Special Offer for NZIDE Members Announced
18 September 2024
Booking Rooster Course Management Software is widely used by training providers delivering Heavy Traffic, Licence Endorsement, Forklift Operator, and EWP courses. This 100% Kiwi-owned and operated business has supported members of the New Zealand Institute of Driver Educators (NZIDE) with conference discounts since 2023. Now, Booking Rooster has introduced a year-round offer exclusively for NZIDE members.
Booking Rooster’s Digital Alchemist, Jenna Tournier, says the team is proud to back NZIDE’s work. “We value NZIDE’s commitment to lifting standards in the driver training industry, especially its focus on ethics and professionalism. That aligns strongly with how we operate and how we support the training sector.” Jenna notes that most driver training businesses use Booking Rooster’s Bantam Weight service plan, often with a small number of add-ons. “That’s why we’ve structured this offer as Bantam Weight + 2. It helps NZIDE members get more value from the software while keeping costs down.”
About Booking Rooster Software
Based in Tauranga, Booking Rooster launched its course management platform in 2013 and continues to upgrade it annually to keep features and technology current. These upgrades are included in all service plans, along with user support. The goal is simple: help training providers achieve a strong return on investment by streamlining administration, improving efficiency, and making it easy for customers to book training.
Booking Rooster founder Moira Moroney has a long-standing interest in the driver training sector. She previously co-owned and managed a third-party warehousing operation supporting New Zealand exporters and is an active member of the Chartered Institute of Transport and Logistics (CILT).
Flexible booking: self-booking plus admin-added bookings
Booking Rooster includes a modern online booking platform that supports both:
- Customer self-booking, and
- Bookings added by your team (for enquiries that come in by phone or email).
You control which courses are visible to the public and which remain Private, along with maximum numbers per session. Importantly, you don’t need to rebuild your website to use Booking Rooster—most organisations simply add a “Book Now” button. For a deeper website integration, your developer can use the Booking Rooster API to display course details directly on your site.
Trainer tools and calendar feeds
Booking Rooster is designed to support trainers and improve record-keeping. Trainers can view their schedules online and receive automated notifications when they are assigned to a course. From the email link or their calendar view, trainers can access the class list and record outcomes—ranging from quick results with comments through to detailed assessment criteria (including in-cab assessments where required).
If some trainers prefer paper-based workflows, an administrator can enter results on their behalf.
A popular add-on for driver training businesses is automatic calendar syncing to Outlook or Google Calendar. When a trainer is assigned to a course, the event is automatically added to their calendar, and changes (such as cancellations, venue updates, or timing changes) are automatically reflected. Calendar feeds are an add-on for Bantam Weight customers and included in the Middle Weight plan.
Certificates: fast, controlled, and NZTA-friendly
Once outcomes are recorded, you can email certificates of accomplishment to successful students (and employers, if required) in a few clicks. Many businesses prefer to manage timing—for example, ensuring certificates aren’t issued until payment has cleared.
For even greater efficiency, Booking Rooster also offers automated certificate sending, where certificate emails can be triggered:
- when a trainer awards the certificate, or
- after a quality controller/administrator approves it.
Booking Rooster also supports a key operational need for driver training providers: the ability to print directly onto the NZTA form from within the software—available at no extra charge.
Automated record-keeping and audit-ready reporting
Learning records entered into Booking Rooster are stored automatically and can be downloaded at any time. When an auditor arrives, you can quickly locate a learner’s history by searching their name or certificate number.
The platform includes reporting options relevant to driver training, including:
- an NZTA report for NZTA qualifications,
- an NZQA report for NZQA qualifications,
- optional reports such as AF02 and WorkSafe certificate reporting, depending on your scope.
If your organisation registers qualifications directly with NZQA, you can download a results file for a date range and upload it to NZQA. If you deliver unit standards through another agency, a custom report can be set up so you can download and share required data easily.
To help with post-course compliance, Booking Rooster also offers an Evaluation Form add-on, enabling online learner feedback collection and reporting for any selected timeframe.
Communication and marketing: built in (and expandable)
Communication is a major strength of the platform. Features include:
- automatic booking confirmations, and
- acknowledgement messaging for bookings that require manual approval,
- email reminders in the lead-up to training (reducing no-shows),
- optional SMS reminders 1–2 days before course dates.
Booking Rooster also includes email marketing tools to promote:
- specific courses,
- upcoming courses of a certain type,
- courses in a specific region,
- courses within a date range.
Driver training businesses often enhance this further with automated marketing add-ons. Two of the most popular are:
Renewal reminders
The software references stored expiry dates (e.g., forklift operator certificates, Dangerous Goods, or other expiring credentials) and sends a reminder email with a direct link to your upcoming course dates.
Progression reminders
Especially useful for heavy vehicle training, this feature uses licence history (such as Class 2 issue date) and the learner’s date of birth to send timely prompts about when they may be eligible to progress (e.g., Class 2 → Class 4 → Class 5).
Kiwi support, training, and customisation options
Booking Rooster is set up and supported by a New Zealand-based team during local business hours. After implementation, your staff receive online training so they can start confidently and quickly.
Support is straightforward: email for help (with same-day responses in most cases), and you can phone if something is urgent. The software is powerful out of the box, but where a business has unique processes, Booking Rooster can usually customise workflows. Custom work is always quoted or estimated before commencement, so there are no surprise costs.
Plans to suit businesses of all sizes
Booking Rooster supports providers with any number of trainers. Most driver training organisations choose the Bantam Weight plan (currently $795 + GST setup and $425 + GST per month) and add two or three extra features. Since the NZIDE special includes Bantam Weight + two add-ons, it’s likely to cover everything many businesses need—with strong value for money.
The NZIDE Special Offer: Bantam Weight + 2
Driver training providers who identify themselves as NZIDE members qualify for any two add-on features at no charge when signing up to the Bantam Weight plan. This covers both:
- add-on setup fees, and
- the monthly service fees for those two add-ons.
You can choose any two from:
- Automated progression reminders
- Automated certificate sending (triggered by instructor approval or quality control)
- Post-course evaluation (QR code or emailed link feeding into reporting)
- Partner programme (special terms for key account holders; supports corporate discounts and improved cashflow)
- Outlook or Google Calendar feeds (automatic trainer calendar updates as schedules change)
The Booking Rooster team is happy to talk through the options and help you choose the best fit.
Next steps
To explore the NZIDE offer, email support@bookingrooster.co.nz
or call 07 575 6903 or 09 390 5221.
Most organisations start with a short phone conversation. If Booking Rooster sounds like a good match, the next step is an online meeting where the team can learn more about your business and show how Booking Rooster can help you streamline administration, improve compliance, and strengthen customer communication.
