McKenzie Day, PMP’s Post

Transitioning teachers might be curious…what do instructional designers actually DO? Here is an example of a real world project I am working on this month. We have a newer product that is being sold more and more to our customers. I am transforming the instructor-led training intended for customers to a more scalable format so we can cross-train internal employees on the product. The materials we have to work with are the slide decks from 4 days of in-person training. My goal is to transform as much of this to bite-sized, on-demand content as possible to create an internal library of sorts for our project teams of developers/testers to look up individual tasks and find the resources they need. The first deliverable is a product overview video. This video aims to answer what is the product, what are the modules/components, what is a customer journey, and who are the customers? There you have it, a real world instructional design project. #TechnicalTraining #CustomerEducation #InstructionalDesigner #FormerTeacher #TransitioningTeachers Image Description: A photo of a woman working on a laptop with the text “Real World Projects”

Instructional Design is DEAD ☠️ Kind of… The term and job title should go away. Right now, traditional instructional designers are being asked and expected to do more, a lot more. 😅Well what are they being asked to do… ✅Design ✅Front-end development ✅Animate ✅Program management ✅Storyboard ✅Product Design Learning Experience Design is a more fitting title, if you ask me. #instructionaldesign

What’s an Instructional Designer? Part 3 An actual conversation. Subject Matter Expert: You got a master's in what? Me: Instructional Design and Technology. Subject Matter Expert: Design! I bet you are really great at graphics, right? Me: 🧐 um…. 🐿 Subject Matter Expert: We could create all this cool animated stuff! Me: The point is for the learner to... Subject Matter Expert: But this would be epic! Me: 😐…this is not what my masters is about….at all but... 🤷♀️ What’s an instructional designer? I can answer that in Part 4. #instructionaldesign #coolgraphics #technology #wedidnottalkaboutthisinschool😂

How do instructional designers actually spend their day? This is something I wondered as I was changing careers. I knew the tasks an instructional designer was responsible for, but I wasn't sure what that looked like day-to-day. Maybe you're transitioning to instructional design and wondering the same thing. Let me demystify it for you! The Devlin Peck team surveyed over 1,000 instructional designers to find out what life was actually like on the job. In this week's video, I use that survey data to paint a picture of what a month may look like and we even focus on a day in the life of an instructional designer. Check it out with the link in the comments below! If you're an ID, what task(s) take up the majority of your day-to-day work? If you're new to ID, is there anything that surprised you? Let us know! #LinkedInWithDevlin #InstructionalDesign #Learning #LearningAndDevelopment #eLearning

Transitioning teachers might be curious…what do instructional designers actually DO? Here is an example of a real world project I am working on this month. Working in tech, we regularly roll out software updates, version releases, and new functionality. My big focus for this month is a curriculum refresh for all of the training materials that are impacted by the latest release. For instructor led training, updating the text in slide decks and quick reference guides is pretty straightforward, followed by swapping out screenshots with new visuals to represent the current GUI (interface). For on-demand content, it's a bit more time intensive because I need to record new audio and edit the video demos to incorporate the narration. More complex impacts are related to customer delivery. I have to stay clear on which version of the software customers are purchasing so we deliver the right training. I stay organized by managing the course catalog and source files. There you have it, a real world instructional design project. #TechnicalTraining #CustomerEducation #InstructionalDesigner #FormerTeacher #TransitioningTeachers Image Description: A photo of a woman working on a laptop with the text “Real World Projects”

Transitioning teachers might be curious…what do instructional designers actually DO? Here is an example of a real world project I am working on this month. I am creating a "Year in Review" presentation for two different initiatives I managed: I served as the project manager for a portal launch, and the program manager for CSG Credentials. For each of these initiatives, I want to communicate value to the program sponsors and SteerCo. Data analysis is only the first step; after I have determined what metrics/KPIs matter, I then have to communicate those results using visual storytelling. For the portal, data points like views and visitors are useful, as well as whether we have appropriate content for each team in our organization. For the credentialing program I am looking more at reach and engagement, number of LinkedIn shares, and the percentage of recipients who claim their credential. This is that E step in ADDIE that instructional designers so rarely have time for. Luckily, it's built into my team processes as we report back to stakeholders quarterly and present our work. There you have it, a real world instructional design project. #TechnicalTraining #CustomerEducation #InstructionalDesigner #FormerTeacher #TransitioningTeachers Image Description: A photo of a woman working on a laptop with the text “Real World Projects”

One thing you shouldn't get tired of doing (read till the end) Let me share something important with you. if you don’t tell people what you do, they won’t know, and they won’t buy from you. It’s that simple. Every time I share my services as an instructional designer, I’m surprised by how many people say, "Wow, I didn’t know that’s what you do!" or "oh I didn't know about instructional designers", etc Imagine how many opportunities we miss because we’re too shy or inconsistent about talking about our work. So here’s the deal: ✅Don’t get tired of showing up. ✅Don’t get discouraged if you’re not getting instant results. ✅Keep telling us about your skills, services, and how you can solve problems. Why? Because staying visible is how people remember you when they need what you offer. The more consistent you are, the more people will start to recognize you as an expert in your field. Share your story, share testimonials, and remind us every day of what you bring to the table. So, what do you do? Tell us! And then tell us again tomorrow. We’re listening! 👏 You’ve got this! Below are the comments from the post I shared yesterday about my services as an instructional designer. Repost for others to learn and follow for more #20DayLinkedInShowUpChallengeWithNwanyieze #InstructionalDesign #OnlineCourses #CourseCreation #ElearningDesign #EdTech

Transitioning teachers might be curious…what do instructional designers actually DO? Here is an example of a real world project I am working on this month. My digital credentials program is going live over the coming weeks, after months of prep work. I'm establishing the intake process, building quick reference guides for our program admin, and consulting with stakeholders for potential use cases. There is big strategic work like defining program governance and budget, cross-functional work like collaborating with data privacy and marketing, and logistical work like designing the visual assets in the program and writing email templates. I get to wear all the hats. This project has been a highlight of my instructional design career thus far. There you have it, a real world instructional design project. #TechnicalTraining #CustomerEducation #InstructionalDesigner #FormerTeacher #TransitioningTeachers Image Description: A photo of a woman working on a laptop with the text “Real World Projects”

As an instructional designer, the majority of my thoughts are filled with... "How can I best solve this problem?" Sometimes, a lot of time is spent determining what the problem is, but typically it is easy to spot. What's not so easy is how to solve the problem, especially when a lot of minds are involved. However, it is this collaboration with other instructional designers and SMEs that leads us to the best solution. Instructional design is a great career to get into. It is filled with challenges, breakthroughs, autonomy, collaboration, creativity, investigation, and research. What it's not filled with are unruly student behavior, unruly parent behavior, and toxic positivity. #instructionaldesign #oneononecoaching #transitioningteachers

I'm always advising instructional designers. This post is for the Subject Matter Experts. Here are 10 essential tips for subject matter experts collaborating with instructional designers: ⚡𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Articulate your expertise clearly. ⚡𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: Respect the instructional designer's expertise in learning and design. ⚡𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁: Offer background information and real-world examples to enrich the content. ⚡𝗕𝗲 𝗔𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲: Be responsive to queries and available for collaboration throughout the project. ⚡𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗽: Offer constructive feedback and be open to suggestions for improvement. ⚡𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗚𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀: Ensure that learning objectives align with business and learner needs. ⚡𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱: Stay involved in the development process to ensure content accuracy and relevance. ⚡𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀: Adhere to project timelines and deliverables to keep the project on track. ⚡𝗙𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: Be open to adjustments and revisions to optimize the learner experience. ⚡𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: Acknowledge and celebrate milestones achieved throughout the collaboration. Have more tips or want to discuss these? Start a conversation in the comments. ♻️ Know someone who'll benefit from this knowledge? Help them out by sharing this post. 💚 Want more insights like this? Hit the follow button and stay connected. #InstructionalDesign #ProjectManagement #SME #eLearning #ProfessionalTips #IDOLcourses