Choosing internal training software for a small business: 7 criteria and a checklist

Once a business has a few dozen staff, “the old hand shows the new hire” starts to break down: every branch teaches differently, managers spend hours repeating the same lessons, and nobody really knows how well staff know the procedures. That is when owners start looking for internal training software or a corporate LMS. The catch is that most LMS products are built for large companies with a training department and desk-based staff. Small businesses — especially stores and F&B chains — need different criteria. Here is how to choose.

Before comparing software: define the real need

1. Who will learn? Office staff with computers, or shift staff with only a phone?
2. Who will build courses? A training team, or the owner and shift managers in their spare time?
3. What do you want to know? Just who finished, or results tied to reviews, bonuses and payroll?

For most small businesses: learners use phones, authors are busy managers, and learning should sit next to daily people management.

7 criteria for small-business training software

1. Works well on a phone

If staff need a computer, they won’t learn. Check for iPhone and Android apps, captioned video and resume-where-you-left-off.

2. Pricing: per head or per plan

Many tools charge per learner per month. With high turnover in F&B and retail, that cost is hard to predict. Ask whether leavers are still billed and whether hiring forces an upgrade.

3. Fast authoring from existing material

You already have slides, PDFs, phone videos and question spreadsheets. Look for PDF import, Excel question import and simple video upload.

4. Quizzes and completion rules

Pass marks, and ideally locking the next chapter until the previous one is passed.

5. Assignment and progress reports

Assign by person, department or branch, with due dates and a report of who is done.

6. Connected to attendance, HR and payroll

If the training tool keeps its own staff list, you update two systems every time someone joins, leaves or moves. Shared HR data means courses reach the right people and learning rewards can flow into payroll.

7. Video storage costs

Ask how much storage is included, how to add more, and whether video delivery is billed separately.

Corporate LMS checklist

Criterion	Question to ask
Mobile learning	iPhone and Android apps? Captions? Resume position?
Pricing	Per head or per plan? What happens with turnover?
Fast authoring	PDF import, Excel question import, built-in slide editor?
Assessment	Pass marks, time limits, chapter locking?
Assignment	By person, department, automatic rules? Due dates?
Reporting	Progress per person and per course?
HR and payroll	Shared staff list with attendance? Rewards in payroll?
Video storage	How many GB included? How to add more?
Course updates	Do updates disrupt people mid-course?
Ready-made content	Can you buy finished courses to assign?

How CTAS answers these questions

CTAS is not the only option — use the checklist to compare. Here is how the CTAS products line up:

• Mobile: staff learn in the CTAS Work Learning tab or the CTAS Learn apps (iPhone/iPad and Android), with captions and resume.
• Pricing: CTAS Studio is 990,000 VND/month or 9,490,000 VND/year, one price for the whole organization with up to 60 learners and 20 departments; beyond that, CTAS Studio Enterprise is priced by contract. Organizations on CTAS Work get 20% off Studio on the web.
• Authoring: slide editor, PDF-to-slides import, captioned video upload, Excel/JSON question import.
• Assessment: pass marks, time limits, chapter locking.
• Assignment and reports: by person, department or automatic rules, with due dates and progress reports. Assigning to CTAS Work staff requires the Work plan’s Network feature (Growth and above).
• HR and payroll: shared staff list with CTAS Work; completion bonuses can be tied to payroll.
• Storage: 50 GB included; add 50 GB (249,000 VND/month) or 200 GB (890,000 VND/month).
• Updates: each release is fixed; learners keep their version.
• Ready-made content: buy seats of courses on CTAS Course.

How to test

Don’t choose from a feature table alone. Build a small course — say, the opening routine with three videos and a quiz — assign it to a few staff and see whether they actually learn. Online onboarding for new employees walks through it, and Microlearning for shift workers helps you size the content.

See how CTAS supports internal training at ctas.vn/en/course, or take the free CTAS Work – User guide for staff to experience it as an employee.