CASE STUDY
When we built internal capability to scale digital learning
Professional services
THE CHALLENGE
How do we enable subject matter experts to create high-quality learning at scale?
A global organisation with more than 40,000 employees set out to democratise learning creation by enabling subject matter experts (SMEs) across the business to build digital learning themselves.
The vision was to unlock internal expertise and create learning closer to the work.
But without the right systems, guidance and support, the experience quickly became frustrating for many SMEs. Courses varied in quality and structure, content often required rework, and SMEs spent far longer than expected building learning. Many were unsure whether they were doing the right thing and worried about making mistakes.
As a result, SMEs felt time-poor and hesitant to create content, while L&D still needed to spend significant time reviewing and fixing courses.
The ambition was right, but the system needed to make good learning easier to create wasn’t yet in place.
THE APPROACH
A system that makes knowledge sharing easier, faster, and safer for SMEs.
The focus of the work was to make it easier, faster and safer for SMEs to create effective learning, without relying on central L&D at every step.
Rather than simply providing tools, the solution focused on creating the infrastructure that supports quality learning at scale.
This included:
A clear design structure to guide SMEs from problem definition through to course creation
Pre-built templates that embedded good learning design and reduced the risk of errors
Practical guidance and enablement to build SME confidence in creating learning
Light governance and reinforcement to maintain consistency and support good practice over time
The aim was not to turn SMEs into instructional designers. It was to create a system where good learning becomes easier to produce.
“You did a tremendous job, thank you. This will be incredibly valuable for our learning community and the wider organisation.”
Senior Director, Global Learning
THE IMPACT
Saving billable hours while scaling learning across the business.
The new approach significantly improved the experience of creating learning across the organisation.
SMEs were able to create courses more quickly and with greater confidence, while avoiding many of the common errors that previously led to rework.
Early projections suggested the approach could save approximately:
2,000 hours of SME time
around £100,000 in internal costs
These estimates were based on efficiencies within a single business unit, with potential for further impact as the approach scaled.
The most important outcome was not just efficiency.
It was a change in how the organisation approached learning creation.
Instead of relying on central L&D to produce most learning assets, the business gained the ability to create and share knowledge more independently.
The role of L&D began to shift from content producer to capability builder, designing the systems and conditions that enable effective learning across the organisation.
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