Thomas Shayon Harrell’s Post

Agree with this completely. According to the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, AI requires Human Oversight. It [AI] should be used as a "dance partner" to process data at scale, but human professionals must make the final decisions.

Instructional design is not being replaced. It’s being reshaped. New AI tools like Claude Design can now generate course outlines, slides, quizzes, and learning materials in seconds. Work that once took hours can now be drafted almost instantly. At first, that sounds threatening. But really, it’s changing the value of our work lives. Instructional designers were never meant to be just “content creators.” The real work has always been: • Identifying what people actually need to learn • Structuring information so it’s clear and meaningful • Ensuring training leads to real performance improvement • Turning complex, messy ideas into intentional learning experiences AI can generate content. But it can’t determine what should be taught, why it matters, or whether it will actually work in practice. That’s the shift happening right now: - Less time spent building everything from scratch. - More time spent thinking, designing, refining, and making strategic decisions. The role of the instructional designer is moving beyond production work and closer to design thinking, problem-solving, and performance consulting. The people who adapt won’t be replaced. They’ll work faster, use better tools, and spend more energy on the parts of the work that truly matter. This isn’t the end of instructional design. It’s the evolution of it. A shift toward more meaningful work.

Most instructional designers are preparing for the WRONG FUTURE!! A lot of IDs are still focused on: • mastering authoring tools • building faster modules • polishing visuals • creating more content But AI is already reducing the value of production-heavy work. FAST! The future of instructional design probably won’t belong to the people who can build the most courses. It’ll belong to the people who can: → solve performance problems → improve onboarding outcomes → influence behavior → align learning with business goals → use AI strategically Because honestly? AI can already help create: • quizzes • storyboards • scripts • assessments • learning outlines What it still struggles with is context. The messy human side of learning. The politics. The stakeholder alignment. The behavior change. That’s where future-ready IDs will stand out. I think the role is shifting from: course creator to learning strategist. And most people in L&D still haven’t adjusted to that shift. What skill do you think instructional designers should build right now to stay relevant over the next 5 years?

[Disclaimer] I am breaking every instructional design rule right now by using this text heavy infographic as my thumb nail. But I’m doing it! Because LinkedIn makes you choose between a picture and a movie. And while appreciate the simplicity of a binary choice, I want you to know what my Love Notes and LYFE Lessons (aka things I send to my mailing list) are really like. And for that to happen, you’ll need to have access to both pieces of information. In short, please mute me while you read the slide or close your eyes while you listen. Because it’s gonna be hard for you to do both. 😆 [End Disclaimer] Moving on! Here lately, the weight of the uncertainty in the world makes it incredibly difficult for me to sit down and write the long form content I enjoy sharing. So… [Drumroll] Two months ago I decided to do something new. Ever since a colleague of mine introduced me to NotebookLM, I’ve been using it in the social entrepreneurship and conscious business courses I teach asynchronously. Beyond co-creating activities and helping me explore my own ideas, it’s been a FERPA life safer. I can now re-use recorded office hours from previous semesters. I give NotebookLM the transcript from my session with the student and then ask it to create a two person podcast and a visualizer. The student and their chosen project remains anonymous. The AI reduces a 30-45 minute conversation down to a 3-12 minute summary of my recommendations. And! And!! And!!! The students aren’t overwhelmed and I’m not reinventing the wheel or repeating myself. In fact, I’m usually so excited by the results that I completely forget about how much water AI actually uses. Here's how I applied it to my mailing list... Instead of writing down or typing out my thoughts, I record them and ask NotebookLM to make me an infographic. Aside from correcting an occasional typo or removing some duplicate text, the summary of my audio file is almost always fire. Now I send out Love Notes & LYFE Lessons that look exactly like this post - a short into + a conclusion + an infographic + a link to the full audio recording. 🥳 This video clip is an audio excerpt from my musings on how certainty proceeds clarity. Because when you are certain of where you are going and who you want to be, the clarity reveals itself. All you have to do is make plans or decisions that align with what you are already certain of.   That is all… ❤️ P.S. Next Wednesday, May 6th, I’ll be resending this very email to all my new subscribers. If you found this post helpful and want more content like it delivered straight to your email inbox, click this link to join my mailing list: https://lnkd.in/euVNSkD5 You’ve got until May 5th to get it done. 😉

Learning design has more than one lane. And honestly? I think that’s a good thing. Some Instructional Designers are excellent at organizing content, writing objectives, structuring learning paths, building clean Rise modules, creating assessments, working with SMEs, and publishing LMS-ready courses. That work matters. But over time, I’ve realized that my strongest lane is a little different. I’m at my best where instructional design overlaps with visual storytelling, UI-quality screen design, learner experience design, multimedia direction, brand-level polish, creative strategy, AI-enhanced production, and human-centered learning experiences. In other words, I don’t just want to “build a course.” I want to transform complex content into something clear, modern, engaging, visually polished, and genuinely useful. Something people actually want to interact with. That distinction matters because “instructional designer” can mean a lot of different things depending on the organization. Sometimes it means rapid content production. Sometimes it means compliance training development. Sometimes it means curriculum strategy. Sometimes it means learning experience design. Sometimes it means multimedia, UX, visual communication, and performance support all rolled into one. None of those are inherently better than the others. But they are not all the same role. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in my career is that fit matters tremendously. I do my best work in environments that value quality, clarity, design thinking, visual communication, creative problem-solving, and learner experience. Not just speed, volume, or checking a training box. That’s the kind of work I’m looking for. And I suspect many other IDs, learning designers, LXDs, developers, enablement professionals, and creatives have had to learn a similar lesson: Sometimes the goal isn’t to prove you can do every version of the job. Sometimes the goal is to clarify the version of the work where you bring the most value. So I’d genuinely love to hear from others: What’s your lane? Are you more strategy, curriculum, enablement, visual design, systems training, facilitation, multimedia, UX, compliance, performance consulting, or something else entirely? And have you ever had to clarify what kind of “instructional design” work you’re actually best suited for? #InstructionalDesign #LearningAndDevelopment #LearningExperienceDesign #ElearningDesign #VisualStorytelling #UXDesign #ArticulateStoryline #AIinLearning

L&D Managers and Instructional Designers, the function is splitting into two camps. The ones who let AI do the first draft of every course. And the ones about to find out their build velocity has been cut in half compared to the team next door. I ran a 60 day pilot with a 1,800 person retail client. Two designers, same brief, same deadline. One used a traditional authoring tool. One used an AI authoring tool. Designer A shipped 4 modules. Designer B shipped 11. Here's what the AI authoring tool actually did: ✅ Generated full course outlines from a single topic or objective. The first draft existed in 4 minutes. ✅ PPT to SCORM conversion built in. Legacy decks became interactive modules without rebuilding from scratch. ✅ Drafted scenario based assessment questions from the source content. SME review time dropped from 6 hours per module to 90 minutes. ✅ Generated voiceovers, visuals, and short clips inside the tool. No vendor handoffs, no version chaos. ✅ Pulled brand fonts, colors, and templates automatically. Designer time on formatting fell to almost zero. ✅ Exported clean SCORM packages that ran on every LMS the client tested. The job isn't to write the first draft anymore. It's to edit a strong one. Designers who fight that shift will spend 2026 explaining why their team ships less than the one across the floor. Want to try it yourself? Here's the link: https://lnkd.in/g_DG2bJ6 Want to talk through whether this fits your authoring workflow? Drop "TOOL" in the comments and I'll connect with you directly. #InstructionalDesign #LearningAndDevelopment #AuthoringTools #eLearning

Creating impactful learning experiences starts long before the first slide or storyboard. As instructional designers, we balance creativity with structure — organizing ideas, learner needs, content, and strategy into experiences that truly make a difference. This illustration perfectly captures what I love most about this field: ✨ thoughtful design ✨ learner-centered thinking ✨ continuous improvement ✨ turning ideas into meaningful learning experiences Because when learning is designed with purpose and organized with intention, it empowers people to grow. #InstructionalDesign #LearningExperienceDesign #Elearning #LearningAndDevelopment #OrganizedCreativity #WomenInLearning #AdultLearning #ProfessionalGrowth

L&D Managers and Instructional Designers, the function is splitting into two camps. The ones who let AI do the first draft of every course. And the ones about to find out their build velocity has been cut in half compared to the team next door. I ran a 60 day pilot with a 1,800 person retail client. Two designers, same brief, same deadline. One used a traditional authoring tool. One used an AI authoring tool. Designer A shipped 4 modules. Designer B shipped 11. Here's what the AI authoring tool actually did: ✅ Generated full course outlines from a single topic or objective. The first draft existed in 4 minutes. ✅ PPT to SCORM conversion built in. Legacy decks became interactive modules without rebuilding from scratch. ✅ Drafted scenario based assessment questions from the source content. SME review time dropped from 6 hours per module to 90 minutes. ✅ Generated voiceovers, visuals, and short clips inside the tool. No vendor handoffs, no version chaos. ✅ Pulled brand fonts, colors, and templates automatically. Designer time on formatting fell to almost zero. ✅ Exported clean SCORM packages that ran on every LMS the client tested. The job isn't to write the first draft anymore. It's to edit a strong one. Designers who fight that shift will spend 2026 explaining why their team ships less than the one across the floor. Want to try it yourself? Here's the link: https://lnkd.in/gqEfnZ-Q Want to talk through whether this fits your authoring workflow? Drop "TOOL" in the comments and I'll connect with you directly. #InstructionalDesign #LearningAndDevelopment #AuthoringTools #eLearning

“We’re #hiring for a new Instructional Designer.” This is probably what your L&D manager will post on LinkedIn in 2026… if you’re still building courses manually while other teams are scaling with AI. The reality? AI-powered authoring tools are changing how modern L&D teams work. Here’s what smart teams are already using: ✅ AI-assisted course structuring – Turn raw ideas into organized modules in minutes ✅ Auto quiz generation – Instantly create knowledge checks aligned to learning objectives ✅ Content rewriting & simplification – Adapt tone for different learner levels ✅ SCORM export in one click – LMS-ready without tech headaches ✅ Faster iteration cycles – Update content without rebuilding entire modules While some teams are still spending weeks building one course… others are launching, testing, improving — and scaling training across departments. The difference isn’t talent. It’s tools. With the right AI-enabled authoring platform, teams are: 🚀 Cutting development time dramatically 🚀 Empowering SMEs to co-create content 🚀 Launching more microlearning experiences 🚀 Freeing up time for strategy instead of formatting If you want to try one of the best free tools available right now: 👉https://lnkd.in/gCf4-qw6 Test it. Build something small. Experience the speed difference yourself. And if you’d like a short, practical guide on how to integrate this authoring tool into your current manual course creation workflow… Comment “COURSE” below and I’ll send you a step-by-step implementation guide. #LearningAndDevelopment #InstructionalDesign #AIinLND #CorporateTraining

“We’re #hiring for a new Instructional Designer.” This is probably what your L&D manager will post on LinkedIn in 2026… if you’re still building courses manually while other teams are scaling with AI. The reality? AI-powered authoring tools are changing how modern L&D teams work. Here’s what smart teams are already using: ✅ AI-assisted course structuring – Turn raw ideas into organized modules in minutes ✅ Auto quiz generation – Instantly create knowledge checks aligned to learning objectives ✅ Content rewriting & simplification – Adapt tone for different learner levels ✅ SCORM export in one click – LMS-ready without tech headaches ✅ Faster iteration cycles – Update content without rebuilding entire modules While some teams are still spending weeks building one course… others are launching, testing, improving — and scaling training across departments. The difference isn’t talent. It’s tools. With the right AI-enabled authoring platform, teams are: 🚀 Cutting development time dramatically 🚀 Empowering SMEs to co-create content 🚀 Launching more microlearning experiences 🚀 Freeing up time for strategy instead of formatting If you want to try one of the best free tools available right now: 👉https://lnkd.in/gCf4-qw6 Test it. Build something small. Experience the speed difference yourself. And if you’d like a short, practical guide on how to integrate this authoring tool into your current manual course creation workflow… Comment “COURSE” below and I’ll send you a step-by-step implementation guide. #LearningAndDevelopment #InstructionalDesign #AIinLND #CorporateTraining