Assigning mandatory tasks¶
A mandatory task is the binding variant of an enrollment: you assign a course or learning path with a deadline to a learner or a whole group. The system enrolls them automatically, sends reminders, and shows you who is behind. This is how you make sure your learners really finish a training by a cutoff date — not just "at some point".
Org-wide instead of for your courses?
This guide is tailored to your courses and your learners. If you steer mandatory tasks across several trainers, departments or the whole company, take a look at the administrator guide: Steering mandatory tasks org-wide.
Where to find mandatory tasks¶
In the main menu under Administration → Mandatory tasks. The area is visible from the trainer role upwards.
Screenshot to follow
Mandatory-tasks overview in the "Administration" menu
Giving one person a mandatory task¶
- Open Administration → Mandatory tasks.
- Click New.
- Fill in the fields:
| Field | What you enter |
|---|---|
| Target | Choose course or learning path. For a learning path, the person is automatically enrolled in all mandatory courses of the path; the task is only done once the whole path is completed. |
| Person | The learner (search by name or email) |
| Due date | Mandatory field — at least a few days in the future |
| Repetition (weeks) (optional) | e.g. 52 for a yearly repetition — see Recurring mandatory tasks |
| Note (optional) | Shown to the person in the course player, e.g. "Please before the next team meeting" |
- Configure reminders — see below.
- Save.
The person receives a notification in the platform and (depending on the setting) by email. They're enrolled automatically — a separate enrollment via Managing participants is not needed.
Screenshot to follow
Mandatory-task form with target selection course / learning path
Course or learning path?
A single course is enough for a one-off training. If your cohort should go through a sequence of several courses in a fixed order, assign a learning path — see Assembling learning paths.
Setting up reminders¶
You can define any number of reminders per mandatory task. The default is one reminder to the person three days before the due date.
Per reminder you set:
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Days relative to the due date | A positive number = before the deadline. A negative number = after the deadline (a dunning notice if overdue). |
| Email template (optional) | If you don't choose your own template, a default email is sent. |
| Recipient | The person themselves and/or you as the assigning person. |
Typical setups:
| Use case | Reminders |
|---|---|
| Casual mandatory task | One email 3 days before the due date to the person |
| Important compliance training | Emails 14 / 7 / 3 / 1 day(s) before the due date; + a 1-day grace-period reminder to the person and you |
| Onboarding requirement | Only when overdue — a reminder 7 days after the deadline |
Reminders run automatically
You don't have to send anything manually — the system checks several times a day which reminders are due and sends them itself. A "3 days before" email normally arrives shortly after midnight of the relevant day.
Several learners at once — bulk assignment¶
For a whole cohort, an onboarding or a training wave, the bulk-assignment dialog is worthwhile.
- In the mandatory-tasks overview, click Bulk assignment.
- The dialog guides you through four steps:
- Step 1 – Basic info: target (course or learning path), due date, optional note
- Step 2 – Select people via three tabs:
- Individually — pick people one by one from the search
- By department — a whole department
- By learning group — all members of one of your learning groups
- Step 3 – Reminders: as with individual assignment, applies equally to all created tasks
- Step 4 – Preview: number + list of all people who will receive the assignment
- Confirm — the system creates all mandatory tasks at once.
Screenshot to follow
Bulk assignment step 2 with the learning-group tab
Existing mandatory tasks (same target + same person) are skipped — no duplicate assignments. The result banner shows: created, skipped, and any that failed.
Recurring mandatory tasks (subscription)¶
If a training should be repeated regularly — e.g. an annual data-protection briefing — set the Repetition (weeks) field when creating it, e.g. 52 for yearly.
After completion, the system automatically schedules the next date and resets the task to "assigned" at the due time; the person is notified and the reminders run again. This also works for a bulk assignment to a whole group.
Tracking the status¶
In the mandatory-tasks overview you see per task:
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Assigned | The person is enrolled but hasn't done anything yet |
| In progress | At least one lesson worked on |
| Completed | Course/path successfully finished, minimum score reached |
| Overdue | Deadline passed, status not "Completed" |
Filter to what needs your attention
Set the filter to open and overdue tasks — those are the learners you may need to follow up with.
You can go into more detail per person via Managing participants.
Changing or withdrawing a mandatory task¶
- Click the mandatory task in the list.
- Edit — extend the deadline, adjust the note, reconfigure the reminders. Existing reminders are recalculated based on the new deadline.
- Or Withdraw — the task is removed, and the person receives a notification.
Completion is retained
You can no longer withdraw a completed mandatory task — the completion remains in the person's learning history.
Frequently asked questions¶
A person already completed the course before the mandatory task — do they get it twice? No. The system recognizes the existing enrollment. The mandatory task is created and immediately jumps to the current state. If the course was already completed, the mandatory task is fulfilled right away.
A person says they didn't get a reminder. Possible reasons: the email is in the spam folder, an outdated email address in the profile, or the person disabled email for "mandatory tasks" in their notification settings. The mandatory task still has to be done — the deadline stays.
Can I extend the deadline after sending? Yes — open the mandatory task → Edit → change the due date. The reminders are recalculated for the new deadline.
Can learners cancel a mandatory task themselves? No. Unlike voluntary enrollments, the assignment comes from you — only you or an administrator can withdraw it.
A person doesn't appear in the selection. You can assign people from your company. If someone doesn't appear in the selection at all, the person probably doesn't have an account yet — then they must first be invited by an administrator. For company-wide assignments, see Steering mandatory tasks org-wide.