From Google Docs to Global Training: How Propr Built a Culture of Learning with Trainual

Propr is a hospitality powerhouse operating across South Africa — with expanding footprints in Dubai and Portugal. They manage short-term rentals with all the polish of a five-star hotel. Think property onboarding, interior outfitting, maintenance, housekeeping, guest experience, and revenue management — all in-house.

But behind the scenes? Things were a little less five-star.

Scaling fast with duct-taped docs? That was Propr’s reality.

With nearly 200 employees and more properties popping up every month, onboarding was clunky. Training relied on PDFs, Google Docs, or “just ask the person next to you.” New hires got different info depending on who they shadowed, and critical knowledge was stuck in department heads' heads.

“I was training people one-on-one. I’d say, ‘Come sit with me, I’ll show you what I’m doing.’ But that doesn’t scale.”

Marni Riese, who started as a property manager and now serves as Head of People, recognized a major gap: They were growing too fast for informal training to keep up.

“We can’t expect people to do their jobs without giving them what they need to do them well.”

What was slowing Propr down?

🔁 Inconsistent onboarding: Each department trained their way — with zero standardization.

🧠 Knowledge stuck in heads: No centralized playbook. Processes varied (and often weren’t documented).

📄 Messy documentation: Disconnected Google Docs with no version control.

🌍 Unscalable training: New international hires had no way to learn without in-person help.

The switch to Trainual

In May 2024, Propr launched Trainual as their centralized training system. Marni dove in headfirst, trying to build every module perfectly. But a mindset shift — sparked by a Trainual piece of content — changed everything:

“It’ll never be perfect. It’s always going to be a work in progress. That’s what makes it valuable.”

Once Marni embraced that, everything shifted. Trainual went from “one more tool” to the hub of how Propr trains, aligns, and grows.

Click "Next" 👆 to see how Propr uses Trainual. Want a closer look? Click to explore the training in a new window.

The system that leveled Propr up

📚 A single source of truth

Propr went from scattered docs to a structured, searchable home for every SOP — covering everything from refund policies to troubleshooting a broken TV.

“Now we just say, ‘Have you checked Trainual?’ The info’s there — and people know it’s there.”

🧑‍🏫 A training team embedded in every department

Marni built a mini dream team of 3 Training Team Leads — senior staff from different departments who already knew the ins and outs of their roles.

“They were already training people. I just brought them into my team officially.”

Each lead owns their department’s content, meets weekly with their teams, and flags anything unclear or outdated. They’re the front line of content upkeep — and the bridge between operations and people.

📬 Feedback that fuels improvement

Training Team Leads collect feedback during weekly department meetings, using a shared Asana board to log updates. They also invite anyone in the org to flag issues via a Google Form.

“If something’s missing, I want to know. We update Trainual constantly. And we make it better together.”

🎮 Gamified buy-in

When Trainual first rolled out, Propr ran a completion challenge: Get your training to 100% for a chance to win Uber Eats vouchers.

“You want people to get excited about training. Gamifying it made a huge difference.”

🧪 Hard tests, big impact

Propr’s training tests are no joke — and that’s intentional.

The tests reinforce attention to detail and create a culture of mastery — not just surface-level learning.

“Our CEO took one and messaged me like, ‘That was hard!’ And I said, ‘Good. That means you actually read it.’

🌍 Training that travels

Propr’s apart-hotel expansion means new hires are often remote. Thanks to Trainual, onboarding now happens anytime, anywhere.

“They don’t need to come into the office. They’ve got Trainual. And the translation feature? Chef’s kiss. It’s huge for our teams in Portugal.”

Results: Empowered teams. Scalable systems. Global consistency.

• ✅ 180+ employees trained through a standardized, self-serve system
• ✅ 3 embedded training leaders keeping content fresh and aligned
• ✅ Weekly “Trainual Training” sessions across departments
• ✅ Feedback loops that fuel real-time updates and improvements
• ✅ Multilingual, on-demand training for international teams
• ✅ Stronger accountability and knowledge ownership across the company

“We don’t micromanage. We empower. And that starts with training.”

TL;DR

Propr replaced its scattered training docs with a single, scalable system that powers consistent onboarding across 180+ employees and three countries. Training that once took hours now happens asynchronously — faster, more accurately, and with zero micromanagement.

With just three internal training leads, Propr built an operation-driven culture that cut onboarding time, improved consistency, and helped fuel their international expansion — all while keeping service standards sky-high.

“If you invest in your people, you invest in your business. And Trainual helps you do both.”

👉 Ready to scale without the chaos? Book a free demo and see how Trainual makes it ridiculously easy.