E learning and SME

BEST PRACTICES IN ENGAGING SMES DURING
A LEARNING CONTENT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

www.gpworldwide.com
www.trainingindustry.com

Survey Research Report
Best Practices for Engaging SMEs During a Content Development Project March 2011
0
© Training Industry, Inc and General Physics Corporation

Table of Contents

Survey Overview 2

Key Findings 2

I. Overall SME Engagement 3

II. SME Engagement Objective Areas & Practices 6

Clearly Communicating Expectations with SMEs 6
Ensuring SME Commitment to the Project 8
Cultivating an Effective Team Dynamic with SMEs 9
Effectively Managing SMEs' Time on the Project 11
Minimizing Conflicting Priorities of SMEs/L&D Team 13
Most and Least Often Done Practices Overall 14

III. About the Study 15

About General Physics Corporation 17

About TrainingIndustry.com 17

About This Research 17

Appendix A: SME Engagement Practice Summary 18

Best Practices for Engaging SMEs During a Content Development Project 1

Overview
Learning and development (L&D) teams, project managers, instructional designers and developers face a
major challenge when it comes to engaging subject matter experts (SMEs) to develop quality content on
time and on budget: SMEs’ time is very limited. SMEs not only have high-priority job responsibilities
requiring most of their time, but also once on a learning project, they may disengage from the task or other
activities may take priority over the learning projects. To address these challenges, L&D teams must do all
they can to win the hearts, minds and time of SMEs.

In this study, 173 L&D professionals unlock which among 37 practices are most important and which are
most often done to engage SMEs in five objective areas:

• Clearly communicating expectations with SMEs
• Ensuring SME commitment to the project
• Cultivating an effective team dynamic with SMEs
• Effectively managing SMEs' time on the project
• Minimizing conflicting priorities of SMEs/L&D team

The study also presents which objectives are most critical, how effective learning professionals are at
reaching them and how effective they are at engaging SMEs in general.

Key Findings
1) Forty-four percent of the L&D respondents consider themselves effective or highly effective
at engaging SMEs.

2) Greater involvement of SMEs throughout the content development lifecycle is associated
with greater effectiveness in engaging them. More of those who are effective at engaging SMEs
involve SMEs at each phase of the lifecycle, particularly Planning, Analysis, Implementation and
Evaluation. Practices related to involving SMEs in project planning/design or throughout the
lifecycle were also viewed as critical and were established by over 70% of the respondents.

3) L&D professionals view communicating expectations with SMEs as most critical. The project
scope, SME roles and time requirements are key areas to communicate to facilitate SME
engagement.

4) The biggest opportunity for improvement in engaging SMEs lies in ensuring SME
commitment to the project. While a critical objective area, less than half of all respondents are
effective at it. To improve in this area, L&D professionals should demonstrate that they value
SMEs’ time and involve them in planning and design.

5) Maintaining regular verbal communications with SMEs was the most critical practice to
ensure SME engagement during a content development project. In general, L&D respondents
did the things they thought were most critical.

6) Ensuring SMEs’ leadership buy-in before the SME is assigned to the project is the most
critical practice for minimizing conflicting priorities with SMEs.


I. Overall SME Engagement
Overall Effectiveness

Overall, 44% of survey respondents felt they were effective (or highly effective) at engaging SMEs to design
content, as Figure 1 shows. About the same percentage of respondents (41%) felt they were average. Very
few regarded their SME engagement capabilities as ineffective (only 15%).

Figure 1: Self-Ratings for Overall Effectiveness in Engaging SMEs
45%
41%
40%
36%
35%

30% “More “Less
Effective” Effective”
25%
Group Group
20%

15%

10% 8% 8%
7%

5%

0%
N = 167 Highly Effective Effective Average Ineffective Highly Ineffective

To see if there are differences in what those who consider themselves more effective (the 44% who rated
themselves effective or highly effective) do versus those who consider themselves less effective (the
remaining 56%), the following questions were reviewed for these groups:

• When Are SMEs Involved in the Content Development Lifecycle?

• How Effective Are L&D Professionals at Each SME Management Objective?

When Are SMEs Involved in the Content Development Lifecycle?

To fully understand how SMEs are engaged, it is necessary to know not only what practices are employed to
engage them, but also when they are involved with the content development lifecycle. The survey defined
six stages in the content development lifecycle as follows:

• Planning (e.g., how to best meet training/job needs)
• Analysis (e.g., tasks, standards, skills/knowledge needed)
• Design (e.g., programs, objectives, test items, job aids)
• Development (e.g., lesson plans; methods and materials)
• Implementation (e.g., training, collecting course data)
• Evaluation (e.g., whether training inputs were effective)

As Figure 2 shows, more involvement in each of the stages is associated with more effectiveness. In fact, a
much higher percentage of the more effective group involves SMEs during all phases except Design and
Development. The greatest difference between the two groups is in Analysis, where 89% of the more
effective group makes sure they engage SMEs, compared with only 69% of the less effective group.


Figure 2: Frequency of SME Involvement in Content Development Phases by Effectiveness Group
100%
More Effective Group
89%
90%
Less Effective Group
82%
80%
80% 77% 78%
75% 75%
R
69%
P e 70% 65%
e s
r e 59%
60% 56%
c p
e o
50%
n n
t d 41%
e 40%

o n
f t 30%
s
20%

10%

0%
N = 171
Planning Analysis Design Development Implementation Evaluation

How Effective Are L&D Professionals at Each SME Management Objective?

Besides the time periods for engaging SMEs, there are also specific objectives related to SME engagement,
which was broken down into the following five objectives:

• Clearly communicating expectations with SMEs
• Ensuring SME commitment to the project
• Cultivating an effective team dynamic with SMEs
• Effectively managing SMEs’ time on the project
• Minimizing conflicting priorities of SMEs/L&D team

As a group, respondents are best at communicating expectations with SMEs, as shown in Figure 3. About
two-thirds of all respondents do this well. Meanwhile, a solid majority—58%—reported themselves as
effective at cultivating an effective team dynamic with their SMEs. These are both areas that primarily rely
on communication from the L&D team either at the beginning or during the course of a project, areas that
are largely within the direct control of those on the L&D team.


Figure 3: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness in Each SME Engagement Objective Area

Clearly communicating expectations with SMEs 65%

Cultivating an effective team dynamic with SMEs 58%

Ensuring SME commitment to the project* 46%

Effectively managing SMEs' time on the project 45%

Minimizing conflicting priorities of SMEs 38%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
N = 172 Percent Rating Their L&D Teams Effective or Highly Effective

However, respondents are less effective in the other three areas, which often depend on the availability and
willingness of the SME to spend time working on the project.

Effectiveness at ensuring SME commitment to the project (noted with an asterisk * above) is highly
associated with overall effectiveness at engaging SMEs. Far more (43%) of those who said they were
effective at engaging SMEs said that they were also effective at ensuring SME commitment to the project.

What Is Most Critical for Engaging SMEs?

As Figure 4 shows, communicating expectations is the most critical objective, followed by ensuring SME
commitment to the project. In fact, when respondents were asked why these were most critical, many
described communicating expectations as being foundational to the other areas. For example, only after the
L&D team lays out the time expectations can the SME decide whether to commit the time to the project.

The underlying reason why respondents believe that all of the objectives are critical is because they support
the development of quality content (e.g., aligned with learning objectives) in an efficient and timely manner.

Figure 4: Most Critical Objective Areas

Clearly communicating expectations with SMEs 35%

Ensuring SME commitment to the project 27%

Cultivating an effective team dynamic with SMEs 16%

Effectively managing SMEs' time on the project 13%

Minimizing conflicting priorities of SMEs/L&D team 9%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%
N = 242 Votes
Percent of All "Most Critical" Ratings

Note: Unlike the effectiveness ratings above, the chart in Figure 4 represents the percent of “most critical” votes respondents gave to each
of the five objectives divided by the total votes for all objectives; they add up to 100%.

Of course, it matters more if L&D teams are effective at areas that matter most in engaging SMEs.
Comparing Figure 3 to Figure 4 shows that with one exception—ensuring SME commitment to the project—
L&D professionals think they are best at what they think is most important.


The most critical area by far—clearly communicating expectations to SMEs—is also the area where
respondents felt they are most competent. This is good news. However, it is not good news that ensuring
SME commitment to the project is the second most critical area, but less than half of all respondents said
they were effective at it. This shows that a) it seems to be a challenging area and b) it represents a key
opportunity for improvement.

Now that we know which objectives are most important, how does an L&D team go about achieving each
objective to better engage SMEs?

In the next section, we will drill down on each objective area to look at how effective respondents felt they
were, which practices they think are most critical and which ones they do most frequently. The best
practices are those practices that are both rated among the most critical and are more often done.

II. SME Engagement Objective Areas & Practices
This section is divided into six parts: one for each of the five SME engagement objectives (from most to least
critical) and one part that summarizes the most and least frequently done practices. Each of the five
objective areas includes answers to these three questions:

• How Effective Are Learning Professionals at Doing This?
• Which Practices Are Most Critical?
• Which Practices Are Being Done?

Clearly Communicating Expectations with SMEs
How Effective Are Learning Professionals at Doing This?

Of the five objective areas, learning professionals are the most effective at communicating expectations to
SMEs. As Figure 5 shows, nearly two-thirds of all respondents felt they were effective at it.

Figure 5: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness at Communicating Expectations

60%

51%
R 50%
P
e
e
s
r 40%
p
c
o
e 28%
n 30%
n
d
t
e
20%
n 14%
o t
f
s 10% 7%

0%
0%
N = 172
Highly Effective Effective Average Ineffective Highly Ineffective

Which Practices Are Most Critical?

As Figure 6 illustrates, there are many areas viewed as critical in communicating expectations. First and
foremost is “Share a well-defined project scope with SMEs” to explain what the L&D team is trying to do,


followed by “Define roles and responsibilities for SMEs” to explain what the L&D team wants the SMEs to
do. While these may also be put in writing, respondents felt that project kick-off meetings were important.

Figure 6: Most Critical Practices for Communicating Expectations

Share a well‐defined project scope with SMEs 22%

Define roles and responsibilities for SMEs 19%

Hold a project kick‐off meeting with SMEs 16%

Get SME input on project goals and objectives 13%

Get SME agreement on defined review cycles 11%

Create a formal plan with SME assignments 7%

Establish a single point of contact for SMEs 6%

Provide SMEs with upfront communications plan 6%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%
N = 339 Votes
Percent of All Votes

In open-ended comments, respondents elaborated on the ways they communicated expectations:

• Provide written documents, such as project checklists and briefs, learning contracts, service level
agreements, training charters and master project plans, to communicate expectations.
• Describe all of the roles in the ISD process; assume they know nothing about the content
development process.
• At project kick-off, discuss and ensure the SMEs understand how much of their time is needed.
• Discuss learning goals and deliverables, and the types of SME contributions that would best use
their time and expertise. This builds their commitment and allows them to sign-off on the project.

Which Practices Are Being Done?

As Figure 7 shows, respondents are generally doing what they think is most critical. The four most frequently
used practices are the same as the four most critical practices, and the four least frequently used practices
are the same as the least critical practices, in different order. The majority of respondents (70% or more) do
most of the practices listed. However, relative to its top importance level, more respondents could adopt the
practice of creating a well-defined project scope that they share with SMEs.

Figure 7: Practices Being Done to Communicate Expectations




Get SME input on project goals and objectives 74%

Establish a single point of contact for SMEs 72%

Get SME agreement on defined review cycles* 63%


Provide SMEs with upfront communications plan 59%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
N = 172
Percent of Respondents Doing the Practice


When comparing those who are more effective at communicating expectations with those who are less
effective, the one practice that far more of the effective group do is “Get SME agreement on clearly defined
review cycles.” This practice may be important in communicating expectations effectively.

Ensuring SME Commitment to the Project

Unlike communicating expectations with SMEs, where 65% were effective at it, only 46% are effective at
ensuring SME commitment to the project, as shown in Figure 8. Clearly, respondents found this area much
more challenging. The majority are less effective at it—meaning average, ineffective or highly ineffective.

Figure 8: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness at Ensuring SME Commitment to the Project
45% 42%
40%
R 40%
P
e
e 35%
s
r
p 30%
c
o
e 25%
n
n 20%
d
t
e 15% 12%
n
o 10%
t 6%
f 5%
s 1%
0%


Above the rest, two practices stand out for ensuring SME commitment: “Demonstrate that you respect and
value SMEs’ time/contributions” and “Involve SMEs in project planning and design.” This shows that the way
the L&D team interacts with and involves the SMEs during the project is more important than the other
practices related to offering incentives and recognition to SMEs after the project ends. Refer to Figure 9.

Figure 9: Most Critical Practices for Ensuring SME Commitment to the Project

Demonstrate you value SMEs' time/contributions 28%
Involve SMEs in project planning and design 27%
Position SME work as development opportunity 13%
Give SMEs credit by naming them on materials 9%
Recognize SMEs with non‐monetary incentives 9%
Give SMEs flexibility on how they conduct reviews 8%
Make L&D work a factor in SME advancement 5%
Reward SMEs with monetary incentives 2%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%
N = 317 Votes Percent of All Votes


In open-ended comments, respondents elaborated on how they secured the commitment of SMEs:

• Convey “what’s in it for me” such as how it will ultimately benefit them and make their jobs easier
(e.g., through a more educated work team that is less dependent on the SMEs).
• Partner with SMEs on how material will be developed and how the team will communicate.
• Communicate the contributions of the SME and project success to their managers/larger group.
• Be focused on what you need from SMEs in meetings, and involve SMEs throughout the content
development lifecycle (see “Effectively Managing SMEs’ Time on the Project”).
• Get SMEs’ leadership buy-in (see “Minimizing Conflicting Priorities of SMEs/L&D Team”).


There is strong overall alignment between the practices that are done most often and those that are most
critical. Of particular interest is the practice, “Position SME work as development opportunity,” which was
viewed as critical, but only 46% of respondents did it, as shown in Figure 10. It is also the only practice that
is done by far more of those who were effective at ensuring SME commitment to the project—suggesting it
may drive effectiveness in this area.

Figure 10: Practices Being Done to Ensure SME Commitment to the Project

Involve SMEs in project planning and design 70%
Give SMEs flexibility on how they conduct reviews 51%
Give SMEs credit by naming them on materials 48%
Position SME work as development opportunity* 46%
Recognize SMEs with non‐monetary incentives 41%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

N = 170 Percent of Respondents Doing the Practice

Note that the least critical and least done practices both involve some kind of personal career or monetary
gain for the SMEs. Either this is outside L&D’s control or they do not deem this to be effective, or both.

Cultivating an Effective Team Dynamic with SMEs

The majority of respondents (58%) consider themselves more effective at cultivating team dynamics with
SMEs, as shown in Figure 11.


Figure 11: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness at Team Dynamics
50%
46%
45%
R
P 40%
e 36%
e
s 35%
r
p
c 30%
o
e
n 25%
n
d
t 20%
e
n 15% 12%
o t
f 10%
s 5%
5%
1%
0%


As shown in Figure 12, the two most important practices in cultivating effective team dynamics both have to
do with ongoing communications throughout the project—both in general and about meeting project
milestones. The frequency and topics of communication are more important than the specific tool (e.g.,
portal, workflow tool or message boards) or in-person modes of communication (e.g., meetings, lunches or
in a location near the SME).

Figure 12: Most Critical Practices for Effective Team Dynamics

Maintain regular verbal communication with SMEs 43%
Send periodic emails to team when milestones met 22%
Conduct team‐building with SMEs at project kick‐off 10%
Use portal to post project announcements/updates 8%
Use a workflow tool (e.g., LCMS) with SMEs 5%
Colocate L&D team with SMEs 4%
Conduct team‐building at end of project with SMEs 4%
Host periodic working lunches with SMEs 2%
Use message boards to promote networking 1%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%


Respondents described how they cultivate effective team dynamics in open-ended comments, including:

• Make sure project information is accessible to SMEs.
• Check in with SMEs and other team members to ensure they are on target to meet deadlines.
• Report progress to SME stakeholders, not just those on L&D team.
• Have the L&D team go to the SMEs’ work site and personally engage them.
• Build a respectful relationship with SMEs by learning about them and their areas of expertise.



As with the previous objective areas, the most frequently employed practices are also the top most critical: in
this case, “Maintain regular verbal communications with SMEs” and “Send periodic emails to team when
milestones (are) met.” Again, respondents are focused on doing what they think is most important. Refer to
Figure 13.

Figure 13: Practices Being Done to Cultivate Effective Team Dynamics


Send periodic emails to team when milestones met 65%

Use a portal to post project announcements/updates 37%

Conduct team‐building with SMEs at project kick‐off 27%






0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
N = 170

Effectively Managing SMEs’ Time on the Project

As shown in Figure 14, the majority of respondents (55%) rate themselves as less effective at managing
SMEs time—perhaps because they perceive it to be less within their control.

Figure 14: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness at Managing SMEs’ Time
45%
40% 41%
R 40%
P
e
e 35%
s
r
p 30%
c
o
e 25%
n
n 20%
d
t
e 15% 12%
n
o 10%
t 5%
f 5% 2%
s
0%



Unlike most other objective areas, no one or two practices stood out as the most critical practices by far.
Instead, four practices—all related to working with the SME—are represented as the top choices, as shown
in Figure 15.

Figure 15: Most Critical Practices for Managing SMEs’ Time

ISD engages SME throughout the content lifecycle 25%

ISD is well‐prepared for all SME meetings 22%

ISD and SME jointly review drafts of materials 21%

ISD interviews SMEs to gather info. and data 17%

Assign ISD with relevant knowledge to project 8%

ISD researches topic before SME meetings 7%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

The two practices that are least critical both relate to what the ISD knows before meeting with the SME.

Respondents added the following details on how they best managed the time of SMEs:

• Actively involve them in different parts of the lifecycle, including early on in the process as well as in
areas such as selecting delivery methods and assessments, and in post-project reviews.
• Ensure the ISD plans ahead on what topics to cover and prepares good questions.
• Keep the SME focused on the right type and level of content for the learners’ needs.
• Document their answers, and then develop content for them to review in chunks for accuracy.
• Go to their worksites, and work around their schedules.


The majority of all respondents do all of these practices to manage SMEs time. About equal numbers do the
top three, but relatively fewer—71%—do the most critical practice, “ISD engages SME throughout the
content development lifecycle,” signaling room for improvement for this important practice. See Figure 16.

Figure 16: Practices Being Done to Manage SMEs’ Time

ISD and SME jointly review drafts of course materials 78%



ISD engages SME throughout the content development lifecycle 71%

ISD researches topic independently before SME meetings 66%

Assign ISD with relevant knowledge of topic to project 60%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
N = 167


One practice that may lead to greater effectiveness at managing SMEs’ time is “ISD is well-prepared for all
SME meetings.” It was done by substantially more of those who considered themselves more effective at it.

Minimizing Conflicting Priorities of SMEs/L&D Team

As Figure 17 shows, respondents as a whole do not have a high degree of confidence in their ability to
minimize conflicting priorities between the SMEs and their L&D team. Nearly two-thirds were less effective at
it. Respondents felt least competent in this area among the five objectives.

Figure 17: Self-Ratings for Effectiveness at Minimizing Conflicting Priorities
45%
40%
40%
R
P 35%
e 32%
e
s
r 30%
p
c
o 25%
e
n
n 19%
d 20%
t
e
15%
n
o t
10%
f 6%
s
5% 4%

0%


As shown in Figure 18, two practices rise to the top in minimizing conflicting priorities: “Ensure leadership
buy-in before SME’s assigned” and “Set a realistic project schedule for SMEs.”

Figure 18: Most Critical Practices for Minimizing Conflicting Priorities

Ensure leadership buy‐in before SME's assigned 32%

Set a realistic project schedule for SMEs 25%

Allow some flexibility in SME project schedule 16%

Block time for L&D & SME work using calendar tool 11%

Adjust existing job priorities to ensure SME availability 11%

Establish escalation process for SME schedule conflicts 5%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

Percent of All Votes
N = 327 Votes


Respondents provided further detail on how they achieved the two most critical practices:

• Partner with business to agree on business need and desired outcomes for the learning project.
• Ask executive sponsors to recommend SMEs who will meet the need and who are available.
• Engage SME managers in initial steps of content development (e.g., analysis and planning).
• Ensure SME managers are fully aware of and agree to time commitment of SME.
• Work with SMEs and SMEs’ managers to develop and agree on the schedule.
• Engage SME in schedule review both at the beginning and throughout the project.


The top three practices were the same as the three most critical practices, with an order change, as shown
in Figure 19. Fewer respondents do the most critical practice, “Ensure leadership buy-in before SME’s
assigned.” This suggests that it may be more difficult to do but may be worth the effort.

Figure 19: Practices Being Done to Minimize Conflicting Priorities



Ensure leadership buy‐in before SME's assigned 71%

Block time for L&D & SME work using calendar tool 58%

Adjust existing job priorities to ensure SME availability 54%

Establish escalation process for SME schedule conflicts 34%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%


Most and Least Often Done Practices Overall
Among the five objective areas, we listed between six and nine practices that L&D teams can do to achieve
each objective, for a total of 37 practices. Of these 37, 75% or more of all respondents did ten practices, as
shown in Figure 20. All five objective areas are represented among them, and nearly all of the practices are
also among the most critically rated practices within their areas. The most often done overall practice also
had the highest critical rating by far: “Maintain regular verbal communication with SMEs.”

Figure 20: Most Often Done Practices

ISD and SME jointly review drafts of course materials 78%
Create a well‐defined project scope to share with SMEs 75%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%


As shown in Figure 21, less than 20% of all respondents did seven practices, which respondents also rated
as least critical in their areas. Five relate to modes of communication in team dynamics, and two relate to
incentives in ensuring commitment. To see a list of all 37 practices with their objective areas, overall
frequency and critical ratings, see Appendix A.

Figure 21: Least Often Done Practices








0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20%

III. About the Study
Industries

The 173 total survey participants came from at least 11 broad industry sectors, with about 1 in 3 coming
from the financial services or technology sectors. Refer to Figure 22.

Figure 22: Industries of Respondents

Financial Services (Banking, Insurance) 20%
Technology & Telecommunications 15%
Business Services / Consulting 10%
Manufacturing 9%
Healthcare, Pharma & Medical 9%
Education (K‐graduate) 6%
Retail 3%
Government (Federal, State/Local) 3%
Non‐profit 3%
Hospitality 3%
Utilities 2%
Other 17%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%

N = 173 Percent of Respondents

Note: “Other” includes Transportation, Aerospace, Construction and Training & Development.


Company Sizes

Over 2 in 3 respondents (69%) came from companies with sizes of 1,000 or more. Refer to Figure 23.

Figure 23: Employee Size Ranges of Respondents

25% 23% 23%
R
P
e 20%
e
s
r
p 15% 13%
c
o 11%
e 9% 10%
n 10%
n 6%
d 5%
t 5%
e
1%
n
o 0%
t
f
s

N = 167

Content Development Roles

As shown in Figure 24, half of all respondents were instructional systems designers or developers, while one
in three were either project managers or training leaders.

Figure 24: Content Development Roles of Respondents

Developer or Instructional Systems Designer (ISD) 50%

Project Manager 24%

Training Leader (e.g., Manager, Director) 11%

Business Unit Sponsor 8%

SME 6%

Other Training‐Related Role 2%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

N = 173 Percent of Respondents


About GP
General Physics Corporation (GP) is a global training and consulting company that helps
performance-driven organizations solve business issues while creating pathways for
continuous improvement.

GP’s approach to teamwork is personalized and reinforced by a strong commitment to
earning client satisfaction. GP’s learning professionals are dedicated to providing the
superior service and flexible solutions that have been the hallmark of the company for
more than 40 years. From custom training, sales training and consulting to talent
management and business process outsourcing, when working with GP, clients can
count on a tailored approach that focuses on their business goals.

For more information, visit http://trainingoutsourcing.gpworldwide.com or call 1-888-843-
4784.

About TrainingIndustry.com
TrainingIndustry.com spotlights the latest news, articles, case studies and best practices
within the training industry. Our focus is on helping dedicated business and training
professionals get the information, insight and tools needed to more effectively manage
the business of learning.

For more information, go to www.trainingindustry.com or call 1-866-298-4203.

About This Research
Copyright © 2011 by GP and Training Industry, Inc. All rights reserved. No materials from
this study can be duplicated, copied, re-published or re-used without written permission
from GP or Training Industry, Inc. The information and insights contained in this report
reflect the research and observations of GP and Training Industry, Inc. analysts.


Appendix A:
SME Engagement Practice Summary

% % Critical
Practice Objective Area Done Critical Rank
Maintain regular verbal communication with SMEs Team Dynamics 85% 43% 1 of 9
Hold a project kick-off meeting with SMEs Communicating Expectations 82% 16% 3 of 8
Allow some flexibility in SME project schedule Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 81% 16% 3 of 6
Demonstrate you value SMEs' time/contributions Ensuring SME Commitment 81% 28% 1 of 8
Define roles and responsibilities for SMEs Communicating Expectations 78% 19% 2 of 8
ISD and SME jointly review drafts of materials Managing SMEs Time 78% 21% 3 of 6
ISD interviews SMEs to gather info. and data Managing SMEs Time 78% 17% 4 of 6
ISD is well-prepared for all SME meetings Managing SMEs Time 76% 22% 2 of 6
Set a realistic project schedule for SMEs Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 75% 25% 2 of 6
Share a well-defined project scope with SMEs Communicating Expectations 75% 22% 1 of 8
Get SME input on project goals and objectives Communicating Expectations 74% 13% 4 of 8
Establish a single point of contact for SMEs Communicating Expectations 72% 6% 7 of 8
ISD engages SME throughout content lifecycle Managing SMEs Time 71% 25% 1 of 6
Ensure leadership buy-in before SME's assigned Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 71% 32% 1 of 6
Involve SMEs in project planning and design Ensuring SME Commitment 70% 27% 2 of 8
ISD researches topic before SME meetings Managing SMEs Time 66% 7% 6 of 6
Send periodic emails to team when milestones met Team Dynamics 65% 22% 2 of 9
Get SME agreement on defined review cycles Communicating Expectations 63% 11% 5 of 8
Assign ISD with relevant knowledge to project Managing SMEs Time 60% 8% 5 of 6
Create a formal plan with SME assignments Communicating Expectations 59% 7% 6 of 8
Provide SMEs with upfront communications plan Communicating Expectations 59% 6% 8 of 8
Block time for SME work using calendar tool Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 58% 11% 4 of 6
Adjust job priorities to ensure SME availability Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 54% 11% 5 of 6
Give SMEs flexibility on how they conduct reviews Ensuring SME Commitment 51% 8% 6 of 8
Give SMEs credit by naming them on materials Ensuring SME Commitment 48% 9% 4 of 8
Position SME work as development opportunity Ensuring SME Commitment 46% 13% 3 of 8
Recognize SMEs with non-monetary incentives Ensuring SME Commitment 41% 9% 5 of 8
Use portal to post project announcements/updates Team Dynamics 37% 8% 4 of 9
Establish escalation process for schedule conflicts Minimizing Conflicting Priorities 34% 5% 6 of 6
Conduct team-building with SMEs at kick-off Team Dynamics 27% 10% 3 of 9
Use a workflow tool (e.g., LCMS) with SMEs Team Dynamics 19% 5% 5 of 9
Make L&D work a factor in SME advancement Ensuring SME Commitment 15% 5% 7 of 8
Host periodic working lunches with SMEs Team Dynamics 15% 2% 8 of 9
Colocate L&D team with SMEs Team Dynamics 14% 4% 6 of 9
Reward SMEs with monetary incentives Ensuring SME Commitment 12% 2% 8 of 8
Conduct team-building at end of project with SMEs Team Dynamics 12% 4% 7 of 9
Use message boards to promote networking Team Dynamics 12% 1% 9 of 9


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