What does a lead instructional designer do?
Lead instructional designer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real lead instructional designer resumes:
- Manage SharePoint migration for the education team by collaborating with ministries and establishing best practice guidelines for content posting.
- Design content for web-base training courses using the ADDIE design model.
- Develop new eLearning modules to replace and revise older ilt-base content on customer-service training.
- Propose high-level learning solutions considering multiple delivery methods such as eLearning, instructor-le, self-pace, and web-deploy.
- Overhaul class material including creating a standardize syllabus.
Lead instructional designer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Lead Instructional Designers are proficient in Instructional Design, Subject Matter Experts, and Project Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Decision-making skills.
We break down the percentage of Lead Instructional Designers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Instructional Design, 11%
Ensured consistency and compliance in department and company standards by carefully reviewing quality of content developed by the instructional design team.
- Subject Matter Experts, 9%
Interviewed subject matter experts, understand processes and convert technical content into training materials that effectively accomplishes learning objectives.
- Project Management, 6%
Project management of large design projects or project teams including oversight and management of vendors and contractors
- Curriculum Development, 6%
Managed curriculum team and all curriculum development and maintenance operations for the $12-million Department of Defense J3/7 International Training Program.
- Course Content, 5%
Created storyboards and developed course content in MS Word, implementing appropriate instructional strategies and project standards and templates.
- Training Materials, 4%
Developed Design Engineering and Work Management training materials capturing end-to-end business process in addition to the new system steps.
Common skills that a lead instructional designer uses to do their job include "instructional design," "subject matter experts," and "project management." You can find details on the most important lead instructional designer responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a lead instructional designer to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what lead instructional designers do because "instructional coordinators evaluate student test data and teaching strategies." Additionally, a lead instructional designer resume shows how lead instructional designers use analytical skills: "developed project plan, needs analysis, wbs, schedule, course content and all materials. "
Communication skills. Another essential skill to perform lead instructional designer duties is communication skills. Lead instructional designers responsibilities require that "instructional coordinators need to clearly explain changes in the curriculum and teaching standards to school staff." Lead instructional designers also use communication skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "designed and scripted first computer based training (cbt) for octel communications. "
Decision-making skills. lead instructional designers are also known for decision-making skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to lead instructional designer responsibilities, because "instructional coordinators must be decisive when recommending changes to curriculums, teaching methods, and textbooks." A lead instructional designer resume example shows how decision-making skills is used in the workplace: "determined stakeholder management plans for projects where the instructional design team plays a project leader or instructional design role. "
Interpersonal skills. A big part of what lead instructional designers do relies on "interpersonal skills." You can see how essential it is to lead instructional designer responsibilities because "instructional coordinators need to be able to establish and maintain positive working relationships with teachers, principals, and other administrators." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical lead instructional designer tasks: "designed and facilitated interpersonal skills classes focused on employee development of emotional intelligence. "
Leadership skills. Another crucial skill for a lead instructional designer to carry out their responsibilities is "leadership skills." A big part of what lead instructional designers relies on this skill, since "instructional coordinators serve as mentors to teachers." How this skill relates to lead instructional designer duties can be seen in an example from a lead instructional designer resume snippet: "help build and deliver (as needed) pre-sales related training programs as prioritized by pre-sales leadership. "
The three companies that hire the most lead instructional designers are:
- Harvard University4 lead instructional designers jobs
- Cigna3 lead instructional designers jobs
- JPMorgan Chase & Co.1 lead instructional designers jobs
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Compare different lead instructional designers
Lead instructional designer vs. Senior training specialist
Senior training specialists are responsible for providing support and assistance for educational activities at small businesses. They are responsible for managing and executing the educational course catalog and assisting staff and instructors in the development of courses and online modules. Other duties and responsibilities include identifying training needs, facilitating workshops, and providing recommendations for improvement of employees' performance. In addition, senior training specialists are expected to develop training programs that support customers, business partners, and sales teams. They are also expected to keep their knowledge up-to-date for the latest tools and trends in the market.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, lead instructional designer responsibilities require skills like "html," "articulate storyline," "smes," and "learning objectives." Meanwhile a typical senior training specialist has skills in areas such as "customer service," "powerpoint," "sr," and "training events." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Senior training specialists earn the highest salaries when working in the media industry, with an average yearly salary of $80,543. On the other hand, lead instructional designers are paid more in the finance industry with an average salary of $70,803.On average, senior training specialists reach lower levels of education than lead instructional designers. Senior training specialists are 10.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 1.4% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Lead instructional designer vs. Certified performance technologist
A curriculum developer is responsible for managing instructional materials, providing recommendations to the teachers, and making adjustments to the current student's curriculum to adhere to the highest educational standards and policies. Curriculum developers also facilitate and offer assistance for any implemented procedures. They also manage and address concerns regarding the learning standards and consider recommendations for curriculum improvement. A curriculum developer must have extensive knowledge of the education system to plan out the necessary teachers' training and coaching.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that lead instructional designer responsibilities requires skills like "instructional design," "project management," "curriculum development," and "course content." But a certified performance technologist might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "linux," "safety glasses," "hvac," and "clean environment."
Certified performance technologists earn lower levels of education than lead instructional designers in general. They're 20.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead instructional designer vs. Curriculum developer
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from lead instructional designer resumes include skills like "animation," "course design," "curriculum design," and "sharepoint," whereas a curriculum developer is more likely to list skills in "java," "cloud computing," "powerpoint," and "sql. "
Curriculum developers earn the best pay in the technology industry, where they command an average salary of $65,147. Lead instructional designers earn the highest pay from the finance industry, with an average salary of $70,803.curriculum developers typically earn similar educational levels compared to lead instructional designers. Specifically, they're 3.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead instructional designer vs. Director, educational research and product strategy
Even though a few skill sets overlap between lead instructional designers and directors, educational research and product strategy, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a lead instructional designer might have more use for skills like "instructional design," "subject matter experts," "project management," and "curriculum development." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of directors, educational research and product strategy require skills like "medical education," "educational programs," "market research," and "clinical trials. "
The average resume of directors, educational research and product strategy showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to lead instructional designers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 0.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 7.2%.Types of lead instructional designer
Updated January 8, 2025
