FAQs

What is a Learner Group? How Are They Used?

Defines learner groups and how they are used for selling content, restricting access to content, target training with learner groups, grouping content, and simplifying enrollment for new and existing learners.

March 28, 2022


 

Related: To learn how to assign learner groups to content and learners, visit Creating, Assigning, and Removing Learner Groups.

What is a Learner Group? 

Learner Groups give and restrict learners’ access to content in the Rockstar Learning Platform system. Learner groups can be used to sell different training modules to different groups. They can also be used to create personalized learning paths by offering training modules for groups of learners with similar training needs.

Learner groups are not tied to enterprises or offices, so learners in different enterprises and offices can belong to the same learner group.

Courses can also contain modules that belong to different learner groups. When this is the case, learners would have a different list of modules on the course page based on the ones that share a learner group with them. 


 

Example 1: Selling Courses

You will only need one learner group (see Make Content Available to All Users with the “All” Learner Group) if you are selling all of your courses to all of your learners. 

However, if you need to sell some courses to Group A and other courses to Group B, you can create two learner groups so that Group A cannot access Group B’s courses and vice versa. 


 

Example 2: Personalized Training

  • You can create an “Onboarding” learner group and assign it to all new hires.
  • A “Manager” learner group could provide managers with additional training that standard employees do not need. 
  • Regulations may be different for offices in different states or countries. A learner group could be created for each office so employees receive accurate training based on their employment location. 
  • You could create learner groups based on job title so sales representatives can all access sales training without being bogged down by training meant for developers. 

 

Grouping by Learner and Content

Learner groups are designed to tie groups of learners to groups of modules; however, learner groups do not automatically enroll learners in modules that share their learner group. Instead, they simply provide learners with access to all modules that share a learner group with them. 

Note: Learner groups can be assigned to learners, modules, and channels; they cannot be assigned to courses. Because of this, a course can have modules assigned to different learner groups. 


 

Example 3: Assigning Learners to Learner Groups

Lee is a sales manager working in Chicago, IL. Alice was recently hired in Salt Lake City, UT as a new sales representative. Carlos also works in Salt Lake City, and he is a manager of business operations.

In order to ensure training is consistent across the company while only providing learners access to the training they need, the Rockstar Learning Platform administrator assigned these learner groups: 

  • Lee: All, Sales, Manager, Illinois
  • Alice: All, Sales, Utah
  • Carlos: All, Business Operations, Manager, Utah

 

Example 4: Assigning Learner Groups to Modules and Channels

Note: Channels can also be assigned to learner groups in a similar manner, but for simplicity this example only includes modules. 

The Rockstar Learning Platform administrator wants to quickly assign new employees to relevant training. They also want to quickly distribute new training to existing employees. 

Modules: Cybersecurity, Federal Regulations for Sales, Sales Regulations Unique to Utah, Leading through Empowerment, Well-Oiled Machine: Organizing People and Systems; Advanced CRM Functions, Building Client Relationships, and Cold Calling. 

The administrator discusses these modules with stakeholders and assigns them to the following learner groups:

  • All: Cybersecurity 
  • Sales: Federal Regulations for Sales, Building Client Relationships, Cold Calling
  • Manager: Leading Through Empowerment, Well-Oiled Machine: Organizing People and Systems
  • Utah: Sales Regulations Unique to Utah
  • Business Operations: Advanced CRM Functions

Note: Though “Illinois” was a learner group in the system, none of the above modules were assigned to that learner group because there were no modules specific to that training need. 


 

Summary 1: Learners’ Access to Modules

With the two examples above, the following learners will have access to the following modules:

Note: “Access to” means that learners can search for and be enrolled in these modules if they are enrollable (see How to Create, Edit, or Delete a Course). But the learner is not enrolled in the modules; the modules will not show up on the learners’ “enrolled” tab or in any reports. 

  • Lee (All, Sales, Manager, Illinois): 
    • Cybersecurity 
    • Federal Regulations for Sales
    • Building Client Relationships
    • Cold Calling
    • Leading Through Empowerment
    • Well-Oiled Machine: Organizing People and Systems
  • Alice (All, Sales, Utah):
    • Cybersecurity
    • Federal Regulations for Sales
    • Building Client Relationships
    • Cold Calling
    • Sales Regulations Unique to Utah
  • Carlos (All, Business Operations, Manager, Utah): 
    • Cybersecurity
    • Advanced CRM Functions
    • Leading Through Empowerment
    • Well-Oiled Machine: Organizing People and Systems
    • Sales Regulations Unique to Utah

 

Fine-Tune with Enrollment 

Now that the administrator has assigned learners and modules to learner groups, they can enroll the learners in relevant training. When looking at the list above, Carlos and Lee have access to modules that are not particularly relevant to their jobs. The administrator can declutter their learning dashboards by only enrolling them in the relevant modules 

Related: To learn how to enroll users in a module, visit Admin Manually Enroll Users in Modules. 


 

Summary 2: Enrolled Modules

Once the administrator has enrolled each user in relevant modules, the following modules will appear in the learners’ dashboards:

  • Lee (All, Sales, Manager, Illinois): 
    • Cybersecurity 
    • Federal Regulations for Sales
    • Building Client Relationships
    • Leading Through Empowerment
  • Alice (All, Sales, Utah):
    • Cybersecurity
    • Federal Regulations for Sales
    • Building Client Relationships
    • Cold Calling
    • Sales Regulations Unique to Utah
  • Carlos (All, Business Operations, Manager, Utah): 
    • Cybersecurity
    • Advanced CRM Functions
    • Leading Through Empowerment
    • Well-Oiled Machine: Organizing People and Systems

 

Adding New Learners and Modules

If a new learner is added to an existing learner group, they will have access to all modules and channels assigned to that learner group automatically. However, they will not be automatically enrolled in those channels and modules unless the “Auto-enrollment” setting is turned on (see Automatically Enroll New Learners in Specific Modules).

Similarly, if a new module or channel is added to an existing learner group, all learners in that group will have access to the new content. However, admins would still have to enroll those users in the new content unless “Auto-enrollment” is turned on. 

Note: Auto-enrollment only works for new users. If an existing user gets access to a course that has auto-enrollment turned on, they will not get enrolled. All enrollment for existing users has to be done manually in the enrollments tab (see Admin Manually Enroll Users in Courses). 

Related: To learn how to assign learner groups to content and learners, visit Creating, Assigning, and Removing Learner Groups.