How to Choose an Enterprise Instructional Design Company 

How to Choose an Enterprise Instructional Design Company

Choosing an enterprise instructional design company requires more than comparing course development capabilities.

Large organizations often need support across training strategy, instructional design, eLearning development, instructor-led training, system training, job aids, performance support and training delivery. The right partner should be able to understand the business problem, work with subject matter experts, support multiple learner groups and scale as project requirements change.

For organizations implementing new technology, updating major training programs or supporting large workforce initiatives, enterprise instructional design can also play an important role in helping people apply new knowledge and processes on the job.

This guide explains what enterprise instructional design services include, what to look for in a provider and what questions to ask before selecting a training partner.

How to Choose an Enterprise Instructional Design Company

Choosing an enterprise instructional design company requires more than comparing course development capabilities.

Large organizations often need support across training strategy, instructional design, eLearning development, instructor-led training, system training, job aids, performance support and training delivery. The right partner should be able to understand the business problem, work with subject matter experts, support multiple learner groups and scale as project requirements change.

For organizations implementing new technology, updating major training programs or supporting large workforce initiatives, enterprise instructional design can also play an important role in helping people apply new knowledge and processes on the job.

This guide explains what enterprise instructional design services include, what to look for in a provider and what questions to ask before selecting a training partner.

What Are Enterprise Instructional Design Services?

Enterprise instructional design services help larger organizations analyze learning needs, design training strategies and create learning experiences that support business and performance goals.

These services can include training needs assessment, curriculum design, eLearning development, instructor-led training, virtual training, software simulations, job aids, videos, assessments and performance support resources.

Enterprise instructional design is different from simply developing a single course.

Large training initiatives often involve several business units, learner groups, subject matter experts, delivery methods and project stakeholders. The instructional design team needs to manage that complexity while keeping the training focused on what learners actually need to do.

What Should You Look for in an Enterprise Instructional Design Company?

Organizations should look for an instructional design company with experience in needs analysis, custom learning development, stakeholder collaboration, enterprise-scale projects and multiple learning formats.

The company should also be able to explain how it identifies training requirements, works with subject matter experts, manages reviews and measures whether the training is supporting the desired business outcomes.

For technology implementations or major process changes, experience with role-based system training can be especially important.

Here are some of the most important areas to evaluate.

1. Does the Instructional Design Company Start With the Business Need?

Effective instructional design should begin with the business problem, not the course.

An organization may initially believe it needs a new eLearning module, instructor-led course or set of job aids. However, a deeper analysis may identify a different issue.

Employees may not understand a new process. Existing training materials may be outdated. Managers may need additional support. Different learner groups may have different knowledge gaps.

This is why a training needs assessment can be an important first step.

TrainingFolks uses training needs analysis to help identify the audience, required knowledge and skills, performance gaps and business objectives before determining the appropriate training approach. 

A strong instructional design partner should be willing to recommend what the organization actually needs rather than automatically creating the learning format originally requested.

2. Does the Company Have Experience With Enterprise Training Projects?

Enterprise training projects often involve greater complexity than smaller learning initiatives.

There may be thousands of learners, several departments, multiple locations and many stakeholders involved in reviewing or approving content.

An instructional design company supporting these projects should understand how to operate within established project teams, corporate processes and timelines.

Ask about previous projects that involved large learner populations, multiple workstreams or company-wide initiatives.

TrainingFolks has supported corporate training programs across industries including manufacturing, financial services, healthcare and retail, as well as large-scale change initiatives. 

Experience with enterprise environments can be particularly valuable when training needs to coordinate with business leaders, learning teams, technology teams and subject matter experts.

3. Who Will Actually Work on the Project?

When evaluating instructional design services, look beyond the company itself and ask about the people who will be assigned to the project.

The experience required for a small course update can be very different from what is needed for a large enterprise initiative.

Senior instructional designers may need to work directly with executives, project managers, learning leaders and subject matter experts. They may also need to conduct a needs analysis, develop the learning strategy, organize complex content and manage stakeholder reviews.

TrainingFolks defines different levels of instructional design expertise based on factors such as project complexity, learning analysis, content development responsibilities and stakeholder involvement. 

Before beginning a project, organizations should understand the level of experience being assigned and whether that experience matches the requirements of the initiative.

4. How Does the Instructional Designer Work With Subject Matter Experts?

Subject matter experts are essential to many training projects, but they are often some of the busiest people involved.

A strong instructional designer should know how to gather information efficiently without placing an unnecessary burden on SMEs.

This may include structured interviews, content review sessions, workflow walkthroughs, targeted questions and planned approval cycles.

The process becomes even more important during system implementations because the technology and related business processes may still be changing while training is being developed.

TrainingFolks' system implementation teams work with subject matter experts, implementation partners and internal stakeholders while managing content reviews and version control as systems continue to change. 

The objective is to capture the right knowledge while keeping the training development process moving.

5. Can the Company Create Role-Based Training?

One of the most important elements of enterprise instructional design is understanding that different learners often need different training.

A manager may complete different tasks than a frontline user.

Finance may use a business system differently from operations.

An experienced employee may need a brief update, while someone learning a new role may require more complete instruction.

Role-based training focuses learning on the processes, decisions and tasks that are relevant to each audience.

This approach is particularly important for ERP, HCM, CRM, HRIS, WFM and other enterprise system implementations.

TrainingFolks develops role-based learning using actual business workflows and supports enterprise platforms including ERP, CRM, HCM, HRIS and other business-critical technologies. 

The more closely training reflects what learners actually do, the more practical it becomes.

6. What Types of Training Materials Can the Company Develop?

Enterprise learning programs rarely rely on a single training format.

Depending on the audience and business need, an instructional design project may require a combination of:

• Instructor-led and virtual instructor-led training

• eLearning modules

• Software simulations

• Facilitator guides and participant workbooks

• Job aids and quick-reference guides

• Videos and microlearning

• Scenario-based exercises

• Assessments

• Workflow documentation

• Step-by-step instructions

• Performance support resources
  
  

TrainingFolks develops learning materials across instructor-led, virtual, eLearning and system implementation environments.

However, the number of formats available should not be the main deciding factor.

A good instructional design company should determine which learning methods are appropriate for the audience, the subject matter and the business objective.

7. How Does the Company Manage Content Changes?

Content often changes during a large training initiative.

This is especially common during system implementations and business transformation projects.

Software screens may change. Processes may be updated. Business rules may be revised. New decisions from the implementation team may affect previously approved training materials.

Ask how the instructional design provider manages:

content updates, document versions, SME reviews, stakeholder approvals and final validation.

TrainingFolks' ERP training development process includes structured reviews, version control, workflow validation and training content development while system configuration may still be changing. 

A defined process helps reduce the risk of learners receiving materials that no longer match the actual system or process.

8. Can the Instructional Design Team Scale as the Project Changes?

The amount of learning support required at the beginning of a project may be very different from what is needed closer to launch.

An organization may initially need one instructional designer.

Later, the project might require several instructional designers, eLearning developers, technical writers, training project managers, facilitators or trainers.

For enterprise projects, the ability to expand the learning team can therefore be important.

TrainingFolks supports organizations with instructional designers and other learning professionals across custom learning development and training delivery initiatives. The company also describes its model as supporting enterprise-wide learning initiatives while complementing internal teams. 

Organizations should ask prospective providers what happens when scope, deadlines or learner populations change.

9. Does the Company Have Experience With System Implementation Training?

Organizations implementing a new ERP, HCM, CRM or other enterprise platform should consider instructional designers with experience in system implementation training.

Software training is not simply a matter of explaining where to click.

Users need to understand the new system within the context of their jobs.

That means training may need to address workflows, responsibilities, decisions, business processes and changes in how work will be completed after go-live.

TrainingFolks provides system implementation training for platforms including Microsoft Dynamics 365, SAP, Oracle, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Workday and custom systems. Its approach includes training strategy, content development, training delivery and post-launch support. 

For organizations undergoing digital transformation, this type of experience can make instructional design much more relevant to the actual implementation.

10. Can the Provider Support Training Delivery Too?

Developing training is only one part of a large learning initiative.

Someone still needs to deliver it.

Organizations should determine whether the instructional design company can also support instructor-led training, virtual instructor-led training and large-scale rollout requirements.

Working with a provider that can support both development and delivery may also reduce the amount of coordination required between several external organizations.

TrainingFolks supports training strategy, instructional design, content development and both instructor-led and virtual training delivery. 

This can be particularly useful when the training program needs to reach many users within a short rollout period.

11. What Happens After Training?

Enterprise learning should not necessarily end when a class or eLearning module is completed.

Learners often need help when they begin applying what they learned on the job.

This may include quick-reference materials, job aids, manager coaching, microlearning, troubleshooting guidance and other forms of performance support.

For system implementations, organizations may also require structured post-go-live or hypercare support.

Training before launch helps users prepare.

Performance support after launch helps them continue applying what they learned once they begin working in the new environment.

A complete instructional design strategy should consider both.

Questions to Ask an Enterprise Instructional Design Company

Before selecting an instructional design provider, organizations should ask:

• What types of enterprise training projects have you supported?

• How do you determine whether training is actually the right solution?

• Who will be assigned to our project?

• How do you work with subject matter experts?

• Can you develop different types of learning materials?

• How do you handle changing requirements?

• Can you add additional learning resources if our requirements increase?

• Can you support training delivery?

• What support can you provide after launch?

What Is the Difference Between an Instructional Designer and an Enterprise Instructional Design Company?

An instructional designer is an individual learning professional who analyzes learning needs and designs training.

An enterprise instructional design company can provide the broader resources required to support larger initiatives.

That may include instructional designers, eLearning developers, technical writers, project managers, facilitators, trainers and other learning specialists.

For a well-defined project, engaging an individual instructional designer may provide all the support required.

For a larger initiative involving several learning workstreams, a broader instructional design team may provide greater capacity and scalability.

How Much Does Enterprise Instructional Design Cost?

There is no single price for enterprise instructional design services because the scope can vary significantly.

Cost is generally influenced by factors such as the number of courses or learning assets, complexity of the subject matter, amount of existing content, number of learner groups, amount of SME involvement, delivery formats, project timeline and the level of instructional design expertise required.

A small content update will therefore have very different requirements from a multi-month enterprise system training initiative.

Organizations should be cautious about comparing providers only on a simple per-course price.

A more useful comparison is whether the proposed approach covers the actual work required to achieve the project's training objectives.

How Long Does Enterprise Training Development Take?

Enterprise instructional design timelines depend on project scope, content complexity, SME availability, review cycles and the number of learning assets being created.

One of the most important factors is often access to subject matter experts.

For system implementations, the training team may also need to work while processes and software configuration are still being finalized.

Starting training development early can provide more time for analysis, content creation, validation and revisions before learners need to be trained.

TrainingFolks specifically recommends beginning ERP training development early because SME availability, validation and review cycles can significantly affect project timelines. 

When Should an Organization Use an External Instructional Design Company?

Organizations often engage an external instructional design company when internal teams need additional capacity, specialized expertise or support for a major initiative.

Common situations include a system implementation, large onboarding initiative, leadership development program, compliance update, new business process or a backlog of training materials that internal teams do not have the capacity to complete.

External instructional designers can work alongside an existing learning and development team rather than replacing it.

This allows the organization to add specialized skills or project capacity for the period in which it is needed.

Why Organizations Use TrainingFolks for Enterprise Instructional Design

TrainingFolks is a corporate training and learning services company founded in 1997. The company supports organizations with instructional design, training needs assessment, custom learning development, training delivery and system implementation training. 

TrainingFolks can support organizations that need an individual instructional designer as well as companies requiring a broader team of learning professionals for enterprise initiatives.

Its instructional design services include needs analysis, learning strategy, instructor-led training, virtual training, eLearning and other custom learning solutions. 

For system implementations, TrainingFolks also provides training strategy, training materials, delivery and post-go-live support for ERP, HCM, CRM and other enterprise systems. 

The objective is not simply to produce training content.

It is to help organizations create practical learning experiences that support employees as they learn new skills, processes and systems.

Need Help With an Enterprise Instructional Design Project?

If your organization is developing a large training program, implementing a new system or needs additional instructional design capacity, TrainingFolks can help.

Speak with a TrainingFolks learning specialist about your instructional design project.