Intro to Batches

Learn what batches are in Outdoo, why they are used, and how they help assign and track training across groups of learners.

If you've created a course in Outdoo and want to assign it to learners, you'll typically do so through a Batch.

Batches are the primary way administrators organize training assignments, manage learner groups, and track progress across cohorts.

What Is a Batch?

A Batch is a group of learners who are assigned one or more courses together.

Think of a batch as a training cohort. It might represent:

New employees joining this month
A sales team completing certification training
Customer support agents participating in coaching
A selected group of learners completing refresher training

Each batch contains:

The learners who will take the training
The courses assigned to them
Start and end dates
Completion requirements
Optional reminder settings

You can manage batches from:

Manage → Batches

Understanding Courses vs. Batches

Outdoo separates training content from learner enrollment.

Courses = What People Learn

A Course contains the learning experience.

Courses are made up of one or more roleplay agents and are organized around a specific training objective, such as:

New Hire Onboarding
Product Knowledge
Objection Handling
Discovery Calls

Batches = Who Is Learning and When

A Batch defines:

Which learners receive the training
Which courses are assigned
When the training begins
When it must be completed

In simple terms:

Courses	Batches
What learners study	Who receives the training
Roleplay content	Learner group
Learning experience	Assignment and scheduling

Why Batches Exist

Batches make it easy to assign training to groups of learners instead of managing assignments one person at a time.

Without batches, administrators would need to manually assign courses to every individual learner.

With batches, you can:

Assign multiple courses at once
Enroll large groups of learners
Set shared deadlines
Send automated reminders
Track progress by cohort
Add or remove learners later

Example

Instead of assigning:

3 courses
To 20 learners
Individually

You can create a single batch, add all 20 learners, assign the 3 courses, and publish once.

Any learner added to the batch later automatically receives the courses already assigned to that batch.

How Batches Support Reporting

Batches are not only useful for assignment—they also help organize reporting and analytics.

Within Performance & Coaching, administrators can filter results by batch to answer questions such as:

How is the October onboarding cohort performing?
Which learners have completed certification training?
What scores did the latest sales enablement group achieve?
Which cohorts have overdue assignments?

Because batches often align with real-world training programs, reporting becomes much easier to manage.

Example: Onboarding a New Hire Cohort

Imagine your organization is onboarding 20 new sales representatives in October.

A typical workflow would be:

Create the required onboarding courses.
Create a batch called October New Hires.
Add all 20 learners to the batch.
Assign the onboarding courses.
Set training dates and deadlines.
Publish the batch.

Once published:

Learners receive assignment notifications.
Courses appear in their learning dashboard.
Progress is automatically tracked.
Managers can monitor completion and performance.

From the learner's perspective, there is no visible "batch." They simply see the courses assigned to them.

What Learners See

Batches are an administrative concept and are not visible to learners.

Learners do not see:

Batch names
Batch membership
Batch settings

Instead, they see their assigned courses organized into categories such as:

Pending
Completed
Past Due
Open Enrollment

This keeps the learning experience simple while allowing administrators to manage training behind the scenes.

When Should I Use a Batch?

Batches are ideal whenever training needs to be assigned to a group of learners.

Common use cases include:

New-hire onboarding programs
Team certifications
Product launch training
Quarterly enablement initiatives
Leadership development programs
Compliance training cohorts

If you need to assign one or more courses to multiple learners, a batch is usually the most efficient approach.

Next Steps

Now that you understand the purpose of batches, you can learn how to create and manage them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a learner belong to more than one batch?

Yes. Learners can be members of multiple batches and receive courses from each one.

Do learners know which batch they belong to?

No. Batch information is only visible to administrators and managers.

Can I add learners after a batch has been created?

Yes. Learners can be added to or removed from a batch at any time.

Do I need a batch for every course?

Not always. Open courses are automatically assigned to all users and do not require a batch. Closed courses are typically assigned through batches.

Can batches contain multiple courses?

Yes. A single batch can contain one course or multiple courses, depending on your training requirements.