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

        Remote control cattle: Virtual fencing tech reduces herds’ carbon hoofprint, puts rancher pain points out to pasture

        By Tommy Felts | March 23, 2023

        Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. LINCOLN, Nebraska — Corral Technologies is taking cattle control virtual, founder Jack Keating shared. Using satellite maps and solar collars, the agtech startup offers a virtual fencing system to help…

        White Castle invented sliders (and the playbook for fast food); then the Kansas-fried chain vanished from its home state

        By Tommy Felts | March 23, 2023

        Editor’s note: The following story was originally published by KCUR, Kansas City’s NPR member station, and a fellow member of the KC Media Collective. Click here to read the original story or here to sign up for KCUR’s email newsletter. For more stories like this one, subscribe to A People’s History of Kansas City on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher. The White Castle chain began in 1921…

        DevStride founder finds himself ‘locking arms with frontline customers’ in bid to catch their mistakes early 

        By Tommy Felts | March 22, 2023

        Implementing and monitoring complex software cycles is a tedious process, Phil Reynolds said, which is why he and his team are working to drive better project management principles and improve outcomes through their software solution. “We are really trying to transform the way that teams go about implementing and managing agile software development cycles. Our…

        Deep Rooted plants new store at busy Troost shopping hub; Here’s how the streetwear brand is growing

        By Tommy Felts | March 22, 2023

        A Kansas City streetwear brand is extending its roots on the city’s east side, said owner Donnell Jamison. Deep Rooted — which Jamison launched in 2018 out of the trunk of his car — has a new home in the shopping center at Troost Avenue and Emanuel Cleaver Boulevard. “We just want to be that…