Instructional Design Strategist (Salt Lake City, UT)

Western Governors University • Salt Lake City, UT

3d • $80,300 - $120,400 • Hybrid

About The Position

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you’re committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career. Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families. The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Grade: Professional 309 Pay Range: $80,300.00 - $120,400.00 Job Description Serves as a subject matter expert (SME) and mentor to instructional designers (IDs), functioning as a senior instructional designer while leading the integration of innovative features and practices. This role ensures the timely and effective incorporation of emerging instructional technologies and methodologies, including user experience, into course design and content development. Is the primary point of contact for "how-to" inquiries and is responsible for documenting and disseminating best practices. This role also plays a key leadership position in exploring, innovating, and establishing best practices in the Generative AI space and relevant technologies to enhance instructional design and content development. This role is critical in bridging the gap between instructional design expertise and the adoption of cutting-edge educational technologies, ensuring instructional designers are well-equipped to create engaging, effective, and forward-thinking learning experiences. Location: This position will be located in our Salt Lake City, Utah office and would require you to work a hybrid schedule in the office 4 days a week, with one day remote.

Requirements

• Expert knowledge of instructional design, curriculum development, and user experience.
• Advanced understanding of emerging instructional technologies, including Generative AI applications in education.
• Strong ability to integrate innovative instructional strategies into course and program design.
• Advanced technical writing and documentation skills to support best practice development.
• Strong mentoring and training abilities to develop new and existing instructional designers.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and collaborate effectively with various stakeholders.
• Advanced project management skills, including risk assessment and process improvement.
• Proven track record of innovation in instructional design, course and program development, and process enhancements.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills to assess instructional effectiveness and recommend improvements.
• Excellent organizational and self-management skills to handle multiple projects and priorities effectively.
• Commitment to fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation within instructional design and content development.
• Master’s degree in Education, Instructional Design, User Experience Design, or a related field.
• 7+ years of relevant experience
• Advanced experience in instructional design and content development for competency-based education.
• Project leadership in multiple areas (e.g., multiple programs, maintenance, QA).
• Demonstrated subject matter expertise in job-relevant content or practice area.
• Experience in lieu of education Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education, and is the discretion of the hiring manager.

Nice To Haves

• UI/UX Certification
• Quality Matters Certification
• AI Certification, including prompt engineering
• Terminal degree and all applicable licenses or certifications.
• Advanced experience with systems and procedures for course and program development.

Responsibilities

• Serves as the primary SME for instructional designers, providing guidance and expertise in instructional design and content development.
• Leads the integration of innovative instructional design features into course and program development.
• Ensures the timely implementation of new instructional design strategies and tools, monitoring their effectiveness and impact.
• Acts as the primary point of contact for instructional designers and stakeholders on best practices and "how-to" inquiries related to course and program design and development.
• Mentors new instructional designers, providing training and development opportunities to scale resources, including contractors.
• Leads the exploration and implementation of emerging technologies, such as Generative AI, in instructional design and content development, documenting best practices and innovation strategies.
• Develops and maintains best practice documentation for instructional design roles, ensuring consistency and effectiveness across the team.
• Collaborates with internal stakeholders to enhance instructional strategies and maintain academic quality standards.
• Serves as a key contributor to the course development process, ensuring alignment with WGU’s mission and academic quality standards.
• Facilitates training and ensures the Content Management System (CMS) aligns with Content Design and Development practices.
• Leads cross-functional projects, recommending and implementing process improvements to enhance instructional design and content development effectiveness.
• Provides training sessions, workshops, and resources to instructional designers and related roles to enhance professional development.
• Serves as the primary point of contact for contractor coordination, including approving hours and tracking timelines to ensure smooth execution of instructional design projects.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Benefits

• This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level