Although roles of instructional designers often vary from organization to organization, what is constant and cannot be ignored is that instructional designers must evolve and adapt to keep atop today's changing environment. Instructional design challenges are becoming more complicated because new trends continue to emerge and essential competencies of instructional designers today are more comprehensive.

Through a collaborative partnership between the Association for Talent Development (ATD), the International Association for Continuing Education and Training, and Rothwell & Associates, the Rothwell & Associates research team conducted a sequential mixed-method study to investigate the changing environment. Data were collected from 26 individuals distributed across five focus groups. Based on feedback from the focus group, an online survey was designed and administered, which resulted in 1,381 respondents from 37 countries and varied industries, including education, finance, healthcare, and manufacturing.

The survey revealed that 31 percent of participants believe that their job title does not accurately capture their job responsibilities. Those who responded "no" commented that they wanted a more comprehensive title such as "jack of all trades," which would reflect that an instructional designer also must serve as an organizational development consultant, executive coach, and communications specialist.

When asked to rank competencies, more participants chose "conduct a needs assessment," "design a curriculum, program, or learning solution," and "identify appropriate learning approach" as most important, while "integrate technology options," "analyze and select technologies," and "evaluate learning design" consistently were ranked as the lowest or least important.

The skills rated as most important for instructional designers were the soft skills, which often are hard to measure. This includes being a "lifelong learner," having "knowledge of instructional design principles, practices, and adult learning theory," and having the "skill to not only listen but also synthesize what's being said."

One challenge that instructional designers face is cultural adaptability. Globalization is hastened by technological advances ranging from ease of travel to swift communication through various telecommunication networks.

This is relevant to instructional design because it is no longer sufficient to design based on one's cultural prism or in favor of a dominant culture. Training programs are now consumed cross-culturally and must be designed to respect other cultures.

Download Skills, Challenges, and Trends in Instructional Design: Results of Research.