Mindflash secures $4 million for Web training

Platform for companies to share knowledge and train employees funded again by Santa Barbara group

As the number of stay-at-home employees continues to grow, the demand for online training tools must necessarily rise. Especially in cases where people are working for employers halfway across the country, it doesn’t make sense to travel to a physical location to learn what could be taught much simpler and quicker online.

Mindflash, a Web platform for companies to share knowledge and train employees, announced Thursday that it has raised $4 million in new capital led by the Investment Group of Santa Barbara (IGSB), the same firm that led a $5 million round for the company in December 2009.

The platform lets employers upload existing training files in the most popular formats (PowerPoint, Word, PDFs and video), which Mindflash automatically integrates into an online course. Employers who upload multiple files are free to reorganize them so that they are arranged in a logical, cohesive format that feels like a seamless course.

Beyond those files employers might already have, Mindflash provides quiz tools with automated grading, automated course management and data analysis.

Trainees can be invited one at a time with just their name and email address, or you can invite them in bulk by uploading an Excel spreadsheet.

“With this new round of capital, Mindflash is poised to further disrupt the online training industry by pushing the boundaries of how people think about and execute on-the-job learning,” said Mindflash CEO Donna Wells. “We see a huge opportunity to outperform legacy software solutions and make knowledge sharing much easier and more effective.

“Savvy businesses of all sizes have been looking for a solution that automates this process and allows them to spend more time developing employees, and less time tracking with email and spreadsheets.”

Pricing for Mindflash varies from completely free (for a 10-trainee maximum, lite version) to $999 per month for up to 1,000 trainees and all offered features, from courses and quizzes to archiving and certificates. Companies with over 1,000 trainees are welcome to contact Mindflash directly for enterprise pricing options.

All versions are free to try for 30 days, no credit card necessary.

Mindflash launched last September, and has since seen users completing tens of thousands of courses “on everything from sales training to brewing beers at home.”

To learn more, check out this half-hour Scobleizer interview with Wells: