Have you ever had this conversation with a SME (subject matter expert)?
SME: “This needs to be in the course.”
You: “I’m not sure it does.”
SME: “Yes, they definitely need to know it.”
You: “But I’m not sure it will help them.”
SME: “Well they at least need to be aware of it.”
You: “Hmpfh.”
Your learners have needs, and your SMEs have knowledge and experience. But do those two things always line up? When creating learning content, SMEs with the best intentions can end up creating content that’s long on information, short on practical application, and wrapped up in a bullet-point PowerPoint bow.

In this session you’ll learn five key strategies for working more effectively with subject matter experts to create content that sticks. You’ll gain practical insights, tips, and resources for making the most of your SME’s expertise and for harnessing that power in a productive and helpful way. You’ll walk away better able to move your online content from simply conveying information to helping your learners solve the real problems they face every day.

In this session you will learn:

• How to change the focus of your efforts from the SME’s expertise to the learner’s needs.
• To negotiate out “nice-to-know” information
• How to telp SMEs break down what they’ve learned over the years in a way that’s helpful to others
• One simple question to determine what content should be included and what should be cut