The Challenge

Golder first began utilizing the Pinnacle Series AEC & M learning management system in 2017. When Scott Gallacher, Digital Engineering Manager, joined Golder’s Australian region in 2019, he brought with him knowledge of the platform from his previous experience working for a software reseller.

“I have used other online learning tools and found that Pinnacle is probably one of the best from an ease of use, and from a return and effort that the staff has to create custom modules,” Gallacher said.

What initially struck Gallacher about his region’s use of Pinnacle Series was that it was fairly siloed, and primarily used for CAD platforms. Beyond that initial use, Gallacher saw an opportunity not just to diversify the content libraries Golder employees used within Pinnacle Series, but also to implement new programs that would benefit the organization.

“What I saw was a platform that would be able to help us with the adoption of other technologies that Golder hadn’t actually started to use yet,” Gallacher said.

At that time some of Gallacher’s colleagues had adopted Bluebeam Revu individually, but the use of the PDF-based collaboration and markup tool had not become widespread.

What I saw was a platform that would be able to help us with the adoption of other technologies that Golder hadn’t actually started to user yet.”

“When I got involved with the organization, I saw some tools that would really help with workflows and efficiencies – Bluebeam was a key tool,” he said.

From there, the choice to use Pinnacle Series to create a library of Golder-specific Bluebeam training content was an easy one.

The Solution

Golder had various training methods at its disposal to introduce new software tools to employees, including in-house training, off-site training, and online learning. For Bluebeam, Gallacher knew that Pinnacle Series would prove to be a powerful tool for a blended approach to learning as well as creating custom content and sharing standards across the organization’s locations.

With a blended approach, Golder can provide basic training modules within Pinnacle for training attendees to complete prior to a live, face-to-face training session. This method not only ensures that attendees are truly committed to learning the topics, but also allows the trainer to dive into a more detailed tutorial without having to waste time on the basics that were covered in the module.

Pinnacle Series’ customization options also meant that Golder didn’t have to take the time to create its organization-specific Bluebeam content library and training content for other software programs from scratch. Instead, Golder’s offices could start with Pinnacle Series’ standard content libraries and use those to tailor content that targeted specific disciplines and offices.

“That’s a big time saver because trying to create this sort of courses or modules from scratch is very time intensive,” Gallacher explained.

Creating custom content has also allowed Golder to maintain consistency in its usage and standards for Bluebeam and other platforms by incorporating them into training content.

“Creating that consistency as part of the training and the platform, you can also bring in some standards into how platforms should be used… that’s key,” Gallacher explained.

The Results

Today Golder’s Australian region is nearly two years out from its initial staggered introduction of Bluebeam to its roughly 1,000 employees and, as Gallacher puts it, “a key part of the success story was using Pinnacle to help with driving the platform.”

A key part of the success story was using Pinnacle to help with driving the platform.”

Building out Bleabeam content in Pinnacle not only helped Golder with adoption of the software and maintaining its training program throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but with communicating and marketing new software solutions to a global audience of employees who previously may have only sought out CAD-related content.

“Anybody that went in there to look at something CAD-related could see ‘Oh, Golder has customized training on Bluebeam,’ and go in and have an inquiry,” Gallacher explained. “The actual adoption of some of these platforms has been accelerated because of people being able to go in and do some of the learning paths that we’ve created within Pinnacle itself.”