Skillsoft

Skillsoft is an enterprise learning company that sells a large off-the-shelf training library together with the platform that delivers it, Percipio. Wikipedia describes it as "an American educational technology company that produces learning management system software and content", listed on Nasdaq under SKIL, with headquarters in Nashua, New Hampshire. Its buyers are organizations training employees, not individual creators. A comparison on SoftwareFinder describes it as a cloud-based e-learning platform offering courses, training programs and certification resources, specializing in leadership development, IT skills, cybersecurity, cloud computing, project management and compliance. A guide published by the vendor Disprz sums up its model as "a content-library-first learning provider that pairs an off-the-shelf course catalogue with a delivery platform".

A short history

Skillsoft's catalog is the product of many acquisitions, and Wikipedia's history explains a lot about what sits inside it. The company was founded by Charles Moran in 1998 and went public in February 2000. It acquired Books24x7 in 2001, which is where the digital book collection comes from, and in 2002 merged with SmartForce (formerly CBT Systems), an IT courseware company based in Dublin. Further purchases followed: NETg in 2007, Element K in 2011, MindLeaders in 2012, SumTotal Systems in 2014 and Vodeclic in 2015. In 2017 it launched CodeX, a virtual coding practice lab with embedded video.

Ownership changed several times. Private equity firms bought the company for $1.2 billion in 2010, and it was sold again for $2.0 billion in 2014. Skillsoft filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June 2020 and announced on August 27, 2020 that it had emerged, having reduced its debt by $1.5 billion. In June 2021 it was acquired by Churchill Capital, which also bought the Global Knowledge technical training business, and the combined company kept the Skillsoft name. The leadership coaching platform Pluma was added the same year. Skillsoft completed its purchase of Codecademy, the online programming platform, on April 5, 2022, for approximately $525 million in cash and stock, and sold SumTotal to Cornerstone for $200 million in 2022. On May 20, 2026, according to Wikipedia, it agreed to sell the Global Knowledge instructor-led training business to an affiliate of Enduring Ventures for $10 million, with up to a further $10 million in deferred consideration.

What the library covers

SoftwareFinder's comparison lists the main subject areas as leadership development, IT skills, cybersecurity, cloud computing, project management and compliance, and its verdict calls Skillsoft "well-suited for corporate training, with a strong focus on compliance training, and AI-driven personalization". Formats go beyond video courses. The comparison says Percipio "dynamically curates learning materials that offer videos, books, and audiobooks", and highlights audiobooks and audiobook summaries of well-known business books for learning on the move.

Certification prep is a large part of the offer. SoftwareFinder counts "70+ certification partnerships (CompTIA, PMI, AWS, etc.)" and names Adobe, Microsoft, AWS and Codecademy among the partners. It adds that some courses include practice exams, hands-on labs and instructor-led training. For leadership, the same source describes the Skillsoft Leadership Development Program (SLDP), aimed at building a pipeline of future leaders inside an organization.

Percipio and its AI features

Percipio is where learners and administrators work. SoftwareFinder says it "integrates artificial intelligence across twelve key areas", and lists the main ones:

• Personalized learning: course recommendations based on user profiles, skill levels and career goals.
• Search and content discovery: intelligent search that the comparison says uses models like Google BERT and Meta's DistilRoBERTa.
• Role-based learning paths: AI maps job roles to the relevant skills and learning programs.
• Skill mapping: identifying learners' skill gaps and aligning content with industry skills.
• Learning behavior analytics: tracking engagement, progress and effectiveness for learners and managers, with detailed reports.

Organizations can also build their own content around the library. Among Skillsoft's pros, SoftwareFinder lists that it "Allows customization where organizations can create their own workplace assessments", and notes that learners can take asynchronous training at a desk or on the go.

Mobile app

According to SoftwareFinder, the Skillsoft Percipio app is free on Android and iPhone. Users sign in with their organization's credentials, set weekly goals and build streaks to stay on track. The comparison describes the app as focused on goal setting and engagement.

Pricing and ratings

Skillsoft prices Percipio by custom quote. SoftwareFinder explains that pricing "varies based on factors like user count, learning paths, and additional features, requiring businesses to contact sales for a quote", and that the model is designed primarily for enterprises and large organizations. Capterra's alternatives page lists a starting price of $20.00 /mo, a rating of 4.2 out of 5 from 81 reviews, ease of use at 4.2 out of 5, and 12 of 12 top category features. GetApp files Skillsoft under certification tracking software, and Software Advice under training software.

Disprz's guide adds a point about how the money is spent: "Skillsoft's value is weighted to its content subscription", so the case for buying rests on how much of the catalog an organization will actually use.

What reviewers criticize

The third-party sources agree on the main weakness. SoftwareFinder reports that some users find the interface complex, outdated and "challenging to navigate", and lists two further cons: assessments provide "only raw scores and pass/fail status, lacking question-level insights", and some users report performance issues such as loading failures and glitches. Disprz's guide, which draws on reviews posted on Software Advice and Capterra, says reviewers of Percipio flag "complex administration" among their top complaints, and that Percipio is "a content library first rather than a platform for building your own SOPs and role-based training". Its pros, by the same accounts, are the range of courses and the audio-visual quality, which SoftwareFinder calls "excellent, making the content engaging, clear, and easy to follow".

Who Skillsoft suits

Skillsoft suits a large organization that wants one licensed library covering leadership, business skills, compliance and technical training, with certification prep for IT and project management staff and books and audiobooks alongside courses. An enterprise L&D team that values skill mapping, role-based paths and analytics on top of a ready-made catalog is the buyer Percipio is built for, and the quote-based pricing reflects that.

It is a weaker fit for a team whose main need is to author and run its own procedures and role-specific training, which is where reviewers say the platform is least comfortable, and for a small business that wants to see a full price list before talking to sales. Buyers should also follow the Global Knowledge sale described above if instructor-led technical training is part of their plan.