Dealing with Difficult SMEs - The eLearning Guild

403 Dealing with Difficult SMEs

Maureen Barlow & James Lindsay, Tufts Health Plan

DIFFICULT SME FIELD GUIDE

KNOW-IT-ALL Identifying Characteristics • • • • • • •

May have instructional design or eLearning experience May have Flash experience Bombastic, opinionated and bad at listening Constantly criticizes or attacks what you produce Withholds information Makes unworkable suggestions for improvement Shows utter disregard for schedules

Possible Motivations • • • •

Thinks they should be the developer on the project, not you Prefers to tell you how to do your job May have a strong desire to impress you May authentically be in love with the technology

Strategies for Success • • • •

Listen and admire Force them to be specific – don’t allow generalities or vague pipedreams Attempt to “bring back down to Earth” by discussing realities of scheduling and resources Overpromise what you’ll do with their suggestions on next project!

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KNOW NOTHING Identifying Characteristics • • • • •

Claims to have never taken or even looked at an online course Is often a long-time classroom instructor who is threatened by eLearning Gets a blank look whenever you discuss eLearning issues or ideas; doesn’t seem to want to understand; seems flustered by even basic technology issues Dumps information on you, but won’t collaborate on setting priorities or making the difficult content choices required for successful eLearning Often obsequious and deferential: “Oh, you do whatever you want”

Possible Motivations • • • •

May be intimidated by technology May be intimidated by you May not believe eLearning can be as effective as instructor-led training May feel like they’ve been doing this a long time, they know enough already, and don’t want to learn anything new

Strategies for Success • • • •

Try to involve/engage; compile a “SME Guide” illustrating cool features of other courses you’ve developed Find an interest of theirs, show example of an eLearning course in that area Take one chunk of content (i.e., classroom exercise), convert it, show them Do all reviews together – go through course with them, sitting at their desk

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TURF WARRIOR Identifying Characteristics • • • • • • •

Is often very similar to the Know-It-All Thinks they should be doing the developing, and not you Is reluctant to give you material or information May try direct or indirect project sabotage Can be openly hostile, combative, and dismissive Hates everything you do Is resentful of your department or position

Possible Motivations • • • • •

Doesn’t think you or your department should be on the project Thinks they don’t need you May feel their job is threatened May have some development and/or design experience May feel under-appreciated at work

Strategies for Success • • • • •

Acknowledge any turf issues Validate their concerns Stress that you’re not trying to invade their turf or take their job Assure them that eLearning will not supplant classroom training If all else fails, you may have to ask for another SME

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NIT-PICKER Identifying Characteristics • • • • • •

Focuses on fine detail at early storyboarding phase Starts line-editing immediately Doesn’t see the big picture at first Doesn’t understand the concept of a “draft” Gives you treatise-sized review notes Drags out project schedule

Possible Motivations • • • •

May feel need to be in complete control of project May think you’re “just a grunt” May feel extremely protective of their area of expertise, like the Turf Warrior May just be a perfectionist

Strategies for Success • • • •

Be very clear about expectations, especially in review cycle Don’t sweat the small stuff – Pick your battles! Selectively ignore “nits” with which you disagree; chances are they’ll forget them! Thank them for their detailed feedback, then immediately stress realistic approaches to proceeding with next or final draft

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MIA Identifying Characteristics • • • • •

Is often nice at beginning of project, saying how much they want to participate – but then is useless when it comes to providing information Doesn’t respond to phone messages or e-mails Is late for meetings or cancels at last minute When you do track them down, spends a lot of time complaining about how busy they are Constantly misses deadlines, leaving you to explain delays to your boss or other stakeholders

Possible Motivations • • •

May be too busy or overwhelmed with work May feel project is a low priority May just be irresponsible or unreliable

Strategies for Success • • • •

Avoid anger Be dogged in a polite way – If they miss a meeting, contact them immediately about rescheduling. If they don’t respond, e-mail or phone every 1-2 days, emphasizing the work that needs to get done Document, document, document! If all else fails, make use of the CC and BCC in emails to get results

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RELUCTANT PARTICIPANT Identifying Characteristics • • • • •

BIG attitude; open about having no belief/stake in project, or about being assigned to it against their will Is often snippy or silent in meetings Committed to doing the least amount possible, which leads to missed deadlines and embarrassing content mistakes in the work you do produce Second guesses everything you do; makes you constantly feel the need to justify the project and your presence on it Tends to become an MIA SME

Possible Motivations • • • •

May be busy or overwhelmed by other responsibilities – or just may not like their job to begin with May not get along with boss who assigned them, and is taking it out on you May feel project is beneath them May resent your role on project and feel they should be doing it themselves

Strategies for Success • • • •

Focus on the facts, not the eLearning E-mail specific questions; if no reply, phone or meet but stay focused Don’t expect reviews – try to find a way to broaden review list to others If SME turns nasty or abusive, resort to the chain of command

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KITCHEN SINKER Identifying Characteristics • • • • •

Gives you enough paper content to fill a house Is resistant to cutting out or condensing any content Doesn’t listen when you tell them learners will lose interest if content is too dense Is reluctant to defer to your expertise Doesn’t understand the difference between a 200-page user guide and a CBT

Possible Motivations • • • •

May feel a strong need to “cover their back” by including everything possible May be afraid of “getting it wrong” Doesn’t want to be blamed for leaving anything out Doesn’t understand – or want to understand – when you try to explain instructional design concepts to them

Strategies for Success • • • •

Assure them your goal is to create complete training that meets their needs and the needs of the learners Walk them through an eLearning module that started out with lots of content If they are insistent with content, include it as a downloadable job aid, etc. Focus on performance objectives

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WORRY WART Identifying Characteristics • • • • •

Constantly checks in about status of project Insists on detailed schedules with unrealistically granular milestones Afraid to take responsibility for decisions Expresses constant fear of missing deadlines or not getting everything exactly right Sometimes becomes a Nit-Picker and/or a Kitchen-Sinker

Possible Motivations • • • • •

May not feel autonomous in their job Their boss may be a micromanager They may be a micromanager They may be a perfectionist, similar to the Nit-Picker May just be a bad decision-maker or team player

Strategies for Success • • • •

Like with the Kitchen Sinker, assure them your goal is to create a complete training that meets their needs and the needs of the learners Don’t wait for them to make decisions; charge forward when possible Build in extra review cycles Find additional SMEs or reviewers who can help create confidence in the Worry Wart

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META STRATEGIES FOR DIFFICULT SMES

Identify

Dis-Associate

Modify

Engage/Confront

Deflect/Defer

Retreat

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A GENERAL STRATEGY FOR MAKING ALL SME INTERACTIONS MORE CONSTRUCTIVE • Establish a personal connection • Emphasize shared responsibility • Bring people into the process whenever possible – get buy-in through participation and collaborative decision-making • Demystify what we do: take the time to educate people on eLearning and the tools we use ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

PRESENTER CONTACT INFORMATION

James Lindsay [email protected] Maureen Barlow [email protected]