Creating Course Assignment Tasks for Automations

Course Assignment tasks automatically enroll users in Training Module courses when an Automation's criteria are met. This task type is essential for compliance training, onboarding curricula, and certification requirements triggered by user status changes or profile updates. Course Assignment tasks eliminate manual enrollment processes and ensure users receive required training at the exact moment they need it.

Requirements

To create and configure Course Assignment tasks for Automations, users must be assigned a Security Role with the following permissions:

Administrator System Role

Only administrators can access Automations, create Course Assignment tasks, configure course selections and notifications, and manage task settings. Standard users, partner users, and customer portal users cannot configure Automation tasks.

Before You Begin

Before creating Course Assignment tasks, ensure you have:

• Published Courses: Course Assignment tasks require published courses in the Training Module. Unpublished courses cannot be selected and will not be assigned to users. See Training Module documentation for course publishing instructions.
• User Entity Automation: Course Assignment tasks can only be added to Automations created on the User entity. If your Automation is based on a different entity, this task type will not be available.
• Training Module Access: Verify that the Training Module is enabled in your portal and that target users have appropriate permissions to access assigned courses.

Creating Course Assignment Tasks

Accessing the Task Creation Interface

1. Navigate to Setup → Create → Automations
2. Click the User entity Automation to which you want to add a Course Assignment task
3. In the Automation Tasks section, click New
4. Select New Course Assignment from the task type options
5. Click Next

The Course Assignment task configuration page displays two primary sections: Detail Information and Course Task Information.

Configuring Detail Information

The Detail Information section defines basic task properties and execution order within the Automation.

Automation (Read-Only)

Displays the parent Automation this task belongs to. This field is system-populated and cannot be modified. The link opens the Automation detail page.

Name (Required)

Enter a descriptive name for the Course Assignment task that clearly identifies its purpose and the course being assigned.

Examples of effective task names:

• "Assign Onboarding Course to New Partners"
• "Enroll User in Compliance Training"
• "Assign Product Certification Course"
• "Auto-Enroll in Advanced Sales Training"

Clear task names help administrators understand Automation workflows when reviewing or troubleshooting multi-task sequences.

Sequence (Required)

Enter a numeric value defining when this task executes relative to other tasks in the Automation. Lower sequence numbers execute first.

Description (Optional)

Enter notes explaining the task's purpose, business justification, or special considerations. Use this field to document:

• Why this course is being assigned automatically
• What triggers the assignment
• Which user types or scenarios require this training
• Any dependencies on other tasks or business processes

Comprehensive descriptions help future administrators maintain and troubleshoot Course Assignment tasks.

Configuring Course Task Information

The Course Task Information section defines which course to assign and whether learners receive notifications.

Course (Required)

Click the lookup icon to search for and select a published Training course. The dropdown displays all courses that are:

• Published and active in the Training Module
• Available for assignment to users
• Accessible based on administrator permissions

The selected course determines:

• Which training content users will receive
• Course completion requirements and assessments
• Certificates or badges users can earn
• Compliance tracking and reporting data

Notify Learners (Optional Checkbox)

When checked, learners receive a standard course assignment email notification when the course is assigned. When unchecked, courses are assigned silently without email notification.

Notification Behavior:

• Enabled (Checked): Users receive an automated email informing them of their new course assignment with a link to access the course. The notification uses the Training Module's standard course assignment email template.
• Disabled (Unchecked): Courses are assigned to users' training records without sending email notifications. Users must discover the assignment by visiting the Training Module or viewing their assigned courses list.

When to Enable Notifications:

• Compliance training with deadlines
• Onboarding courses that users should complete immediately
• Certification programs with time-sensitive requirements
• Individual course assignments where immediate action is expected

When to Disable Notifications:

• Optional professional development courses
• Courses assigned to large user groups simultaneously (to prevent email overload)
• Supplementary training that users can complete at their convenience
• When other Automation tasks send comprehensive communications including course assignment details

Saving the Course Assignment Task

After configuring all settings:

1. Review all configuration for accuracy
2. Verify the selected course is published and appropriate for target users
3. Confirm notification preference matches intended user experience
4. Click Save

The Course Assignment task is added to the Automation's task list and will execute according to its sequence number when the Automation triggers.

If validation errors occur:

• Check that Name is provided
• Verify Sequence is a valid number
• Confirm a Course is selected
• Ensure the selected course is published

Understanding Course Assignment Task Behavior

Task Execution

When the Automation criteria are met and the Course Assignment task's sequence is reached:

1. The system retrieves the selected course configuration
2. The system checks if the user is already enrolled in the course
3. If not already enrolled, the user is assigned to the course
4. If Notify Learners is enabled, a course assignment email is sent immediately
5. The user's training record is updated with the new course assignment

Course Access and Availability

After assignment, users can access the course immediately through:

• The Training Module home page showing assigned courses
• Their personal training dashboard or learning path
• Direct links in course assignment notification emails (if enabled)
• Training-related navigation menus in the portal

Course access depends on:

• User permissions to view the Training Module
• Security Role access to course content
• Course availability settings configured by administrators
• Any prerequisite course completions if configured

Course Completion Tracking

Once assigned, course completion is tracked automatically by the Training Module:

• Users progress through course lessons and assessments
• Completion status updates in real-time as users complete requirements
• Certificates or badges are issued upon course completion if configured
• Compliance dates are tracked if the course has compliance requirements
• Administrators can monitor course completion through Training Module reports

Course completion data can be referenced in other Automations, Journey Builder steps, or reporting dashboards to trigger additional workflows or recognition programs.

Notification Timing and Delivery

When Notify Learners is enabled, course assignment emails are sent immediately during Automation execution. However, actual delivery to learner inboxes depends on:

• External email service processing time
• Recipient mail server availability
• Spam filtering and email security systems
• Learner email preferences and notification settings

Most course assignment emails arrive within seconds to minutes of the Automation triggering. Delays beyond several minutes may indicate email deliverability issues requiring investigation.

Failed Course Assignments

Course assignments may fail if:

• The selected course is unpublished or deactivated
• The user does not have permissions to access the Training Module
• The user's Security Role does not allow access to the specific course
• Course prerequisites are not met
• The user account is inactive or suspended

Integration with Training Module

Course Assignment tasks integrate directly with the Training Module to provide seamless automated learning experiences:

Learning Paths and Curricula

Course Assignment tasks can assign individual courses or learning paths depending on what is selected in the Course field. Learning paths automatically enroll users in multiple sequential courses, enabling comprehensive onboarding or certification programs through a single Automation task.

Compliance Tracking

When assigned courses have compliance requirements, the Training Module automatically tracks:

• Assignment dates
• Due dates for compliance completion
• Completion status and dates
• Compliance expiration dates if the course requires periodic renewal
• Overdue status for incomplete required training

Compliance data can trigger additional Automations such as reminder notifications, manager alerts, or permission restrictions for users who fail to complete required training by deadlines.

Certification and Badges

Courses assigned through Automation tasks can issue certificates and badges upon completion. When users complete assigned courses, they automatically receive:

• Downloadable completion certificates if configured in the course
• Digital badges displayed on their user profiles
• Certification records visible to administrators and managers
• Points or credits contributing to partner program tiers or reward systems

Reporting and Analytics

Course assignments created through Automations appear in Training Module reports and dashboards, enabling administrators to:

• Track automated course assignment volume by Automation
• Monitor completion rates for automatically assigned courses
• Identify users who have not completed required training
• Analyze time-to-completion for onboarding or certification courses
• Measure training effectiveness across different user segments

See Training Module documentation for detailed reporting capabilities and integration features.

Common Use Cases

New User Onboarding: When a new partner or customer user is created, automatically assign introductory courses covering portal navigation, product overviews, program policies, and getting-started guides. Enable notifications so new users receive immediate access to essential onboarding content.

Compliance Training Enforcement: When a user's compliance certification expires (detected through date-based Automation criteria), automatically reassign the compliance course with notifications enabled. This ensures users maintain required certifications without manual administrator intervention.

Role-Based Training Assignment: When a user's status or role field changes (e.g., promoted to "Sales Manager"), automatically assign role-specific advanced training courses. Disable notifications if the role change includes other comprehensive communications about new responsibilities.

Product Certification Programs: When a partner achieves a milestone in a deal registration or revenue program, automatically assign product certification courses that enable them to sell additional product lines. Enable notifications with congratulatory messaging about their qualification for advanced training.

Prerequisite Enforcement: When a user completes a foundational course (tracked through Journey Builder or Training completion data), automatically assign the next-level course in a learning progression. Enable notifications to encourage continued learning momentum.

Seasonal or Campaign Training: When a specific date or campaign field is updated, automatically assign seasonal product training, sales methodology courses, or promotion-specific content. Coordinate notification timing with broader campaign communications.

Best Practices

Verify Course Publication Status: Always confirm courses are published and active before adding them to Automation tasks. Test course access with sample users to ensure content displays correctly and completion tracking functions properly. Unpublished courses cause task failures without clear error messages.

Coordinate Notification Timing: When multiple Automation tasks send notifications (emails, messages, course assignments), sequence them thoughtfully to prevent overwhelming users with simultaneous messages. Consider consolidating course assignment notifications with welcome emails or onboarding communications through custom Email Alert tasks that mention the course assignment.

Plan Sequence Numbers Strategically: Run Course Assignment tasks early in Automation sequences so users have immediate training access before other workflow steps occur. If subsequent tasks depend on training completion, use separate Automations triggered by completion events rather than assuming immediate completion within a single Automation flow.

Test with Sample Users: Before activating Automations with Course Assignment tasks, test thoroughly with sample user accounts. Verify assignments occur correctly, notifications deliver properly, users can access assigned courses, and completion tracking functions as expected. Testing identifies configuration issues before they affect large user populations.

Monitor Assignment Patterns: Regularly review Training Module assignment reports to ensure Automations assign courses to appropriate user volumes and segments. Unexpected assignment volumes may indicate overly broad Automation criteria, while unexpectedly low volumes may signal criteria that are too restrictive.

Maintain Course Library Organization: Use clear, consistent naming conventions for courses so administrators can easily locate appropriate courses when configuring tasks. Group related courses into learning paths to simplify assignment of comprehensive training programs through single Automation tasks.

Document Business Logic: Use the Description field extensively to explain why specific courses are assigned automatically, what business requirements drive the assignments, and which user scenarios should trigger the task. Future administrators will appreciate context when maintaining or troubleshooting training assignment workflows.

Consider User Experience: Design course assignments from the learner's perspective. Ensure notification timing makes sense, assigned courses align with users' current needs and capabilities, and prerequisite requirements are met before advanced courses are assigned. Poorly timed or irrelevant course assignments frustrate users and reduce training engagement.

Troubleshooting

Courses Not Being Assigned: If users do not receive course assignments when Automations trigger, verify the Automation is active, rule criteria match the triggering user record, the selected course still exists and is published, the user has permissions to access the Training Module, and the task's sequence number is correct. Check that the Automation is based on the User entity.

Users Already Enrolled Error: If course assignments fail with duplicate enrollment errors, verify the Automation criteria are not triggering repeatedly for the same user. Use "Created, and any time updated which previously did not meet the criteria" as the Evaluation Criteria to prevent repeated triggering. The system automatically prevents duplicate enrollments, so this typically indicates Automation configuration issues rather than actual enrollment problems.

Users Cannot Access Assigned Courses: If users are assigned courses but cannot access them, verify user Security Roles grant access to the Training Module, the course visibility settings allow the user's role to view content, course prerequisites are met or not blocking access, and the user account is active. Check course-specific access restrictions configured by course administrators.

Notifications Not Delivering: If Notify Learners is enabled but users do not receive assignment notifications, verify the Training Module email templates are configured correctly, users have valid email addresses in their profiles, email notification settings in user preferences allow training notifications, and external email services are functioning properly. Check spam folders and email security systems that may filter automated notifications.

Course Not Available in Selector: If the desired course does not appear in the Course lookup, verify the course is published (unpublished courses do not appear), the course exists in the Training Module, you have administrator permissions to access the course, and the course has not been deleted or archived. Refresh the page and retry the lookup if courses were recently published.

Wrong Course Being Assigned: If users receive incorrect course assignments, verify the selected course in the task configuration matches intended training content, the Automation's rule criteria correctly identify target users, and no other Automations with similar criteria are assigning conflicting courses. Review all active Automations to identify potential conflicts or overlapping assignment logic.

Task Execution Timing Issues: If course assignments occur at unexpected times, review the Automation's Evaluation Criteria to ensure it triggers at intended moments (created vs. updated), check for formula or filter logic that may cause delayed triggering, and verify system time zone settings align with expected execution timing. Course assignments execute immediately when Automation criteria are met during record save operations.

See Troubleshooting Automations documentation for additional problem resolution guidance.

Related Documentation

Supporting Resources:

• Training Module

Jump to Automations Checklist

<< Creating Email Alert Tasks for Automations | Creating Group Member Tasks for Automations >>