Instructional Design Planning: Why Time Upfront Pays Off

Don’t Short-Cut Instructional Design Planning
Investing time in instructional design planning upfront pays dividends. Anyone who’s ever found themselves stuck in an actual or figurative corner knows the value of the “measure twice, cut once” approach. Careful preparation not only prevents costly rework but also ensures training delivers meaningful, measurable business results.

It All Depends Upon How You Begin
Too often, training projects stumble because insufficient instructional design planning occurs at the outset. The best advice from instructional design experts is to invest time upfront — defining training strategies, clarifying business objectives, and establishing clear goals and desired outcomes before creating any content.

This early clarity helps prevent the most common missteps during the instructional design phase, setting the stage for training that truly delivers measurable results.

Follow These Three Research-Backed Instructional Design Planning Steps

1. 1. Be Relevant
      Engage company leaders to understand their priorities and why they matter. Assess whether training can directly support the achievement of the organization’s most important business goals. True business alignment occurs when each learning solution resonates with three critical stakeholder groups:
      • • The Business: the broader organization and its strategic objectives
        • Leadership: the participant’s direct manager
        • Your Target Audience: those who will participate in the training

      You’ll know you’re on the right track when all three groups align on the “critical few” business metrics the training aims to influence — and recognize the tangible business value of achieving them compared to current priorities.

   2. Design for Adoption and Impact
      Collaborate closely with key stakeholders to define every aspect of your learning initiative — from the business case to participant selection to how success will be measured and reinforced against business goals. You’re on the right path when all stakeholders agree on a clear plan for both training adoption and impact measurement, ensuring the initiative drives meaningful, measurable results.
   3. Align Resources
      Secure senior leadership support to ensure you have the resources necessary to achieve your training goals effectively. Key training support resources to consider include:

1. • • Leadership reinforcement
     • Time to learn, practice, receive coaching, and continuously improve
     • Information
     • Tools
     • Embedding learning in the flow of work
     • Technology
     • Supporting business practices
     • Organizational structures
     • Rewards and recognition
     • Performance management

   You will know you are on the right path when you agree to a resource allocation and reinforcement plan to support skill adoption, behavior change, and performance improvement with your key stakeholders.

The Bottom Line
Clarity on the critical few business goals sets the foundation for success. Defining precise implementation parameters and securing executive support keeps your initiative on track. Rigorous planning, focused execution, and shared accountability drive measurable results. Never begin instructional design until your plan is clear, credible, and actionable enough to those who matter most.

To learn more about how to make better training, download 3 Steps to Building a Smarter Training Initiative – One that Gets Business Results

by Tristam Brown: CEO

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.