{"id":4961,"date":"2017-03-07T16:42:54","date_gmt":"2017-03-07T16:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.efrontlearning.com\/blog\/?p=4961"},"modified":"2017-03-07T16:42:54","modified_gmt":"2017-03-07T16:42:54","slug":"agile-learning-design-great-elearning-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.efrontlearning.com\/blog\/2017\/03\/agile-learning-design-great-elearning-results.html","title":{"rendered":"Embracing The AGILE Method For Great eLearning Results"},"content":{"rendered":"
Agile learning design isn\u2019t really a new phenomenon. Athletes, savvy entrepreneurs and hard-nosed businesspeople have known for decades that being agile in the face of tough competition is the key to success. When it comes to the Agile eLearning development, however, those five letters \u2013 A.G.I.L.E. \u2013 actually spell more than just success.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

They stand for Quality, Teamwork, Cost effectiveness, Employee and Customer inclusiveness and Professionalism, all wrapped around exceptional Customer satisfaction!<\/p>\n

What is Agile Learning?<\/h2>\n

Instructional designers familiar with the conventional ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation and Evaluation) methodology will know that it is a serial way of developing eLearning content. ADDIE has been around since 1975<\/strong><\/a> and has successfully served the eLearning industry since then.<\/p>\n

Over the past half-a-decade or so, another method has been making inroads into the world of instructional design<\/strong><\/a>; offering a more \u2018parallel\u2019 approach to building better courses quicker and with more extensive (compared to ADDIE) and comprehensive stakeholder inputs.<\/p>\n

Making Agile Work in Organizations<\/h2>\n

While embracing Agile might appeal to many organizations as a natural progression from ADDIE (or other similar conventional methodologies), the real dividend of producing great eLearning content<\/strong><\/a> comes from utilizing this system correctly.<\/p>\n

Here are some best practices for ensuring your company\u2019s Agile efforts are rewarded with great eLearning results.<\/p>\n

Pillars of Agile success<\/h2>\n

1. Identify all stakeholders<\/h3>\n

The single most common cause of failure for corporate Agile eLearning projects<\/strong><\/a> is a lack of inclusiveness. Stakeholder involvement is a prerequisite for embracing a new methodology. For instance, serial methodologies like ADDIE usually involve end-users at the beginning (Analysis) and the end (Implementation). With Agile, everyone participates through every aspect of the course<\/strong> \u2013 from its inception through implementation and post-implementation review.<\/p>\n

The earlier in the Agile project cycle that you get everyone around the table and involved in the project, the better is the chance of a successful outcome.<\/p>\n

2. Pick the right players<\/h3>\n

Senior management often assigns prestigious roles to \u2018favored\u2019 individuals<\/strong> as a sign of trust and appreciation. When it comes to building Agile teams, however, you need more than appreciation if they are to deliver eLearning success<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

For instance, picking a controversial, indecisive or weak individual to be the Scrum Master could leave the team compromised. Make your selection based on capability, knowledge and personal traits.<\/p>\n

3. It\u2019s not just IT nor is it just about \u2018trainers\u2019<\/h3>\n

The biggest misnomer about Agile, and hence the greatest obstacle to its successful implementation across the organization, is the belief that it\u2019s about IT. It\u2019s NOT!<\/p>\n

Agile eLearning design is about bringing a multi-disciplined team<\/strong> of IT specialists, instructional designers, trainers, business process experts and functional users together to deliver a value-added product, service or process for the organization. While functional stakeholders still \u2018own\u2019 the deliverables, it is the entire agile team that\u2019s accountable to produce them! The sooner you understand that, the greater your eLearning results will be!<\/p>\n

4. Invest in changing corporate culture<\/h3>\n

Like any new methodology, this one too requires a cultural change across the organization. Investing in Agile training, seminars and appreciation sessions will go a long way in easing the transition. Though such a shift, from old methodologies to newer ones, comes with lots of growing pains, once your team embraces Agile learning development, the rewards will be immeasurable for the entire organization.<\/p>\n

5. Meet often (preferably in-person)<\/h3>\n

Detractors of the method point to the fact that it is too heavy on meetings. In fact, these are its greatest strength! By meeting often, in person when possible, Agile teams are able to communicate quickly<\/strong>, directly and effectively with each other about pressing eLearning issues facing the team. This helps to give top priority to serious matters that could impact timing, quality or performance issues with content or delivery.<\/p>\n

6. Don\u2019t wait for ideals<\/h3>\n

Successfully embracing this way of developing eLearning means that you work in small<\/strong>, incremental releases as opposed to a \u2018big bang\u2019. What this means is that the organization must accept that the \u2018ideal\u2019 course will only evolve over several iterations. In the meantime, embrace what the team has built, and use it. Over time, the team will gradually include all pertinent user\u00a0\u00a0feedback<\/strong><\/a> into successive releases of the course, moving it from \u2018workable\u2019 to \u2018acceptable\u2019 to \u2018ideal\u2019.<\/p>\n

7. Formalize \u2018pause\u2019 for contemplation<\/h3>\n

While other methodologies pride themselves on making teams work continually, Agile teams produce best results when there is recognition<\/strong> of the need for a pause to deliberate and reflect. Within the eLearning development plans<\/strong><\/a>, teams build in milestones to review each Sprint (interim course deliverable) and every Iteration (a version of the course) so they can fine-tune their approach for the next Sprint or Iteration.<\/p>\n

Senior management must recognize this \u2018pause\u2019 as a constructive thing, and try to refrain from demanding the team proceed to the next milestone before conducting an introspective review of prior milestones.<\/p>\n

8. Give the team \u2018latitude\u2019<\/h3>\n

Most corporate cultures<\/strong><\/a> are hierarchical and \u2018chain-of-command\u2019 driven. To make Agile truly work for your organization, however, you must give the team a great deal of \u2018latitude\u2019. Agile teams perform best when they are self-organized and self-managed<\/strong> \u2013 without the baggage of having Boards of Directors and Senior Executive Councils weigh-in on their day-to-day workings.<\/p>\n

9. Leverage technology<\/h3>\n

As your Agile online training development team starts working, you should start thinking of ways to support them in becoming even more agile.<\/p>\n

Leverage technology, in the form of tools such as JIRA Software systems<\/strong><\/a>, some of which, such as Taiga<\/strong><\/a> and Freedcamp<\/strong><\/a>, are open-source and freeware that you can use without obligation. From planning your project to tracking issues and open items, to releasing and managing follow-ups; technology will enable your team to become more agile, by allowing them to focus more on the job at hand as opposed to managing and tracking issues, tasks and deliverables.<\/p>\n

Embracing the above practices will not only result in better eLearning content<\/strong>, but the Agile learning solutions produced will be of higher quality, cost less and be delivered to the highest levels of user satisfaction.<\/p>\n

Agile Building Blocks<\/h2>\n

Now that you know AGILE spells more than just great eLearning content development<\/strong><\/a>, the bigger question is how to prepare your organization to embrace the agile methodology successfully. Here are some prerequisites to the successful introduction of Agile within organizations.<\/p>\n

Be open to embrace change<\/h3>\n

As corporations embark on an \u2018Agile experiment\u2019, there will be a lot that\u2019s different from conventional ways of doing things. For instance, the use of self-governed, matrix teams with flat structures might be something that your organization might not be used to, but that\u2019s how teams are organized and work within this system.<\/p>\n

If your company resists this type of teamwork, then perhaps your \u2018Agile experiment\u2019 may not produce the desired results.<\/p>\n

Encourage communication<\/h3>\n

Successful Agile teams have a saying that goes something like this: No idea is too small.

\n
No team member is too insignificant to offer a great idea!<\/blockquote>\n \n Share on <\/span>\n \n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>To become a successful phenomenon in your company, Agile team members must be encouraged to openly communicate with everyone on the team.<\/p>\n

There is no rule that bars a QA Specialist from offering a solution to a design issue (typically, an instructional designer\u2019s responsibility); or for a learner to offer suggestions on how best to deal with a user-interface challenge (typically an eLearning developer\u2019s responsibility).<\/p>\n

Many Agile online training projects meet with failure because of the \u2018Above my pay grade\u2019 or \u2018Not within my scope of work\u2019 attitude. If you wish your commitment to end in success, you must encourage free, frank and open communication<\/strong> across the team.<\/p>\n

Be supportive<\/h3>\n

Often, when companies embrace agile, many amongst senior leadership and rank-and-file see it as a \u2018novelty\u2019 that will soon face away, reverting back to the \u2018ADDIE ways\u2019. That attitude can become self-fulfilling! To be successful and take firm root across the organization, Agile learning design must receive an endorsement<\/strong> from the highest levels of company management.<\/p>\n

When managers, leaders, and supervisors down the chain-of-command see a top-level commitment to Agile, they too will do everything within their power to ensure your agile teams\u2019 success.<\/p>\n

Even before you start identifying all your stakeholders and building your project team for the development of a particular training course, you must ensure that the building blocks discussed above are addressed within your organization. Upon these building blocks will then stand the pillars of Agile success discussed in the previous section.<\/p>\n

So, What is Agile Learning About?<\/h2>\n

Agile eLearning development is not about producing the grand finale in one fell swoop. Instead, success in Agile courses is measured in developing, testing<\/strong><\/a> and rolling out a \u2018minimally viable working product\u2019 over each iteration. In that sense, therefore, this methodology aims for continued improvements in small increments throughout the life of the project.<\/p>\n

The main cultural challenge that many organizations grapple<\/strong> with when embracing a new methodology such as Agile is how to come to terms with implementing \u2018minimalistic course design\u2019?<\/p>\n

However, once you understand that you can still start receiving great value for your investment in eLearning course development<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 even without many of the bells and whistles envisioned in the final product \u2013 Agile learning makes great sense!<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Agile learning design isn\u2019t really a new phenomenon. Athletes, savvy entrepreneurs and hard-nosed businesspeople have known for decades that being agile in the face of tough competition is the key to success. When it comes to the Agile eLearning development, however, those five letters \u2013 A.G.I.L.E. \u2013 actually spell more than just success.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33872,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4961","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-elearning"],"yoast_head":"\nFive Letters For Success: Embracing The AGILE Learning Method<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is the AGILE learning design and how can you make it work for business training? 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