SafetyCulture deepens its COVID response with $29M acquisition of ‘micro-learning’ app

September 16, 2020  |  Startland News Staff

Darren Winterford, EdApp CEO, and Luke Anear, SafetyCulture CEO; photo courtesy of Business Wire

An Australian startup with a significant presence in Kansas City has acquired a mobile training app to boost COVID-era education for businesses through free “micro-learning” resources.

“We’re experiencing the biggest workplace shake-up since economies were rebuilt after World War II. This is not survival of the fittest, this is survival of those that can adapt,” said Luke Anear, CEO of SafetyCulture, detailing how folding in EdApp’s technology is the next step for the company. “The pandemic has made it clear there’s a huge appetite for training as companies look to get safely back to business. EdApp will strengthen our ability to support businesses to do their best work.”

EdApp offers micro lessons downloaded straight to users’ smartphones. Learners acquire knowledge in targeted bursts when it suits them best and can learn at their own pace, according to SafetyCulture, which boasts a Crossroads-based second headquarters in Kansas City. Courses that employ micro elearning typically see completion rates rise from as low as 15 percent to about 90 percent and beyond, the company said in a press release. The app currently delivers about 50,000 lessons per day across more than 90 countries.

Click here to learn more about EdApp, which hails from New York City.

SafetyCulture’s $29 million acquisition of EdApp comes as the Sydney, Australia-born workplace safety and quality platform dedicates its 2020 to helping businesses navigate reopening amid new safety restrictions, Anear said.

In response to COVID-19, SafetyCulture digitized workplace guidance from governments and leading industry bodies across the world into free, ready to use and customizable checklists via its iAuditor app — which already has more than 75,000 users at more than 26,000 organizations.

Click here to learn more about iAuditor.

SafetyCulture employs more than 60 workers in Kansas City. Globally, the company has raised $100 million from investors. 

startland-tip-jar

TIP JAR

Did you enjoy this post? Show your support by becoming a member or buying us a coffee.

Tagged , , ,
Featured Business
    Featured Founder

      2020 Startups to Watch

        stats here

        Related Posts on Startland News

        Video: Healthy workplace culture begins with intention, communication

        By Tommy Felts | October 26, 2017

        Editor’s note: This content was sponsored by Mid-Continent Public Library but independently produced by Startland News. Creating a healthy workplace culture must be done early and with intention, said Adrienne Haynes and Dwayne Lewis. To help startups develop a strategic human resource plan, Haynes, managing partner of SEED Law, and Dwayne Lewis, president of Lewis…

        From Google to KC, Beth Ellyn McClendon’s advice to startups: Test everything

        By Tommy Felts | October 26, 2017

        Don’t fall in love with an idea, Beth Ellyn McClendon said. “Test everything, especially your assumptions, and allow yourself to be persuaded by data,” said McClendon, a seed investor who formerly worked with Google, Android, YouTube, Cisco and Netscape. “Try to remember — tattoo it on your eyelids if you have to – anecdotes are not…

        Flo and Jamil Nelson, Bodyrite Fitness KC

        Bodyrite duo cooks meal prep into personal training concept

        By Tommy Felts | October 26, 2017

        Don’t just go with the flow at a traditional gym, Jamil Nelson said. Go with Flo. “Treadmills and ellipticals are pretty archaic to us,” said Nelson — or “Mr. Bodyrite” to his wife, Florese. “A jump rope is way better because it’s going to blow up your heart rate.” Modern workouts are all about functional,…

        Denise Kruse

        Denise Kruse: So your startup wants to be acquired – now what?

        By Tommy Felts | October 25, 2017

        Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. In the first column this three-part series, I discussed how a stellar strategy only gets your company halfway, but executing can take you to the finish line. Next, we took a deep dive into what startups should do after landing a first big…