The Role of SME's in the eLearning Design Process

There's been some recent (constructive) debate around the role of SME's in the eLearning Design Process, and this got me thinking about how I approached the design of my house extension plans with a draftsman - yes you heard right!

As Instructional Designers, we often work with Subject Matter Experts to help craft the learning experience. I approach each client in a different way, depending on how much input they require from me in order to deliver the learning experience that best meets their performance goals. Some SME's like to provide me with content upfront, whereas others will start with a clean slate - a general idea of what they *think* they'd like to achieve, and we work together to define the actionable takeaways.

I don't have a particular preference for how my clients choose to engage me. Some require full instructional, creative and development input. Others have already thought about the structure and flow before they engage me; so in these instances I work with the SME to help define the learning objectives, structure the flow, create the scenarios and learning activities, and most importantly, determine which elements to leave out.

For SME's who are familiar with the eLearning design process, development can be relatively simple. I'm all about delivering the best fit solution for each of my clients, and I give a lot of credit to the wonderful SME's who make the work I do possible. So far I've been really lucky to work with some big brands who are more than happy to take my suggestions onboard, even if it means shifting from their original vision.

So what does this have to do with me engaging a draftsman to design my home extension plans?

Well in the beginning I wasn't sure whether I needed an architect or a draftsman, but after doing my research I concluded that a draftsman would be the best fit for my needs, because I already had a clear vision for what I wanted in my extension. So just like the Instructional Designer, my draftsman took my initial doodles and refined them, made wonderful suggestions on how to improve them and make the best use of the space - within my budget.

Sure I could have paid a bomb and engaged an architect to come up with 3 concept designs, but I'd already put significant thought into what I wanted; I was really just looking for someone to bring my ideas to life.

So when I'm engaged by my clients (SME's or Instructional Designers), I either wear architect's hat or a draftsman's hat - or a combination of both. Instructional Design is not a one-size-fits-all approach and part of my role as a vendor is to establish the level of support needed from me, in order to achieve their performance goals.

I'd love to get your views on how you approach Instructional Design with SMEs.

Shiraz Papas