I created a 10-step course development process document that outlines how our instructional design team works with faculty and staff from initial project intake all the way through course launch. The process was developed partly as a course assignment and partly out of a real need on my team, we did not have a clearly documented, consistent workflow that everyone followed.
The document walks through each step: submitting a project intake form, consulting with the client, writing and getting approval on a project proposal, designing a course outline, building the course, testing it, reviewing it with stakeholders, making updates, and finally launching it in the LMS. Each step includes a description of the key activities, who is involved, estimated time, and expected deliverables.
This is still a working draft that I am actively refining, but it already serves as a reference point for how our team approaches new course development projects. It also includes a section on common challenges and practical solutions, like handling clients who come in without a clear project goal, or addressing faculty concerns about online course quality.
The support our team offers faculty and staff is tracked through a ticketing system. For a course development project, the client needs to fill out a form with introductory information about the course they need help developing. The form is essential to understanding the project scope and the client's needs. Once the form is submitted, an instructional designer on our team will review it and set up a consultation to further discuss the course development process.
Before meeting with the client, the instructional designer conducts preliminary research on the project. This includes gathering information about the client’s role, reviewing any previous course content, and understanding the scope of the project. During the consultation, the team will discuss the project's goals, expected outcomes, the role of the Subject Matter Expert (SME), any specific branding or design preferences, and potential constraints like deadlines or platform requirements. At the end of the session, the instructional designer will provide the client with a timeline for when the project proposal will be delivered.
After the consultation meeting, the instructional designers will draft a project proposal based on the notes and information gathered. The proposal will outline the key aspects of the course development project, including the goals, learning objectives, timeline, and deliverables. The proposal will also include a list of activities, design elements, and a course structure. Additionally, the proposal will provide an example project to help guide the development process and ensure alignment with the client’s vision. This proposal serves as the blueprint for the course design and development, ensuring everyone involved has a clear understanding of the project scope and expectations.
A draft project proposal, including:
The proposal is reviewed by the client and any relevant Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). The review process may happen in a scheduled meeting with the instructional designers, or it may be handled asynchronously (ex. email or shared document). The purpose of this step is for the client to approve the proposal or request any changes or revisions. If feedback is given, the instructional designers will make the necessary adjustments and resend the updated proposal for approval. This process helps make sure the proposal lines up with the client’s goals and expectations before moving forward.
Using the approved project proposal as a foundation, the instructional designers begin designing the course outline. The outline is structured based on the project’s timeline and milestones, so that content and activities are planned with the course goals and objectives. Instructional designers may share portions of the outline with the client and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) for feedback as the design progresses. Milestones are used to track progress and keep the team on task, especially if there’s no project manager overseeing the process.
A detailed course outline that includes:
During this step, the instructional designers begin building the course based on the approved design plans. They use the course tools and technologies that were specified in the project proposal to create the course content and structure. This includes uploading materials, setting up course modules, integrating assessments, and organizing the course. Since this is the most time-consuming phase of the course development process, it may take several weeks to complete, depending on the complexity of the course and the amount of interactive content required. Instructional designers work independently on this phase, ensuring that all components are properly integrated into the course management system.
A fully built course within the learning management system (LMS), including:
During this phase, the instructional designers test the course to check that all elements are functioning as expected. This includes checking the course’s functionality (ex. navigation, links, multimedia) and testing all activities, such as quizzes, discussions, and assignments. Other instructional designers on the team who are not involved in the actual course building may assist in the testing process to catch any issues that might have been missed. A detailed document is created during testing to track all issues found. Once testing is complete and issues are fixed, the course will be ready for the next review phase.
During this phase, the client and any involved Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) go through the course to make sure it meets their expectations and aligns with the defined course goals and objectives. They will have time to review all aspects of the course, including content, design, assessments, and overall flow. Once the review is completed, the instructional designers will schedule a meeting with the client and SMEs to discuss their feedback. This meeting allows the team to address any concerns or requested changes before finalizing the course for launch.
In this phase, instructional designers address the issues and feedback identified during the testing (Step 7) and review (Step 8) steps. This involves making updates to course content, fixing any technical issues, and refining the course to ensure it meets the required standards. Depending on the challenges of the changes, updates might include revising content for clarity, adjusting assessments, correcting links or multimedia issues, or making design changes to improve the user experience. After making the updates, the instructional designers test that the course is functioning as expected before moving to the final launch phase.
In this final step, the course is made live in the LMS, and the client is provided with any final information or instructions regarding the course. This could include guidance on how to enroll students, troubleshoot common issues, or access course materials. A final verification is done to ensure everything is functioning as expected (ex. course links, assessments, multimedia). The course is then officially launched and ready for students to access.
Challenge: Meeting with clients initially can be challenging if they lack a clear project goal or idea. This uncertainty can hinder the gathering information process to develop a complete project proposal.
Solution: Create a job aid with key questions to help our team gather all the necessary information. This job aid will make client consultations more effective and support the planning and development of the course.
Challenge: Faculty may have concerns about the quality of online and blended education, especially regarding issues like student engagement, assessment, or whether the course design will achieve their goals.
Solution: We can address these concerns early by discussing the course design approach and showing examples of successful strategies for online teaching.
Challenge: When building the course, it's easy to focus on using only text-based resources or traditional teaching methods due to time constraints or limited familiarity with learning activities. This can result in a less engaging or poor course design.
Solution: Provide clients with a variety of learning activities and resources to implement in their course design. Offer templates and examples of engaging multimedia activities, collaborative assignments, and learning tools.
This document lays out the full lifecycle of a course development project, from the moment a client submits an intake form to the day a course goes live. It reflects how I actually approach course development work and demonstrates familiarity with the key phases, stakeholders, and decisions involved at each stage. Documenting this process also helped me think more critically about where handoffs happen, where delays tend to occur, and what information needs to be captured at each step to keep a project moving forward.
Part of why I built this document was because my team lacked a shared, documented process. Not everyone on the team approaches course development the same way, and without a common reference point, it was hard to onboard new team members or ensure consistency across projects. This process document is a step toward filling that gap. It gives less experienced team members a clear roadmap and gives clients a better sense of what to expect ateach phase of a project.
The document is built around project management principles, each step includes estimated timelines, defined deliverables, and clear rolesfor who is responsible. A sample project timeline is also included toillustrate how a full course development cycle might map to real calendarmonths. Creating this also required me to think about coordination acrossmultiple stakeholders (clients, SMEs, and other IDs), which is central tomanaging instructional design projects in practice.
2025 was my first time ever doing course development work, so this assignment came at the perfect time. I was actually working on a real course project at the same time, so I was able to base this document on the process we were already going through. It made the assignment feel relevant instead of just something I was making up.
Writing it out step by step helped me understand what we were doing and why. I was learning as I went, and having to document it forced me to actually think through each phase. We have also been able to reference it for course projects since then, which is a good sign that it has some real use beyond just the assignment.
It is still a draft and there is more I want to refine over time, but it is an honest snapshot of where we were and how we worked through our first course development project together.