EdSmart
EdSmart operates a School Organisation System that digitises K-12 duty-of-care, parent communication, consent, and compliance workflows for more than 1,400 schools across Australia and New Zealand, sold as a per-Registered-User subscription under legal entity Cloud Paper Group Pty Ltd.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersMelbourne, Australia
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What EdSmart does
EdSmart (legally Cloud Paper Group Pty Ltd, Victoria, Australia) is a privately-held, bootstrapped SaaS company that operates a School Organisation System targeting K-12 schools across Australia and New Zealand. The platform digitises duty-of-care workflows that schools historically manage on paper and via ad-hoc spreadsheets — including excursion approvals, risk assessments, parent consent collection, policy acknowledgements, staff leave, and emergency broadcast communications — and is positioned to supplement, rather than replace, existing student information systems (Sentral, Canvas LMS) and enrollment platforms (Digistorm). The product portfolio is structured around a core EdSmart Platform and four named modules — Slips (digital permission slips), Broadcast (email/SMS with delivery tracking), School Forms (internal workflows), and Processes Module (multi-step approvals) — supported by configurable Workflows and Templates and an EdSmart Academy training program.
The platform is built as a web-browser-based application (no native mobile app) hosted on Microsoft Azure with data stored at rest in Australian data centres; ancillary infrastructure relies on Cloudflare for CDN/TLS, Atlassian for support, SMS Broadcast (AU) and Twilio (ex-AU) for messaging, and ActiveCampaign/Postmark for transactional email. EdSmart has been ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified since 2022 and holds the Safer Technologies 4 Schools (ST4S) Product Badge, alongside documented compliance with Australian Privacy Principles and UK/EU GDPR for offshore customers.
The company monetises via recurring subscriptions billed per Registered User on monthly or annual terms, with invoiced credit terms available at EdSmart's discretion and pricing kept confidential and off the public website. Distribution is consultant-led direct sales supplemented by website lead capture and a self-serve parent portal — no public-facing self-serve school sign-up is offered. The company serves over 1,400 K-12 schools including large Catholic diocesan networks (Brisbane Catholic Education, Catholic Education South Australia), state education departments (Department for Education South Australia), and independent schools (Rangi Ruru Girls' School NZ, Mary MacKillop Catholic College, Wyong Christian Community School, Burnside Primary). EdSmart is co-founded by David Eedle (Co-Founder / CTO-equivalent) and Fiona Boyd (CEO) and remains founder-controlled, with only one disclosed outside capital round of A$285K in December 2014 and a reported headcount of 1-10 staff.
EdSmart firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- EdSmart
- Legal name
- Cloud Paper Group Pty Ltd
- Website
- https://edsmart.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- EdSmart operates a School Organisation System that digitises K-12 duty-of-care, parent communication, consent, and compliance workflows for more than 1,400 schools across Australia and New Zealand, sold as a per-Registered-User subscription under legal entity Cloud Paper Group Pty Ltd.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
EdSmart industry classification
Industry- Product category
- School Administration Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (513210)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Parent/Student Portals, Communications & Consent Management (EDAFAEAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Compliance, State Reporting & Education Data Exchange (Ed-Fi/SIF) (EDAFAEAO)
Keywords
Where EdSmart is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Melbourne
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
EdSmart business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Subscription - Per Registered User: Monthly and annual subscription fees charged per Registered User. Monthly subscribers pay fees in advance; annual subscribers pay for twelve months in advance. Some pricing plans include a monthly fee per Registered User, and schools are responsible for paying for all Registered Users whether or not they actively use the Service.
- Invoiced Subscriptions: Invoiced subscriptions and credit terms available at EdSmart's discretion. Companies agree to EdSmart conducting credit checks and other investigations as to their credit history.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Per Registered User subscription with monthly or annual billing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
EdSmart product offering
Product offeringCore offering
EdSmart provides a web-based School Organisation System (SOS) SaaS platform for K-12 schools in Australia and New Zealand. The platform digitises duty-of-care and compliance workflows including parent communication, digital permission slips, risk assessment, custom forms, informed consent collection, excursion management, and multi-step approval workflows. Customers subscribe on a per-Registered User basis with monthly or annual billing, and schools also gain access to EdSmart Academy training services.
Product overview
EdSmart is a unified web-browser-based School Organisation System designed for K-12 schools in Australia and New Zealand. The platform's core product centers on digitizing school duty-of-care and compliance workflows, connecting parent communication, risk assessment, consent collection, and approval processes. The product portfolio includes the EdSmart Platform as the core system, supplemented by Slips (parent permission and form module), Broadcast (emergency communication), School Forms (internal administrative forms), and the Processes Module (advanced workflow automation). The Workflows feature provides configurable approval routing, while Templates enable consistent form creation. EdSmart Academy provides training services for onboarding. The platform serves over 1,400 schools and is operated by Cloud Paper Group Pty Ltd.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- EdSmart Platform (School Organisation System)
Quantifiable outcome
- Parent approval turnaround reduced from 14 days to 24 hours or less
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use EdSmart
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
EdSmart technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature6 records
EdSmart partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Microsoft AzurecorePrimary cloud hosting infrastructure for EdSmart platform, applications and databases. All customer data is stored at rest in Microsoft Azure data centres located in Australia. EdSmart's service hosting is subject to Microsoft's Service Level Agreement.
- Cloudflare, Inc.coreDNS, content delivery and TLS encryption for EdSmart web traffic. Data transits only via global network edge with no customer data stored at rest by Cloudflare.
- SMS Broadcast Pty LtdcoreSMS delivery service for Australian customers. All SMS processing occurs within Australia.
- Twilio Inc.coreSMS delivery for customers outside Australia only. No Australian customer data is processed by Twilio. Processing occurs in the USA.
- ActiveCampaign, LLC (Postmark)coreTransactional email delivery for system notifications including message content and recipient email address. Limited to these purposes with processing in the USA.
- Atlassian Pty LtdcoreCustomer support service desk and ticket management for EdSmart. All processing and data storage occurs in Australia.
- CTRL GroupminorPartnership for cybersecurity guidance and best practices. CTRL Group's Head of GRC provides expertise on security controls and vendor risk management.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
EdSmart competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Operoo: Operoo is an Australia-based, K-12-specialised consent, duty-of-care, and excursion workflow platform — direct functional twin to EdSmart with overlapping Australian private and Catholic school customers.
- Sentral: Sentral is a major Australian K-12 student management system with workflow, attendance, and wellbeing modules — competes with EdSmart for school-wide administrative budgets and integrates with it (a noted EdSmart partner).
- Compass Education: Compass Education is a leading Australian K-12 school management platform covering communication, consent, and administration — directly substitutes for EdSmart's bundled workflow value proposition.
- SkoolBag: SkoolBag is an Australian K-12 parent communication and form-consent platform — closest functional overlap to EdSmart's Broadcast and Slips modules in the same geography.
- School Stream: School Stream is an Australian school-to-parent notification, SMS, and digital permission slip product — competes directly with EdSmart's parent communication and consent collection capability.
- Digistorm: Digistorm provides Australian K-12 school apps and enrollment systems — partners with EdSmart today but offers overlapping communication and enrollment workflows that could expand to compete directly.
Regional players
- SEQTA: SEQTA is a Western Australian K-12 learning management and wellbeing suite with consent/communication features — comparable administrative workflow product competing in the same Australian school market.
- SIMON (PASCO solutions): PASCO's SIMON is an Australian Catholic-school-oriented student information system competing for the same Catholic diocese customers as EdSmart across ANZ.
Broad incumbents
- PowerSchool: PowerSchool is the dominant global K-12 SIS incumbent; its broader suite dwarfs EdSmart but its consent/communication extensions exert competitive pressure on best-of-breed players across geographies.
Emerging players
- Integris (UK): Integris is a UK K-12 school management suite with workflow and parent comms features — analogous to EdSmart's product scope and a relevant comparable for EdSmart's potential UK expansion thesis.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
EdSmart social profiles
Digital presenceEdSmart compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
EdSmart financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
EdSmart leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
EdSmart funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
EdSmart M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about EdSmart
What does EdSmart do?
EdSmart provides a web-based School Organisation System (SOS) SaaS platform for K-12 schools in Australia and New Zealand. The platform digitises duty-of-care and compliance workflows including parent communication, digital permission slips, risk assessment, custom forms, informed consent collection, excursion management, and multi-step approval workflows. Customers subscribe on a per-Registered User basis with monthly or annual billing, and schools also gain access to EdSmart Academy training services.
Is EdSmart a public or private company?
EdSmart is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was EdSmart founded?
EdSmart was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is EdSmart based?
EdSmart is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does EdSmart make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Subscription - Per Registered User is the primary driver. The others are invoiced Subscriptions.
Who are EdSmart's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Operoo, Sentral, Compass Education, SkoolBag, School Stream and Digistorm. Regional players are SEQTA and SIMON (PASCO solutions). PowerSchool is listed as a broad incumbent. Integris (UK) is listed as an emerging player.
Does EdSmart have an API?
No public API is recorded for EdSmart.
What industry is EdSmart in?
EdSmart's product category is School Administration Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAEAK, Parent/Student Portals, Communications & Consent Management, with a secondary code of EDAFAEAO, Compliance, State Reporting & Education Data Exchange (Ed-Fi/SIF). Its NAICS code is 513210 and its SIC code is 7372.