In our 21+ years of designing customized training programs for clients, we often find ourselves working with and coaching SME's (subject matter experts) who are designing training. Good ISD principles can really enhance training which is designed by an SME, but the tradtional ADDIE approach is too "over the top.

Often, a SME doesn't need to know about Needs Analysis - they are simply told "design this training topic."   SME's don't often go as far as Evaluation either. Their focus is simply on the design and development of the topic they have been assigned.

With that in mind, The Training Doctor has created a more specific, streamlined model for the SME / training designer. This model is referred to as ANWIE which stands for:

A - Consider your Audience. 

SME's have much, much more information to share than their audience's can comprehend or even use. The first rule for SME-designed training is "keep in mind who your audience is, and give them the information that is 1) appropriate for their knowledge and skill level, 2) can be implemented by them.

N - What is the Need for this information?

Why is this training being designed now? Why for this audience? What is the business outcome that is needed as a result of the training? And the most important "need" - be sure to keep your content firmly rooted in the need-to-know and nix the nice-to-know (and SME's have a LOT of nice-to-know). 

W - Keep the training work-related.

This is the easiest step to achieve for the SME because they are expert at the "on the job" aspect of what they do. However... particularly enthusiastic SMEs can be prone to giving background and theory that only serve to confuse the learner. Case in point: We once reviewed a SME-designed course on Project Management for a client who complained "this class is not working - please figure out what's wrong with it." In it, we found a project management technique we had never heard of. Upon researching it, we discovered ONE mention of this technique in a Harvard Business Journal article from 1991.  The SME was fascinated with his topic and wanted to give a "well rounded" presentation - but it simply was too much information for the newbie project manager.

I - Implementable.

SME's often don't appreciate the fact that a new learner won't be expert the minute they finish the training. It is quite an a-ha to them that they have to mete out content / skills and allow time for the learner to master / implement before adding the next level of complexity or achievement.  In other words, SME's must be taught to"chunk."

E - Think about how the training / trainees will be evaluated. 

While we don't go in to the 4/5 levels of training evaluation, we do ask SME's to consider "how will you know the training has been successful? What do you want the learners to be able to do after the training? With this focus on training outcomes, the SME is better able to decide what skills to focus the training on, and the best way for the learner to learn and master those skills.