Instructional Design
Creating a Procurement Course
Making Complex Simple
The goal was to create a eLearning course that combined several weeks of face to face training and over 100 procedural documents that outlined their procurement procedures.
The aim was to introduce any interested member of staff to procurement and to enable them to take a full learning journey.
KEY CHALLENGES
-
Over 100 procedural documents from a veriety of departments
- Different interpretations of procedures in different departments
- Course intended for a general audience with no prior knowledge
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No previous knowledge of procurement
-
Subject matter experts had very little time
How the Course was Created – In Depth
To create a procurement course, I used the following as a framework to address all of the challenges shown above.
Speed read all of the Documentation
Using a text-to-speech tool combined with speed reading techniques, I was able to read through over 100 documents in a short space of time. This set up a more effective meeting with the subject matter experts.
Meeting 1 – Develop Clear and Concise Learning Objectives
With the subject matter experts, my first task was to identify the learning objectives and key knowledge required to ensure that the organisation’s learners gain the correct knowledge.
Here are the topics I created before the meeting
• What is procurement?
• What are the different types of procurement?
• What are the steps involved in each type of procurement?
• What are the different procurement tools and techniques?
• How to manage procurement risks?
This gave the subject matter experts a foundation to work with and correct, never give a subject matter expert a blank page and a question, they don’t have time!
The objectives created were very similar, just with SME magic added to the mix.
Meeting 2 – Introducing the Storyboard Template
Often subject matter experts have never seen a storyboard template at the least, not the tap standard template that I use. The meeting was to enable the SMEs to help me fill in the structure of the course into the storyboard. This included the objectives, headings, and conclusion. (no assessment required)
The agreed action was to start the first module with a view of creating up to 16 small modules of content.
Ensuring SME Success
At all times, my feedback was encouraging and practical. Keeping the learning goals at the heart of the course was key. Also, as the course was designed for general learners, sticking to the key principles of the course and not creeping into technical territory was vital.
Meeting 3 – Continuing the process
We rechecked that we were meeting the agreed goals and aims of the course with the SME and where needed, I provided hints and tips on writing content.
The Result
We continued the pattern above to create 13 modules with a recommendation to the developers to have a menu that allowed open navigation throughout the modules so learners could use the course as a reusable learning resource at any time.
Addressing the Challenges:
Over 100 procedural documents from a variety of departments:
To address this challenge I worked with subject matter experts to identify the most important and relevant procedural documents. This focused my attention on the relevant place.
Different interpretations of procedures in different departments:
Rather than cover specifics, keeping things simple and generic enabled training materials that focus on the general principles of procurement. Case studies were carefully selected to meet the needs of the module.
No previous knowledge of procurement:
To address this challenge, I would start the course with an overview of the procurement process. I would also use clear and concise language, and I would provide examples and illustrations to help students understand the concepts.
Course intended for a general audience with no prior knowledge:
This was in honesty the easy part as I play the part of no knowledge rather well.
Always start with
• Why do I have to know this?
• Is this relevant to me?
• Does the content grab you?
Does the content grab you asks would a person with no investment, subject knowledge, or motivation be drawn into the content and be interested in the content after starting it.
The key to a general audience is to answer these questions in the first 3 minutes of viewing.
Subject matter experts had very little time:
To address this challenge, I would develop training materials that are easy to understand and use. I would also provide the subject matter experts with templates and resources that they can use to create their training materials.
How the Course was Created – In Depth
To create a procurement course, I used the following as a framework to address all of the challenges shown above.
Speed read all of the Documentation
Using a text-to-speech tool combined with speed reading techniques, I was able to read through over 100 documents in a short space of time. This set up a more effective meeting with the subject matter experts.
Meeting 1 – Develop Clear and Concise Learning Objectives
With the subject matter experts, my first task was to identify the learning objectives and key knowledge required to ensure that the organisation’s learners gain the correct knowledge.
Here are the topics I created before the meeting
• What is procurement?
• What are the different types of procurement?
• What are the steps involved in each type of procurement?
• What are the different procurement tools and techniques?
• How to manage procurement risks?
This gave the subject matter experts a foundation to work with and correct, never give a subject matter expert a blank page and a question, they don’t have time!
The objectives created were very similar, just with SME magic added to the mix.
Meeting 2 – Introducing the Storyboard Template
Often subject matter experts have never seen a storyboard template at the least, not the tap standard template that I use. The meeting was to enable the SMEs to help me fill in the structure of the course into the storyboard. This included the objectives, headings, and conclusion. (no assessment required)
The agreed action was to start the first module with a view of creating up to 16 small modules of content.
Ensuring SME Success
At all times, my feedback was encouraging and practical. Keeping the learning goals at the heart of the course was key. Also, as the course was designed for general learners, sticking to the key principles of the course and not creeping into technical territory was vital.
Meeting 3 – Continuing the process
We rechecked that we were meeting the agreed goals and aims of the course with the SME and where needed, I provided hints and tips on writing content.
The Result
We continued the pattern above to create 13 modules with a recommendation to the developers to have a menu that allowed open navigation throughout the modules so learners could use the course as a reusable learning resource at any time.
Addressing the Challenges:
Over 100 procedural documents from a variety of departments:
To address this challenge I worked with subject matter experts to identify the most important and relevant procedural documents. This focused my attention on the relevant place.
Different interpretations of procedures in different departments:
Rather than cover specifics, keeping things simple and generic enabled training materials that focus on the general principles of procurement. Case studies were carefully selected to meet the needs of the module.
No previous knowledge of procurement:
To address this challenge, I would start the course with an overview of the procurement process. I would also use clear and concise language, and I would provide examples and illustrations to help students understand the concepts.
Course intended for a general audience with no prior knowledge:
This was in honesty the easy part as I play the part of no knowledge rather well.
Always start with
• Why do I have to know this?
• Is this relevant to me?
• Does the content grab you?
Does the content grab you asks would a person with no investment, subject knowledge, or motivation be drawn into the content and be interested in the content after starting it.
The key to a general audience is to answer these questions in the first 3 minutes of viewing.
Subject matter experts had very little time:
To address this challenge, I would develop training materials that are easy to understand and use. I would also provide the subject matter experts with templates and resources that they can use to create their training materials.
THE SOLUTION
We created a total of 13 storyboards which were developed into engaging eLearning.
The modules were glued together via an innovative front screen that allowed delegates to easily navigate the content.
The content was published on the first submission.
TESTIMONIAL
“I worked with Chris on an extremely challenging project and found him to be a talented developer and voice-over artist! He continues to be a positive and supportive industry colleague. Chris is a great guy to work with, I recommend him for your eLearning projects.“
Simon Sheard, Articulate Storyline Developer
