With a background in education and a Masters in leadership, Koreen Mak has always been passionate about learning and development. While she was in charge of professional development programs at large organizations, Mak recognized a large gap between people training and then applying their learned skills to the job. She decided to open her consulting business, Conscious Choice Personal & Professional Development, to address broken corporate training.
“70% of employees don’t feel they have basic skills to do their job, more than half of people forget content once they walk out of training, and only 12% of them apply the skills they learned from training,” Mak says.
Noticing that the same issues were happening to her consulting clients, Mak then started Peppermint Technologies Inc. to build a solution that would solve those problems. Mak and a team of partners strategized to create MYNTIX: a mobile micro-learning platform. Micro-learning focuses on one concept at a time over a while, rather than cramming an overwhelming amount of knowledge into hours, days, or weeks of training.
The MYNTIX modules are 5 to 7 minutes long and sent to users via text or email. “It comes directly to you—you don’t need to be on a website or remember any passwords,” Mak explains. “The theory behind it is that you’ll retain more knowledge with smaller chunks of learning provided over longer periods.”
Companies can create unique training content for their employees, and the short bursts of learning are automated and scheduled so employees can engage with modules anywhere and anytime without needing to take time away from work. The convenience of micro-learning rather than full days of expensive training makes learning 17% more effective and creates 50% more engagement.
“People who are motivated will learn no matter what,” Mak adds. “MYNTIX is for those people in the back of the room who come last minute, sitting with their arms crossed, and would rather be anywhere than a training room. By focusing on getting that person engaged, everyone else will be too.”
With the ability to fully customize the content, the platform is limitless and applicable to any industry. One of MYNTIX’s clients has been using the platform for employee onboarding, which has helped introduce new employees into the culture of the organization and set expectations even before they start.
“A week before they start, new employees get a text welcoming them to the company and a video from the CEO,” Mak shares. “A couple of days later, they get a message outlining the culture, and they continue to receive content on topics such as social media policy, email, and internet every couple of days until they start. Once they start, they receive content related to their sales training program.”
MYNTIX is building up its customer base and welcoming organizations that are looking for new ways to train their employees. They’ve created the Innovators Club for early adopters to enjoy great pricing and early access to all new features as they become available.
The next step includes building AI into the product to determine what learning reinforcement or content is needed most. MYNTIX is also working on adding a personality piece, where individuals can take a test to discover their natural preferences, inclinations, and identify skills that they need to work effectively. Ready-made leadership development courses are also in the pipeline to guide people in further development.
With Mak’s passion and drive, this female founder from Saskatoon has led Peppermint Technologies Inc. and MYNTIX to see tremendous success and growth. Peppermint Technologies Inc. was in the Founder’s Table cohort of 2019, and through Innovation Saskatchewan, they are a Saskatchewan Technology Startup Incentive (STSI) eligible company.
With plans to grow across Canada, into the United States, and then explore translations to take the platform internationally, Mak is happy to be rooted in Saskatchewan. People everywhere are looking for new ways of doing old things, so being in the middle of prairies hasn’t been a barrier. “People in Saskatchewan are so eager to help see businesses develop and grow,” says Mak. “Everyone has welcomed innovations and embraced new things.”
Founder: Koreen Mak
Built: 2019
Launched: May 2020
Employees: 2
Website: https://myntix.ca/
