2025

December

• ⚙️ For clients that generate Sparkwise Insights reports, you can now request and generate reports that include more session data. The number of groups that can be covered in a single report has been increased by ~5x.

• ⚙️ Client admins now have the option to enable a new feature called “Registered domain self-enrollment”, which allows for individuals who do not currently have a Sparkwise account but do have an email address with one of the organization’s registered domains to complete the self-registration flow. A user account is automatically created for them in the process.

• ⚙️ Client admins will find a more self-explanatory button to access live tech support.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now move unmatched participants to a new time-slot.

• ✨ Participants will find that enabling/disabling background blur will be remembered and applied for future sessions.

• ⚙️✨ To improve the user experience in organizations that use Microsoft Outlook, we are changing the way that Sparkwise session calendar invites are sent. Moving forward, new calendar event invites will sent from [email protected]

November

• ⚙️ Client admins can now delete future sessions as needed.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now request “live onboarding” sessions use a URL associated with the client’s own video-conferencing tool of choice

• ✨ Participants will see a significant improvement in response times from the AI assistant in modules that use AI (particularly for longer AI chats)

• ✨ Participants will see enhancements to steps that show each participant’s individual work. Rather than showing all work immediately, these steps will now hide the work of each participant until that participant navigates to (or or beyond) the comparison step. The ensures that work won’t be shared with others in the group until each participant is done with it and ready to share.

October

• ⚙️ Client admins who manage multiple Cohorts now have the option to customize communications settings for specific cohorts, overriding any organization-wide settings. This enables a wide range of communication customizations, including enabling/disabling each type of email and calendar invite, customizing portions of the messaging in email and calendar invites, setting a different base timezone, choosing rescheduling options, and more. Client admins managing multiple cohorts can use the organization-wide settings for some cohorts, while overriding settings for specific cohorts that would benefit from customization. Contact us if you are interested to configure this for your organization.

• ⚙️ Client admins now have access to the Help Center from their admin dashboard.

• ⚙️ Client admins will now see a few additional fields in the “Full History” tab of the Analytics tab, providing additional participant timestamps and session cohort information.

• ✨ Participants will see a fresh visual design being rolled out over our full module library over the next few weeks.

• ✨ Participants now have the option to dial-in by phone to connect to a session’s conversation from four different countries. A toll-free number in Australia was just added.

• ✨ Participants will now see more detailed instructions on some steps in the left sidebar, allowing us to simplify the main activity portion of the step.

September

• ⚙️ Client admins now have a new option for integrating Sparkwise into their organization’s LMS or LXP. When this new capability is enabled for your account, you will have the ability to schedule a cluster of sessions using a selected module at dates/times that you choose, and then embed a self-registration form (an iframe) for this offering directly in your organization’s learning platform. Individuals can then see and choose from the timeslot options that you provided, and they can sign up without any additional action needed from the client admin. If a participant later needs to change to a different timeslot, they can do this on their own, starting from a Sparkwise email, calendar invite, or dashboard link.

• ✨ Participants who miss a session that was offered at multiple times will now receive a new type of follow-up email that enables easily rescheduling for an available future timeslot.

• ⚙️ Client admins now have a way to live-broadcast a short text message to all participants currently in a given session.

• ⚙️✨ Sparkwise sessions now support a new set of step types that make use of PDF documents, including multi-page PDFs. These are now available to client admins for inclusion in custom-built modules.

August

• ✨ Participants will now see an enhanced set of AV features when joining sessions, including: a new menu for modifying audio and video settings mid-session, live audio level signals for each session participant, and a new set of troubleshooting tools if they run into any AV issues.

• ✨ First-time session participants will see a link to the new self-service tech check in their onboarding email.

• ⚙️ Client admins now see session cohort names in the “Full History” section of Analytics.

• ⚙️ Client admins have the ability to disable the solo access option for participants who are not matched to a group.

• ⚙️ Client admins have access to several new types of participation data in the “Full History” section of Analytics.

July

• ✨ Session participants can now pre-test their system to see if it is Sparkwise-ready from our new self-service tech check at https://app.sparkwise.co/techcheck. This checks for access to camera and microphone, network access to our videoconferencing servers, access to our realtime application servers, and more. It can be found from the header menu on the app dashboard or via a link in calendar invites and certain pre-session emails. If the test doesn’t all pass, users can submit a report to our tech team and we will reach out to follow up.

• ✨ Session invitees can now reschedule directly the dashboard (in addition to rescheduling from pre-session emails and calendar invites.)

• ✨⚙️ Safari on macOS has been added to the list of supported browser for both participants and admins. The list now includes current versions of Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now bulk-add new users to their account via CSV upload (up to 10,000 new users per CSV.)

• ⚙️ Client admins now have access to time-in-session data in the “Full History” tab of the Analytics dashboard.

June

• ⚙️ Client admins can now offer multiple timeslot options for a given session. The admin can use this to assign participants to times that might work well based on timezone, and can bulk-add participants, drag-and-drop participants between timeslot options, and use other dedicated tools to make large session scheduling easy and fast.

• ✨ Individual participants invited to multi-timeslot sessions now have the ability to easily switch to a different timeslot option (based on their availability and preference) via an enhanced rescheduling flow.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now have cohort-specific views of the admin tool. For admins managing one or more cohorts in a larger organization, this allows for a focused view on the participants and sessions of interest.

• ⚙️ Certain client admins can be granted the ability to manage this "starred cohort" functionality for other client admins in their organization.

• ✨ Participants see a prompt if they make noise while on mute, and the criteria used to determine when to display this prompt have been improved.

May

• ✨ Participants will see that we more actively test all connected AV devices during the join-video flow. This allows us to warn participants in advance if they select a device that isn’t providing data.

• ⚙️ Platform partners that support Sparkwise programs across multiple client organizations can now access those in a unified way from their admin dashboard.

• ⚙️ Client admins with access to the Insights tab now can use custom date ranges to select artifacts to view.

April

• ✨ Participants will see a messaging before leaving a session with AV connected asking them to confirm before disconnecting.

• ✨ Participants will now see closed captions displayed on all session video clips.

• ⚙️ We're excited to announce that Sparkwise has successfully completed our second annual SOC 2 Type II audit! This achievement underscores our ongoing commitment to maintaining robust security standards as we serve a growing number of enterprise clients. More about this on our blog.

• ⚙️ Client admins, when configuring a post-session redirect, can now choose to add an time-based automated redirect that will be triggered at the scheduled end time of the session, pushing remaining participants to the specified post-session URL. Participants will see reminders displayed 15 minutes, 5 minutes, and then 1 minute before the automated redirect is activated.

• ⚙️ Client admins will now see a new “Attendance” tab in the Analytics dashboard.

• ⚙️ Client admins now have the ability to bulk-add all cohort participants to a given session as participant.

March

• ✨ Participants can now select their sound output device for supported browsers. Previously this always defaulted to the same device as is used for audio input.

• ✨ Participants in immersions in the “Using AI” category will see more consistent chatbot availability, as we now automatically failover to a backup provider when OpenAI is unavailable.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now request to be included in the private beta of Sparkwise Insights. This gives you access to more detailed sessions artifacts, and analyze these using your AI tools. Admins can use this to capture "aha" moments across sessions, surface common challenges and opportunities, identify how mindsets and behaviors evolve through the program, and make more data-driven decisions for your learning strategy. Reach out to the success team if you are interested to participate in the beta.

February

• ⚙️ Client admins can configure a post-session redirect (title + URL) that participants are sent to upon completing the session (instead of the session recap page.)

• ⚙️ Client admins will now see a new “Cohort” column on tables listing sessions, and table rows can now be sorted or filtered based on cohort name.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now find learning programs listed in our public catalog.

• ⚙️ For client admins who are using cohorts to organize sessions, let us know if you need any past sessions relocated to a different cohort.

• ⚙️ Client admins now see a warning message when modifying the list of session participants after a session’s start time has passed.

• ⚙️ Client admins that work with Sparkwise on custom modules have new flexibility in the inclusion and placement of memento feedback forms.

• ⚙️ Client admins can, when scheduling new sessions, select new participants by name or by email.

January

• ⚙️ Client admins will see that the navigation sidebar now automatically collapses when visiting the “Analytics” tab. (This will also happen for the upcoming “Insights” tab.)

• ⚙️ Client admins can now see an up-to-the-minute listing of our public catalog, which is now better organized and easier to explore. The catalog now includes modules that are coming soon.

2024

December

• ✨ Participants now see a visual indicator if they are talking but microphone is muted.

• ✨ Participants who are meeting in-person can now join sessions without needing to allow access to camera or microphone.

• ✨ For organizations that have configured SSO, participants can now access the Sparkwise dashboard directly from their OIDC client app launcher (e.g., Okta’s app launcher.)

• ⚙️ Custom-built modules can have a custom duration, which is reflected on participant calendar invites.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now collapse/expand the navigation sidebar.

November

• ✨ Participants can now proactively mute microphone or switch off video prior to initially joining their group session.

• ✨ Participants will see several performance and UX improvements on the new video platform.

• ✨ Background noise cancellation is now enabled by default for all participants.

• ⚙️ Client admins who use the Cohorts tab can now specify that a newly-scheduled session is associated with a specific cohort, simplifying the process of scheduling cohort-based sessions.

• ⚙️ Client admins can filter data displayed in the Analytics tab by module, by participant, or by both.

October

• ✨ All sessions now run on the new video platform by default. The legacy video platform is now primarily useful for organizations that require network/firewall configuration changes first.)

• ✨ Sessions running on the new video platform now support a phone dial-in option for participants who are unable to join video in their browser, with phone numbers available in US and UK. Other locations may be added based on requests from client admins.

• ✨ Sessions running on the new video platform can enable background blur before joining their group session.

• ✨ Participants on chatbot steps will see a loading animation on screen while messages are loading, to avoid any confusion resulting from any momentary delays.

• ⚙️ Client admin privileges can now be granted prior to first logging into the platform. The onboarding steps for new client admins is now simpler as ordering of steps is now flexible.

• ⚙️ Client admins who are interested in configuring single sign on with Okta can reach out and we can share instructions for configuring SSO via OIDC.

• ⚙️ Prospective and current clients are welcome to try out our new Program Builder tool to generate custom learning programs, which is available as a beta release. Simply answer a couple of questions about your organizational needs, and the Program Builder will generate a cohort-based skill development program tailored for your target learners. Available directly at builder.sparkwise.co

September

• ✨ Select sessions now use our new video platform, with an anticipated rollout expanding to all client sessions over the next month. On the new platform, participants will see:

  • ✨ an option to toggle on/off background blur for their video camera and turn on/off noise cancellation for their microphone.

  • ✨ a highlighted border indicating which participant is currently speaking.

• ✨ Participants will see a new set of prompts and confirmations when selecting the mode to join an “in-person” session, designed to clarify when this mode should be used.

• ✨ Participants can now enable English closed captioning for all newly-created video clips. (Text transcripts remain available.)

• ⚙️ Client Admins with Cohort tab access will now see cohort names included in the participant table (at the top of the session details page).

• ⚙️ Bulk actions now show more helpful error messages if something goes wrong.

• ⚙️ Client admins with access to Analytics will now see a histogram of participant quantitative feedback scores on the Summary tab.

August

• ✨ Participants will see more responsive headers on resources in sessions.

• ✨ Camera and microphone device selection menus have been reworked to be more intuitive.

• ✨ Post-session review pages now support web links as a new type of Additional Resource.

• ✨ Post-session follow-up emails now include a clickable list of all Additional Resources attached

• ⚙️ Client admins will see a new UI when scheduling new sessions, where modules are grouped by category and custom modules are listed separately.

• ⚙️ Client admins can request access to a new Cohorts tab in the admin tool, which can be used to create and manage a set of named user cohorts, then filter the Analytics dashboards by cohort.

• ⚙️ Client admin access to the admin tool can now be granted per tab, allowing each client admin’s access to be tailored to their needs based on their role. To request access changes for your client admins, please reach out to the Sparkwise Success Team. Tabs currently available include Users, Sessions, Analytics, and Cohorts.

• ⚙️ Client admins with access to the Analytics tab now have the ability to view all modules for a given participant and to view all participants for a given module.

July

• ✨ Added option for guests to schedule a trial session of an AI-enhanced module (“Intro to generative AI at work.”)

• ✨ Participants can now enter (or paste) formatted text into the AI chatbot, and formatting will be retained.

• ⚙️ Sparkwise recently completed annual penetration testing. The executive summary of the testing firm’s report is available to Sparkwise clients by request.

• ⚙️ Client admins will see past/current/future session tables are now displayed in dedicated tabs across the admin dashboard.

June

• ✨ A new set of modules in the “Using AI” category make use of a suite of new activity types that feature an AI chatbot powered by GPT-4o. Participants use the chatbot as an assistant and a support throughout the session.

• ⚙️ ✨ During the 12 hours preceding any scheduled system maintenance, a banner is displayed communicating the upcoming maintenance window timing.

May

• ✨ All participants will now see the new version of the whiteboard canvas in sessions.

• ✨ Participants can select “don’t show again” on the network quality indicator. The indicator will also appear less frequently.

• ✨ For some sessions, participants will now see “additional resources” available for download on the Recap page.

• ⚙️ Client admins can customize the naming used to refer to the session format (ie: “Group Learning”) in communications.

• ⚙️ ✨ Client admins and participants will see updated naming conventions, now referring to an “immersion” as a “module” or “session”.

• ✨ Participants will see an even more responsive layout when using browser zoom functionality during sessions.

• ✨ On steps with the whiteboard canvas, participants can now use the zoom reset button to re-center and zoom-to-fit the content.

• ✨ Participants will now see a popup discussion header on collaborative group steps.

• ✨ In dynamically grouped sessions, participants are now more likely to be matched to a group – participants can now be added to an existing group that started within the last 15 minutes instead of 10 minutes.

April

• ⚙️ Sparkwise is now SOC 2 Type II compliant! SOC 2 has a rigorous requirement on how companies handle customer data and information, so compliance guarantees there are established and implemented organizational practices in place to safeguard customer data. Our SOC 2 Type II report is available to clients by request. More at https://sparkwise.co/security

• ✨ Participants now see a new version of the whiteboard canvas starting to appear in sessions. Changes include a new drag tool to pan across the canvas, new help text explaining how to interact with the selected element, improved auto-sizing behavior to make text larger and more legible, and assorted refinements to the UI/UX.

• ⚙️ Client admins now see an updated version of the Analytics dashboard, which introduces a Summary tab with team-wide summary statistics.

• ✨ Participants will now see better responsive layout behavior when using browser zoom functionality during sessions: center content will no longer get squeezed.

• ✨ Participants will now see live feedback on sound input level in the updated microphone button. AV buttons were restyled to make them more clear and recognizable.

March

• ✨ In a participant’s very first Sparkwise session, an introductory video is now displayed prior to the guided tour of the interface.

• ✨⚙️ The login flow has been refined to add responsive, mobile-friendly design and to add additional guidance in the case that the six-digit code for the “email me a code” login flow was not received.

• ✨ Participants are now prompted to say goodbye to their group prior to filling out the “memento” in the final step. After submitting the memento feedback form in the final step of a session, participants are redirected to the session’s “Recap” review page.

• ✨ Session recap pages can now include links to access additional resources (PDFs or URLs.) These additional resource lists will be added to all session recap pages in upcoming weeks.

• ⚙️ Client admins can request a new set of customizations for their account. These include: changes to the default rescheduling flow, changes to the branding and copy in participant calendar invites and in four email templates used for participant communications. Changes include adding custom message text, replacing default bullet lists with custom lists, and changing the default sender and inviter names that appear in email communications. Contact Success Team if you would like to learn more.

February

• ✨ Participants can now click-to-expand images to increase size of text when needed.

• ✨ Participants may notice that images load faster in live sessions due to new preloading functionality.

• ✨⚙️ The login flow has been redesigned to improve usability and support organizations that choose to use their own SSO.

January

• ✨ Participants can now access a dedicated Participant Help Center with step-by-step instructions for completing common actions. These articles can also be accessed from within the live chat support tool.

• ⚙️ Client admins also have a growing dedicated Sparkwise Account Administrator Help Center. These articles can also be accessed from within the live chat support tool.

• ✨⚙️ The Sparkwise website footer now includes a richer set of links to resources related to the platform, including the System Status dashboard, the two help centers listed above, a page detailing our security practices, and this product release notes.

• ✨ First-time participants now see a guided tour of the interface at the beginning of their first live session.

2023

December

• ✨ Participants in a dynamically-grouped session who are not matched to a group now have the option to immediately start the live session on their own.

• ✨ If a participant spends too much time on a different step than the rest of their group, they will now see a messaging encouraging them to rejoin others and progress as a group.

• ⚙️ Client admins can request their participants be grouped into distinct cohorts. After setting this up with Sparkwise’s Success Team, the “Analytics” tab allows for filtering all dashboard views to a specific cohort. Contact Success Team if you would like to learn more.

• ⚙️ Client admins can now request email notifications and/or calendar invitations to be suppressed for their account or for specific cohorts within their account. Contact Success Team if you would like to learn more.

• ✨ Participants will see a notification if their connected microphone and/or speaker has changed in the background.

November

• ✨ In live sessions, a network quality indicator appears at top of screen when connection quality is poor.

• ⚙️ For client admins, a live chat widget now appears in the bottom corner of the admin console that offers access to the Sparkwise support team. This widget also includes links to articles from a new help center for account administrators.

• ⚙️ Client admins now have access to scheduling and updating sessions and access to a set of interactive data dashboards.

Earlier

• While earlier release notes are not archived here, we are happy to answer questions about earlier release. Contact us!