of 2014)
SubsidiariesCodecademy
Websitewww.skillsoft.com

Skillsoft is an American educational technology company that produces learning management system software and content.

History

Skillsoft was founded by Charles Moran in 1998. Moran served as chief executive officer and President from 1998 to 2015.[5]

Skillsoft had an IPO under the stock symbol SKIL in February 2000[6] and a SPO in July 2001.[7][8] In June 2021, Skillsoft became a publicly traded company once again under the same stock symbol.[9]

Skillsoft acquired Books24x7 in 2001.[10] In 2002, Skillsoft merged with Dublin-based IT courseware company SmartForce (formerly CBT Systems), with the combined company retaining the Skillsoft name,[11] establishing a common headquarters in Ireland.[12] The company acquired NETg from Thomson Corporation in 2007.[11]

In May 2010, the company was bought out for $1.2 billion by SSI Investments III Limited, a firm funded by Berkshire Partners, Advent International and Bain Capital.[13][14] Skillsoft acquired Element K from NIIT in October 2011, and MindLeaders from ThirdForce Group in September 2012.[13]

Skillsoft was sold by Berkshire Partners to Charterhouse Capital Partners for $2.0 billion on April 28, 2014.[13] Later that year, Skillsoft acquired SumTotal Systems in September 2014.[15] In May 2015, Skillsoft acquired Vodeclic SAS.[16]

In September 2017, Skillsoft launched virtual coding practice lab CodeX, which provides coding exercises with embedded video content.[17][18]

On June 14, 2020, Skillsoft voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States.[19] On August 27, 2020, Skillsoft was able to announce that it had emerged from bankruptcy. During the court-supervised process the company was able to reduce its debt by $1.5 billion US dollars.[20]

In June 2021, Skillsoft was acquired by Churchill Capital. Churchill Capital then merged with Software Luxembourg, then acquired the Global Knowledge technical training platform.[9][21] The combined company would be known as Skillsoft. Leadership coaching platform Pluma was also acquired that same year.[22]

In December 2021, Skillsoft announced that it would acquire Codecademy, an online computer programming learning platform, for approximately $525 million in cash and stock.[23] The sale was completed on April 5, 2022.[24]

In 2022, Skillsoft sold SumTotal to Cornerstone on Demand for $200 million.[25]

References

  1. ^ "Struggling SmartForce to merge with US counterpart". Irish Times. 2002-06-11. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  2. ^ "Contact Skillsoft to learn more about enterprise-wide education". Archived from the original on 2018-01-26. Retrieved 2018-01-26.
  3. ^ "Skillsoft Corporation Company Information". Hoovers. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  4. ^ "Skillsoft Leadership Team".
  5. ^ "Commvault Systems Inc (CVLT.OQ) Company officers". Reuters.com. Reuters. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  6. ^ "Skillsoft Corp (SKIL) IPO". NASDAQ. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  7. ^ "Skillsoft Corp (SKIL) SPO". NASDAQ. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  8. ^ Brown, Rodney H. (February 15, 2010). "SkillSoft to go private in $1B buyout from Bain and partners". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  9. ^ a b "Skillsoft and Churchill Capital Corp II Announce Skillsoft's Post-Closing Executive Leadership Team" (Press release). 7 June 2021.
  10. ^ "goFLUENT Taps Former Skillsoft Executive as Part of Global Expansion". Business Wire. Business Wire. 4 September 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
  11. ^ a b "About Skillsoft". Skillsoft. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  12. ^ Taylor, Charlie. "Dublin-headquartered Skillsoft files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  13. ^ a b c "Skillsoft". Berkshire Partners. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  14. ^ Suria, Asif (April 6, 2010). "Merger Arbitrage Mondays: April 5, 2010". Seeking Alpha. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  15. ^ Bersin, Josh (October 1, 2014). "Skillsoft Acquisition of SumTotal: Corporate Training Market Disruption?". Forbes. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  16. ^ "Skillsoft Announces Acquisition of Vodeclic". BusinessWire. Berkshire Hathaway. May 7, 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  17. ^ "Skillsoft Unveils New Virtual Coding Practice LabsDATAQUEST". www.dqindia.com. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  18. ^ "Skillsoft Opens New Coding Practice Lab". Lifehacker Australia. 2017-09-18. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  19. ^ "E-learning company Skillsoft files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy". Reuters. 2020-06-15. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  20. ^ Majid, Anigah (4 September 2020). "How Skillsoft got in and out of bankruptcy in just over 2 months". Elearning Inside. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  21. ^ "Churchill Capital to merge with Software Luxembourg, buy Global Knowledge".
  22. ^ Burton, Amber (2022-05-09). "Ed tech looks a lot like Netflix". Protocol. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  23. ^ "Skillsoft to Acquire Codecademy, a Leading Platform for Learning High-Demand Technical Skills, Creating a Worldwide Community of More Than 85 Million Learners" (Press release). Skillsoft. Retrieved 2021-12-22.
  24. ^ "Skillsoft Completes Acquisition of Codecademy" (Press release). Skillsoft Corp. April 5, 2022 – via Business Wire.
  25. ^ "Cornerstone Acquires SumTotal for $200 Million". 13 June 2022.
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