SkillSoft announces major advancement in integrated, on-demand e-learning for global enterprises

Among major SkillPort 6 enhancements are SEARCH-and-LEARN™, which now gives learners the expanded ability to view and select all corporate e-learning assets through a single, unified search; new support for custom and third-party courseware and other important corporate documents; and the flexibility for learners in global organizations to choose SkillPort's interface language.

SkillPort 6 demonstrates SkillSoft's commitment to delivering enterprise-quality, multi-modal learning solutions that give learners the ability to access and choose learning resources specific to their information needs, available time, and learning preferences. SkillSoft's multi-modal learning solutions span formal and informal learning resources - and off-the-shelf as well as custom content - to increase the efficiency of learning initiatives, boost employee productivity, and deliver greater value for learning investments.

"Most corporate learning resources are underutilized because of their irrelevance to day-to-day job activities or search and access inefficiencies," said Michael Brennan, program manager for IDC's Learning Services research. "Our research shows that knowledge workers spend 15 to 30 percent of their time actively seeking information. However these searches are successful less than 50 percent of the time. We believe technologies such as SkillPort will result in greater utilization of learning resources that matter, while saving organizations the money and time typically wasted on ineffective information searches."

"SkillPort 6 is an important step in our evolution to providing clients with ever-more efficient and comprehensive learning solutions," said Chuck Moran, president and CEO of SkillSoft. "These advancements are based on extensive customer input, coupled with significant research and development investments. We believe SkillPort 6 uniquely supports the diverse and time-sensitive learning and information requirements of the Global 2000 and 'raises the bar' for learning technology."

The major new features of SkillPort 6 include
-Search-and-Learn:
Enhancements to this feature give learners the ability to search and access all learning resources on any topic with a single, unified search. So, for instance, a learner searching for resources on Cisco networks can discover all courses, books, TestPreps, Express Guides, and online mentoring available to her with a single search query. From the identified results, the learner can then choose the resource that best meets her specific needs, time requirements, and learning preferences.

-Extended content support:
SkillPort 6 can now track, manage, and search custom courses created by most authoring tools, off-the-shelf courseware from third-party providers, as well as Adobe® PDF files and Microsoft® Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents. For the first time, organizations now have the ability to incorporate important information resources, such as white papers, launch plans, budget templates, and customized training within a unified, comprehensive learning database.

-Multi-language user interface support:
To further support SkillSoft's global clients, SkillPort 6 gives learners the ability to choose SkillPort's user interface language. SkillPort can be viewed in English, French, German, Spanish, or Italian.

-Certification views:
Learners who are interested in completing various technology certification programs can use SkillPort to identify all learning resources - including courses, TestPreps, online mentoring, and Express Guides - designed specifically to support almost 70 different certification programs. Learners can now view content by vendor, certification program, or specific exam.

-Section 508 compliance:
SkillPort 6 meets guidelines outlined in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, which requires that all technology be equally accessible by those employees with vision, hearing, or motor skill impairments.

"SkillPort 6 supports the market demand for reliable, scalable, and secure e-learning infrastructures with low overhead costs and minimal incremental IT investments," said Lee Ritze, vice president of marketing and professional services for SkillSoft. "Our customers have found SkillPort to offer many of the features they need with the fastest 'time-to-learning.' In fact, most technical implementations of SkillPort can be accomplished within a couple of weeks, compared to the months typically required by other learning management systems."

Deployable in a hosted or intranet environment, SkillPort currently has more than 500 registered client organizations and 2.5 million users. The platform is based on AICC-certified open design standards. Existing SkillPort customers will migrate to SkillPort 6 throughout 2004. Licensing fees for use of SkillPort 6 vary depending on number of users, content resources licensed, and other factors.