TrainSMART provides custom instructional design services for organizations that need to build, modernize, or scale employee training. We design instructor-led training, virtual training, custom eLearning development, blended learning, onboarding programs, technical training, facilitator materials, assessments, job aids, and performance-support tools.

For more than 30 years, TrainSMART has helped organizations transform complex information, business processes, and subject-matter expertise into practical learning experiences employees can understand, apply, and retain.

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TrainSMART Instructional Design at a Glance

  • 30+ years designing custom employee training
  • Programs built around business and performance outcomes
  • Instructor-led, virtual, eLearning, blended, and performance-support solutions
  • Training developed from SME knowledge, SOPs, PDFs, systems, presentations, and existing programs
  • Support from analysis through development, implementation, reinforcement, and evaluation
  • Experience across manufacturing, healthcare, technology, government, financial services, utilities, professional services, and other industries

What Are Instructional Design Services?

Instructional design services help organizations transform knowledge, processes, procedures, subject-matter expertise, and business requirements into structured learning experiences that improve employee performance.

An instructional designer determines what employees need to know or do, identifies performance gaps, establishes learning objectives, structures content, selects the appropriate training format, develops learning materials, and determines how to measure learning effectiveness.

Instructional Design May Include

  • Training needs analysis
  • Curriculum design
  • Instructor-led training
  • Virtual training
  • eLearning development
  • Blended learning

Training Development May Include

  • Facilitator guides
  • Participant materials
  • Assessments
  • Job aids
  • Performance support
  • Train-the-Trainer

What Problems Can Instructional Design Solve?

Organizations often contact TrainSMART when training exists, but it is not producing the consistency, performance, scalability, or business results they need.

  • Training materials are outdated
  • Subject-matter experts are responsible for too much training
  • Training varies by location or facilitator
  • New employees take too long to become productive
  • Existing training is too content-heavy
  • Employees complete training but do not apply it
  • Training exists mainly in PowerPoint, PDFs, manuals, or SOPs
  • Technical knowledge lives with experienced employees
  • Instructor-led training needs to become digital
  • Training needs to scale across multiple locations
  • Managers need better reinforcement tools
  • Internal trainers need greater consistency

TrainSMART helps determine whether training is the right solution before developing it.

Watch: Instructional Design Services From TrainSMART

Explore how TrainSMART helps organizations turn outdated training, complex information, and subject-matter expertise into practical, engaging learning experiences aligned with business goals.

This two-minute overview introduces our approach to custom instructional design and employee training development.

Talk to an Instructional Design Consultant

Instructional Design Services We Provide

Custom Training Development

TrainSMART designs custom training programs based on your workforce, business objectives, processes, systems, terminology, and performance expectations.

  • Leadership training
  • Employee development
  • Technical training
  • Process training
  • Systems training
  • Customer service training
  • Onboarding
  • Compliance training
  • Internal trainer development

Custom Training Solutions

Instructor-Led Training Design

TrainSMART develops instructor-led learning experiences built around participation, practice, discussion, application, and measurable learning objectives.

  • Facilitator guides
  • Participant workbooks
  • Presentation decks
  • Exercises
  • Activities
  • Role plays
  • Case studies
  • Assessments
  • Job aids

Instructor-led Training Design

eLearning Development

TrainSMART develops interactive eLearning for organizations that need scalable and consistent training employees can access across locations and schedules.

  • Self-paced eLearning
  • Scenario-based learning
  • Microlearning
  • Software training
  • Product training
  • Technical training
  • Knowledge checks
  • Video-supported learning

TrainSMART works with commonly used development platforms and standards including Articulate Storyline, Articulate Rise, Adobe Captivate, SCORM-compatible learning environments, and learning management systems.

Custom eLearning Development

Blended Learning Design

TrainSMART designs blended learning programs that combine multiple learning formats when a single course or workshop is not enough to create sustained performance improvement.

  • Instructor-led workshops
  • Virtual training
  • eLearning
  • Coaching
  • Video learning
  • Job aids
  • Manager reinforcement
  • Assessments
  • On-the-job application

We select the learning format based on the performance need rather than forcing every training challenge into the same delivery method.

Blended Learning Solutions

Existing Training Modernization

Organizations often do not need to start over. TrainSMART can evaluate existing training and determine what should be retained, redesigned, simplified, digitized, reorganized, or removed.

Existing Materials We Can Modernize

  • PowerPoint presentations
  • PDFs
  • Training manuals
  • SOPs
  • Recorded webinars

Existing Programs We Can Improve

  • Legacy eLearning
  • Facilitator-led courses
  • Technical documentation
  • Compliance materials
  • Onboarding programs

Customer Story: Modernizing 11 Instructor-Led Training Programs

A client needed to modernize 11 existing instructor-led training programs while improving consistency across facilitators and delivery environments. TrainSMART evaluated the existing materials, reorganized the learning experience, standardized facilitator resources, and created a more repeatable training structure.

Services included: instructional design, instructor-led training development, facilitator materials, content modernization, and learning standardization.

Turn Subject-Matter Expertise Into Structured Training

Many organizations already possess the knowledge they need. The challenge is that the knowledge often exists inside experienced employees, subject-matter experts, SOPs, technical documentation, systems, presentations, and tribal knowledge.

TrainSMART Helps Capture Expertise

  • Interview subject-matter experts
  • Identify critical job tasks
  • Document workflows
  • Capture technical knowledge
  • Identify common performance errors

Then We Convert It Into Learning

  • Define learning objectives
  • Structure content
  • Create practice activities
  • Develop assessments
  • Build reusable learning resources

Customer Story: Public Safety SME Training

TrainSMART worked with subject-matter experts to capture specialized knowledge and transform it into structured training that could be delivered consistently beyond the original experts.

Services included: SME interviews, instructional design, knowledge transfer, facilitator resources, and performance-support development.

Training Needs Analysis

A training needs analysis identifies the gap between current performance and desired performance and helps determine whether training is the appropriate solution.

TrainSMART May Evaluate

  • Current performance
  • Desired performance
  • Knowledge gaps
  • Skills gaps
  • Work processes

We Also Review

  • Business objectives
  • Existing training
  • Learner needs
  • Manager expectations
  • Performance barriers

Customer Story: Franchise Training Needs Assessment

TrainSMART supported a franchise-based organization by evaluating learning needs, operational requirements, existing materials, and employee performance expectations before recommending the appropriate training strategy.

Services included: training needs analysis, stakeholder discovery, performance analysis, curriculum planning, and instructional design consulting.

The TrainSMART Instructional Design Framework

TrainSMART approaches instructional design as a business performance process rather than simply a content-development exercise.

1. Discover

Define the business challenge, learner audience, stakeholders, operational environment, existing resources, and desired outcomes.

2. Analyze

Identify performance gaps, learner needs, content requirements, systems, processes, and available subject-matter expertise.

3. Design

Establish learning objectives, curriculum structure, delivery strategy, activities, assessments, and reinforcement.

4. Develop

Create the training experience, learning materials, eLearning, facilitator resources, job aids, and performance-support tools.

5. Validate

Review the training with stakeholders and subject-matter experts for accuracy, usability, relevance, and business alignment.

6. Implement

Launch the learning solution and prepare facilitators, managers, trainers, and employees for successful adoption.

7. Measure and Improve

Evaluate learning, application, behavior change, performance indicators, and business impact to determine how the program should improve over time.

Depending on the engagement, TrainSMART may incorporate ADDIE, SAM, Agile instructional design, adult learning principles, experiential learning, scenario-based learning, microlearning, blended learning, and Kirkpatrick evaluation principles.

What Does an Instructional Designer Actually Do?

An instructional designer converts knowledge and performance requirements into structured learning experiences that help employees develop skills and perform their jobs more effectively.

  • Interview subject-matter experts
  • Analyze job tasks
  • Identify performance gaps
  • Write learning objectives
  • Structure curriculum
  • Develop activities
  • Create facilitator guides
  • Design eLearning
  • Develop assessments
  • Create job aids
  • Recommend delivery methods
  • Evaluate training effectiveness

What Do You Receive From an Instructional Design Project?

Strategy

  • Training needs analysis
  • Performance analysis
  • Audience analysis
  • Curriculum strategy
  • Learning architecture

Course Materials

  • Facilitator guides
  • Participant guides
  • Presentation decks
  • Exercises
  • Case studies

Digital Learning

  • eLearning modules
  • Microlearning
  • Interactive scenarios
  • Videos
  • Knowledge checks

Performance Support

  • Job aids
  • Checklists
  • Quick-reference guides
  • Manager tools
  • Coaching guides

Micro Customer Stories

TrainSMART has helped organizations across healthcare, aerospace, manufacturing, utilities, government, life sciences, financial services, and other industries solve complex learning and performance challenges. These examples show how our instructional design, eLearning development, training needs analysis, Train-the-Trainer, and performance-support services are applied in real-world environments.

Healthcare Research & Non-Profit

Challenge: Evolve outdated, manual-heavy training manuals into modern, engaging, and scalable eLearning programs for diverse healthcare audiences, including merit reviewers, clinical study teams, and ambassadors.

Solution: Developed custom, scenario-based eLearning modules in Articulate Storyline 360, designed a branded eLearning template, and established ongoing revision cycles.

Impact: Modernized legacy learning materials into interactive digital assets and built a multi-year strategic partnership across multiple grant and stakeholder initiatives.

Aerospace & Defense

Challenge: Convert 29 ground school academic PowerPoint lessons representing 75 classroom hours into self-paced eLearning so students enter classroom sessions with a solid conceptual foundation.

Solution: Designed responsive Articulate Rise 360 eModules featuring custom interactions, knowledge checks, and standardized branding.

Impact: Reduced academic contact time in the classroom, enabling instructors to focus on practical application while delivering SCORM-compliant courses for LMS deployment.

Public Sector & State Government Procurement

Challenge: Modernize and restructure multi-module learning courses requiring structured instructional design and thorough review cycles.

Solution: Led course redesigns, storyboarding, and alpha/beta review workflows across an eight-module curriculum.

Impact: Delivered validated, high-quality eLearning modules aligned with strict project review milestones.

Ocean Freight & Maritime Logistics

Challenge: Create effective, consistent learning courses to support operational workforce development.

Solution: Managed conceptual course design, instructional structuring, and multi-stage alpha/beta testing cycles across multiple course streams.

Impact: Produced engaging, fully vetted training courses ready for enterprise deployment.

Chemical & Battery Manufacturing

Challenge: Establish standardized operating procedures and ensure consistent training execution across operations.

Solution: Implemented an on-site training development and process standardization program.

Impact: Standardized operational SOPs and improved alignment across key business functions.

Environmental Engineering & Maritime Emissions Control

Challenge: Validate complex procedure documentation and verify knowledge retention among operational personnel.

Solution: Authored procedural documentation, beta guides, including BOOM and SPUD procedures, and knowledge-check evaluations.

Impact: Verified employee comprehension and ensured procedural compliance prior to full operational rollout.

Medical Devices

Challenge: Transform static PowerPoint decks into engaging, interactive digital learning experiences.

Solution: Built immersive Articulate Storyline eModules divided into mini-sessions and featuring professional voiceover, scenario-based exercises, and knowledge checks.

Impact: Boosted learner engagement and retention through bite-sized, self-paced digital modules.

Biotechnology & Life Sciences

Challenge: Educate the sales force and clinical support staff on the launch of a new medical product.

Solution: Delivered training consultation, instructional design, and eDevelopment services to create eLearning modules and reinforcement training assets.

Impact: Successfully prepared commercial and support teams for product launch with standardized, scientific learning assets.

Managed Healthcare & Health Insurance

Challenge: Upskill technical trainers across both live and virtual training environments.

Solution: Conducted a tailored Train-the-Trainer program blending instructor-led sessions with virtual post-work assignments.

Impact: Enhanced facilitation skills and delivery consistency across live and virtual instruction channels.

Energy & Electric Utilities

Challenge: Drive adoption for a new document management system across workforce segments with varying learning preferences.

Solution: Created a blended learning solution incorporating eLearning modules, virtual instructor-led training, interactive job aids, and classroom instruction.

Impact: Facilitated smooth system adoption across user groups while minimizing operational disruption.

Public Utilities & Energy Infrastructure

Challenge: Transition 90% of instructor-led construction and designer training to digital formats while standardizing procurement and compliance workflows.

Solution: Delivered more than 100 mini-projects, including Level 2+ eLearning, videos, microlearning, job aids, system workflows, and a Manager Playbook site.

Impact: Significantly reduced compliance risks, improved contract oversight, and modernized technical workforce training.

Financial Technology & Payroll Services

Challenge: Align organizational training with strategic expansion, system upgrades, and onboarding goals.

Solution: Conducted a comprehensive training needs assessment and developed a multi-year strategic training plan.

Impact: Implemented 80% of recommendations over multiple years, supporting system usage, operational growth, and employee alignment.

Hospital Systems & Healthcare

Challenge: Address high employee turnover, budget cuts, and inconsistent onboarding across five primary business units.

Solution: Conducted an enterprise-wide rapid training needs assessment across Nursing, Hospital Operations, Corporate Services, and University/Research functions to develop a strategic learning and development roadmap.

Impact: Established consistent onboarding and management training programs across business units, reducing turnover and elevating learning and development as a strategic capability.

Judicial & Public Sector Judiciary

Challenge: Eliminate training duplication, role ambiguity, and operational silos across HR Operations, CMS training, and Judicial Training.

Solution: Conducted a comprehensive training environment assessment, identifying collaboration opportunities, structural improvements, and efficiency gains.

Impact: Implemented recommendations over 6 months, resulting in higher employee and customer satisfaction scores, increased productivity, and improved resource utilization.

Complex Training Challenges Across Industries

TrainSMART works with organizations that need to modernize training, capture institutional knowledge, develop eLearning, standardize delivery, improve onboarding, support technology adoption, and build sustainable internal learning capabilities.

Need: Your organization may have a different industry or training challenge.

Next step: TrainSMART can evaluate the current environment and recommend the appropriate instructional design approach.

Instructional Design for Technical and Complex Work Environments

Instructional design becomes especially important when employees need to learn complex processes, technical systems, operating procedures, safety requirements, or specialized job knowledge.

TrainSMART works with organizations to convert technical information into learning that employees can understand and apply without unnecessarily simplifying the work itself.

Technical Training May Include

  • Equipment and systems training
  • SOP training
  • Process training
  • Software training
  • Technical onboarding
  • Job qualification training

Performance Support May Include

  • Job aids
  • Workflow guides
  • Reference materials
  • Checklists
  • Decision-support tools
  • Trainer resources

How We Work With Subject-Matter Experts

Subject-matter experts are critical to many instructional design projects, but their time is valuable. TrainSMART uses a structured approach to capture expertise efficiently while allowing SMEs to focus on accuracy and business requirements rather than becoming responsible for course design.

Capture

We interview SMEs, review documentation, observe processes, and identify the knowledge employees actually need to perform.

Structure

Our instructional designers organize the information around learning objectives, job tasks, decisions, and performance requirements.

Validate

SMEs review the developed materials for accuracy while TrainSMART manages the instructional structure, learner experience, and development process.

Industries We Support

TrainSMART develops custom learning solutions for organizations with complex employee, technical, operational, leadership, and performance-development needs.

  • Manufacturing
  • Healthcare
  • Life sciences
  • Technology
  • Financial services
  • Government
  • Utilities
  • Transportation
  • Engineering
  • Professional services
  • Retail
  • Nonprofit organizations

Why Organizations Choose TrainSMART

30+ Years of Experience

TrainSMART has helped organizations design and improve employee learning and performance for more than three decades.

Custom Development

Programs are built around your employees, systems, processes, terminology, workflows, and business requirements.

Instructional Design + Facilitation Expertise

TrainSMART understands both how training should be designed and what happens when facilitators and employees actually use it.

Flexible Engagements

TrainSMART can lead an entire instructional design initiative or supplement an existing learning and development team.

Train-the-Trainer and Instructional Design

Designing effective training is only one part of creating a sustainable learning program. Organizations also need internal trainers who can deliver the learning experience effectively and consistently.

TrainSMART can combine instructional design services with Train-the-Trainer development to help organizations create strong training materials and prepare internal facilitators to use them.

Instructional Design Support

  • Course design
  • Facilitator guides
  • Participant materials
  • Activities
  • Assessments
  • Job aids

Trainer Development

  • Facilitation skills
  • Learner engagement
  • Managing group dynamics
  • Practice and feedback
  • Training consistency
  • Facilitator confidence

Explore TrainSMART Train-the-Trainer Programs

How Do You Measure Training Effectiveness?

Training effectiveness should be measured against the outcomes the program was designed to influence.

Depending on the project, TrainSMART may help organizations evaluate:

Reaction

How participants respond to the learning experience.

Learning

Whether employees gained the required knowledge or skills.

Application

Whether employees apply what they learned in the workplace.

Results

Whether the behavior change contributes to business or performance outcomes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Instructional Design Services

What are instructional design services?

Instructional design services help organizations analyze performance needs and develop structured learning experiences that improve employee knowledge, skills, and job performance. Services may include training needs analysis, curriculum development, instructor-led training, eLearning, blended learning, assessments, facilitator guides, job aids, and performance-support tools.

What does an instructional designer do?

An instructional designer analyzes performance and learning needs, establishes learning objectives, organizes content, selects appropriate delivery methods, develops training materials, creates assessments, and determines how learning effectiveness should be measured.

How much do instructional design services cost?

Instructional design costs depend on project scope, complexity, delivery format, existing materials, number of stakeholders, technology requirements, development time, review cycles, and required deliverables. TrainSMART scopes each engagement around the specific needs of the organization.

How long does instructional design take?

Timelines vary based on project complexity. A focused workshop or course update may require a shorter development cycle, while a comprehensive curriculum, technical training program, or eLearning initiative may require multiple phases of analysis, design, development, review, implementation, and evaluation.

Can TrainSMART update existing training?

Yes. TrainSMART can evaluate existing training and determine what should be retained, updated, reorganized, simplified, redesigned, converted, or removed.

Can you turn PowerPoint presentations or PDFs into training?

Yes. TrainSMART can use presentations, PDFs, SOPs, manuals, technical documentation, videos, and other existing content as source material. The content is typically redesigned into a learning experience rather than simply transferred into another format.

Can TrainSMART work with our subject-matter experts?

Yes. SME collaboration is common in instructional design engagements. TrainSMART helps extract, organize, and structure subject-matter expertise while minimizing unnecessary demands on internal experts.

Can instructor-led training be converted into eLearning?

Yes. Instructor-led training can often be converted into eLearning or blended learning. The content usually needs to be redesigned so activities, practice, feedback, assessments, and interaction work effectively in the new delivery format.

Does TrainSMART develop facilitator guides?

Yes. Facilitator guides may include timing, learning objectives, talking points, activity instructions, debrief questions, supporting resources, transitions, and facilitator notes.

Does TrainSMART develop technical training?

Yes. TrainSMART works with subject-matter experts and internal teams to transform technical processes, systems, procedures, and specialized knowledge into structured learning experiences and performance-support resources.

Can TrainSMART create Train-the-Trainer programs?

Yes. TrainSMART has extensive experience designing and delivering Train-the-Trainer programs that help internal trainers facilitate learning more consistently and effectively.

What is the difference between instructional design and training development?

Instructional design focuses on analyzing the performance need and determining how people should learn, while training development focuses on creating the actual learning materials. In many TrainSMART engagements, both activities are integrated into one development process.

What instructional design models does TrainSMART use?

Depending on the project, TrainSMART may use ADDIE, SAM, Agile instructional design, adult learning principles, experiential learning, scenario-based learning, microlearning, blended learning, and Kirkpatrick evaluation principles.

How do you measure training effectiveness?

Training effectiveness may be evaluated through learner feedback, knowledge acquisition, skill demonstration, workplace application, manager observations, behavior change, performance measures, or business outcomes depending on the objectives of the program.

Can TrainSMART design training for manufacturing employees?

Yes. TrainSMART develops customized manufacturing training for frontline employees, supervisors, internal trainers, technical teams, and leaders. Projects may include technical training, SOP training, onboarding, leadership development, systems training, job aids, Train-the-Trainer, and performance-support tools.

Can TrainSMART help us decide whether we need eLearning or instructor-led training?

Yes. TrainSMART evaluates the audience, performance requirements, work environment, content complexity, scale, technology, and business objectives before recommending a delivery format. The solution may include instructor-led training, virtual learning, eLearning, blended learning, performance support, or a combination of approaches.

Have a Training Challenge You Need to Solve?

You do not need to know exactly what type of training you need before contacting TrainSMART.

Tell us:

  • What employees need to do differently
  • What is not working today
  • What training materials already exist
  • Who needs training
  • What success should look like

TrainSMART can help determine the right instructional design approach.