User Reviews Overview

About Cornerstone LMS

Cornerstone Learning helps you provide a connected learning and growth experience for your people. Create a personalized development and growth experience that inspires people and accelerates transformation. Get a solution...

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Feature ratings

Value for Money
4.0
Features
4.1
Ease of Use
3.9
Customer Support
4.0

Browse Cornerstone LMS Reviews

219 of 219 reviews
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Elisse
  • Industry: Financial Services
  • Company size: 51–200 Employees
  • Used Daily for 1+ year
  • Review Source
Value for Money
4
Features
4
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
5

5
Reviewed on 18/11/2021

Cornerstone LMS - Great product!

Pros

I like that CSOD is an integrated HRIS system. It has a great end-user experience and a nice interface.

Cons

Some of the file size limits are an issue. and some of the functionality does not work as one would assume. However, there are a lot of tools and resources to find ways to make the functionality work for your company.

Verified Reviewer
  • Industry: Government Administration
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
3
Features
3
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
3

4
Reviewed on 16/11/2021

You get what you pay for

It's been slowly improving. I would say that our experience is limited as so many functions are outside of the Learning Module. We purchased a smaller version and I think it shows as we are continuously struggling to make it suit our needs the way we want.

Pros

I think that the recent changes have made the system more user friendly, but it is still not the most clear system. It manages transcripts fairly well.

Cons

I assume (as I was hired after implementation) that you need to request it, but our permissions are more limited than I would like. We can't run reports like utilization metrics, or who is in what security role which really limits our abilities. We also don't have backend design privileges and as a web developer that is infuriating.
I would say usability is less than desirable as there are HTML issues, and Transcript functionality confuses people.
There isn't a natural or logical way to set up accommodation requests even when using custom forms, which in my opinion is a very bad issue. We of course have text in the email, but it's insufficient and has caused issues.

Alternatives Considered

Moodle and Blackboard Learn

Reasons for Choosing Cornerstone LMS

I can't guarantee I selected the right product we switched from but we switched due to the very limited functionality.

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

We chose it for functionality as Cornerstone offers a lot. I will say that the scope of what we need has shifted and I am not sure that it would have ended on the same decision if we were making it now.
Daniela
  • Industry: Financial Services
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 1+ year
  • Review Source
Value for Money
3
Features
3
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
4

3
Reviewed on 30/9/2019

LMS with a lot of Capabilities

We want to drive users to go into the LMS so that they can utilize all of the learning thats offered. With Cornerstone releasing Learner Home it was a great way to get users into the system because it reminds them of Netflix which is fun.

Pros

I like that Cornerstone is constantly releasing new tools and features to enhance the LMS. They really listen to their customers and take in all advice to make necessary upgrades.
The software is easy to navigate and use. Making ILT sessions and events is straightforward. I also like how you can add badges to a learning object so that way learners feel good when they accomplish something. Also, the reporting capabilities are great and there are a number of reports you can generate to analyze how the system is being utilized.

Cons

The Quiz functionality of the system is not good and not easy to use.
Its not modern and every test you make has to be out of 100. Also, you can drag and drop questions in whatever order you want them to be. The tool is limited and needs to be upgraded for easier use.

Alternatives Considered

Brightspace

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

Approval Workflow - we needed managers to get notified whenever an employee registered for an event through the system for scheduling purposes.

Top Cornerstone LMS Alternatives

SAP Business ByDesign

Adobe Learning Manager

Keithia
  • Industry: Hospital & Health Care
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
2
Features
3
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
2

4
Reviewed on 30/11/2019

Cornerstone LMS not great for complicated builds

My experience is both good and bad. Good in that I have gotten used to the way the product works and can maneuver well. Bad in that its tedious work and there are areas where streamlining is needed.

Pros

Cornerstone was an improvement over the LMS platforms we were using 5 years ago. It handles large amounts of learning objects and dynamic assignments well if its simple. It doesn't like complicated assignments. The system works well with a simple set of learning objects assigned to a simple group with a due date. If you need to build a complicated group (one with many parameters), it may not work as well. Also the removal of items is a challenge when you are removing from a large number of transcripts.

Cons

the administration of cornerstone is not straight forward. There are a lot of nuances that come up when you are completing various activities. There is also the inconsistencies with various screens throughout. In some areas you can click check all or uncheck all to select multiple objects. In other areas you cannot and have to click individually, which is time consuming.

Alternatives Considered

Adobe Learning Manager and Docebo

Reasons for Choosing Cornerstone LMS

Company had expanded number of users. We wanted a standardized system.

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

Cornerstone presented an impressive list of features including automation.
JAMIE
  • Industry: Machinery
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
4
Features
4
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
3

4
Reviewed on 1/10/2019

Solid HRIS system with a strong LMS

Overall, Cornerstone is a solid and robust system. We run into very few issues with it. It has helped us reach our global workforce and manage learning within our organization.

Pros

Cornerstone offers one of the better LMSs that I've managed in my career. They continue to update the system with new features and evolve it with emerging technology like machine learning and mobile compatibility. It supports all of the content we use and user management is relatively painless. Each area of the system integrates with the others. This allows for a very cohesive performance management suite.

Cons

The weak spot of Cornerstone is their customer service. It has been a pain point for several years. They say they are working on improving it and sometimes they do, but it still has a long ways to go. I also wish the system had more robust mobile compatibility. This is something they have been working on, but they are behind some competitors. They also need further support for multimedia, specifically video.

Leena
  • Industry: Information Technology & Services
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
4
Features
5
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
3

5
Reviewed on 20/9/2019

An enhanced LMS for the new century customers...

Overall experience with Cornerstone On Demand is very good and positive. It has a positive impact on the Return on Investment and meets most of the business objectives. I highly recommend the solution.

Pros

Cornerstone OnDemand - It's a complete HCM Suite including an advanced Learning Management System. Most admirable features are:
- Learning Admin Console enhancements
- Edge Import
- Reporting 2.0
- Integration feasibility

Cons

Customer support is not up-to the mark. The response time and the resolving time for any tickets will take lot of time. Otherwise the product is a complete solution for any type of industry.

Alternatives Considered

Moodle and SAP SuccessFactors HXM Suite

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

It's Edge Import and Data Load Wizard are impressive. It has a HCM suite and well-suited with industries require compliance.
Kristen
  • Industry: Hospital & Health Care
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 6-12 months
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 17/4/2021

Great Product!

Great experience and great value for the product.

Pros

I love the integrated Cornerstone suite of products for ease of use with system management. We started with the implementation of Performance Management and it was so easy for our managers and employees to adopt, and we have recently moved over to Cornerstone LMS, which has been great.

Cons

Not much! It was a great value for a wonderful product. The implementation was a lot of work to coordinate internally for our company wide team, but it was worth it.

Response from Cornerstone OnDemand

Hi Kristen, we appreciate you taking the time to provide a review for Cornerstone! I'm glad to hear that you see the value in Learning & Performance. Our products are made to compliment each other and set you up for success. Implementing talent management products can be overwhelming and I hope you felt supported by the Cornerstone team during the process. If there is anything we can do to help, please reach out to us at [email protected]. Thank you for being a valued customer!

Replied 10/5/2021
Anthony
  • Industry: Accounting
  • Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
  • Used Weekly for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
N/A
Features
4
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 7/9/2019

Cornerstone, prioritizing the customer

If you are looking for a system with an active community willing to help other companies this is the perfect product for you. Cornerstone holds a user group meeting every quarter in major cities which gives an opportunity to network with other companies and help each other how with challenges you are currently fixing. During these meetings we receive live training and a walk through of what other features will be developed in the future.

Pros

A major pro is the customer service that cornerstone provides. They have rapidly developed how they consume cases in order to provide timely responses. They also provide in-depth documentation, webcasts, beta groups and live trainings around every release cycle of new features. Cornerstone really allows the clients to drive the future of their system.

Cons

I wish their was more opportunities for customization. For example you are able to create custom pages but you are restricted to Cornerstone's layout and HTML/CSS scripting.

Jocelyn
  • Industry: Building Materials
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
3

5
Reviewed on 16/11/2021

The most flexible tool I've seen

Overall after careful analysis we have remained with Cornerstone as they provide the most flexibility and options to train our diverse workforce.

Pros

There is a tremendous amount of flexibility in the tool to address various audiences. We are able to use our PeopleSoft user data to funnel what is seen by whom, assigned to whom, etc.

Cons

With the flexibility comes a lot to learn. It takes quite a while to become proficient in all the areas of the tool.

Alternatives Considered

Absorb LMS, Brainier LMS and Docebo

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

Cornerstone can do all the customization we need!
Travis
  • Industry: Computer Games
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
3
Features
3
Ease of Use
2
Customer Support
2

3
Reviewed on 15/11/2021

Great Bones, Needs Some Work

Overall we are happy with CSOD Learning, but there is so much more that can be improved. Their support has also gotten better over the last few months, but it is still severely lacking in quality.

Pros

There is a great underlying structure to Cornerstone Learning. The functionality is there and they are some very powerful features to help with automation and managing learning for your organization.

Cons

The presentation is not great. The front end is serviceable, but the back end needs some coordination and simplification to be a really great product. They are addressing some of this with Xplor, but since it's an additional cost, be prepared for that.

Phillip
  • Industry: Dairy
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
4
Features
4
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
3

4
Reviewed on 10/11/2021

Best in class

I've been a user for many years. I like the product, and believe the company is always striving to move forward.

Pros

The user community is the beast thing about this product. It's huge and people like to share. Cornerstone is a great partner for the community as well.

Cons

The inconsistent support experience. Most of the time it's great, but too often it is slow or not responsive at all.

Alternatives Considered

SAP SuccessFactors HXM Suite

Reasons for Choosing Cornerstone LMS

Growing company, and needed a new product to meet our needs

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

Best in class, and we already used the other modules of the product.
Sara
  • Industry: Real Estate
  • Company size: 51–200 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 20/7/2020

Cornerstone OnDemand

Our business use for this was tracking regulatory training for roughly 12 trainers in the health care field. This is also where people could sign up for in-person training whether that was a leadership class, CPR, etc. We were starting to use it for succession planning - although I feel we could have just used PowerPoint. We didn't use it for performance although we looked into it.

Pros

This is a flashy LMS. It looks great to the user. For a large organization, this was helpful with tracking regulatory trainings and more. It has all the bells and whistles.

Cons

The reason I would never recommend this to a colleague is because of the price and admin functions. First, the price. We were shown from the beginning, everything the system could offer, which we obviously loved, but shame on us for not asking additional questions. What we saw and what we got were different. For additional pricing, we could add on. Even customer service hours were charged. In the end this costed triple what we originally thought.

Furthermore, my second issue was the admin functionality. It was extremely complicated. We had 12 trainers working on the back end to get it implemented, on top of that we eventually hired 3 full time employees to work on the admin part for upgrades, running reports, etc. That is obviously another cost.

As much as the system was user friendly... It wasn't worth the cost when there are plenty of learning management systems that are user and admin friendly, for less.

Dan
  • Industry: E-Learning
  • Company size: Self Employed
  • Used Daily for 1+ year
  • Review Source
Value for Money
N/A
Features
5
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
3

4
Reviewed on 29/4/2023

A learning experience

Pros

Range of functionality and ease of implementation. Does more than most LMSs out there. Initial setup and integration was outsourced and great whilst support lasted.

Cons

Expensive and some features hidden behind paywall. Customer support varied dependant on who your CSM was.

Alternatives Considered

Kallidus Learn, Moodle and Fuse Universal

Reasons for Choosing Cornerstone LMS

Business need, data insights

Switched From

Fuse Universal

Reasons for Switching to Cornerstone LMS

Features and additional suites
Karen
  • Industry: Automotive
  • Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
3
Features
4
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
2

4
Reviewed on 11/7/2019

Cornerstone Recruitment Module

Overall the experience has been good and we are happy with the recruitment solution we have in place. It is helping us to report on sources and cost which is brilliant for making data driven decisions rather than trying to guess what sources are working and what are not as often is the case when using other ATS systems without this functionality.

Pros

The software is user friendly and pretty adaptable to fit our business needs. Most of the screens are modern in design (some need updating) and the workflows are able to be flexed so that the process is not clunky and hard to navigate. It works well for our internal recruitment team and for the most part our candidates, although some improvement could be made to restricting views to some of our managers as they for our process we dont need them to see some of the status's or have the ability to change them. Overall it is one of the better recruitment systems out there for flexibility and functionality. The fact that we are able to track candidates source is crucial to our business and supports our budgeting strategy really well.

Cons

The helpdesk support could be better and more efficient in responding. Having the ability to share screens in real time to highlight issues or discuss improvements that could be made would be better.

Matt
  • Industry: Information Technology & Services
  • Company size: 501–1,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
4
Features
5
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 5/5/2021

Great LMS

Pros

Excellent UI and End User experience. Great product and customer teams, quarterly updates that always add meaningful, high quality new features.

Cons

Lots of configuration, you really have to know what you want to achieve, rather than just take it off the shelf.

Alternatives Considered

Workday HCM

Response from Cornerstone OnDemand

Hi Matt, thank you for taking the time to leave a review! I'm so glad you see value in our product and internal teams. We strive to give our customers the best experience possible and quarterly updates are part of that. We want to keep innovating and listening to what features you want to see. Configuration makes the product unique to each customer but it can be a lot. We are always here to help and answer questions. We want everyone to be successful. Thank you for being a great customer!

Replied 25/5/2021
Jamie
  • Review Source
Value for Money
N/A
Features
N/A
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
3

4
Reviewed on 15/2/2016

A quality LMS and performance management product

I've been an administrator for Cornerstone (CSOD) for about 2 years now. We use the Learning and Connect modules and we have added Observation Checklists from the Performance module. I've previously managed 5 other LMSs in both corporate and education settings. I can honestly say that CSOD is one of my favorites, however, it's not without frustrations at times.

Pros:
-There's been little to no unscheduled downtime.
-They have a quarterly release schedule, which is packed with useful features and updates and then bug fixes/maintenance windows EOW.
-The LMS module works well with most SCORM compliant courses. An issue I struggled with while managing another competitor. We mainly use Articulate Storyline 1 & 2, but it also works well with tutorials that we've purchased from third parties.
-Reporting is powerful and available real-time.
-The enrollment tools allow for a single enrollment or dynamic/scheduled enrollments.
-I really like the customization offered in the portal. Welcome and custom pages have just enough flexibility to allow for creativity, yet are still easy to use. There are also settings for the menu and branding, which allow you to create a unique experience for you audience.
-The system has played well with our nightly user feed from SAP.
-I manage several user roles that allow me to effective manage the rights of various users throughout the system.
-CSOD has revamping several areas of the system to give them a more modern look and feel.
-Additionally, they have a mobile app that just recently received an update that updated its UI.
-Their user conference is one of the best I've ever attended.

Cons:
-Their Global Product Support is sub-par and has been ever since I started managing the system, despite what they call "growing pains" within their structure that they are supposed to be addressing. Not a very good excuse and it is tiring working with them at times.
-Although their mobile app is decent, they seem to introduce a new bug with every release and they only update the app quarterly, so my users have to live with the bug for 3 months before it is patched.
-Their integration with WebEx for vILT just broke last year and it took them 8-10 months to patch it.
-There overall message is that they are a tech company that is fun and nimble like Google or Facebook, however, with their fast growth, they feel like they are moving the direction of SAP and Oracle.

Nate
  • Industry: Insurance
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 1+ year
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
3
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
2

4
Reviewed on 21/8/2019

CSOD Review

We have been working with CSOD for almost two years. Of all the modules CSOD has to offer, the LMS is probably the best. CSOD offers some great resources to get your questions answered however, their Global Product Support for more technical questions/issues is terrible. They have made an effort to improve that team recently however, it has a long way to go. I mentioned it above in the cons section - if you plan on using multiple modules be aware that each module seems to have been developed in a silo effort & there is no consistency throughout.

Pros

1. Quarterly releases with a transparent road map
2. Offers a Client Portal to connect, ask questions & make suggestions, which actually gets used & is useful
3. Scheduled down times are limited
4. Recent updates have added a more modern UI/UX

Cons

1. Global Product Support
2. Global Product Support
3. Global Product Support
4. If you plan on using CSOD's other modules (e.g. Performance, ATS, etc) keep in mind that there is no consistency & the UI/UX will be different depending on where the user is in the system. Although you cannot consider this a con of their LMS.

Casey
  • Industry: Nonprofit Organisation Management
  • Company size: 501–1,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 16/8/2019

Customizable and User-Centric

The use of Cornerstone has been instrumental in changing the training culture of our social services agency, which relies on flexible training delivery to staff who's time is limited and most often needed elsewhere.

Pros

Cornerstone has created and outlet for users across varied companies to collaborate and advocate for new and/or improved features. I have seen requested features come to fruition in their regularly scheduled feature updates that are rolled out several times a year.

Cons

In regards to training and support, Cornerstone definitely prioritizes some functionality over others. When working in the Certification Management area, I have rarely communicated with anyone who I would call an expert. I have often gotten the odd look and the blow off when I expressed my need for assistance in this area.

Christian
  • Industry: Financial Services
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 3/7/2019

Best LMS/LXP out there

Excellent- we are consistently improving automation and reporting, and continue to win national training awards with CSOD in the background.

Pros

I have been in the HRIS world for awhile, and touched many different products. CSOD has been one of the best, the logic and function makes sense, it is intuitive, and the improvements always bring excitement and enthusiasm to the group.
Looking for amazing dynamic software - that can handle either a push or a pull type learning experience, you have found it.

Cons

GPS - struggles. Developers tend to QC live with the early adopter and client community... they are truly Agile in that sense.
GPS is undergoing change, and it has improved drastically in the past 2 years- there is a lot of work left to do.

Samuel
  • Industry: Financial Services
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
4

5
Reviewed on 10/11/2021

Excellent and versatile LMS

It is difficult to learn simply because it is so versatile and there is so much to do. Having Stage and Pilot portals is very helpful for practice and learning the system!

Pros

Cornerstone LMS (and other features) is extremely versatile and can handle everything that we throw at it. We operate with a co-op sort of set up with many different business units in the same LMS, and it works beautifully.

Cons

Some aspects are a bit "steppy" to create, such as building performance tasks. It would be extremely handy to be able to create a review process all in-line, instead of having to build each subsequent piece separately before putting the whole task together.

Martine
  • Industry: Financial Services
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
N/A
Features
3
Ease of Use
3
Customer Support
N/A

4
Reviewed on 17/11/2021

Cornerstone LMS

Pros

Learning Assignment, Skills, machine learner, admin roles, manager's reporting, content rating, search engine, publishing easy

Cons

Points and badges is very basic. Leaderboard has points for all content so not easy to use for specific divisions. Dashboard (would be helpful to put constraint on data shared on Dashboard, i.e. manager to see their direct reports but when in a reporting role that is global, not possible to share a Dashboard for direct report . Cornerstone should work more on gamification, reinforcement knowledge questions integrated in their content or custom content.

Jamie
  • Industry: Machinery
  • Company size: 1,001–5,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
3
Features
4
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
1

4
Reviewed on 24/5/2018

Quality product, poor support, costly price tag

We use Cornerstone LMS to manage our global employee training. It supports SCORM tutorials, videos, and materials, as well as robust reporting.

Pros

Full functionality for an LMS. Can integrate with many other Enterprise systems. New learner experience features are bringing a modern approach to corporate learning. They have started to support xAPI.

Cons

Their Global Product Support has had issues for several years. Response times on tickets are bad.

The cost can be quite high compared to other LMS companies. They demnd a certain percentage increase each year even if it isn't justified.

Verified Reviewer
  • Industry: Wholesale
  • Company size: 201–500 Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
5
Customer Support
5

5
Reviewed on 25/9/2019

An excellent way to organize and provide employee training.

We have used the Learning module for a few years and added in the performance and recruiting modules. My focus is on the Learning and Core modules.

Pros

There is so much we can do to improve our employee education / training with the system.

Cons

We are not using the software to it's full extent so there is a lot of clean up to do. We are also part of a larger corporation so I'm not able to use some of the new features without assistance from the lead organization.

Verified Reviewer
  • Industry: Automotive
  • Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
  • Used Daily for 6-12 months
  • Review Source
Value for Money
5
Features
5
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
5

5
Reviewed on 17/11/2021

Powerful, detailed LMS and more

Pros

Course upload, assignment, and display is all great

Goal setting and performance reviews look great on employee side

Cons

Certifications are complicated to set up and use, but they have their place, Test Engine is not intuitive but they say they are working to update it

Sara
  • Industry: Food & Beverages
  • Company size: 10,000+ Employees
  • Used Daily for 2+ years
  • Review Source
Value for Money
N/A
Features
5
Ease of Use
4
Customer Support
N/A

5
Reviewed on 15/4/2019

Great LMS for Larger Businesses with Extensive Training Needs

Pros

The ability to create groups and assign training to those groups systematically.

Cons

This may just be the way our company has set it up, but for me, reporting is not always intuitive. When you assign training as part of a bundle such as "New hire", "Annual recertification", ect. the individual class inside the bundle doesn't pull in report by that course name. You must select every bundle in which the course is assigned to get an accurate report of completions.

219 reviews