How well do you “speak” LearningBuilder?
Every toolset has a distinct vocabulary. At Heuristics, we believe that power, flexibility, and ease of use can (and should) co-exist. That’s why we try to keep the terminology involved in our LearningBuilder certification and accreditation management software as self-explanatory as possible. Of course, we also use the language of LearningBuilder every day, which certainly goes a long way in helping us maintain our fluency. For those who may need a quick refresh upon entering (or re-entering) the world of LearningBuilder, here is a brief glossary of basic concepts, terms, and tools related to the software:
LearningBuilder Terms for Who Does Work in the System
Do you remember Members, Roles, and Member Roles? These are the terms we use for LearningBuilder users, their actions, their permissions, and their achievements.
Members
Every LearningBuilder user is a Member. There are two distinct types of Members: A Person, which represents an individual, and an Organization, which represents a company or organization rather than a specific person. With an Organization Member type, a credentialing or other entity can maintain an account that “owns” data, and individual staff of that entity can log in and manage that data.
Roles
Roles designate how a given Member interacts with LearningBuilder. Each Role is associated with distinct sets of permissions, will have different tasks available to perform, or even see different views in the system. For example:
- The Practitioner Role designates an end user who works in the system to obtain a credential or certification.
- The Administrator role designates someone who manages the LearningBuilder implementation itself.
- The Provider Role designates the permission to create and manage Activities (more on Activities in a moment).
- The Reviewer Role designates individuals with application processing-related permissions and tasks. This Role can encompass staff reviewers within an organization, third-party subject matter experts, auditors, site inspectors (for accreditation processes), and anyone else who plays a part in application review.
Pro Tip: Roles can also represent specific Credentials a user has earned, like “Certified Office Dog.” A Member often has multiple Roles!
Member Roles
A “Member Role” is the intersection between a Member and a Role. It represents a specific Role granted to a Member. A Unique Identifier on the Role allows each Member to have a different Unique Identifier for each potential credential.
In LearningBuilder, a combination of a Member, a Role (the credential), and a Status represents an earned credential. When a user begins their initial application, their role status is usually designated as “Applicant.” Upon successful completion of a Learning Plan, the status changes to “Active.” Member Roles may be granted or un-granted but are never fully dissociated from a user.
LearningBuilder Terms for What People Do in the System
Now that we’ve reviewed some common language for who might work in LearningBuilder, here is some language for what they might be working on:
Learning Plans
A “Learning Plan,” also referred to as an “Application,” is the process through which a credential is awarded (upon successful completion of that Learning Plan). Think of completing a Learning Plan as the digital equivalent of a paper application form that applicants fill out and submit. Remember those days? A Learning Plan Definition is like the original “master” copy created by the organization. It defines submission requirements for the application, essentially “translating” your handbook and business rules into an application within a time-bound cycle. Learning Plan Instances, on the other hand, are “owned” by a specific Member Role and are based on the Learning Plan definition. Each Learning Plan instance is an individual, user-specific copy of the application that the end user fills out for themselves.
Some common functions of a Learning Plan include Initial Certification, Licensure, and Accreditation Applications as well as Applications to maintain or renew those credentials. However, Learning Plans can also serve non-credentialing functions like name changes, certificate reprints, and even a reflective practice exercise.
Activities, Activity Types, and Activity Offerings
No matter what kind of Learning Plan, a user must complete certain tasks as part of completing that Learning Plan. Activities act as containers for holding the data that is added to a Learning Plan to complete those tasks. There are two main kinds of Activities:
- Relevant information, like education or work history, provided as a step in the application process.
- A unique, completed activity that the user can document on to their Learning Plan, such as a specific continuing education course.
As with Learning Plans, there are Activity Definitions and Activity Instances. An Activity Definition is managed by Administrators or Providers and holds shared data (like the amount of credits a course is worth). It acts as an originating template assigned a unique Activity ID or Activity Number. An Activity Instance is owned by a specific Member, linked to a specific Learning Plan, and holds Member-specific data (like the course completion date). There can be multiple Activity Instances for a single Activity Definition: for example, one for each time someone adds an additional course to a Learning Plan.
Activity Types (like a college degree or training course) group similar Activity Definitions together and govern what data is collected via what fields.
Pro Tip: Learning Plans and Activities will feature heavily during our walkthrough for Criteria-Added Activities at LearningBuilder Academy!
LearningBuilder Terms for How People Do Their Work in the System
How does the work get done? And how do we talk about it? Here are the basics:
Workflows
A certification management process has starting points and endpoints. At each step in between, information flows between applicants, the organization, and third parties (like employers and educators).
Our term for these step sequences is Workflows. They can describe everything from a simple data entry screen (like one to upload a supporting file) to a complex, collaborative application processing (to review that record).
In the LearningBuilder world, everything — whether Role, Learning Plan, or Activity-related — will have a Workflow for its creation and a Workflow for its completion.
Configurable Queues
Thus far, we’ve mostly focused on what practitioners and providers do in the system. Administrators have their own special tools! Learning Plan processing tasks are organized into several possible admin queues. All queues have a similar UI. Staff can filter on similar fields, types of applications, or activities.
The Eligibility Queue involves tasks related to initial certification. The Audit Queue involves tasks related to recertification or maintenance of certification. The Activity Audit Queue involves tasks related to individual Activities entered and submitted as part of an Application.
Pro Tip: If you use one of these queues for the work you do, don’t forget to filter! We always recommend the “My Inbox” filter as a good baseline for seeing only the applications that require action on your part.
Terms for LearningBuilder’s Low-Code System Configuration Tools
LearningBuilder is a low-code platform, which means the lion’s share of configuration (and configuration changes) can be accomplished without heavy-duty custom coding. How? With these tools:
The Visual Rules Engine
Our Visual Rules Engine translates the “E’s” of eligibility — education, experience, exams, and ethics — into a straightforward online application. It includes a Requirements Model (a collection of quantitative requirements) and Task Groups (a collection of Activities that meet those requirements).
The Workflow Editor
LearningBuilder’s Workflow Editor allows organizations to tailor each step in their credential management workflow. We use validation rules to ensure the system captures data in the correct format and within an acceptable range of values. Using the Workflow Editor’s drag-and-drop interface, we can define and modify fields, actions, and validation rules, and configure whether a given field is required or optional. We can also create and refine the error messaging for unacceptable entries.
The Automations Engine
The LearningBuilder Automations Engine enhances workflows by triggering Behaviors so that the system can automatically move certification processes forward.
Common triggers can include:
- A specific timed interval
- Completion of a workflow
- A workflow step action
- Common Behaviors include:
- Sending reminder notifications (email or SMS)
- Member Role updates (for example, from Applicant to Certificant)
- Account cleanup and data transfer
- A stored procedure
- Sending Authorizations to Test to a test administrator
For example, an email might be triggered to send six months, three months, one month, two weeks, one week, and one day before someone’s certification expiration date. The Automations Engine also manages the email templates clients use to craft specific messaging for different points in a Workflow.
The system can also trigger Member Role status changes. For example, a passing test score might automatically update a Member Role from Applicant to Active, which automatically begins a Learning Plan for recertification, maintenance of certification, or renewal. At the end of the certification cycle, an active member role will change to lapsed if the recertification Learning Plan is not complete.
LearningBuilder: All of This…And More!
In 2025, we celebrate 15 years of LearningBuilder’s comprehensive and innovative credential management solutions. While this list is by no means a complete glossary of LearningBuilder concepts, features, and functionality, we hope it will familiarize (or re-familiarize) you with some of the basics concerning the system and its capabilities — especially for those of you joining us next week for LearningBuilder Academy.
If you’re not a current LearningBuilder user, we invite you to schedule a call with us to explore your program needs.
