Use communication templates to customize the emails learners receive when they are assigned training or reminded to complete it. Foundry provides default invitation and reminder templates, but you can create custom versions to better match your organization’s tone, expectations, or messaging needs.
About invitation and reminder templates
- Invitation templates are sent when learners are first assigned training
- Reminder templates are sent when learners have not yet completed an assignment
Both template types support personalization using dynamic fields and can be reused across assignments.
Create a communication template
You can create either an invitation or reminder template from the Communications area.
- Go to Communications in the left navigation
- Locate the default template you want to customize
- Default Training Invitation, or
- Default Training Reminder for the appropriate audience (Employees or Faculty/Staff)
- Under Actions, select the plus (+) icon to create a new template
- Enter a descriptive template name
- This name is used by administrators when creating assignments
- Learners do not see this name
- Enter a subject line for the email
- You can replace the default subject
- Keep dynamic fields in brackets so the subject can be reused
- Edit the message body or paste in your custom content
- Review the live preview as you make changes
- To send a test email, enter your email address and select Test Send
- Select Save
Your new template is now available to use in assignments.
Using dynamic fields and markdown
Invitation and reminder templates support dynamic fields and simple markdown to personalize messages automatically.
Common dynamic fields include:
- {{first_name}} — learner’s first name
- {{content_name}} — assigned course name
- {{due_on_formatted}} — assignment due date
- {{starts_on_formatted}} — assignment start date
Some reminder templates may also include conditional text, such as:
- {% if past_due %} and {% else %} — adjusts messaging based on whether training is overdue
Important rules
- Do not edit or delete anything inside
{ } - You may move dynamic fields, but do not rename or reformat them
- Changing these fields can break personalization or conditional logic
- Use the preview and test email features to confirm your message displays correctly
Note: When sending a test email, you may see bracketed text instead of real data. This is expected. When sent to learners, the fields are automatically replaced with learner‑specific information.
Best practice tips
For invitation templates
- Keep messages clear and welcoming
- Explain what the training is and why the learner is receiving it
- Include clear next steps so learners know what to do
For reminder templates
- Keep messages short and action‑oriented
- Clearly state what needs to be completed and by when
- Always send a test email before using the template live