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The ABCs of ISD - 1982 In the December 1982 edition of Training and Development Journal, Marc J. Rosenberg pens an article titled The ABCs of ISD in which he makes a couple of very interesting observations. Front-End Analysis There are often alternative methods to solving organization problems, such as organizational redesign, motivation strategies, and changes in reward structures, that may be more effective and cheaper than training. Thus, it is vital that a "front-end analysis" is performed in order to determine the best solution, rather than just selecting "training" because it was the first idea generated. While such analysis is not a part of ISD, the ISD model presupposes that a decision to develop training to solve a performance problem was selected because training was determined that to be the best solution. Organization, Learner, and Job Needs The ISD model requires that potential training problems be analyzed via a needs analysis to determine their exact nature. And while there may be a variety of factors to consider, the ISD model centers around three needs: Organizational needs are normally the most nebulous to assess because they are often quite vague or global in nature, such as "improve production" or "be a leader in our market." However, they can affect decisions about the trining, such as who gets trained and the resources allocated to training, thus they provide an important perspective for the rest of the ISD process. Learner needs are more specific, such as assessing previous experience and determining present performance deficiencies. Job needs are analyzed to determine the exact performance requirements (task analysis). Prototypes In the development phase, developmental testing or prototyping is used to test the instructional material to ensure they work as intended and to pinpoint if any process improvements can be made. Relationship of Events The ISD model is more than a sequence, rather it is a relationship of events. It is this relationship which makes the model so effective in its application to training development. It ensures that a decision to develop training is based upon the realistic and identifiable needs of the organization, the learner, and the job. - Marc J. Rosenberg Training and Development Journal (December 1982).