When it comes to your LMS, not having a choice – or being “locked in” – can cost you a lot more than you think.

As Moodle LMS is a free and open-source application, it is not new that there are many companies that provide services for Moodle, even without being part of the official Moodle Partner network. And while these offerings may look the same on paper, they often differ significantly. Some are actually Moodle-based platforms that operate independently from Moodle HQ. Some are rare former Moodle Partners that have been acquired by commercial entities, or have entirely walked away from the Moodle Partner model – all of which come with many limitations.

Our team at Catalyst IT is consistently surprised by how many educators, administrators, and technical teams we speak to at edtech events who are unaware that their organization is, in fact, on a Moodle-based product, and not necessarily on Moodle core with a Certified Moodle Partner organization.

Know the difference.

Understanding the differences and choosing the right Moodle LMS service provider should not be an afterthought. It matters. The closer your organisation is to the Moodle LMS product and community, the better the value that can be gained.

Only Certified Moodle Partner organisations can offer the fullest suite of services, be able to present the most flexibility for your needs and to be the closest to the product and pedagogical team members of Moodle HQ.

Ideally, you want a Certified Moodle Partner with:

• Deep Moodle expertise combined with a full suite of technical capabilities
• A range of services to support your organisation’s priorities and the changing needs of educational delivery
• Experience with other clients in your industry, with the ability to provide you with proactive and innovative support based on your business and operational needs

How is Moodle with Catalyst different?

Building and maintaining an enterprise Moodle instance can be complex. It is rare for in-house technical teams to have all the required capability to manage large LMS instances efficiently and without stress. That’s where a Premium Certified Moodle Partner like Catalyst makes a huge difference: they make complex simple!

Catalyst IT’s partnership with Moodle dates back 20+ years, from the very first versions of Moodle LMS. Our team has been one of the largest contributors to Moodle since its early beginnings, and has become the provider of choice for many higher education institutions, government agencies, as well as major organisations in health, not-for-profit and commercial sectors.

Our award-winning team manages some of the largest Moodle instances worldwide, taking full technical responsibility for their client Moodle sites, letting them focus on what matters most – teaching and learning.

What Catalyst IT is known for:

Technical Integrity

As your organisation grows, learning environments will become more complex. New learners, additional programs, enterprise integrations and evolving compliance requirements will place greater demands on technology.

When your Moodle is with Catalyst, you don’t need to worry about efficient scaling, and ongoing performance and security patching. These are part of the solution that Catalyst provides.

With Catalyst, you can operate with greater confidence and peace of mind, even during peak times such as exam periods and beginning of the semester. You will achieve long term efficiencies, and enjoy a resilient, future-ready LMS platform that will evolve with your organisation’s changing needs.

With 350 open source specialists, our Moodle developer team is world class, actively contributing to improve Moodle through code reviews, numerous high performing plugins, and collaborative projects with our clients across the Moodle ecosystem. Our clients consistently rank us top of class for technical capability.

Flexibility

Ever felt restricted in what you can or can’t add to your Moodle?

Your LMS should be able to adapt to your teaching and learning strategy, not the other way around. Moodle was built to be extended.

Some providers offer a narrow suite of services. Many Moodle-based products are wrapped up in certain business models, such as SaaS, that limit your options. The limitations may include:

• What plugins you can or cannot install and how much it will cost you
• What products you can integrate with
• The level of LMS customisations you can deploy to your Moodle instance

When your Moodle is with Catalyst, you make it your own, having access to over 2,000 plugins and integrations via the Moodle Marketplace, as well as the option of building your own functionality via plugins, when an off-the-shelf solution is not available.

Over the years, Catalyst have built numerous Moodle extensions for our clients, helping them achieve their goals, deliver more engaging learning experiences, improve learning analytics, and streamline operations.

Local support and security

When it comes to technical support, no organisation should feel forgotten or left behind, waiting too long to receive the support they need.

Catalyst’s multi-region Follow The Sun (FTS) support model for our hosting clients means we have technical teams across multiple time zones, providing continuous operational coverage.

ISO 27001-certified, Catalyst is highly committed to maintaining security and improving the resilience of our clients’ learning environments in the cloud, from conducting routine preventative IT maintenance to bringing security best practices to your Moodle LMS.

Furthermore, Catalyst works in close partnership with Moodle HQ, meaning we and our clients receive advance notice and timely roll out of all important security releases.

We are excited to partner with Catalyst to help expand our reach to learners around the world. Their expertise will help us scale to new heights and better serve our students as we work to improve the learning experience.

– Jeff Davidson, Executive Director, Saylor University

Choose a partnership that delivers.

Your Moodle is more than just an LMS: it is a platform for continuous improvement, learning, and growth. As the education sector continues to evolve, choosing the right LMS partner can make or break your experience and your teaching and learning capability.

To unlock the full potential of your Moodle LMS, you need a trusted partner with deep Moodle expertise and values that align with your organisation. If flexibility, security, technical integrity and freedom to innovate are important to you, choose Catalyst IT.

Get in touch with our team today!