As a portal administrator you configure Buddy for your organisation. You fill in two text fields, in plain language. This takes about fifteen minutes.
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Field 1 — Tell Buddy who you are | Who you are and which learning policy applies. Buddy may share this with any employee. |
| Field 2 — Give Buddy instructions | How Buddy should behave in your situation. Buddy follows this, but never reveals it. |
Important: Anything in field 1 can be passed on by Buddy. Do not enter confidential or commercially sensitive information and no personal data. What you save applies to every employee in this portal immediately.
Requirements
- You need the Buddy administration right. If you cannot see the settings, contact your PlusPort representative.
Where to find the settings
The settings are not in the Admin menu — you reach them through the chat.
- Click Ask Buddy in the side menu.
- Click the gear icon at the bottom left of the chat window.
- The Buddy settings page opens with the two fields.
Open it directly: your-portal/scripts/external/ai.aspx#/settings
Do not repeat what Buddy already does
This is the most important part. If you put this behaviour in field 2 anyway, the rules that do matter get buried.
Buddy already does this
- Stays with learning and certification, politely declines other questions
- Only shows data about the logged-in employee
- Never invents anything: no source, no answer
- Asks a clarifying question when a request is vague, closes with one follow-up
- Keeps it short and follows the employee's tone and language
- Returns at most five trainings, with links
- Splits certificates into obtained, expiring soon, still to obtain
- Shares field 1 on request, but never the instructions themselves
Buddy does not know
- Competencies and competency levels (certificates and compliance requirements yes, with dates)
- Anything outside the Academy: no intranet, handbook or documents
- Data about colleagues — no team overview for managers either
- He does not replace HR or the manager; he makes sure someone walks in prepared
Tip: Tell employees that short search questions work best. "Find trainings about safety" returns more than a long sentence.
What goes in which field
| Field | Belongs here | Does not |
|---|---|---|
| Field 1 — who you are | Sector, size, where people work. What you do. Common job functions and the steps between them. What you stand for. The learning policy: budgets, what does and does not come out of the budget, who pays for mandatory certification, whether learning during working hours is allowed. | Behavioural rules for Buddy (those go in field 2). Personal data. Confidential information. A list of trainings or certificates — Buddy already sees those. |
| Field 2 — instructions | Referrals: which desk or email address goes with which subject. Request routes: how someone applies, and who approves. Your own terminology. Tone, only if you genuinely want to deviate. | Anything from Do not repeat what Buddy already does. Prohibitions you cannot verify. Long blocks of text. |
Form. Field 1: full sentences with blank lines and short headings; one page is enough. Be concrete about amounts and deadlines ("1,000 euros per year", not "a reasonable budget"). Field 2: one bullet per agreement, built as "in this situation, do this".
A filled-in example
A technical service provider with one collective labour agreement and one HR desk. Note how short the instructions field is: three lines are enough, because all other behaviour is already built in.
Learning policy, at the end of field 1
- Every employee has a personal training budget of 1,000 euros per year.
- Trainings from the internal catalogue do not come out of that budget.
- The employer always pays for mandatory certification, even if your budget is spent.
- Learning during working hours is allowed. For courses longer than three days, make arrangements with your manager.
Several organisations in one portal
If several operating companies or sites share one portal, cover one risk: Buddy quoting an amount or arrangement that does not apply to that employee. Put each operating company's size, job functions and budget in field 1, and add these two rules to field 2:
- If a question is about an amount, budget or arrangement, only state what applies to this employee's operating company. If it is not clear which one someone belongs to, ask first.
- Never mention the arrangements of another operating company in the same answer.
Buddy does not work out on his own which operating company someone belongs to. Without that first rule he could quote all the budgets. If an operating company has its own desk or request form, state that too.
Saving and checking
- Click Save (only active once you change something) and reload the page: is your text still there? A grey button is not proof.
- Open the chat window and clear the chat history with the bin icon. If you skip this, Buddy answers on the old context and it looks as though nothing changed.
- Ask a question that touches your new text, for example "Can I take an external course, and how do I apply?"
- If amounts, desks or routes are wrong, sharpen the text and repeat. Change one thing at a time.
Checklist before you close
- Field 1 describes who you are and which learning policy applies, with concrete amounts and deadlines
- Field 1 holds no confidential information and no personal data
- Field 2 repeats nothing from Do not repeat what Buddy already does and holds the referrals and request routes
- Multi-organisation portals: Buddy asks when it is unclear
- Saved, verified after reloading, and tested with a real question
Copy-paste page
Copy the blocks below into the two fields and replace the [brackets] with your own details. Leave out anything you do not need.
Field 1 — fill-in template
We are [organisation name], [sector] with around [number] employees in [country or region].
We [what you do, in plain language], for [type of clients]. Our people work
[where: on site, in the office, in shifts].
Common job functions are [job functions]. People move from [function] into [function].
What we stand for: [three core values, one sentence each].
Our learning policy:
- Every employee has a personal training budget of [amount] per year.
- Trainings from the internal catalogue [do / do not] come out of that budget.
- Mandatory certification is paid by [who], even if the budget is spent.
- Learning during working hours [is / is not] allowed. For courses longer than
[period], make arrangements with your manager.
Field 2 — pick the lines you need
- If someone wants to take an external course: they apply through
[manager / team leader], who then approves it in the Academy.
- For questions about leave, salary, sick leave or other employment conditions:
refer to [desk or email address].
- If a question is about the personal training budget, or someone gets stuck:
refer them to [email address].
- If a question is about a mandatory certificate that is expiring: refer to [desk]
and mention that registration happens at least [period] in advance.
- For technical questions about the Academy itself (logging in, a module that
will not start): refer to [service desk or email address].
- We always call a manager [your term], and a course [your term].
- If a question is about an amount, budget or arrangement, only state what applies
to this employee's [operating company / site]. If that is not clear, ask first.
(only for several organisations in one portal)
Test questions — ask Buddy these after saving
- "Can I take an external course, and how do I apply?"
- "How much training budget do I have per year?"
- "Who pays for my mandatory certification?"
- "Who do I contact about a question on leave?"
- "Am I allowed to learn during working hours?"
- "Which of my certificates are expiring soon?"
- "Find trainings about safety"
Clear the chat history first, then ask the questions and check that amounts, desks and terms are correct.
Questions about setting up Buddy
Contact your PlusPort representative. Soon the default behaviour from Do not repeat what Buddy already does will appear on the page itself, and you will choose up to three suggested questions on Buddy's start screen. The text you enter now stays in place.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I not see the gear icon in the chat window?
You are probably missing the Buddy administration right. Contact your PlusPort representative to have this right assigned.
When do my changes apply to employees?
Immediately. What you save applies to every employee in this portal straight away.
Why is Buddy still responding based on my old text?
The chat history was probably not cleared. Clear the chat history with the bin icon and ask your question again.
Can Buddy reveal the text of field 2 to employees?
No. Buddy follows the instructions in field 2 but never reveals them. Field 1, however, is shared on request — do not enter anything confidential there.
We have several operating companies in one portal. What extra do I need to set up?
Put each operating company's size, job functions and budget in field 1, and add the two rules from Several organisations in one portal to field 2, so Buddy asks when it is unclear which operating company someone belongs to.