“Who will I work with on a learning project?”
“What are learning project team member roles and responsibilities?”
During the course of a learning project, you will collaborate with others to ensure the learning solution meets organizational needs, includes up-to-date content, and is developed and deployed appropriately. Project teams vary based on project needs, and team members are typically identified during the project kickoff meeting.
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to identify common project team roles and responsibilities.
Who will I work with on a learning project?
Each project is unique, so before you dive into the work it is important to clearly define project team member roles and responsibilities to avoid misunderstandings. For instance, in some projects you may play the role you were expecting to play when you accepted the assignment–learning designer–but in others you may be asked to wear multiple “hats” (e.g. learning designer, project manager, graphic designer, facilitator, quality assurance specialist). In a learning design career, it is important to remain flexible and open to growth opportunities. No matter how many years of experience you have in this field, there are often many chances to learn more.
It is also important to know that when you work in teams, the size of your team may depend on the project’s:
scope of work (tasks to be completed)
timeline (when the learning solution should be completed)
resource availability (e.g. stakeholder and subject matter expert availability, available technology and tools)
budget
For instance, one project may be staffed with two people: you (the learning designer/project manager) and one or two people on the client side (e.g. a stakeholder and a subject matter expert). In more complex projects, you may collaborate on a large team with a project manager, a lead designer who oversees multiple designers, a development team, stakeholders, multiple subject matter experts, external vendors, facilitators, translators, video production teams, animators, graphic designers–and that doesn’t include all of the stakeholders, subject matter experts, and specialists (e.g. legal and marketing staff) who may be involved.
For the purposes of this lesson, let’s divide project team member roles into three categories: core, client, and services. These are not industry standard terms, but the categories are meant to help you determine what project team members may do and how they interact with each other.
Scroll through the carousel below to learn more.
What are learning project team member roles and responsibilities?
Remember, a single person may be asked to fulfill multiple roles on a project; however, you’ll likely encounter the following roles on many projects:
Project manager
Learning developer (if applicable)
Client stakeholder
Subject matter expert
Watch the video below to learn more about what each of these roles are responsible for, and how you–as a learning designer–can help them succeed.
Regardless of who you are working with on a project, it is good practice to approach your work with a flexible mindset, balancing the needs of both the organization and the learner. Work proactively–not only identifying potential problems but also recommending solutions for resolving them. Provide options and respond quickly to communications from all problem team members.
Summary and next steps
As a learning designer, you will have the opportunity to collaborate with others to create learning solutions. The size of your teams will vary from project to project based on a variety of factors (e.g. scope of work, timeline, available resources, and budget). Follow the tips outlined in this lesson to create synergies and allow you to collectively create learning solutions that boost learner performance.
Now that you're familiar with working with project teams, you should be ready to complete the next lesson in LXD Factory’s Learn the basics series: Create a detailed design.
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