As we approach the end of 2017 we have one final round of updates to the Go1 Platform that will set you up for a great start to the new year! With this update you will be able to take a deeper look at how users are interacting with individual learning items within Premium content as well as Awards, view learner transcripts, review groups prior to joining and more.

Administrators can view a Learner’s Award progress

To provide greater clarity around current and needed training, Administrators can now view the Learning Records tab for a Learner’s enrolment in an Award. By clicking on the "View Details" button from a Learner’s Award enrolment, available through the Reports tab on an Award, the Administrator can view the courses and external learning items that learner has accrued against that Award.

Understanding which Premium content learning items are best for your learners can be tough, so we’ve now added a “Results” tab on all learning items so that administrators take a closer look at how their learners are interacting with specific learning item. Simply to the the learning item, and click the results tab to view the report.

Have multiple authors on a single learning item

To improve the learning content creation process, you can now have multiple authors not only on a course, but on individual learning items themselves.

Courses with scheduled dates now appear on course card

To make it quicker and easier to find the right scheduled course that you are looking for, all scheduled courses now have the dates, and number of seats available displayed on the course card.

To make it easier to track Awards without having to look at individual courses, we have added a Reports tab to all awards page. Here you can utilise all of the Go1 reporting tools, as applied to your users completing Awards.

Just like with courses, you should be able to view a group before deciding to commit to it. With this update you can view the current public comments without joining to decide if the group is the right fit for your needs.

Add default avatar for groups within a portal

Sign up for a free trial today and try it out for yourself!

If you have any questions about any of the updates and improvements listed above, please let us know and our Customer Success Team can help you out!

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Try our new reporting tools with the Go1 December update

As 2017 draws to a close, we thought we’d look back at some of the highlights of the past year – it’s been a very busy and exciting time for the Go1 team!

From the launch of The eLearning Assist webinar, to our new 24/7 customer support, and the many updates we’ve made to the Go1 platform, here’s what we’ve been up to throughout 2017.

At Go1, we’re continually making improvements and updates to the Go1 platform, to make life easier for you – and your learners.

Throughout the year, we launched a stack of new tools to help you save time and streamline the way that you deliver learning material.

A handful of our many updates during 2017 included:

Simplifying the way in which you can purchase and assign content to your users

Making improvements to the Administrator dashboard, to include a new tab for Groups for quickly viewing and managing all of your groups in the Go1 portal

Making it easier for Administrators to distribute learning content and track user progress

Improving communication with learners, simplifying course bookings, and being able to save and schedule learning

Improving learner engagement, with a tool that encourages users to watch a full video, before being able to mark as completed and move to the next learning item

Allowing our Administrators to control how their portal will look, with options to customise login screens and images, portal banner images, color schemes and even add your company logo to the Menu Bar.

We hope you’ve enjoyed using these new features and tools in the Go1 platform!

In 2017, we launched The eLearning Assist, with our inaugural webinar taking place on August 22nd.

We know that many of want to learn more about how to deliver an effective training program and get the most out of the Go1 platform, so we decided to pass on our knowledge to you through regular webinars.

This year, Go1’s VP of Marketing, Scott Cooper, alongside members of the Go1 team, talked us through many features of the Go1 platform, with step-by-step instructions and plenty of handy tips.

The eLearning Assist takes place every month and covers trending industry information, a demonstration of a Go1 Platform feature, and a Q&A session where we will cover any questions you might have around anything to do with online learning, content, training, or the Go1 platform.

You can watch recaps of each episode here, and keep an eye out for our first episode of 2018!

Episode 1 – How to get the perfect blended learning approach, so that you can enable your team to take advantage of online training

Episode 2 – How to go about structuring a good training program to get the most out of your team

Episode 3 – How to get started with setting up and configuring a learning portal, from scratch

Episode 4 – How to use the groups feature, you can start automating assigned online courses to your learners

The eLearning Assist podcast is also available through iTunes – making it even easier for you to keep up-to-date with our episodes.

Introducing Go1 Premium – Now with 600+ Courses

Earlier this year we introduced Go1 Premium, containing 270 online courses.

In October 2017, we were excited to announce that we’ve more than doubled our course offering to include over 600+ courses!

With Go1 Premium, we’ve got all the courses you need for employee training, covering compliance, professional development, leadership and more, from some of the best content providers worldwide.

At Go1 we understand that getting the help you need, when you need it, is important to all businesses.

Our round-the-clock support service allows all Go1 users and website visitors to speak directly with a member of the Go1 team at any time of the day, with instant responses to any questions that they might have.

And from the positive feedback we’ve had from you all, this new service has been a big hit!

Remember, our 24/7 customer service includes email and phone support, as well as our live chat support that can be opened at any time by clicking the chat icon in the bottom right corner of your screen.

Helping Organisations Improve their Learning Culture

Throughout the year, we’ve partnered with many businesses to help them improve the way they deliver and manage their employee training.

We teamed up with workforce automation solution specialists, Tanda, to make compliance easier for businesses across the world.

And partnered with learning management systems provider Totara to provide Totara partners with comprehensive training solutions for its customers.

We also helped companies such as Thrifty, ASG, HESTA and Claim Central develop a culture of learning across their organisation, through improved training.

Take a look at three case studies from this year, to see first-hand how the Go1 platform is helping companies to deliver improved learning to their teams.

This year, we covered many exciting (and sometimes challenging!) topics on the Go1 Blog, as we explored all things learning and development.

From diving into the innovative world of gamification and VR, to talking about current trends in eLearning technology, our articles discussed many interesting facets of the learning industry.

Here’s a look at your top five most-read articles of 2017!

We’d also like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers, partners, readers and followers for your ongoing support throughout the year – happy holidays!

When you’re on leave from work, do you still find yourself checking work email? Or responding to work requests throughout your holiday? Unfortunately, you’re not alone, with many people finding it hard to completely switch off from technology during their break.

You don’t necessarily need to do a full digital detox during your holiday – although it could be a good idea! But it is important to take a conscious step away from your work devices throughout the break.

We recently talked about the importance of taking time off over the holiday season.

As we said then, with our current obsession and celebration of ‘busyness’ it can be hard to step away from work, as it’s often linked to our feelings of self-worth and achievement. But running on low levels of creativity and productivity isn’t really helping anyone – you, your boss or your clients or customers.

Whether you’re taking a few weeks annual leave, or just a long weekend break, you’ll no doubt want to use this time to relax and recharge away from work.

Drawing clear lines between your work and personal life will help you to get the physical and mental rest you need, before returning to work with a fresh mindset.

The Impact of Technology on Our Personal Lives

There’s no doubt that technology makes life a whole lot easier, with laptops, tablets and smartphones offering us instant communication and convenience. But with the existence of these devices, the lines between work and home life have become increasingly blurred.

Our mobile devices allow us to check our emails first thing in the morning, finish work projects after hours and take phone calls from the office at any time. And while being constantly available and online can have its advantages, it also means many of us are finding it hard to switch off from technology after hours.

When we’re at work, we get into the habit of constantly checking our computer, laptop or phone (or all three, repeatedly!) for new messages, emails and notifications. When we do finally take a break, it can be really hard to stop these repetitive patterns.

Set Clear Guidelines and Expectations Before You Go on Leave


So what can we do to prevent work life from cutting into our personal life when we’re on a break?


According to an article in the Guardian, a survey by CareerBuilder found that 17% of employees felt they were expected to check their email, and 8% felt they had to check voicemails while on holiday.

Because technology enables us to be contacted on holiday, there can sometimes be an expectation that we should respond.

Scott Helmes, Managing Director at CareerBuilder recommends aligning your time off around your workplace’s busiest times of year, to help you feel you can really switch off.

“Asking what is expected of you while you're away can also help to ease the tension around going away, and put your mind at rest while you kick back and relax,” says Helmes.

How to Switch Off from Work During Your Break

Mark Cropley, author of The Off-Switch: Leave Work on Time, Relax Your Mind But Still Get More Done, believes that people are finding it increasingly hard to switch off due to “a combination of better technology and greater paranoia.”

“The problem is that people just get into a routine of answering emails all the time. But we need to take control of our life outside of work,” he says. Cropley also believes that employee will be more respected for it. While significantly improving their own wellbeing.

“People who can’t switch off have sleeping problems, concentration problems, and other issues… they are tense and irritable, they have high blood pressure, a high heart rate, and that puts stress on the cardiovascular system. We’ve also shown that people who can’t switch off have high levels of cortisol, which is seen as the stress hormone.”

Cropley advises setting up an out-of-office email as soon as you leave work. This will stop bosses and colleagues expecting you to respond. When you’re on holiday, put everything that’s to do with work out of sight and switch your work mobile off.

You might also like to try getting some separation from technology by heading out without your phone – even leaving it behind for short times can make a big difference. And try your best to avoid looking at any work-related emails for the days on which you’re on leave. It’s just a habit, and habits can be broken.

And for many people, it’s often during downtime that they come up with their best ideas, as the brain shifts gear while running, swimming or just being out in nature, away from the work environment.

So step away from your desk, switch off your work devices, and slip into relax mode for the duration of your break – you deserve it!

Read more about the importance of switching off from technology after hours, to help you avoid technology burnout and create a better work-life balance – all year round.


Get 600+ courses from $4 per user per month 

Why you need to switch off from technology during your break

As we approach the end of 2017, we’d like to thank all our readers and followers for your ongoing feedback and engagement throughout the year.

We’ve covered many exciting (and sometimes challenging!) topics over the past year, as we’ve explored all things learning and development.

From diving into the innovative world of gamification and VR, to talking about current trends in eLearning technology, our articles have discussed many interesting facets of the learning industry. We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about these topics as much as we have.

#1. Structured vs Unstructured Learning in the Workplace

In this article, Ricardo asks: how can we take advantage of technology in order to enable a better blend of structured and unstructured learning, and better overall training and development results?

“In structured learning, information is presented in a structured manner (live presentations, offline slides, videos, documents, books, etc.), learning activities are done as directed, and assessments are used to check if the employee has learned what has been intended to be learnt. This is the traditional approach.”

“Unstructured learning includes learn-on-the-job approaches and happens with the natural experiences and interactions the employee has.”

Keen to enable more unstructured learning in your organisation? Here are some tips.

Assign a peer coach or shadowing experiences;

Create knowledge bases that are easy to search and access;

Have an active online internal social network and instant messaging tool;

Provide collaborative online spaces where information is presented as it is being developed;

Promote an open and positive work culture, where employees can ask questions and learn from peers while doing the job.

You’ll gain an understanding of the differences between structured and unstructured learning in the workplace, and why it’s important to use a combination of both.

#2. The Impact of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

 2017 saw much discussion and media attention around the subject of sexual harassment in the workplace.

At Go1, we believe all employees have the right to work in a positive and non-threatening work environment, free from any form of sexual harassment. Yet sexual harassment remains a serious issue for many workplaces.

In this article, we looked at how sexual harassment impacts the workplace and the negative effects it can have for both individuals and organisations. Does your organisation have a strong policy around sexual harassment? You can commit to creating a positive and safe environment for your staff, by developing and implementing an effective strategy that prevents and addresses workplace harassment.

Read the full article to find helpful online resources containing more information about workplace harassment and how to navigate this important topic.

#3. How to Measure the Success of Leadership Development Programs

In an effort to make their managers and leaders the best they can be for the business, today’s companies are investing record amounts in leadership development programs for their employees. This is understandable – after all, your company’s long-term success depends on creating strong, successful leaders for the future.

However, with such large proportions of funds going into this area, it’s important for organizations to develop ways of measuring leadership outcomes, to see if these investments are paying off. Unfortunately, leadership is a lot harder to assess than other more tangible aspects of an organization, such as sales figures or productivity reports. So how do we go about measuring leadership development?

#4. Can Manipulation Be Used in a Positive Way?

This article poses the question: have you ever thought about the potential of manipulation for positive change?

No one likes being manipulated. Whether it’s in our personal or professional lives, the idea of manipulation is generally considered to be a bad thing. Most of us associate it with negative connotations, such as people trying to take advantage of us or push us into doing something we don’t really want to do.

But manipulation can sometimes be a good thing – as surprising as this may sound!

Using a positive form of manipulation to motivate employees towards their goals can help to improve their performance and allow teams to achieve organisational goals. This good kind of manipulation is also used by non-profit organisations and ethical companies to persuade people to act, helping others in need and promoting positive change in the world.

If this has got you thinking about ethics in your workplace, and how you can bring positive forms of manipulation to your role as a manager, jump over here.

#5. The Difference Between Knowledge and Skills

These terms are often used interchangeably. But they shouldn’t be!

Knowledge and skills are two similar but separate terms that express two key elements of success in a situation or an accomplishment of a goal.

In this article, you’ll find explanations and examples of the different between knowledge and skills.

“A teacher may have a teaching certificate showing the requisite knowledge to educate young people, but without engagement skills, they’ll never be able to successfully transfer that knowledge.”

You’ll see how skills can be learned and improved upon. They can be honed and crafted through the practice of the practical implementation of their knowledge. And you’ll understand why this is so important when we’re talking about the skills gap within the current workforce.

Happy reading, and happy holidays, from the Go1 team.

Does PowerPoint play an important role in your company?

There’s no doubt that when it comes to presentations, PowerPoint is the most popular tool that’s used across the world.

We all know presentations are there at every level of business – from interviews to serious boardroom meetings, you’ll always find PowerPoint being used in the background.

Certainly, technology has moved on from the days where presentations were scribbled down on overhead projectors. Now, it’s crucial to have the right tools to get your message across in any situation.

Of course, not everyone’s as tech savvy as they’d like to be. While a lot of people wish to make their presentations visually engaging and interesting for their audience, if you’re not familiar with PowerPoint, this can seem a lot more difficult than it actually is.

That’s where a PowerPoint course comes in. With a little time and concentration, your employees can become more accustomed with the program and how it can aid them in creating brilliant presentations.

This course is suited for those employees who don’t have a lot of experience using PowerPoint. In addition, the course can benefit any employees that have used the program before, but simply want to brush up on their skills and remind themselves of the basics.

The bulk of the course is made up of instructional videos that use an engaging voiceover. The videos take you through the content by showing you how to do every step on screen and what to expect when you’re using a Windows computer.

There are also cheat sheets included for every section of the course. This displays screenshots from the video, which creates a step-by-step guide to using PowerPoint. This helps to break it down and allows employees to see every step in detail.

This instructional course is great for covering all the basics you need to know to feel comfortable using PowerPoint. It takes users through every step from the very beginning, form opening the program through to your presentation at the end.

This section covers everything you need to know to get started. It demonstrates the start-up screen and what users can see, whether they want to create a new presentation or open an existing one.

The video creates a blank presentation and shows how to create a title on the slide, as well as how to create an entirely new slide and add text to it. You can see the automatic bullet point formatting in action onscreen.

In addition, it shows how to add reference notes, which keeps your slides clear and concise, but allows you to add more information to your presentation.

Saving files frequently mean you avoid losing work at important times.

This section shows how easy it is to use the quick access toolbar to hit the save button and protection your presentation. If it’s your first time saving your work, the course takes you through the ‘save as’ option and where to save the PowerPoint.

This section reminds users that plain text can be boring for audiences. But by using pictures, videos and graphs, you can add some color and interest. The video shows the icons you can hover over to insert a table, chart or SmartArt graphic or pictures.

Moreover, it explains the stages to take when you want to insert a picture. Although PowerPoint automatically sizes your picture, this section shows you how to adjust it to get the picture just right. This is using gridlines, as well as align, recolor, frame or rotate.

This section shows you how to give your presentation a professional look using the design tab. This has lots of themes to brighten the slides with designs, fonts and backgrounds.

You can also create your own or select a theme – perhaps this is your company logo and design. It also walks you through the slideshow options and how you can run through your presentation in full screen.

The Review tab has a spell checker and the ability to add comments if others are reviewing it for you.

This section explains how you can print a hard copy of your finished presentation. This is achieved through the file tab, with a preview of your slides and by selecting your printer.

Of course, once your presentation is finished, you’ve got to learn how to run it from your laptop or mobile device for your audience. This section discusses how you can do this in a meeting room.

This includes plugging in the projector to your laptop and using presenter view on PowerPoint, which is on the slideshow tab. This is also laser pens you can use onscreen to guide your audience.

It’s simple - when you know what you’re doing with PowerPoint, you can create better presentations. After all, what’s the point in having a program if you don’t know how to use it to its full potential? This all leads to clearer communication and understanding for everyone.

Employees will benefit from a boost in confidence with a thorough PowerPoint Course, learning how they can make their presentation have a better visual impact and be interesting for their audience. Your slideshow can look like it was designed by a professional in no time!

PowerPoint is easy to use – but only once you know how to use it.

The course runs through the steps you need to make a presentation for important meetings with clients and customers, as well as other staff members. It allows more interactivity than just reading from a sheet of paper.

Don’t forget - having a great PowerPoint presentation is the key to success!

Are you thinking about using e-learning content, but don’t know if it’s the right move for your employees?

Everyone remembers the classroom environment at school, where your teacher would stand at the front and teach. We even see this kind of setup in the workplace when it comes to training days.

While this may be an effective way for some people to learn, it isn’t always so engaging for others. As a result, new ways of learning have emerged.

In recent years, the advancement of technology has meant that we’ve seen the use of e-learning courses and digital content emerging in the workplace, replacing more traditional styles of learning.

Suddenly, there are less training days and more time for actual work to be accomplished. Is this a bad thing?

For most people, moving from a classroom to a computer isn’t a problem. After all, we’re a generation that are always on our mobile devices and searching the internet for information.

In a work environment, now e-learning courses allow you to learn on your own time, which is especially great for part-time and work-from-home employees, just as much as busy full-time staff.

Of course, as everything moves digital, we run the risk of losing that vital human connection we need for effective learning. That’s why it’s important that e-learning content doesn’t become ‘too digital’ – it’s got to have the essential human touch.

When digital content is all automated and electronic, it often lacks imagination and this can mean that training becomes boring and disengaging for employees.

This is when content becomes less effective at its job. Having a human touch makes it more relatable, personal and interactive.

There are many ways you can bring a human touch to your digital content. One of the half-way points a lot of people use when they’re making the switch from traditional to modern is blended learning.

This is when you let your employees enjoy the best of both worlds – they have e-learning courses that they can work through on their own, as well as classroom training sessions.

While there’s nothing wrong with this approach, there’s still plenty of options online that still incorporate the human touch into learning.

Since e-learning is more cost effective and the most efficient way of learning, it’s best to explore your options – why would you want to spend more money and time on training days when you don’t have to, right?

Online e-learning courses that use videos for educating their audience are one of the best ways to learn in the digital age. The engaging voiceovers allow employees to feel like they are interacting with the instructor and they are being communicated with directly.

In addition, seeing scenarios on screen makes learning much more effective. Whether this is a real-life scenario or an animation, this is a great way to bring concepts to life and conveying messages successfully.

You’ll find that the human touch makes everything more relatable and realistic for the learner, which in turn makes it more memorable and useful for everyday working life.

What’s more, animated videos don’t just tell a story, but they can be amusing too! This will make learning a lot more enjoyable and fun for everyone.

There’s plenty of courses you can choose from to suit your employees and industry. From the basics of accounting to how you can manage stress, the possibilities are endless!

When you have digital content for your employees, you want to make sure everyone gets the support that they need and can interact about what they’re learning.

Creating an online community within your office is the perfect way to do both of these things at once. After all, we’re all social beings and need interaction even online.

Incorporating discussion forums within your LMS will allow everyone to share ideas and collaborate, as well as raise any concerns they have. You can create different topics and establish a virtual learning environment.

Live webinars are the perfect way to spice up the old classroom style method of learning. Hosting this online, lets training take place from anywhere and lets employees around the country join in and learn together.

Your employees can hear the instructor and see their facial expressions, as well as have the ability to share ideas and interact with everyone online. There are a lot of features of webinar software that lets you ask live questions to the instructor.

With video conferencing calls, you can all see and interact with each other through audio or video. It’s like being in the same room as everyone else! You’re able to enjoy all the benefits – you can share ideas and communicate just like you would in person.

There’s no doubt that employee training is moving with the times and this means that online e-learning courses are the future. That means it’s better to make the adjustment in your office now rather than later. You can see what works best for you without rushing.

To keep the human touch with your online learning courses, video content is the best way to go, while creating an online community will make sure everyone stays interactive with each other.

In addition, adding some monthly live webinars into the mix is sure to keep the best elements of classroom learning in the frame.

Together, this is going to create an amazing learning experience for your employees that incorporates modern technology and keeps the all-important human touch!


Why your digital content needs to have a human touch

Traditionally, many employees will enjoy taking time off over the holiday season. With many businesses shutting down between the Christmas and New Year period, it’s a good opportunity for workers to lock in some quality time with family and friends, while recharging their batteries for the year ahead.

In Australia, annual leave is a legal requirement, however many employees still worry about taking time off.

Some employees might feel guilty about adding to the workload of others. Others may be worried they might not have a job to come back to if they take their annual leave. And unfortunately, many people think they’re simply too busy to take a break – winding down might not even seem worth it, due to the amount of work they know they’ll come back to!

Are you worried about taking time off this holiday season? 

Please read this, and think about the importance of taking proper time off over the holiday season. By taking a break, you’ll be doing the best thing for your wellbeing, your employer, and your career.

Reasons why employees don’t take holiday leave

Why are so many employees deciding against taking time off, choosing to work through the holiday season instead?

There could be many reasons why your staff members aren’t taking their annual leave. Or why you’ve made the decision yourself not to take time off.

In such a competitive job market, many workers fear that they could be replaced during the break, or the job could go to someone else if they take leave and are unavailable.

In other cases, it may not seem worth it – taking time off only to return to an overflowing inbox of URGENT emails. Most of us have been in this situation at some point, returning from a relaxing holiday to a giant pile up of fresh deadlines and meeting invites greeting you at your desk.

As psychologist Sarah-Jayne Whiston explains, fear of taking annual leave is “a common occurrence in workplaces. It’s that sinking feeling if you leave your work, the emails and things to do list will keep mounting, so taking time off will mean you have to come back to even more work,” says Sarah-Jayne.

What can employers do to promote annual leave?

As an employer, it’s a good idea to be mindful of the stresses that the holiday season can bring. If you’ve noticed your team members are hesitant to down tools and switch off, think about how you can encourage them to take time off.

Reassure your employees of the security of their jobs in the new year, to encourage workers to take the leave days that they legally have a right to.

For employees who are worried about their team members having to pick up the slack? Take steps to promote a collaborative work culture, emphasising a workplace environment of trust and knowledge. When teams work in collaboration, they support one another to accomplish team and organisational goals.

This way, staff members shouldn’t feel stressed or guilty about taking time off, feeling able to trust their team mates to pitch in and carry the work load in their absence.

Managers should make sure all teams are properly covered during annual leave periods, and allow staff adequate desk time when they return to work after a break, to catch up on their emails and in-trays.

Recognise when you need to take a break from work

While managers and employers have a responsibility to encourage staff members to take a break, at the end of the day you also have a responsibility to yourself. As an employee, it's up to you to manage your stress levels and time off, to avoid burning out.

Not taking enough time off work can have huge impacts on your mental, physical and emotional health. Which will also have a negative effect on your work relationships and personal life.

Taking time off from work isn’t just about your own wellbeing. You might think that you’re being a work hero by not taking holidays, but refusing to take proper breaks isn’t the best thing for your team mates or employer.

Increased stress and anxiety, exhaustion and burnout will all result in lower performance and productivity levels for your organisation.

"Evidence shows you become less productive without proper breaks. Even if people work longer hours, they're not as creative and can't maintain the same intensity level," says Penny de Valk, Managing Director of talent management at global HR services group, Penna.

With our current obsession and celebration of ‘busyness’ it can be hard to step away from work, as it’s often linked to our feelings of self-worth and achievement. But running on low levels of creativity and productivity isn't really helping anyone – you, your boss or your clients or customers.

Take that well-deserved break and return to work in the new year full of fresh energy, ideas and motivation!

Are Your Employees Taking Their Annual Leave?