Collaborating with subject matter experts (SMEs) tops the list of challenges for instructional designers and other learning professionals. I wouldn’t be surprised if SMEs feel the same way in reverse. A poor ID-SME relationship not only causes unnecessary stress but can also negatively impact projects, leading to power struggles and lower-quality learning experiences.
In this article, you’ll find ten fail-safe strategies to help you work with subject matter experts in both workplace and higher education environments. These are ways to prevent and reduce the friction that can sometimes arise. The strategies are grounded in both research and practice.
The Benefits of Working with Subject Matter Experts
- Are busy professionals with competing priorities
- May be “voluntold” or pressured into the SME role
- Have little exposure to instructional design practices and may feel uncertain about their responsibilities.
A thoughtful approach that respects the value SMEs bring can transform the relationship from strained to collaborative.
Get Things Right From the Start
1. Build a Trusting Relationship
I hate to admit that I’ve walked into a meeting knowing nothing about the expert. It seems oblivious in hindsight. If you take the time to learn about the SME’s background, work responsibilities, and schedule, you’ll have context to understand their perspective and constraints.
SMEs usually respond positively when learning designers respect their expertise and acknowledge the additional workload that collaboration requires.
2. Get Familiar with the Content
If you’ll be working in a new subject area, take time to learn the basics first. You may receive background information from the SME or course sponsor, but if not, do your own research. Coming in with no knowledge can be frustrating for the SME and slow down your project.
By getting familiar with the content, you’ll be able to ask informed questions, keep up with the discussion (more or less), and demonstrate respect for the SME’s time. (Thanks to Thomas Richard for this suggestion).
3. Provide Onboarding and Education
Share a sample learning experience to show how you will transform their content into performance-based outcomes. Don’t underestimate the value of orienting SMEs to the process. It can prevent confusion later on.
4. Clarify the Roles
One of the biggest frustrations in ID–SME projects is the blurring of roles. SMEs may misunderstand the instructional designer’s purpose or expertise (Nielson, 2023). Clarify that IDs contribute learning science and design skills, while SMEs provide domain knowledge. Clarifying roles early—sometimes with the use of checklists—prevents confusion and improves efficiency.
5. Determine Who Has the Final Word
When multiple SMEs and reviewers are involved, conflicting feedback is almost inevitable. To avoid confusion, designate one SME to consolidate all input and make the final decision on the content’s direction.
6. Identify Time Constraints
Since SMEs are usually balancing your project with their primary responsibilities, it’s essential to respect their limited availability. Early on, clarify how much time they can commit each week and what turnaround they can provide for reviews. Keep meetings short, focused, and agenda-driven. Providing clear timelines, review deadlines, and defined deliverables will help SMEs manage their workload.
During a Project
7. Use Action Mapping to Align Goals
SMEs may think they need to share everything they know. However, you know that many learners can easily become overwhelmed. A collaborative Action Mapping session will help SMEs distinguish between essential content to improve performance and nice-to-know details that can be distracting.
With Action Mapping, you identify what learners need to do and the content that supports these actions. Then, you have agreed-upon objectives that you can continue to refer back to as a reminder. See more on Action Mapping.
I often suggest that the extraneous information be made available in a format that can be downloaded. That seems to satisfy many SMEs.
8. Translate Jargon Both Ways
You probably excel at explaining and translating jargon. SMEs may use technical language that is second nature to them but inaccessible to learners. On the other hand, you may use design terms that sound abstract to non-IDs. Bridging both directions makes the collaboration smoother. Explain why a concept needs to be reframed for learners, or clarify instructional language for the SME. This prevents confusion and may reduce the need for revisions later.
9. Involve SMEs at Every Stage
Avoid limiting SMEs to a one-time content dump at the start of a project. Instead, involve them in your iterative process. Ongoing collaboration leads to more accurate content and helps SMEs feel a genuine sense of ownership. When they’re kept in the loop and understand the project phases and deliverables, you minimize surprises. And if they’ll be reviewing storyboards, take time to orient them. Reading a storyboard isn’t always intuitive.
10. Use SME Expertise for Scenarios and Engagement
SMEs often have rich stories, case studies, and examples. Encourage them to share real-world situations that can bring learning materials to life. Then use your ID skills to shape these stories into activities, scenarios, or discussions that increase learner engagement.
11. Communicate Regularly and Clearly
Communication is the key to effective collaboration. Set up predictable ways to exchange feedback based on the SMEs’ preferences. Then schedule regular but brief check-ins with short agendas. Maintain clear documentation to help projects move forward smoothly. Practice active listening and ask clarifying questions when you don’t understand.
After the Project
12. Give Recognition
At the end of a project, publicly recognize the effort and time that SMEs contributed to the project. When possible (and with their approval), add their names to a list of credits at the end of an eLearning course, video, or participant manual.
13. Debrief
Your subject matter experts may not want to engage in one more meeting, but if you can coax them, a debriefing can be very helpful. Prepare a list of questions to determine what worked and where improvements would enhance the collaboration. If you can’t arrange a meeting, consider sending a brief survey to all of the SMEs involved.
Conclusion
Instructional designers and subject matter experts typically approach projects from different perspectives. When you manage the relationship with empathy, clarity, and structure, the results can be powerful. Ultimately, the goal is not just to create a learning experience but to form a partnership that values the expertise of both parties.
References:
- Gottler, A. (2023). Collaboration between instructional designers and subject matter experts in digital transformation projects. Studies in Technology Enhanced Learning, 3(2), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.21428/8c225f6e.93df9a6e
- Halupa, C. (2019). Differentiation of roles: Instructional designers and faculty in the creation of online courses. International Journal of Higher Education, 8(1), 55–62.
- Nielson, S. J. (2023). From SMEs, for SMEs: Qualitative insights within the instructional designer–subject matter expert collaborative relationship in the field of technology and innovation management (Master’s thesis, Brigham Young University). BYU ScholarsArchive. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/9847.
Glad you found value in it Maureen. Thanks.
This article was very helpful thank you