On 6 October 2022 we hosted Certified by Drillster, bringing customers, partners, and colleagues together to learn, share, and be inspired.
On 6 October 2022 we hosted Certified by Drillster, our annual event for customers, partners, colleagues, and other friends of Drillster. The goal: learn and inspire one another. We chose the Eiland van Maurik, a lush location by the water. The late-summer weather cooperated too: 18 degrees and sunshine, perfect for the powerboat experience - but more on that later in this in-depth recap. Prefer watching instead of reading? Catch the aftermovie:
Guests started to arrive toward the end of the afternoon. After a cup of coffee we jumped straight into the programme. Drillster's own Marco van Sterkenburg and Arnoud Schmitz opened the day. Marco spoke about several trends that have shaped the past few years. One important - and worrying - trend is the lack of focus. We have become so accustomed to the constant impulses of our smartphones that we struggle to concentrate fully on a task for even half a minute. Every minute another message, news alert, email, or special offer pops up. And if nothing comes in, we still feel the urge to check our phones. That habit threatens our ability to learn.
The same smartphone drives the 'Google Effect on Memorization'. The theory, introduced by Dr. Betsy Sparrow, suggests that people memorise less information and focus instead on knowing where to find it quickly - usually on their phone. That continuous access means we actually retain less. And that is exactly why we need to learn smarter and more efficiently. Plenty of knowledge and skills simply cannot be looked up; you must know them by heart to act immediately, for example in an emergency. Read more about this in our blog 'Learning versus navigating'.
Marco closed with four tips to stay focused and truly learn and retain information:
Not only Drillster colleagues were on stage. They were soon joined by three customers: David Mooijaart from HSAprogram (opens in new tab), Bob Hoogstede from KLM (opens in new tab), and Miguel Breithor from Univé (opens in new tab). Each shared how they use Drillster, what works well, and what could work better - because we were there to learn from one another.
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Customers who launch learning programmes with clear, motivating communication see significantly better results than those who invest little or no attention in it. Explaining what the new way of learning entails and why it matters is essential. When the roll-out is orchestrated well, adoption and engagement remain high. Marco and Arnoud shared great examples from EPHEC (opens in new tab), VodafoneZiggo (opens in new tab), and KLM Cargo (opens in new tab). Those organisations introduced Drillster with creative actions - cupcakes, paper planes, webinars, even a Drillster stand on the work floor. You can find these examples in the Internal Communication Toolkit we developed to help customers plan their launch.
After the customer stories and many thoughtful questions from the audience (thank you!) we moved on to the Certified by Drillster certificate. It is a quality mark for instructional drill designers who demonstrate mastery of the 10 Drill Design Principles and therefore create high-quality drill content. Great learning content is crucial for real impact and the success of your overall learning programme. To support instructional designers more personally we offer every customer a one-on-one drill review with our own Drill Designers. During the review you can ask anything and receive tips for improvements. Pass the review and you receive the 'Certified by Drillster' certificate.
Several designers have already completed the review, including someone we wanted to spotlight during the event. Antoinette van Duijn, project lead digital learning resources at publisher Staal & Roeland (opens in new tab), has held a Drillster account for more than eight years and worked on over 5,000 drills. As a passionate early adopter and an engaged customer she regularly shares feedback on the app, drill player, and editor - insights that help us improve our products. To show our appreciation we presented Antoinette with the first certificate of the year live on stage.
After the 'official' part of the programme it was time for drinks, food, networking, and a ride on the powerboat. Over a delicious barbecue everyone had plenty to talk about. One of the clear highlights was the rib powerboat that raced across the water at 80 kilometres per hour. Two boats made rounds all evening so every guest could experience the thrill.
When the last guests - and the remaining Drillster colleagues - were kindly asked by the venue to head home, we knew the day had flown by. We learned a lot, felt inspired, enjoyed great food, and let the wind clear our heads at 80 kilometres per hour. A big thank-you to everyone who joined us. We hope to see you again soon!
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