As Instructional Designers, we’re well versed with the ADDIE process of analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation.  We’re also very aware of the need for a thorough task analysis to ensure that we cover the correct materials.  But what do we do if the instructional material covers multiple roles and agreement on the staff affected and their responsibilities cannot be reached or is unclear to the stakeholders?

This kind of problem can occur when a company is purchased.  The new processes and procedures seem vague and there may be confusion about staff interactions with their new colleagues. Also, consider a company that purchases a new software product to manage processes across departments.  The roles and responsibilities will invariably change for the company who purchases the software. 

When creating instructional materials in these situations, instructional designers may find that reaching agreement between stakeholders can be a stumbling block.  In an acquisition, companies often use their own jargon to reference a common task that is not understood by all stakeholders (i.e. Form X302B which is really the Service Requisition Form).  When software products are purchased that cross multiple departments, the roles and their associated responsibilities may change, making it difficult to identify handoff between roles.  In both of these scenarios, a further complication is the ability to represent the findings in an easy-to-read format that all participants can understand.

Swimlane Diagrams as a Solution

A swimlane is a type of activity diagram found in the Unified Modeling Language (UML) that can be used to facilitate discussions between stakeholders.  It provides an easy method for identifying the staff roles, their responsibilities, and the hand-off between roles.  One row in the swimlane is devoted to each role and describes the overall responsibilities in non-technical terms that everyone from developer to customer can understand.  It also clearly identifies the handoff between roles and the overall workflow in an easy-to-follow diagram.   A simple swimlane diagram depicting the roles, responsibilities, and handoff in a repair service environment when a customer delivers a broken item appears in Figure 1. 

KEEP THE HUMAN TOUCH

Roles

Notice that the role of each person involved in the repair process is listed at the left of each lane.  In our example only one roles is involved in “Repair Broken Item”.  However, in a repair process that includes an electrician, mechanic, and other technicians, be sure to include each of these as they ‘touch’ the process at distinct times and for distinctly different reasons. 

Responsibilities

The responsibilities are listed with a verb written in the present tense followed by a noun.  Notice that these are written in everyday language so that a wide audience can interpret them.  This is especially useful in an environment where two or more companies are merging – each with their own jargon referring to the same process.  It provides a neutral language for all to review and ensures the stakeholders can come to agreement on general information before delving into specifics.

Also notice that the responsibilities reflect the ‘end state’ when written in the past tense.  In Figure 1, the completed responsibilities are Broken Item Delivered, Service Requisition Completed, Parts Ordered, Broken Item Repaired, Customer Called, Fixed Item Picked Up, and Customer Invoiced. 

Hand-Off Between Roles

In Figure 1, notice that the amount of work associated with each responsibility is not equal.  For example, “Call Customer” may only involve one or two steps whereas “Repair Broken Item” will be quite extensive.  The swimlane diagram depicts the flow of work between roles – not the amount of work completed by each role.

Additional Resources

Elizabeth Wilson-Tagoe is an Instructional Designer with Kodak Graphic Communications Canada (formerly Creo). While writing this article she took up swimming lessons and can float on her back quite proficiently! Her goal is to swim in the ocean and do a little snorkeling! That will involve learning to float on her front!