Pathlore Secures $10 Million in Strategic Financing
Pathlore recently announced it secured $10 million in its first round of institutional funding from Seaport Capital.
The funding will support Pathlore’s future growth plans, including sales force expansion, product enhancements and acquisition opportunities. Pathlore, a privately held company with more than 2,500 corporate customers, has profitably grown every year since its inception in 1995. Pathlore, whose current investors include Computer Associates, has annual revenue of approximately $25 million.
“It is clear to us that Pathlore has the right combination of leadership, execution and vision to flourish in the e-Learning marketplace,” said Jim Collis, a partner at Seaport Capital. “By providing funding to a profitable, well-established company like Pathlore, Seaport Capital is underscoring its belief that Pathlore’s proven business model, senior management team and learning management system will maintain the company’s position as the premier e-Learning solutions provider.”
Pathlore’s e-Learning solutions consist of the Pathlore Learning Management System (LMS) and a broad range of comprehensive services and complementary offerings from its Partner Network. As the digital backbone for corporate learning, Pathlore LMS lets companies plan, deliver and manage e-Learning, including instructor-led, Web-based and live online collaborative events. Pathlore LMS also lets companies tightly manage their organizational skills and competencies — employees assess themselves online and then go directly to prescribed online or classroom learning. Pathlore’s services include custom content development, strategic and implementation consulting, training and application service provider (ASP) hosting. Pathlore also has a Content Partner Network that includes over 8,500 courses from partners such as Coastal Training Technologies, Element K, Instruction Set, MindLeaders, NETg, SkillSoft and Smartforce.
Pathlore LMS already is delivering e-Learning to millions of learners in thousands of companies worldwide, notes Cushing Anderson, program manager for Learning Services Research at International Data Corp. “Pathlore combines a first-class online learning experience with solutions to real-world training and logistics challenges,” Anderson said. “Companies like Pathlore, that demonstrate both an understanding of the complexity of the problem and an understanding of how adults learn, will continue to grow in this marketplace.”
Pathlore customers include PNC Bank, Raytheon, Corning, Union Pacific, Ford Motor Co., Southwest Airlines, United Technologies Corp., Vodafone, Merck, State of Missouri, Illinois State Police and the U.S. Department of Defense. The Global 2,000 as well as governments and agencies at the national and state levels dominate Pathlore’s customer base. Pathlore has the largest installed customer base of any LMS provider.
“Obtaining funding in this difficult market validates the strengths of Pathlore’s products, customer base and business model,” said Trace A. Urdan, senior analyst with WR Hambrecht & Co., where he covers education and e-Learning stocks. “Differentiating itself with an e-Learning solution that delivers a rapid ROI has been key to the success of Pathlore, which currently counts 75 percent of the Fortune 100 companies as its customers.”
“The quality and quantity of the financial backing that Pathlore has received, especially in the current economic climate, validates our mission of building a solid company and capitalizing on a market opportunity that is both viable and sustainable before seeking external funding,” said Steve Thomas, president and CEO at Pathlore. “With the support of Seaport Capital, we are confident that we will continue to solidify our position as the leader in the e-Learning marketplace.”
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