Training programs are essential. They improve employee performance, ensure compliance, and help businesses scale knowledge. But even the most ambitious training strategy can stall when it hits a familiar wall: course development.
Ask any learning and development (L&D) team what’s slowing them down, and course creation often tops the list. Not because they lack ideas or know-how, but because turning content into a well-structured, engaging course is time-consuming and resource-heavy.
So, is course development the real bottleneck in your training program? Let’s break that down.
What Does “Course Development” Really Mean?
First, let’s clarify the term. Course development includes the full process of transforming training needs into deliverable, structured learning experiences. That covers:
Needs assessment
Learning objectives
Content writing
Multimedia creation
Learning platform integration
Testing and review
Iteration and updates
This isn’t just about making slides. It’s about building a learning experience that delivers the right outcomes. And that takes time—even more so if quality matters.
Why Course Development Slows Things Down
Here are the core reasons course development becomes a bottleneck:
1. Too Few People Doing Too Much
In many companies, a small L&D team is responsible for training hundreds or thousands of employees. They’re expected to build courses, manage LMS platforms, track metrics, support learners, and keep leadership informed. That leaves little room for deep course creation work.
Even worse, some organizations have no dedicated instructional designers. Instead, they rely on subject matter experts (SMEs) to put together content, despite SMEs not being trained educators.
2. SME Bottlenecks
Subject matter experts are critical. They know the material better than anyone. But they’re also busy with their actual jobs. Getting time with them, pulling information, and turning that into teachable content is often the longest part of the process.
This isn’t just a scheduling issue—it’s also a communication gap. SMEs may provide too much detail or not enough. Translating their expertise into clear, structured learning requires back-and-forth that eats up time.
3. Overcomplicated Processes
Some training teams adopt long, waterfall-style processes: create a design doc, get it approved, draft content, get that approved, build a prototype, get that approved… and so on. Each step adds delays, especially when multiple stakeholders are involved.
In the name of quality, many teams end up paralyzed by process.
4. Tool Overload
Ironically, having too many tools can slow you down. Between authoring tools, collaboration platforms, media editors, and LMS integrations, course development can feel like a tech maze. And if tools aren’t interoperable or intuitive, they become friction points.
5. Quality vs. Speed Tradeoffs
Leaders want fast delivery. Learners want engaging experiences. But producing interactive, high-quality courses takes time—especially if you’re building custom content from scratch.
This forces L&D teams into tough choices: rush and risk a bland course, or delay delivery for quality. Either way, there’s a bottleneck.
The Cost of the Bottleneck
When course development slows down, the ripple effects hurt the business:
Delayed onboarding: New hires wait for the right training.
Compliance risk: Mandatory training may miss deadlines.
Lost productivity: Employees don’t get the knowledge they need to do their jobs well.
Frustrated teams: L&D becomes the scapegoat when things stall.
This isn’t just a training issue—it’s a business issue. The longer it takes to deliver effective training, the more it costs in time, money, and lost momentum.
Are There Alternatives to the Traditional Course Model?
Sometimes the best way to break a bottleneck is to avoid it entirely. That means rethinking what a “course” needs to be.
Not every training need requires a 45-minute eLearning module. In fact, there are faster, more scalable ways to deliver learning, such as:
1. Microlearning
Short, focused learning bursts can cover one objective at a time. Think 3–5 minute videos, job aids, or quick quizzes. These are faster to produce and easier to consume.
2. Resource-Based Learning
Instead of building a course, give learners curated resources: articles, guides, checklists, videos. Sometimes “learning in the flow of work” beats a formal course.
3. Peer-Led or SME Videos
Let SMEs record informal walkthroughs or Q&As. Authenticity can beat polish, and video is often quicker to produce than structured eLearning.
4. AI-Generated Drafts
Tools powered by generative AI can help create first drafts of course content, assessments, or scenarios. They won’t replace the L&D team, but they can significantly reduce development time.
5. Off-the-Shelf Content
For common topics—compliance, soft skills, leadership—consider using ready-made courses from trusted vendors. Save custom development for content unique to your business.
How to Break the Bottleneck
If course development is your bottleneck, the goal isn’t to work harder—it’s to work smarter. Here are practical steps to do that:
1. Prioritize Ruthlessly
Not all training needs equal investment. Focus development efforts on courses that are:
Legally required
High-risk or high-impact
Directly tied to business goals
Use lower-effort formats for everything else.
2. Streamline Your Process
Ditch unnecessary steps. Use agile methods instead of waterfall processes. Build rapid prototypes and iterate. Use templates and standard components to speed up design.
3. Empower SMEs
Give SMEs better tools and support. Templates, interview guides, and even AI writing tools can help them structure their input. Consider train-the-trainer programs or SME enablement kits.
4. Build a Learning Library
Don’t start from scratch every time. Create a centralized repository of reusable content, graphics, templates, and past courses. Over time, this shortens development cycles.
5. Use the Right Tools
Evaluate whether your tools are helping or hindering. Look for:
Authoring tools with built-in templates and responsive design
LMS platforms that support microlearning and integrations
Collaboration tools that make SME-L&D handoff smoother
If your tools slow you down more than they help, it might be time to switch.
6. Adopt a Blended Strategy
Mix self-paced eLearning with live sessions, on-the-job learning, coaching, or peer mentoring. Not everything needs to be a standalone course.
7. Track and Learn
Measure where your bottlenecks actually occur. Is it SME access? Review cycles? Tool delays? Once you know, you can fix the right thing.
What Success Looks Like
When you remove course development as a bottleneck, your training program becomes:
Faster: You respond to needs in days or weeks, not months.
Smarter: You focus effort where it counts.
Scalable: You can serve more learners without burning out your team.
Strategic: Training becomes a business accelerator, not a hurdle.
Training doesn’t just “exist” in the organization—it drives real impact.
Final Thought
Course development is essential—but it shouldn’t be the reason your training program stalls. If building content is slowing you down, it’s time to rethink how you’re doing it.
Modern training doesn’t always require a course. Sometimes it just needs clarity, access, and the right timing. The smartest L&D teams know when to build, when to buy, and when to let learners find their own path—with a little help.
The future of training is faster, leaner, and more agile. The question is: is your course development process ready to keep up?
About LMS Portals
At LMS Portals, we provide our clients and partners with a mobile-responsive, SaaS-based, multi-tenant learning management system that allows you to launch a dedicated training environment (a portal) for each of your unique audiences.
The system includes built-in, SCORM-compliant rapid course development software that provides a drag and drop engine to enable most anyone to build engaging courses quickly and easily.
We also offer a complete library of ready-made courses, covering most every aspect of corporate training and employee development.
If you choose to, you can create Learning Paths to deliver courses in a logical progression and add structure to your training program. The system also supports Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT) and provides tools for social learning.
Together, these features make LMS Portals the ideal SaaS-based eLearning platform for our clients and our Reseller partners.
Contact us today to get started or visit our Partner Program pages
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