What do E-Learning Designers Need to Know About Working with SMEs? #474
Working with E-Learning SMEs #474: Challenge | Recap When it comes to building courses, your Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) hold the keys to your success—you can’t do much without them. They’re the folks who not only bring their expertise to the table but also help you fine-tune those storyboards and quizzes and break down the intricate processes that make your training actually work. But here’s the catch: if they’re not fully on board or are dragging their feet, they can quickly become a major headache. The trick is figuring out how to turn those challenging SMEs into your biggest allies. And that's this week’s challenge is all about! 🏆 Challenge of the Week This week’s challenge is to share a short demo or interaction that helps e-learning designers collaborate more effectively with their SMEs. You can take it in any direction you like—whether it’s creating a slide with your favorite quote about working with SMEs, building a microlearning course, or even a whack-a-mole game (SME Edition). ✨ Share Your E-Learning Work Comments: Use the comments section below to link your published example and blog post. Forums: Start a new thread and share a link to your published example. Personal blog: If you have a blog, please consider writing about your challenges. We'll link to your posts, so your great work gets even more exposure. Social media: If you share your demos on Twitter or LinkedIn, try using #ELHChallenge so your tweeps can follow your e-learning coolness. 🙌 Last Week’s Challenge: Before sharing your favorite tips for working with SMEs, take a look at the final examples from the e-learning game show series: E-Learning Quiz Games RECAP #473: Challenge | Recap 👋 New to the E-Learning Challenges? The weekly e-learning challenges are ongoing opportunities to learn, share, and build your e-learning portfolios. You can jump into any or all of the previous challenges anytime you want. I’ll update the recap posts to include your demos. Learn more about the challenges in this Q&A post and why and how to participate in this helpful article.Make Working with SMEs a Breeze with These 3 Downloads
One of my favorite things about being an e-learning designer is creating courses on a wide variety of topics. I’ve learned so much over the years! When I look back on it, it’s almost like I had to become an expert in every subject in order to create the most effective learning experience. And while some of my knowledge came from my own research, more often than not it was gleaned from the content provided by my project’s Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). Subject Matter Experts play a critical role in course design. They have the knowledge, experience, and insight to help you create the most impactful training. Despite their importance to your projects, working with SMEs can also be challenging. From different perspectives around how content should be presented to old-fashioned beliefs around how people learn, many e-learning pros find themselves in a battle of wills with their SMEs when all they really want is a productive partnership. This problem can be especially vexing when creating custom e-learning in a powerful app like Storyline 360. With so many creative possibilities, there are countless ways to present content. So how do you help your SMEs visualize different treatments and bridge gaps in understanding, all while building positive relationships with your SMEs? Here are three documents I’ve found essential for communicating clearly and aligning expectations from the start. Document 1: Project Kickoff Questions Before meeting with your project’s SMEs, it pays to do a little prep work. If you already have some source content pulled together, study it to get a basic understanding of the material. And if you don’t have content, research the topic or the company to make the most of your time with your SMEs. As you study, prepare a list of questions to help guide the conversation and show the SME how much you value their time. Need to kick-start your thinking? Download and customize this Project Kickoff Questionnaire for your needs. Download With all of your prep work done, you’re ready to set up a meeting with your SME to discuss the project. Make sure to bring your list of questions, and then listen actively and take notes. This is your time to build trust with your SMEs and identify knowledge and performance gaps to determine the right solution. Document 2: Project Plan After you determine the right solution, it’s time to put the details in writing so you’re all on the same page. A project plan can be a great way to align expectations. In the project plan, you can include the project background, course information, deliverables, timelines, and any other important details. Once you’re done preparing the project plan, have the SME review it and confirm its accuracy before moving forward with design. Need help creating a project plan? I’ve got you covered! Download this free project plan template. Download Document 3: Storyboard Now that you and the SME are on the same page, it’s time to start designing the project. If you’re using a slide-based authoring app like Storyline 360, the best way to make sure you have a solid foundation for development is to create a storyboard. A storyboard is the blueprint for a course that outlines the content screen by screen. Storyboards help your SMEs visualize how the content will flow and allows them to make edits before you start development in your authoring app. Note: If you’re using a web-based authoring app like Rise 360, you can skip the storyboarding phase and go straight to development since it’s easy to use and quick to make changes. Need help getting started? Then download and customize this storyboard template with your content. Download What Next? After the storyboard is finalized, you can feel confident knowing you have a solid foundation to start building your course. Taking the time to develop project kickoff questions, create a clear project plan, and storyboard the content before you start developing it in your authoring app will set you, the SME, and the learners up for success. For more ideas on working with SMEs, check out this series on Everything You Need to Know About Working with SMEs. Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.Everything You Need to Know About Working With SMEs
Resources for E-Learning Developers What’s a Subject Matter Expert (SME)? Tips For Working With Subject Matter Experts to Create E-Learning 4 Easy Ways to Win Over Reluctant SMEs Make Working with SMEs a Breeze with These 3 Downloads Working with SMEs to Build Better Online Courses Empower Your SMEs to Create Better E-Learning with These 4 Tips How to Empower Your SMEs to Create Awesome Training Still Publishing to Word for Your SME Reviews? Here’s How & Why to Transition to Review 360 Resources for SMEs Congratulations, You’re a Subject Matter Expert. Now What?The Essential Guide to Working with Subject Matter Experts
If you’re like most e-learning developers, working with subject matter experts (SMEs) is one of your toughest challenges. But don’t worry, we’re here to help. Download this e-book to learn effective strategies for partnering with your SMEs to create awesome e-learning. You’ll learn how to get the information and feedback that you need—and how to make collaborating on courses a positive experience for everyone. In this e-book, we’ll discuss how to: Set the right tone Get the right content Set expectations with all project partners Handle objections from SMEs Keep the project on schedule Wrap up your collaboration And much moreWhat To Do When Your Course Has Too Much Content
Sometimes creating an e-learning course is like packing for a trip: it’s easy to keep adding, adding, adding … until your e-learning “suitcase” is bursting at the seams. And guess what? Most learners go numb when slide after slide is stuffed with text and images and ideas. The volume of content overwhelms their drive to “unpack” key messages buried in all that information. And when learners can’t focus on what’s important, how will they ever apply what you’re trying to teach them? Content overload, at both the slide level and the course level, is one of the most common e-learning mistakes. What can you do to avoid it? Here are few ideas to consider. Avoid Making a Course Have an SME who’s really, really insistent that every last piece of their content needs to be in the course? It may be because they’re focused on pushing information at learners, rather than coaxing out the kind of thinking that leads to behavior change. Your job as the e-learning expert is to help SMEs see all the different ways you can structure content to focus on the learner and, ultimately, to impact their performance. Try suggesting non-course options, like: Job aids: A simple quick reference or at-a-glance chart is often far more effective than a course. Digital performance support: An online glossary of terms, a troubleshooting guide, or a short software simulation might be all learners need to get up to speed. Break It Down Numerous studies (Miller, most notably) have shown that the human brain more easily digests information when it’s provided in manageable chunks. That’s because our working memory—the place where our brains process information—can only handle so much at once. Here are a few pointers for breaking down content in a way that makes it more manageable. Prioritize content: If the learner needs to be taught information to pass a quiz at the end of the course, maintain a focus on that most crucial content. Focus on the learning objectives: If the goal of the course is for learners to be able to assemble widgets, move the ancillary “ancient history of widgets” into a format that’s optional … you know, for those viewers who are really, really into widgets. Avoid content overload: A simple tabs or process interaction can be a great way to organize lots of related content in a way that’s inviting for learners to explore. Manage content: Break out individual lessons into mini-courses. Make It Compelling It’s tempting to lose sight of the goal and think of courses as content containers rather than change catalysts. Transforming your content into something that’s inspiring and actionable means you need to make it compelling. As Tom Kuhlmann points out in this classic Rapid E-Learning Blog post, you’ve got to “give the learner a reason to use the information.” So, how do you that? Use problem-solving: People learn the most from trying and failing, experimenting, and playing with the possibilities. Transform passive lectures into active learning by giving folks a problem to solve. Have lots of data to share? Pull out the most important facts and support them with an eye-catching graphic. Infographics are much better at conveying information than bullets. Keep your writing snappy. Ditch superlatives that distract learners and don’t add value. Swap out wordy phrases for more succinct ones. Even small changes—replacing “click the next arrow to proceed” with something snappier and more inviting, like “see what happens next,” can make your content easier to read and understand. Ready to Streamline Your Content? Longing for some clever ways to streamline content? Look no further than E-Learning Heroes for examples, ideas, and inspiration. Here are a few resources that you might find especially helpful. Intrigued by the idea of creating interactive job aids? Take a look at these great examples from our past E-Learning Challenge—Using Interactive Job Aids in E-Learning. Want to avoid overwhelming learners with content or confusing them with poorly organized content? Use these four strategies from Nicole Legault for organizing e-learning content. Not sure how to make your interactions more compelling? Check out these fabulous pointers from Nicole Legault. How do you deal with content overload? We’d love to hear your ideas and field your questions in the comments below. Enjoy this article? Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning.What’s a Subject Matter Expert (SME)?
What’s the first thing that popped into your mind when someone told you to find the “ess, em, ee” to get the course content you need? Did your rookie self grasp at straws and think something along the lines of “small- or medium-size enterprise"? Or maybe your potential client actually said “smee,” which really threw you for a loop. In the e-learning world, the acronym stands for subject matter expert. SME is really just a fancy way of describing someone who is an expert in his or her field. It’s the person in an organization who has the most knowledge or skill in a specific topic. But don’t go looking for the SME department; there isn’t one. An SME might be an HR staff member, an engineer, a researcher, a product manager, a sales manager, or a finance person. Pretty much every department or business unit has a resident expert. The SME has tons of content, experience, and insights that are essential to creating fantastic courses that your learners need in order to ramp up on a new skill quickly or improve their existing skills. And when you’re developing an e-learning course, the SME can be your best friend. Your SME can help you define learning objectives, craft content, and give valuable feedback as you’re developing the course. In short, you can’t develop effective e-learning without an SME. And if you’re an e-learning developer, your job is to partner with the SME to get the information, strategies, and content you’ll need to build an effective course. So, you need to build a collaborative partnership that’s focused on productive communication. Effective communication is especially important during the course review process. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a (seemingly) never-ending cycle of iterations. But don’t worry, that’s why we created Review 360: a simple web app that makes collaborating with SMEs (and other stakeholders) super easy. And we didn’t stop there! We even created this great course to help you explain the review process to your stakeholders, so you can be sure everyone is on the same page. And we’ve got tons of other resources to help you figure out the best ways to work with SMEs to create amazing e-learning: Learn more about engaging productively with SMEs by downloading our free e-book, “The Essential Guide to Working with Subject Matter Experts.” Read this article for some quick tips on working with SMEs. Discover the secret to turning a reluctant SME into an engaged team member in this article. Check out the top discussions and forum threads in our “Working with Subject Matter Experts” forums compilation in E-Learning Heroes. We’d love to hear your questions and comments about working with SMEs in the comments below! Remember to follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning.Tips For Working With Subject Matter Experts to Create E-Learning
Subject matter experts (SMEs) play one of the most important roles in your project’s success, so you need to build a partnership that’s collaborative and productive. But getting what you need from an SME isn’t always easy. Often that’s because SMEs are so far removed from the learning process that they have a hard time understanding what information the learner really needs to develop new skills and perform their job. And because they’re busy people, your projects can stall or come to a complete halt if the SMEs aren’t fully engaged. So how do you work with busy SMEs to get—and keep!—your project moving in the right direction? Here are four quick tips that can help. Be Prepared I can’t reiterate this one enough: do your homework. Collect as much information as you can before you meet with the SME, and take time to digest it. Make notes. Have a list of specific questions. You want to leave your meeting with answers to those questions and a clear plan for course development. When you show up prepared, not only do you save yourself some time, you send the message that you value your SME’s time. And that helps start the relationship on the right foot. Not sure what questions to ask? Check out this comprehensive list of needs analysis questions for some ideas. Be Clear Communication can make or break your projects. We’ve all been in that situation where one person leaves a meeting having heard one thing and another person comes away with an entirely different set of ideas. As such, it’s always good to repeat what you discussed with your SME in writing before you begin work on the course. Making sure you and your SME are on the same page takes just a few minutes—and those few minutes up front can prevent weeks of frustration and irrelevant content later. Be in Sync Once you have an informal agreement with your SME, document it with a formal, written course development agreement. In your agreement, make sure you define deliverables, timelines, project scope and constraints, reviewers, and measurements of success. Putting the details on paper (real or virtual) is a huge step toward aligning everyone’s expectations. If you’ve never used an e-learning project agreement or created a project plan, don’t worry; we’ve got you covered! Check out this course development agreement and this basic project plan. Be Appreciative A big part of a good working relationship is respecting each other’s contributions and expertise. But it’s not valuable if you only think it—tell your SME! Obviously, the easiest way to let your SME know you value her is with an email. But even better? Send one to her manager too, praising your SME’s input. Little gestures like this can pay big dividends later on. More Resources Want to know more about how to work with SMEs to create amazing e-learning? Learn more about engaging productively with SMEs by downloading our free e-book, The Essential Guide to Working with Subject Matter Experts. Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.5 Steps for Collecting Content for Your E-Learning Project
E-learning course design can be time-consuming and the courses costly to create. But one way you can easily save time and money is by efficiently gathering content. In this article, we’ll talk about easy-to-follow steps to help you gather accurate content and speed up your workflow. 1. Identify the Type of Content You Need It’s tempting to jump right in and create a list of all the content available on your subject. However, you can save time by doing a quick needs analysis instead. In this, you’ll outline your course goals and learning objectives. A thorough needs analysis identifies the types of content you’ll use for your project. Once you have this figured out, you can easily eliminate information that doesn’t apply to your audience or project conditions. Resist the temptation to use material just because it’s available. A best practice is to let the need drive the content you include, not the other way around. 2. Collect Content The quickest, most convenient place to source content is online. However, don’t confuse quantity with quality. You might find a wealth of information, but be particular about what content you choose to use. While online materials are easy to access, remember you can also use physical materials such as books, periodicals, manuals, and videos. When using printed materials, read the introduction to find out if it’s relevant to your course. You can also check a book’s index for specific subjects or names. 3. Document as You Collect Whether your resources are electronic or print, make sure you record them and their location. For items from electronic sources, make a list of URLs, or even bookmark them! If you need to revisit a particular resource, this makes it faster to find. 4. Connect with the Right People To help you gather the most relevant content for your course goals and objectives, it’s important to talk to experts on the subject. Your needs analysis should identify subject matter experts (SMEs) to help with your project. If possible, try to work with a couple of different SMEs so you get a wide variety of information. It’s not always possible, feasible, or prudent to get everything you need from a single person. For example, you might need one SME to provide on-the-job, contextual insight, and then another to provide technical or process information. 5. Work with Your SMEs In addition to helping you with existing materials, SMEs can help generate new content that fills in any gaps you might have. When you talk with your SMEs, be clear about what you need. It can be helpful to use an outline to guide the conversation around your training. Also, ask open-ended questions so they can share their expertise. For example, “What are the most common questions about this subject?” and “What are the most common mistakes you see with this subject?” A great strategy for getting relevant information from SMEs is to ask them how a learner can practice using the information in a real work environment. You can get their help filtering responses with a simple, “Does a person need to know that in order to perform the task?” SMEs are often busy, with tight schedules, so getting on their calendars early in the process is important. Show up prepared to meetings with SMEs by taking time to learn background information that will help you ask better questions. Also, taking extensive notes, or even recording the conversation, is a great way to minimize the need for follow-up. The final step in the content collection process is to synthesize and organize your information. Once you’ve done that, you can ask your SMEs to review and confirm that the content is complete and accurate. Wrap-Up Once the SMEs have confirmed your content is accurate, you’re good to go! You can move forward with designing and developing your e-learning course. For more information and instructional design tips, check out the links below! What to Do When Your Course Has Too Much Content Basic E-Learning Workflow and Design Process The Top 3 Types of E-Learning Analysis How to Plan E-Learning Courses Like a Pro Why and How to Tailor Content to Different Audiences Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.4 Easy Ways to Win Over Reluctant SMEs
When it comes to creating effective online courses, subject matter experts (SMEs) are key to your success. They’re the people you turn to when you need key details to make your scenarios more relevant, an expert set of eyes for your storyboards and quizzes, or just a breakdown of how a specific process works. In short, they play one of the most crucial roles in any e-learning project. But when they’re reluctant to work with you or not fully engaged, they can also be your biggest challenge. Since they’re a critical part of your e-learning projects, now’s a good time to learn how to turn even the most difficult SME into an invested partner. Develop a Relationship with Your SMEs When you’re on a tight deadline, it’s easy to become laser-focused on trying to get the information you need as quickly as possible. But don’t forget to establish a relationship with your SMEs before you start grilling them for answers. People are more likely to show enthusiasm for something when they feel like they’re truly part of the process. Do your best to get your SMEs on board with what you’re trying to accomplish by making sure they understand how critical their role is to the project’s success. You don’t need to become best friends; a simple introductory meeting will do. Give them an idea of who you are, what you’re building, how excited you are to work with them, and how they could impact the resulting project. They’ll be more open to working with you if you establish a positive connection with them first. Be Respectful of Your SMEs’ Time If your SMEs aren’t giving you the information you need and you’re on a tight deadline, it’s easy to get frustrated. But before you hunt down your SMEs, demanding answers, take a minute to consider that they aren’t purposely ignoring you or withholding information. They’re just busy people with deadlines of their own. To avoid missed deadlines, make sure your SMEs have the support they need from their managers. The best way to do this is to involve your SMEs and their managers in your project plans as early as possible. Clearly outline what you need from them and ask them when they can deliver it. If they’re overloaded with work, perhaps their managers can work with you to free up some of their time. During the review process, show respect for your SMEs’ time by making it easy for them to share their feedback. First, try to be as specific as possible about what you need. For instance, if you only want them to provide feedback on how a specific interaction works, tell them that up front. Then, give them access to an app like Review 360 that streamlines the review process and helps your SMEs provide their feedback in an intuitive way. When you give your SMEs a clear understanding of what you need and empower them with tools that meet their needs and respect their time, you’ll find that most SMEs are more than willing to help out. Speak in a Language Your SMEs Understand Picture this: you’re an SME who’s been asked to help develop an online course covering human resources procedures. During your first meeting with your e-learning developers, they start grilling you about “real learning” and throwing around terms and acronyms you've never heard before. If you have little or no experience with instructional design, you might start to feel confused or—even worse—overwhelmed. And you probably won’t be in a big hurry to get back in a meeting with them. To avoid alienating your SMEs, skip the “e-learning lingo.” This way, they’ll walk away from your meetings feeling pumped up about the course, not deflated or unsure about how they can contribute. Show Appreciation for Your SMEs Has a coworker or client ever expressed gratitude after completing a project you worked on together by sending you a personal email or sharing the sentiment in a group setting? If you’ve experienced this, then you know how a simple recognition and a small thanks go a long way toward making you feel valued. A great way to get your SMEs’ attention and support is to send a glowing email to their managers and copy them on it. It doesn’t take much to show a little appreciation for your SMEs, but it’ll go a long way when it comes to their willingness to participate in the project. You’ll be glad you did the next time you’re requesting extra time or information from them. Wrap-Up At the end of the day, it’s all about relationships. When you put a little effort into developing a good rapport with your subject matter experts, you’ll likely find it easier to get the content and feedback you need from them. And once you’ve won over a reluctant SME, give them more support by preparing them with the tips they’ll need to be successful in their role. In the end, you’ll both reap the rewards of a successful e-learning course. Have your own experience winning over a reluctant SME? Share your tips in the comments! If you’re looking for more best practices, take a look at the Everything You Need to Know About Working with SMEs series, or just check out a few of our favorites below! What’s a Subject Matter Expert (SME)? Tips for Working with Subject Matter Experts to Create E-Learning Make Working with SMEs a Breeze with These 3 Downloads Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any comments, please share them below.
