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2 months to deliver an integrated CPD platform
Our Client Adds CPD Compliance Tracking to LearnUpon, Delivered in 2 Months
Project highlights
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600+ learners onboarded, with more planned
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Partnership continues with a second phase on the roadmap
MEET
Our client is one of Ireland's leading corporate law firms, with offices in Dublin, Cork, London, New York, and San Francisco. They specialize in Corporate and M&A, Banking & Finance, and Litigation & Investigations, among other practice areas.
The Challenge
When a leading Irish law firm switched to LearnUpon, one critical piece was missing
Solicitors in Ireland must complete 25 hours of CPD every year to maintain their practicing certificate. Miss the deadline, and you face two years of mandatory compliance auditing and risk losing the right to practice. That’s why firms like our client rely on an LMS to support the professional development of their lawyers.
Our client moved to LearnUpon as their LMS. The platform handled course delivery well, but had no way to log completed training and track CPD hours against regulatory requirements. Since LearnUpon couldn’t be extended directly, any CPD layer had to be built as a separate, integrated platform. To close the gap, the client approached Academy Smart, a LearnUpon-certified partner with expertise in LMS development and integrations.
Obstacles
Missing compliance layer
LearnUpon had no mechanism to define CPD requirements by role, team, or category and track progress against those requirements per learner.
External CPD was invisible
CPD completed outside the LMS, like webinars, conferences, or self-funded courses, couldn't be logged anywhere.
No analytics or reporting
Managers and administrators had no dashboard to understand how the organization was tracking toward compliance deadlines.
THE PROCESS
How we delivered a custom CPD compliance platform integrated with LearnUpon
When the client came to us, we didn't start from scratch. Academy Smart already had a ready-made CPD solution covering the core functionality, like a compliance rules engine, learner dashboard, activity logging, admin panel, and more.
We walked them through it and let them see what they were getting before the contract was signed. They liked it. Because 80% of the platform was already done, we could focus on the 20% that made it uniquely theirs.
We walked them through it and let them see what they were getting before the contract was signed. They liked it. Because 80% of the platform was already done, we could focus on the 20% that made it uniquely theirs.
We mapped the client's compliance requirements
CPD requirements are a layered set of rules that vary by seniority, category, and activity type. The Law Society of Ireland, for example, requires most solicitors to complete 25 hours per year, with at least 5 hours in professional development and a minimum of 3 in client care and professional standards. Senior practitioners have a different total altogether.
We worked with our client to map this full structure: which groups needed how many hours, which categories applied to which teams, and how different activity types counted toward compliance.
We worked with our client to map this full structure: which groups needed how many hours, which categories applied to which teams, and how different activity types counted toward compliance.
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We built a flexible compliance rules engine
Unlike a simple hour-tracker, this system had to run multiple overlapping rule sets simultaneously.
We configured the compliance system to support a total annual CPD requirement alongside category-level and activity-type sub-requirements. These can be set independently and can overlap.
For instance, a learner attending a qualifying conference can satisfy both a category requirement and an activity-type requirement simultaneously.
We configured the compliance system to support a total annual CPD requirement alongside category-level and activity-type sub-requirements. These can be set independently and can overlap.
For instance, a learner attending a qualifying conference can satisfy both a category requirement and an activity-type requirement simultaneously.
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We integrated with LearnUpon via API
Because client's LMS couldn't be modified directly, we built a secure data sync between LearnUpon and the CPD platform. Users, groups, and course completions are mirrored from LearnUpon into our system in real time. When a learner completes a course in LearnUpon, the CPD platform automatically registers the activity, assigns the appropriate CPD value, and updates compliance progress.
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From customization to launch in 2 months
With the foundation already in place, we focused on what was specific to the client, like multi-level compliance requirements, activity-type tracking, and the pro-rata system.
Two months after kickoff, the platform was live, and the first group of solicitors could see their compliance status in real time.
Two months after kickoff, the platform was live, and the first group of solicitors could see their compliance status in real time.
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Still building: phase two coming next
The initial release gave 600 employees real-time visibility into compliance, hours, and deadlines.
Phase two will extend it firm-wide, with a new personal assistant role, improved CPD calculation logic, and an audit trail to track every action within the system.
Phase two will extend it firm-wide, with a new personal assistant role, improved CPD calculation logic, and an audit trail to track every action within the system.
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THE SOLUTION
Custom CPD platform with full compliance visibility
In around 2 months, we configured role-based dashboards with three views:
- a learner dashboard showing personal CPD progress
- a manager view for monitoring team compliance
- an administrator panel for setting requirements and reviewing the full organization.
Here is how the platform works for different people in the firm.
Learner: personal compliance dashboard and activity logging
Each learner has a personal dashboard that shows where they stand: total hours completed, hours remaining, and which categories still need to be fulfilled before the deadline. Learners can also log CPD completed outside LearnUpon, such as conferences or self-funded courses, directly in the platform. Externally logged activities carry the same compliance weight as LMS-tracked completions. This way, 100% of a learner’s professional development is captured in one place.
Manager: team compliance at a glance
Managers have a dedicated view of every learner they oversee. They can see who is on track, who is falling behind, and how each team member is progressing across categories and activity types. If a learner has missed logging an activity, the manager can step in to send a reminder to that employee, or add it on their behalf.
Administrator: compliance control in one place
Admins set the rules once, and the platform takes it from there. They can define CPD requirements by group, category, and activity type, and assign different rules to different teams.
For example, if a solicitor takes parental leave or has other qualifying circumstances, an administrator can reduce their individual CPD requirement without touching the rules for anyone else in their group. Administrators also have real-time visibility into compliance progress in the firm.
Tech stack
Frontend
Backend
AI & Integrations
Results
The client adds CPD compliance to LearnUpon, 2 months after kickoff
The client moved from a LearnUpon setup with no compliance visibility to an integrated CPD platform that tracks every hour, inside the LMS and out. The platform lets the firm define its own compliance requirements and adjust them as regulations change.
Complete CPD compliance visibility across the firm
Solicitors at client can now see their compliance status in real time, so the firm doesn't have to go into audit season blind.
Flexible rules engine configured in 2 months
CPD rules vary by seniority, group, category, and activity type, and run simultaneously without conflict. When individual circumstances require it, administrators adjust one learner's requirement without touching anyone else.
External activities tracked
Learners can now log CPD completed outside LearnUpon directly in the platform. Professional development that used to fall through the cracks or live in a spreadsheet now counts toward compliance like any other activity.
Before
No way to define or track CPD requirements in LearnUpon
External CPD activities had no system to be logged in
Managers had no visibility into team compliance status
No audit-ready CPD record for individual professionals
After
Compliance rules configured by group, category, and activity type
Learners log external training directly, with full compliance credit
Real-time dashboards show progress at the learner, team, and org level
Exportable, role-specific compliance record maintained automatically
