Cornerstone LMS Reviews

“Robust platform with a netflix-style catalog”

Pros

The people interface and Netflix-style catalogue make the platform feel modern and engaging and overall it's a very powerful product.

Cons

The learning curve can be slow for administrators and the dashboards are fairly simple.

“Appreciate the Learning Assignment tool”

Pros

I really appreciate the Learning Assignment tool. It makes it simple to assign training across the organization.

Cons

The reporting tools are where I run into trouble. At times they provide far too much information and other times they don't give enough detail.

“Helpful training and strong support”

Pros

They have been consistently available whenever help is needed and the training they provide does a really good job of educating admins.

Cons

Since the platform offers so much functionality some features or options can be easy to miss simply because you may not realize they're there.

“delivers excellent user experience”

Pros

Right from the Learner Home page, this platform delivers an excellent user experience. Our employees really enjoy the carousels and the personalized learning journey. We rely on it to support several learning formats, including custom material built by our internal trainers, video courses purchased from outside vendors and tracking for instructor-led training, whether in a classroom or delivered online. That flexibility helps us connect with each learner in the way that works best for them. The newer app has also been a big hit especially with newer employees who appreciate being able to access training from their phones and tablets.

Cons

Admins do have access to plenty of resources but the Help section and the Client Success Center live on separate platforms. Because of that, finding answers often means searching in more than one place.

“Lovely quarterly updates”

Pros

Navigating Cornerstone is very simple, whether you're an end user or handling things on the admin side. CSOD does a solid job of keeping the learning platform current and the quarterly updates consistently bring a wide range of new enhancements. Another big plus is the user community which is active and genuinely helpful whenever questions or issues come up.

Cons

I do value that they keep innovating and releasing new features but I'd also like to see more attention given to fixing certain existing issues and improving earlier enhancements. At times, they remove functions that were already working really well as part of those updates and that can be frustrating because both users and admins usually want additions and improvements, not the loss of tools that already do the job well.

“Great experience of 4 years”

Pros

After 4 years of using Cornerstone, I'm still impressed by how many capabilities the learning platform offers. We've really only scratched the surface of what I've been able to roll out on the learning side. One thing I truly value is the level of support, along with the wide range of help resources and training Cornerstone provides. It makes it quick to look up how to set something up, track down answers to questions or issues and reach out through the community when needed. Overall it has been a very positive experience and I'm excited to keep expanding learner engagement with Cornerstone Learning.

Cons

There are a few minor quirks in Cornerstone that can be a little frustrating at times. Most of the time, though someone in the community has already run into the same issue and shared a workaround. The specific problems I've come across have been with observation checklists, as well as updating content and the way that impacts curriculum reversioning.

“Ability to create learning content”

Pros

Being able to create learning content and control availability and assignments is something I really appreciate.

Cons

The admin side could be more polished and organized.

“Client support that truly delivers”

Pros

Amazing how much personalized support they provide to each client making sure the platform matches your specific needs and that you're set up to get the most out of it. Their client success center also has a ton of valuable content that has helped me build real expertise, not only to support the needs of my current organization but also to strengthen my resume for future roles.

Cons

There's so much functionality in the system that it can sometimes be frustrating to see features I don't actually have access to. For example, whenever I build curriculums, I still see curriculum pricing options even though I don't have an extended enterprise account and can't charge for them. I'd prefer if those unavailable features were simply hidden.

“Plenty of customization options”

Pros

There are tons of customization options which makes it possible to shape this system into just about anything you need.

Cons

With so many settings and options across the platform, training admins can be difficult. The flexibility is a big advantage but even basic administrator tasks usually require hours of training.

“Unmatched flexibility”

Pros

The flexibility in the configuration has been a big advantage for us. As our organization has grown and added new departments and acquired locations, different teams have come to us with all kinds of learning and training needs and we've consistently been able to find something in the learning suite that works well for them. I also appreciate how clear the documentation is. Since we work in a highly regulated industry, blood banking, that has mattered a lot. Since moving to Cornerstone, we've had very few audit findings tied to training documentation. One of our trainers even said she's been able to answer every auditor question that has come up. We used to manage training documentation on paper before Cornerstone so that improvement has been huge for us.

Cons

we have a lot of long-time employees in the organization who aren't very computer-savvy so getting them to use the LMS properly has taken a lot of effort. We do our best to support them with training sessions, tip sheets and other resources but I do wish there were more out-of-the-box training materials or built-in help options available for end users.

“Innovative learning experience”

Pros

Cornerstone keeps pushing the learning experience forward with an innovative UI, immersive on-the-job and mobile options for tracking and delivery, better search capabilities and a machine learning-powered Learner Home that makes recommendations.

Cons

It is expanding at such a fast pace that I'm really hoping their move to AWS will eliminate the occasional issues we still run into with our swimlanes.

“Handy reports”

Pros

Running our hospital's LMS for nearly two years has been a very positive experience overall. The system is simple to manage and work in and I keep discovering new ways to automate tasks and make our processes more efficient. One feature I really appreciate is the reporting tool since our hospital relies on those stats for a wide range of needs and it has been incredibly useful. Our learners consistently share positive feedback as well. On top of that, Cornerstone's customer service has been outstanding and consistently quick to respond.

Cons

A few processes in Cornerstone still require manual work.

“Organizes information properly”

Pros

Setting up Cornerstone around our specific needs has worked out really well. We needed a way to deliver both internal and external content and the platform made that possible. It also lets us create separate divisions so information can be organized properly which was important for our organization. There are plenty of features to enhance the learning experience but it still remains simple enough for users to navigate. Overall it has been a very positive experience.

Cons

The system can sometimes feel a little too configurable. Our IT security team handles permissions but they are not always active administrators in the platform. Because they are shifting between this and other IT products, keeping permission changes updated can sometimes become difficult.

“Wide range of features”

Pros

It is a really strong option for organizing an employee database and staying on top of training assignments. It comes with a wide range of features that help simplify learning documentation and make those materials accessible across the entire organization. Another big plus is the amount of self-service and knowledge-base documentation available. The guides are thorough, detailed and genuinely useful when you need help finding answers or working through specific needs.

Cons

The weakest part of Cornerstone is definitely on the administration side. The interface is not very user-friendly, with too many buttons, nested selections and unnecessary checkboxes that make the system feel more complicated than it should be. It is not user-friendly and at times it seems like the platform is built on outdated code that has been patched over rather than redesigned properly. Uploading materials is a good example of this problem, you have to choose the document, upload it and then save it as separate steps, when that process should be much more simple. Those extra actions make simple tasks feel overly detailed, time-consuming and harder to manage than necessary.

“One-stop shop”

Pros

Having Cornerstone connected with Ultipro, Lippincott and RQI has been a big plus for us. It gives employees a true one-stop shop. They sign in once through Ultipro and from there they can get into Cornerstone, access Lippincott and complete their life support training without needing to keep track of four separate usernames and passwords.

Cons

One frustrating limitation is with the groups used for auto-assigning training. Once you create the definitions for those groups, they can't be edited later so you have to rebuild them from scratch. For instance, if you set up a group that includes Surgery, Emergency Medicine orthopedics and OB/GYN to automatically assign a course like Restraint Training and then a few months later you need to remove OB/GYN, you can't just update it. You have to create the whole definition again. When the group includes a lot of departments, that becomes very tedious.

“Well-designed platform”

Pros

There's a lot to appreciate in it especially the range of configuration options, the Learner Home experience and the Learn App. Those areas make the platform feel capable and well designed for day-to-day learning use.

Cons

A few things still need work. Support SLAs are slower than what the market usually offers and some low-priority cases take multiple follow-ups before they move forward. Reporting 2.0 is definitely an improvement in terms of user experience but it still feels underdeveloped because some needed functions are missing. The Learn App is better than many other apps out there yet it still misses a few small features that could noticeably improve the overall user experience. Also, parts of the platform feel rigid since certain configurations cannot be changed.

“Solid vision and client support”

Pros

A big plus with Cornerstone is its clear vision, along with the strong support from the CSM team and overall client management.

Cons

On the downside, there are still some frustrating points in the user experience, basic issues can take too long to get resolved and the reporting side feels more complex than it should be.

“Modern, powerful LMS powerhouse”

Pros

Over the years, it has done a really good job of listening to client feedback and improving the product. The admin support is outstanding, the platform itself is solid and the interface feels current and user-friendly. It truly feels like the Cadillac of LMS platforms.

Cons

Cornerstone Learning comes with a very deep feature set on the administration side. I've implemented it multiple times for different clients over the past decade and if you're looking for a very basic or simple solution, this probably isn't the right fit.

“Powerful content management tools”

Pros

The content management tools, ILT and vILT administration and Learner Home have all been really valuable parts of Cornerstone.

Cons

A few features aren't very user-friendly at first. After the configuration is done, the system works well but getting certain features set up can feel a bit complex.

“We can tailor the user experience”

Pros

It gives us strong functionality and a lot of flexibility to tailor the user experience and reflect our employment brand. Because of that, we're able to offer employees meaningful learning opportunities, monitor their progress, share learning reports with leadership and keep supporting their growth. It really helps us carry out our mission more effectively.

Cons

That level of capability also brings a lot of complexity and it can be more than an internal team can easily manage on its own. We weren't able to fully optimize the system or use it to its full potential without bringing in a technology partner as well. That essentially doubled the overall cost although it has still been worth it and remains competitive compared with other LMS platforms.