Instructional designers are often called upon to act as project leads and project managers on e-learning projects, yet they rarely receive formal project management training. There are unique project management issues related to e-learning and unique ways of adapting project management techniques and tools to address those issues. In this 2012 webinar I delivered at an eLearning Guild Online Forum, I discuss a variety of best practices related to managing stakeholders; managing process dependencies, collaborations, and handoffs; and managing quality issues related to interactivity, media, and contextualization.

1. MANAGING ELEARNING PROJECTS
…AND OTHER MYSTERIES OF LIFE
eLearning Guild Gus Prestera, PhD
Online Forums Learning & Performance Strategist
July 26, 2012, 1:15-2:30 gus@presterafx.com
www.presterafx.com
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2. Check out my blog!
www.presterafx.com/wordpress
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3. The PM’s Mission:
• On Quality
• On Time
• On Budget
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4. Courseware Development Process
Initial LMS Integration Testing Final LMS Integration Testing
Develop Develop Develop
Framework Functionality Prototype
Storyboard Approval
Still Video
Look & Develop Graphics
Feel Mockups
Scratch
Audio
Audio
Testing
Testing
Testing
DSD Storyboards
Content
Analysis
Pre-Kickoff Kickoff Closeout
Project Initiation Design Alpha Beta Gold
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5. Technologies:
Complex mix of process, development, and delivery technologies
Learning Management
System (LMS)
Microsoft Project
Adobe PhotoShop
Adobe Flash
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6. Technologies:
Complex mix of process, development, and delivery technologies
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7. Team Composition:
Eclectic mix of disciplines, personalities, and expertise
GD
GD
Core Team
ID
ID GDL GD
IDL
Project
PM
DEL
Stakeholders
DE
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8. Team Composition:
Eclectic mix of disciplines, personalities, and expertise
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9. Stakeholders:
Generally more of them and most are not tech-savvy or learning-savvy
Legal/Compliance IT Department
The Boss!
Marketing Department
The Learner
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10. Stakeholders:
Generally more of them and most are not tech-savvy or learning-savvy
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11. What PMs manage…
1. Manage Stakeholders
1.
– Educate
– Consult
– Negotiate
2. Manage Process
2.
– Dependencies
– Collaborations
– Handoffs
3. Manage Quality
3.
– Interactivity
– Media
– Contextualization
Standby: OQAR
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12. MANAGING STAKEHOLDERS
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13. Managing Stakeholders
1. Assess & map the roles and needs of stakeholders
2. Educate stakeholders about the process
3. Help them understand what you need from them
4. Don’t commit to something without consulting
your team
5. Negotiate…don’t give up something for nothing
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14. Negotiating with
Stakeholders
What you may give up What you should aim to get
• Do more work • Gratitude*
• Incur a delay • More time
• Absorb a delay (work faster) • Additional funding
• Allow additional review cycles • Other concessions
• Expand number of reviewers
• Allow out of scope changes
*Gratitude can later be traded
in for concessions
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15. Project Plans vs. Milestone Reports
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16. MANAGING PROCESS
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17. Focus on…
Be proactive about managing chokepoints in the process
1. Minimize dependencies by enabling parallel workflows
2. Where people need to collaborate, provide structure and guidance
3. Where there are handoffs, promote over-communication
4. When people need to review or test, micro-manage that process
to minimize rework, churn, and delays
5. Shorten communication cycles at critical points—War Room!
6. Build buffer and contingencies into high-risk areas
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18. Promote
parallel
workflows
Structure
collaborations
Build in buffer
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19. Be clear about
handoffs &
reviews
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20. Approval Matrix
The Approval Matrix
Approvals
Content Scope
Course Design
Requirements
Resources
Materials
Timeline
Content
Course
Course
Course
Intermediate
Work Products
Project
Plan AsNot
projects unfold and work
Resource products are reviewed, the
Approved
Plan
scope of changes should
Requirements get narrower.
Document
Design
Document
Approved
Task Analysis
Storyboards
Document
Guides
Alpha
& Slides
Project Initiation -----------------------------------------> Project Conclusion
Source: effectPerformance Statement of Work
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21. MANAGING QUALITY
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22. You gotta have some standards!
Design Standards Writing Standards
 Client Requirements - Clearly state client requirements and address  Clarity - Avoid surprises. Document design
them in your design. decisions and implications with enough clarity
 Goal Alignment - Clearly state business and performance goals. Align to avoid potential rework—such that clients can
learning objectives and instructional design strategies to these goals. understand the design and be held
accountable for sign-off.
 Contextualization – Make course content meaningful and relevant to
the audience to engage audience and facilitate transfer of skills to the  Structure - Write content that facilitates
workplace. Contextualization elements can include workplace understanding and is logically sequenced.
examples of effective and ineffective practices, samples of good and  Style - Use strategies that ensure clear,
bad work products, frequently asked questions, common errors that concise and professional writing; use the active
occur in the workplace as well as scenario-based exercises, vignettes, voice, apply specific and concrete wording,
mini-cases, and cases. omit needless words, and allow time to review
 Interactivity - Make interactions instructionally useful. Strive to make and revise your own writing.
interactivity meaningful, not just abundant, to your target audience.  Diction - Use accepted grammar, spelling,
 Media - Make media choices (about the user interface, graphics, punctuation and terminology.
audio, etc.) that are instructionally useful, support the content, and  Consistency - Be consistent in the way you
maintain appropriately high production values. apply similar lesson structures, terminology
 Evaluation - Make evaluation choices that are in alignment with client and formatting across the document and
requirements as well as business and performance goals. related documents.
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23. What Drives Quality in eLearning?
Higher levels generally
require more:
• Input from SMEs, target audience,
and other stakeholders
• Iteration to refine the details
• Time to research content, design,
storyboard, produce, review
• Cost
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24. MANAGING ELEARNING PROJECTS
…AND OTHER MYSTERIES OF LIFE
eLearning Guild Gus Prestera, PhD
Online Forums Learning & Performance Strategist
July 26, 2012, 1:15-2:30 gus@presterafx.com
www.presterafx.com
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25. Check out my blog!
www.presterafx.com/wordpress
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26. Standby
ONLINE QUALITY ASSURANCE REVIEWER
OQAR
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27. http://www.bevenourprestera.com/bprojects/bp03_200/
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35. PERFORMANCE
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