> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.skillsdb.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Expert Trainers
> Learn how to use SkillsDB as an Expert Trainer — configure trainer flags, designate experts, submit training for approval, and track response metrics.
**Quick Summary:** The Expert Trainer system lets your organization designate subject matter experts (SMEs) for specific skills. Employees submit training records directly to those experts for approval, creating a structured, peer-validated training workflow — with full visibility for managers and admins.
# Overview
Many organizations rely on internal subject matter experts to validate whether colleagues have genuinely developed a skill. SkillsDB formalizes this through the Expert Trainer system: a structured workflow that connects employees seeking training approval to the people best positioned to grant it.
The system involves three roles working together:
* **Administrators** configure which skill flags carry trainer permissions and manage the overall setup.
* **Managers** (or admins) designate individuals as experts for specific skills, making them available as approvers.
* **Employees** submit training records for a skill and select an expert to review their submission.
* **Expert Trainers** receive approval requests in their Inbox, review the evidence, and approve or reject each submission.
The result is a lightweight credentialing layer built entirely within SkillsDB — no external ticketing system required.
***
## How the System Works
The Expert Trainer workflow moves through five stages:
| Stage | Who acts | What happens |
| ---------------- | --------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **1. Configure** | Admin | A skill flag is created with Trainer Permission enabled |
| **2. Designate** | Manager / Admin | The flag is applied to a person for a specific skill, designating them as an expert |
| **3. Submit** | Employee | Employee submits a training record and selects an expert approver |
| **4. Approve** | Expert Trainer | Expert reviews the submission in their Inbox and approves or rejects it |
| **5. Monitor** | Manager / Admin | Training Matrix and Trainer Metrics track approval status and response times |
The sections below walk through each stage in detail.
***
## Stage 1: Configure the Trainer Flag (Admin)
Before anyone can be designated as an expert trainer, an administrator must ensure a skill flag with Trainer Permission is active. SkillsDB may already have a suitable flag in place — confirm with your administrator before creating a new one.
#### Checking existing flags
1. Navigate to **Settings > Flags**.
2. Select the **Skill Flags** tab.
3. Review the list of skill flags. Any flag with a purple **Trainer** badge already has Trainer Permission enabled. If one exists, skip to Stage 2.
#### Creating a new skill flag with Trainer Permission
If no suitable trainer flag exists:
1. Navigate to **Settings > Flags** and select the **Skill Flags** tab.
2. Select **Add Flag** in the top right of the Skill Flags section.
3. In the **Add new skill flag** dialog, enter:
* **Flag name** (required) — for example, `Expert` or `Certified Trainer`
* **Description** (optional) — a brief explanation of what this flag means in your organization
* **Color** (optional) — a visual identifier for the flag
4. Select **Save**.
5. The new flag card appears in the list. Locate the **Trainer Permission** checkbox on the flag card and check it.
6. A confirmation message appears: *"Trainer permission enabled successfully."* The flag card now displays a purple **Trainer** badge.
**Note:** Only non-system flags can have Trainer Permission toggled. System default flags (marked with a blue **System** badge) cannot be modified.
***
## Stage 2: Designate Expert Trainers (Manager / Admin)
With a trainer-enabled flag in place, managers or administrators assign that flag to specific people for the skills they are qualified to approve. Once assigned, those people appear as selectable approvers when employees submit training requests for that skill.
Expert flags can be applied at three levels:
* **Skill level** — designates someone as an expert for one specific skill
* **Section level** — designates someone as an expert for all skills within a section
* **Career level** — designates someone as an expert for all skills within a career
**Tip:** Assigning the Expert flag at the career or section level is the most efficient approach for SMEs who are broadly qualified across a discipline. It automatically covers all underlying skills without requiring individual assignments.
To assign an Expert flag, navigate to the team member's profile or the Skills Matrix for your team and apply the appropriate flag. Contact your SkillsDB administrator if you need guidance on the flag assignment process for your organization's specific setup.
***
## Stage 3: Submit a Training Request (Employee)
Once an expert has been designated for a skill, employees can submit training records for that skill and direct them to the appropriate approver.
#### Submitting training for a skill
1. Navigate to the skill you want to submit training for. You can find skills through **Search** in the left sidebar or via your Skills Profile.
2. Locate the **My Trainings** section on the skill page.
3. Select **Submit Training**.
4. The **Submit Training** modal opens. Complete the following fields:
| Field | Required? | Description |
| -------------------- | ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Date of Training** | Yes | The date the training or learning activity took place |
| **Text Evidence** | Depends on skill | A written description of what you completed. Required only if the skill is configured to need it. |
| **SME** | Optional | The expert who should review and approve this submission. Select from the dropdown — only people designated as experts for this skill appear here. |
| **Attachments** | Depends on skill | Supporting files (certificates, completion records). Accepted formats: `.jpg`, `.png`, `.pdf`, `.docx`, `.xlsx`, `.txt`, `.csv`. Max 5 files, 10 MB each. |
5. Select **Submit**.
6. A confirmation message appears: *"Training submitted for approval."*
**Note:** If no experts have been designated for a skill, the **SME** dropdown will be empty. Contact your manager or administrator to have an expert assigned before submitting.
#### Checking the status of your submission
After submitting, you can monitor the status of your training request:
1. Return to the skill page.
2. In the **My Trainings** section, your submission appears with a **Status** badge:
* **Pending** — the expert has not yet reviewed your submission
* **Approved** — the expert approved your training record
* **Rejected** — the expert rejected your submission; you may resubmit with updated information
#### Renewing an approved training record
If your training expires or needs to be refreshed:
1. Navigate to the skill and locate your approved training record in **My Trainings**.
2. Select **Renew Training**.
3. The renewal modal displays a notice: *"You are renewing an approved training. The previous training record will be archived and a new approval request will be submitted."*
4. Complete the form and select **Submit**.
5. A confirmation message appears: *"Training renewal submitted for approval."* Your previous record is archived and the new submission enters the approval workflow.
***
## Stage 4: Review and Act on Training Approvals (Expert Trainer)
Expert Trainers receive training submissions in their **Inbox**. Approvals require no special navigation — they surface automatically alongside other actionable items.
#### Finding training approval requests
1. Select **Inbox** from the left sidebar.
2. Select **Approvals** from the category quick links on the left side of the Inbox. This filters the list to show only Training Approvals and Certification Approvals.
3. Training approval requests appear with the label **Training Approval**. Pending items carry a yellow **Pending** badge.
#### Reviewing a training submission
1. Select a **Training Approval** item in the Inbox.
2. The **Training Approval** dialog opens, displaying:
| Field | Description |
| ----------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Employee** | The name of the person who submitted the training |
| **Skill** | The skill for which training was submitted |
| **Training Date** | The date the employee reported completing the training |
| **Status** | Current status: **Pending**, **Approved**, or **Rejected** |
\| **Evidence** | Any text evidence provided by the employee | | **Attachments** | Uploaded files. Select any file to preview (`.pdf`, `.jpg`, `.png`) or download | | **Delegated Approver** | Shown if approval was delegated to you by another approver |
#### Approving a training submission
After reviewing the submission:
1. Select **Approve** in the dialog footer.
2. The button label changes to *"Approving..."* while the action processes.
3. A confirmation message appears: *"Training approved successfully."*
4. The dialog closes. The submission is removed from your Pending items and the employee's training record is updated to **Approved**.
#### Rejecting a training submission
If the submission does not meet the required standard:
1. Select **Reject** in the dialog footer.
2. The button label changes to *"Rejecting..."* while the action processes.
3. A confirmation message appears: *"Training rejected successfully."*
4. The dialog closes. The employee's training record is updated to **Rejected** and they are able to resubmit.
**Important:** Approvals and rejections are final actions — there is no undo after confirming. If you approve or reject in error, contact your SkillsDB administrator.
#### Viewing previously processed requests
Select the **All** or **Archived** tabs in the Inbox to see training approval requests that have already been processed. These records display the outcome — a green *"Approved by \[Name] on \[Date]"* or red *"Rejected by \[Name] on \[Date]"* notice — and are read-only.
***
## Stage 5: Monitor Training Approvals (Manager / Admin)
Managers and administrators have two dedicated tools for tracking the Expert Trainer system at scale.
### Training Matrix
The Training Matrix gives managers a grid view of their team's training status across skills, including which expert approved each record.
1. Select **Team** from the left sidebar, then select **Training**.
2. In the Training section, navigate to the **Training Matrix** view.
3. The matrix displays:
* **Rows** — skills with training data
* **Columns** — team members in your selected scope
* **Cells** — training date and status per person-skill combination
* **Trainer** — the name of the expert who approved each training record
Use the scope tabs to switch between:
* **Direct Reports** — your immediate team
* **My Org** — your full organizational span of control
* **All** — all employees (admin access required)
Available filters include organization level (Region, Division, Department), Job Role, and an option to show only people with training dates recorded.
**Tip:** Export the Training Matrix to Excel using the **Export** button to share compliance snapshots with stakeholders or for auditing purposes.
### Trainer Metrics
Trainer Metrics provides administrators with a performance dashboard for the Expert Trainer system, showing how quickly and consistently each expert is responding to approval requests.
1. Navigate to **People > Trainer Metrics** (admin access required).
2. The page displays a table with the following columns:
| Column | Description |
| --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Name** | The expert, skill, section, or role being measured (varies by view) |
| **Email** | The expert's email address (Expert view only) |
| **Total Requests** | Total training approvals received |
| **Approvals** | Number of approved submissions (shown in green) |
| **Rejections** | Number of rejected submissions (shown in red) |
| **Pending** | Number of submissions awaiting a decision (shown in amber) |
| **Response Rate** | Percentage of requests that received a response |
| **Avg Response Time** | Average time to approve or reject, shown in hours or days |
3. Use the view type quick links to switch between perspectives:
* **By Expert** — performance metrics per individual expert trainer
* **By Skill** — approval volume and rates per skill
* **By Section** — approval data grouped by skill section
* **By Role** — approval data grouped by job role
***
# Common Questions
Only people who have been assigned a skill flag with Trainer Permission for the relevant skill can appear in the SME approver dropdown. Managers and admins can also see training approvals in their Inbox regardless of flag assignment. Standard employees without an Expert flag designation cannot approve training requests.
Yes. The **SME** field is optional. If an employee submits without selecting an approver, the submission still enters the approval workflow — it will be visible to managers and admins in their Inbox and in the Training Matrix, but it will not be routed to a specific expert's Inbox automatically.
Training submissions remain in **Pending** status until approved or rejected. There is no automatic timeout. Admins can monitor pending submissions via the **Training Matrix** or **Trainer Metrics** page and follow up with approvers directly. Trainer Metrics shows average response times, which can help identify bottlenecks.
Yes. Administrators and managers can remove an Expert flag from a person's skill profile. After removal, that person will no longer appear in the SME approver dropdown for new submissions. Any existing approved or pending training records are not affected.
Approval delegation can be configured by administrators. If delegation is active, the Training Approval dialog shows a **Delegated Approver** field identifying who was assigned to review the submission.
Yes. The **Training Matrix** (Team > Training > Training Matrix) shows the training status for every person-skill combination in your team, including those still in **Pending** status. Filter to show all statuses to get a complete picture of outstanding approvals.
***
# Related Articles
Understand how Expert and other skill flags are defined and used
Review training records and completion data for your team
Use Search to find people flagged as experts for specific skills
Understand the skills view where employees submit training
View your team's skills matrix alongside training data
***
# Need Help?
If you run into any issues or have questions, reach out to your organization's SkillsDB administrator or contact [SkillsDB Support](https://www.skillsdb.com/support).