The role of a Project Manager who handles Instructional Design Projects.
A typical
project has four major phases, initiation, planning, implementation, and
closure.
As a project manager in an instructional design project, the key
priorities and important factors that should be considered during the initial
phase of the project include the purpose of the project i.e. objectives ( often
called the scope), the need for the project/justification of having the project
( specifically what problem or opportunity the project will address), the
deliverables, required resources in terms of people, money and time, tentative
project schedule including key milestones and timelines, the responsibilities
of the team, how communication will be executed and obtaining approvals from
the key stakeholders to carry out the project.
E.g. At my workplace, in order for us to design an online
course, we need to have an initial meeting with the respective chief of
the department, find out what he wants to achieve at the end of the course,
including how the course will affect the business. Once that is done, we
usually share an online course request form that among other items that he/she
will need to fill, is the approval part for the project to commence and commitment
in funding and selected SME for the project).
From the video by Dr. Petti Van Rekom, I have been able to pick
some barriers to project management, e.g. scope creep ( when items are
constantly being added in a project without considering how such additions
impact required resources, time and budget), replacement or resignation of key
stakeholders, political and cultural issue ( Laureate,2016)
How does the role of PM influence my thinking and priorities at
the beginning of an ID project?
When going through the resources, I came across a statement ‘’ The
missing component for trainers unexpectedly managing a training program often
is return on investment (ROI)—something many already are tracking as part of
their evaluation of training success, but which they may not be used to talking
about with the C-suite’’. This spoke to me directly because often we struggle
with measuring ROI for both classroom and online courses at my workplace. For
some reasons, it always come as an afterthought. I have found at that, this is
because we focus in writing learning objectives as opposed to creating
measurable goals related to retention, employee satisfaction and business
performance. At times the meetings with the Chiefs may also not be very useful
when they are not clear what is required or what should be measured at the end
of the course. The priority must be thinking with an end in mind that is the
outcomes, what is going to be achieved and how will it impact the organization
and then work backwards with that. Project Management thinking is key in
helping me define the project scope, resources that are required for the
project implementation, helps me create a case to obtain approvals for the
project and also help me have clear deliverables.
I also liked the comparison of a project manager to a
symphony conductor by Dr. Stolovitch. In the comparison, Dr. Stolovitch
mentioned the responsibility of ensuring all instruments play effectively and
at the right time (Laureate, 2016). In the case of a project, this means every
resource, project sponsor and stakeholders is aware and responsible of the
project, tasks, responsibilities, what is required and the outcomes. For me,
the example elaborated my role as project manager especially when I play a
double role of being an ID and at the same time an instructional designer.
Reference
Weinstein, M. (n.d.). THE
ACCIDENTAL TRAINING MANAGER. Retrieved January 11, 2017, from https://trainingmag.com/trgmag-article/accidental-training-manager
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (n.d.). Project
management and instructional design [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (n.d.).
Practitioner voices: Barriers to project success [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://class.waldenu.edu
