Success found in open source solution: OJT a Tōtara plugin

Background

On-the-job training (OJT) enables employees to gain relevant skills or qualifications while working. OJT can be assessed in person or digitally, so Catalyst developed the OJT plugin for the Tōtara Talent Experience Platform (TXP) to support online learning. The OJT plugin enables learners to record otherwise paper-based evidence of a skill or practice. As an open-source plugin, OJT has evolved to support a range of organisations’ assessment requirements over the years. Additionally, Catalyst offers OJT as part of our core Tōtara offering.

Opportunity

H.W. Richardson Group (HWR) and the NZ Police College had initially recorded their assessments by hand. HWR manually processed thousands of assessments, and the College assessments involved a lot of processes and time to collate all the results. So both organisations were already using Tōtara, then adopted OJT to deliver and manage the on-the-job assessments.

Both organisations wanted to enhance the learner experience and gain deeper insights into their progress. They engaged with Catalyst to enrich the existing OJT plugin.

A collaborative solution

HWR approached Catalyst with requirements to improve the OJT plugin so that their organisation could replace their manual in-cab driving assessments. Raechel Wilson from HWR was so pleased with the solution that she shared her experience with a Tōtara User Group.

At the user group, she connected with Ann-Marie Pickles who worked for NZ Police, and a new collaboration between the organisations emerged. The two worked together to identify what features could improve the plugin further. Plus, because the Tōtara plugin is open source, their collaboration meant both organisations would benefit from new feature builds to the plugin.

Key features of the additions to the OJT plugin included:

Streamlining the admin for upcoming assessments: Now, it's easier to add the date for upcoming assessments, edit 'next assessment' dates, and include reoccurring qualifications. Plus, managers are notified when qualifications need resetting.
Flexible assessment types: Instead of just text boxes and checklists, administrators can also use a scale. Plus,
Expanding learning insights: Results can now be granular so administrators can customise what is presented to their learners. This enables learners to have deeper insights into where they’re at in their learning journey.
Designing a modern look: The new design means content is more accessible digitally and in paper format.

A customised experience

Access to learning history: Learners can now access their entire qualification history and keep track of their achievements.
Enhanced reporting options: Administrators can export reports as a CSV streamlining the display of data to be analysed.
Improving the user experience: Administrators can easily filter which learners need assessing by using the 'Evaluate students' filter.
Visual cues tied to assessment statuses: By including Red Amber Green (RAG) statuses to the next assessment date reporting, it's easier to identify what assessments are overdue.

UX improvements

Raechel Wilson, Learning and Development Co‑ordinator at H.W. Richardson Group enjoyed the collaboration between HWR, the government agency, and Catalyst. Raechel shares, "Catalyst took the time to fully understand the complexities of what was required and worked collaboratively with us to deliver a successful outcome."

Changes were delivered on an iterative basis enabling them to test and try the new features through UAT. Through this process, HWR and the agency identified additional UX improvements as there was time to consider how they would impact other new features. The collaborative process enabled additional business needs to be identified early rather than down the track.

A laptop open displaying the OJT assessment outcome

"Catalyst understood how important it was that the OJT needed to not be limited in its potential applications and worked with us to deliver on our requirements.

We were well supported through UAT trials and testing - and the changes that arose from these. The details, fixes, and tweaks added value to the final result.

Catalyst was with us all the way, ensuring the plugin was functional, easy to use, and worked for all parties involved - site administrators, trainers, managers, and the learners themselves."

- Raechel Wilson, H.W. Richardson Group, Learning and Development Co‑ordinator

Results

Since the rollout of changes to OJT, HWR and the Police College have shared the following benefits to their training process:

Huge time-saving measures in workflows.
NZ Police can now deliver 100% of its driving training assessments online.

Because of the success with their driving training, they’re looking to see where else they can implement OJT into their processes.

In April 2025, Catalyst, NZ Police and HW Richardson were presented with the 'Best use of blended learning' award by Tōtara for the project.

Learner focused support

Catalyst has over 20 years of experience working with Tōtara, and as a Tōtara Platinum Partner, we’re well-equipped to support you with your eLearning platform. Whether you’re after additional functionality with plugins, customisations, or content development, we’ll work with you to design your solution. Contact us today for a personalised learning experience.

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Success found in open source solution: OJT a Tōtara plugin

Background

Opportunity

A collaborative solution