Wellington (NZ), November 2010 - Three eLearning and open-source companies (Kineo, Catalyst IT, and Flexible Learning Network) have formed a joint venture to develop and distribute a version of the Moodle learning management system for the corporate sector. The product, called Totara, is set to revolutionise the corporate LMS space as the first open-source learning-management solution designed specifically for the corporate sector.


The new corporate distribution of Moodle includes a wide range of new features designed to meet the specific needs of corporates, including competency management, staff development plans, team management, individual and corporate dashboard reporting, and the management of classroom events.

Richard Wyles, Director of Flexible Learning, comments, "This is a really exciting project. Moodle is already the world's most popular LMS, and we've been working with Moodle in various contexts for around seven years now. We believe the idea of standardizing some of our innovations to deliver a specific workplace learning distribution will result in Totara rapidly becoming the LMS of choice in the corporate sector."

Mike O'Connor, Founder and Director of Moodle Partners Catalyst IT adds, "The Totara partnership has bought together three really strong companies committed to developing a world-beating LMS for the corporate sector that leverages all the benefits of open-source software. We will also be leveraging the geographical spread and size of the three companies to provide a responsive and follow-the-sun support service to our clients."

The new Totara distribution will initially be available to clients of Kineo, Catalyst, and Flexible Learning Network. Totara will also include a global 24/7 hosting and support service to respond to what corporates need.

Totara will be made available publicly in January 2011.