Meet a Community Member: Matthew Bibby

We started the E-Learning Heroes community to give you everything you need to be a successful course creator. It’s the best place to give and get help, advice, inspiration, and expertise on Articulate apps and e-learning. It provides meaningful connection, free content, and expert advice to more than 800,000 members.

Those members are the heart and soul of E-Learning Heroes. Whether they’re asking or answering questions, sharing examples or downloads, or providing feedback on other members’ contributions, their presence brings enormous value to the community.

To foster an even deeper connection among members, we’re posting a series of articles highlighting different people from the community. This is the third article in that series. If you missed the first two, be sure to check them out here:

• Meet Jackie Van Nice
• Meet Wendy Farmer

Without further ado, let’s meet today’s featured community member and Articulate Super Hero: Matthew Bibby.

How did you get your start in e-learning?

“After working as a face-to-face trainer for a couple years, I wanted to find a remote job so that I could continue working while raising the kids. My boss at the time recommended me for a job in an at-home call center. During the interview, they asked me how much I knew about e-learning, to which I responded, ‘What's e-learning?’

They gave me a PowerPoint presentation and told me that if I could turn it into e-learning by the morning, I’d have a job. So I went home and made an absolutely terrible course. And then started learning everything that I could about e-learning. 

Working in that role for six years taught me a lot about e-learning. With the help of an incredibly skilled and dedicated team, we enabled thousands of people to work more effectively—from the comfort of their own homes.

While working in this role, I started laying the foundations for my freelance business. In 2009 I took on my first freelance client and by 2014 I left my job and have been freelancing ever since.”

What’s your e-learning philosophy?

“Let your project managers and instructional and graphic designers do what they do best, while I focus on developing exceptional courses.

While there are lots of generalists who can supposedly do it all, I’ve found that it’s through the close collaboration of a team of experts that the real magic happens.”

What’s your favorite e-learning project you’ve ever worked on and why?

“It’s not the courses that look great or are the most effective that are my favorites. It’s those projects that are so technically challenging that they make me wonder, is this even possible? Finding ways to do the impossible is my kind of fun.”

What’s your favorite thing about the E-Learning Heroes community?

“The generosity of community members.”

What’s your advice for people who want to get into the e-learning field?

“Try your hand at everything. Instructional design, graphic design, project management, development, and so on. Figure out what you like and are good at. Then focus on doing just that thing.”

I hope you’ve enjoyed this opportunity to get to know community member and Articulate Super Hero Matthew Bibby. If you’re interested in increasing your involvement in the community, learn more about the Super Hero program here: Everything You Need to Know About Articulate Super Heroes.

Stay tuned for more community member interviews! And for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning, remember to follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.