This release introduces v1.6.0 of the Absorb app for Microsoft Teams, which combines the embedded Learner Experience and Course nudge notifications in a single app. Learners can browse the Catalog, launch Courses, and review their Transcript inside Teams, and they now receive Course reminders in the same place, with one click from the reminder to the Course. A System Admin enables both features from Client Settings > Workplace apps.

For more information, review:

• Microsoft Teams Absorb LMS Application V1.6
• Absorb Aura App for Microsoft Teams Data Handling and Security

This section describes the new notification features in the Absorb app, the new settings that control them, and the Portal requirements for using the app.

Course Nudge Notifications in Teams

Learners now receive Absorb Course nudges as cards in a personal chat with the Absorb bot. A Course nudge is the repeating reminder that a Learner enrolled in a Course and has not finished it. These are the same nudges Absorb already sends by email, so Teams is an additional delivery channel and existing email notifications are unaffected.

Each card includes the following:

• A title naming the Course, which also appears as the Teams notification.
• A message stating the Course name and the date the Learner enrolled.
• An Open course button that takes the Learner to the Course.

Learners in an enabled organization receive nudges automatically, with no per Learner opt-in. A Learner can mute or remove the app in Teams to stop delivery. Nudges are matched by email, so the email address on a Learner's Absorb account must match their Microsoft email address.

The Course nudge is the only Absorb notification delivered to Teams. Course due date and overdue reminders, assignment and completion notifications, and all other notification types continue to arrive by email and in the LMS only. Course nudges continue to be configured per Course by nudge interval and maximum nudge count. For more information, see How do Nudge and Notification Settings Work?

Welcome Message

When the app is newly installed for a Learner, the bot posts a one-time welcome message explaining that it is a notification-only bot. The message is only sent when the Learner has been set up for notifications, so receiving it confirms that the Learner will receive Course nudges. If your organization has customized the app's name, the welcome message uses that name.

Open Course Button

The Open course button on each card opens the Learner Experience tab inside Teams, directly on the Course the reminder is about. Learners who need to sign in do so first and then land on the Course.

If Embed Learning Experience is turned off, notifications are still delivered, but Open course opens the Course in the Learner's browser instead. Turn on both toggles to keep Learners inside Teams.

Microsoft Teams Settings in Workplace Apps

A System Admin connects the Portal to the organization's Teams tenant and turns on the app features from a new Microsoft Teams section in Client Settings. Follow these steps:

1. Access the Admin Experience (AE).
2. Navigate to Account > Client Settings.
3. Click Workplace apps.
4. In the Microsoft Teams section, enter your organization's Tenant ID.
5. Turn on the Embed Learning Experience toggle.
6. Turn on the Enable Nudge Notifications Bot in Teams toggle.
7. Click Save.

The following table describes each setting:

These settings apply to the whole Portal. To roll the app out to a pilot group, your Teams administrator can make it available to specific people or groups in the Teams Admin Center.

Portal Requirements

Your Portal must meet all four of the following requirements to use the Learner Experience tab. A Portal that does not meet any one of them cannot use the tab, and Absorb can confirm whether your Portal qualifies before you begin.

• The Portal is a production Portal. Sandbox Portals accept the settings but they have no effect.
• All Learners sign in the same way. A mix of Single Sign-On (SSO) and non-SSO Learners, or more than one SSO configuration used by different groups, is not supported.
• If the Portal uses SSO, it is Service Provider (SP)-initiated SAML or OpenID Connect (OIDC).
• The Portal has a .myabsorb address that Teams can use for all Learners. If it does not, Absorb adds one at no effort on your part, and custom or vanity domains continue to work in the browser.

Most Learners are signed in to the tab automatically using their Microsoft work account. Learners whose Portal uses an Identity Provider (IdP) not federated through Microsoft Entra ID sign in through a pop-up, and Portals with no SSO show the Absorb login screen inside the tab.

This section describes changes for organizations already using an Absorb app in Microsoft Teams, including the earlier Absorb Aura app (v1.5.0) and the legacy Absorb LMS notification app.

App and Tab Renamed

The app and its learning tab have new names, and the Learner Experience tab now appears first. The following table summarizes the changes:

Your Teams administrator can still customize the app's name, descriptions, icons, and accent color for your organization from Teams Admin Center > Manage apps > Absorb > Customize.

Aura Available Inside the Learner Experience Tab

The standalone Aura chat is no longer part of the Teams app, and the notification bot takes its place in the chat surface. Aura itself remains available: organizations entitled to Absorb Aura can use it inside the Learner Experience tab, the same way they do in a browser. 

For more information, see Aura Learner Agent.

Existing Absorb Aura App Users

v1.6.0 is an update to the same Teams app as v1.5.0, so existing Users receive it as an update rather than a new app. After your Microsoft 365 admin grants admin consent and your System Admin turns on notifications, Learners who had v1.5.0 should remove the app and add it again to make sure they receive Course nudges.

One App Replaces the Legacy Absorb LMS App

Absorb previously required two separate Teams apps, one for learning and one for notifications. The Absorb app now delivers both, and the legacy, notification-only Absorb LMS app will be retired at a later date.

Both apps deliver notifications side by side during migration, so there is no gap in reminders. While a Learner has both apps installed, they can receive the same reminder from each; removing the legacy app stops the duplicate. The new Enable Nudge Notifications Bot in Teams toggle controls only the Absorb app, so notifications from the legacy app follow the legacy Microsoft Teams settings.