You’ve explored the client’s needs and wants. You’ve gathered data about what the learners need to do differently on the job. You’ve verified that training will help build the knowledge and skills that the business needs. You’ve gained agreement from the sponsors to do training. The next step is to figure out how much this […]

Hi folks! While there is a lot of good information here in the “blog archive” for LearningSim, you can get my current leadership, coaching, and mental fitness newsletter here: https://stevesemler.ck.page/profile Here is an example of the current newsletter to whet your appetite! Turning Techies into Leaders Everybody has a leadership horror story, but it’s not […]

Over the years, I have repeatedly been brought in to help establish training, learning, and development groups in corporate organizations. I developed a package of tools and documented processes to bring to other clients who need it. When an organization needs to build out its L&D function or take training to the next level, I […]

Taking a side track here to explain an 8-month break in posting new content on this LearningSim blog. I have continued to be busy with client work, fortunately: E-learning design and development for global mobility specialists Custom simulation and case study writing for several clients Developing training to support an HR re-classification of exempt workers […]

Yes, this is yet another article about Millennials written by someone who isn’t a Millennial. The fascination—obsession, really—with the Millennial generation often makes me shake my head. For fair disclosure, I’m an early Xer. As a kid I had an Atari gaming console, the Apple II in various flavors, and learned BASIC programming in junior […]

A contact of mine named Connie Malamed speaks and teaches about 21st Century Instructional Design. She is active in helping move instructional design into newer, fresher modes of practice. A resource she offers may be of interest to people curious about instructional design as a potential career field. Connie has an email introduction to “Breaking […]

There’s an apocryphal saying in show business, “Dying is easy. Comedy is hard.” While I can’t vouch for the dying bit, I can shed a little light on the comedy part. I recently completed a project for a client who hired me and my business partner at Badiyan to write and produce a series of […]

The eLearning Guild has come out with a new, free ebook on some of the best high performance, low-cost tools for L&D professionals. While I am a devoted story, script, and scenario writer, there are many things I need to do as an architect, designer, and developer where a good tool can save me time. […]

I did a presentation for MNISPI (Minnesota chapter of the International Society for Performance Improvement) recently on how to build simulations more simply and quickly with the 5-Step Simulation™ method. I had a great time, the participants learned a lot and enjoyed themselves, and we learned a lot about the value of paper airplanes as […]

I believe strongly in professional consulting standards. In fact, each of the certifications I have taken and the professional associations to which I belong have ethics or practice guidelines that emphasize building real capability in the client organization. I do not want the client to become dependent on my services. Instead, I want them to […]

Converting traditional lecture-and-discussion training courses to a more effective simulation-enhanced learning approach does not have to be difficult. In most situations, simulations will give you an increase in learner engagement, retention, and motivation over traditional training methods. You can achieve a time savings over traditional lecture-plus-discussion workshops by using simulations, as well. Here is an […]

Learning activities that recreate work situations make for better transfer of learning. We also know that people are engaged by story. Story makes training personally relevant. Putting these two things together is what my work focuses on—recreating work situations with an engaging story. That is why I developed the 5-Step Simulation™ Method. Simulations are simplified […]