Soft Skills for Professionals
Scenario-based training focused on developing sales representatives.
Conflict Management for Professionals
This scenario-based eLearning experience is a concept project focused on helping sales professionals develop essential conflict resolution skills.
Audience
Responsibilities
Tools
Existing and newly hired sales employees of the company
Storyline 360, Canva, Mindmeister, Google Suite, Microsoft Designer
I developed every aspect of the project, from conceptualization through development. My main responsibilities included instructional design, action mapping, visual and graphic design, as well as storyboarding.
The Problem
This concept project targets a dynamic sales environment where a company faces challenges due to conflicts between clients and sales representatives. As the company rapidly grows and onboards new hires and promotes staff to management positions, these issues have escalated.
Many of these newly promoted sales representatives lack experience in conflict management, leading to strained relationships with clients, missed opportunities, and decreased morale among the sales team. Without effective conflict resolution skills, productivity suffers, and the overall sales culture becomes increasingly unhealthy.
The Solution
After identifying and thoroughly assessing the challenges, I concluded that a multifaceted approach is essential to cultivating effective conflict management skills, recognizing the nuanced nature of workplace communication. Alongside an interactive eLearning platform, proposed strategies encompass live workshops, an evaluation of communication tools and protocols, and executive-level coaching to foster a culture of constructive conflict resolution.
The eLearning module provides sales professionals with a simulated environment to learn and apply conflict management techniques, fostering proficiency and confidence that will translate into improved sales performance and team cohesion. Additionally, I devised a tailored version aimed at empowering team members themselves, ensuring a comprehensive feedback loop within the sales organization.
My Process
My strategic approach began with the creation of an action map, mapping out various solutions to be implemented concurrently. Subsequently, I directed my efforts towards crafting the eLearning project, drawing upon insights from frameworks like Gagne’s nine events and Meyer’s multimedia principles to ensure an effective learning experience.
I meticulously developed storyboard content, visual prototypes, and a functional model, each undergoing thorough refinement before the final product was produced.
Action Map
In this project, I assumed the role of Subject Matter Expert (SME), leveraging my background as a Customer Services professional and my extensive experience in conflict resolution and communication strategies. The action map outlines key components essential for mastering effective conflict resolution techniques, all geared towards the overarching goal of enhancing sales team performance.
Every element within the action map is designed to ensure relevance and effectiveness, drawing from my expertise to prioritize activities that directly contribute to measurable outcomes, such as increased productivity and improved sales outcomes.
Text-based Storyboard
Next, I utilized insights from the action map to integrate questions, actions, and consequences relevant to conflict management into a detailed text-based storyboard for the eLearning module. To facilitate effective learning, I crafted a series of engaging storytelling scenarios, ensuring consistency while introducing varied contexts that lead to meaningful outcomes.
Within the story, I conceptualized characters, including a mentor figure to support learners throughout the scenario. Following multiple rounds of review and approval, I developed all textual content for dialogues, outlined visual design concepts, and provided programming instructions for implementation within the eLearning platform.
Visual Mockups
I then brought the story to life with engaging, balanced visuals that hold the learner’s attention without causing a heavy cognitive load.
Interactive Prototype
After finalizing my mockups, I developed a preliminary interactive prototype using Storyline 360. This prototype encompassed key slides, visuals, and programmed interactions for a segment of the overall scenario. Incorporating valuable feedback, I refined functionality before proceeding to expand the project further.
Full Development
I then developed the final product. I designed the project for an immersive, intuitive user experience throughout.
The programming includes tasteful animations when transitioning between elements like text boxes, characters, and slides.
I used variables and conditions to guide learners to the proper consequence based on their selection, and created hover states to highlight potential answer choices and the mentor’s avatar.
I designed an added layers with unique animations and slightly varied style to differentiate the mentor advice screens from the rest of the scenario.
