Skills

Training Architecture

Job Specifications

Instructional Designer Who Believes Learning Should Actually Be... Learnable

Contract | Remote | Part-time 6 months

You know those training programs where people sit through slides, nod politely, get a certificate, and forget everything by Thursday? Yeah, we're not building that.

The Smart Effect, LLC is developing a groundbreaking curriculum that teaches small businesses how to win government contracts—not by lecturing AT them, but by having them actually DO it.

Participants will write real proposals, get evaluated by procurement professionals, and leave with portfolio-ready work.

We need a Lead Instructional Designer who gets excited about this kind of thing.

What You'll Do:

Design the instructional architecture for 10 curriculum modules (ADDIE/SAM methodology)

Create learning objectives that actually mean something

Develop assessments that measure real capability, not just attendance

Design interactive exercises—case studies, workshops, role-plays—that work for adults who have businesses to run

Build facilitator guides so detailed that anyone can deliver this curriculum consistently

What You Bring:

5+ years designing curriculum for adult learners (government/small business experience = bonus points)

Deep knowledge of adult learning principles (if you can explain Knowles' Andragogy without putting us to sleep, you're already ahead)

Experience designing for facilitator-led delivery (not self-paced e-learning—this is different)

Portfolio showing interactive, experiential learning design

Ability to create materials that work equally well in-person AND virtually
The Details:

Estimated Commitment: ~75 hours/month for 6 months

Start: Upon contract award (anticipated Q1 2026)
Location: Remote (occasional virtual meetings)

Rate: Competitive, commensurate with experience

Why This Project Matters:

This curriculum will help small, minority-, and women-owned businesses compete for and win government contracts. Your instructional design will directly impact economic equity and small business success.

If you've read this far, you're probably our person.
Drop your portfolio and a note about why experiential learning matters to you.

Bonus if you can tell us about a time your instructional design actually changed behavior—not just transferred information.

The Smart Effect, LLC is a certified MBE/WBE/SBE. We encourage applications from diverse candidates

About the Company

The Smart Effect, LLC is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping small to mid-sized enterprises improve execution and scale through high-performance operating systems. We specialize in PMO setup, program execution, and workflow design. Our mission is to move organizations from “stall” to “scale” by establishing clear governance, reporting cadence, and accountability. We prepare businesses for the future by building the operational foundation required for sustainable growth and responsible AI adoption. Know more