Mission
To lead rigorous, socially just, equitable, and inclusive, organizational performance improvement, human resource development, workplace learning research, and practice across the globe.
Vision
To positively effect organizational systems change and the individuals’ experiences, who make up organizations at all levels.
Our lab
Our lab focuses on how empathetic design-based thinking can improve learning and development (L&D) initiatives in global organizations working across cultures, developing a diverse workforce, and sometimes in support of marginalized groups. We are interested in addressing organizational development needs or opportunities, with the efficient and effective design of workplace learning technology, to deliver better results. We use a variety of methods (e.g., interviews, questionnaires, surveys, extant data) to understand these needs or opportunities, and employ evidence-based interventions, to support L&D or change performance.
We endeavor to support learning and development (L&D) professionals working in business (i.e, for profit and nonprofit), government, military, and nongovernmental, organizations to practice effective design of workplace learning interventions and performance systems, which meet the needs of an increasingly diverse and global workforce.
Join our lab
If you are a student or graduate interested in joining our lab, review the contact us page and contact Dr. Lisa Giacumo via email (lisagiacumo@boisestate.edu) to join today.
Hire our group
We provide customized organizational assessments, evaluations, L&D performance support, and workplace learning interventions, which will deliver the results you need.
- Are you struggling to support L&D with in your diverse workforce?
- Does the organization struggle to meet performance needs in some locations but not others?
- Is your global workplace learning intervention failing to deliver results?
- Do you want to take your global L&D function to the next level?
If you are a manager or practitioner in need of support to improve your organization’s workplace learning and performance improvement function, contact Dr. Lisa Giacumo via email (lisagiacumo@boisestate.edu).
Dr. Giacumo, OPWL associate professor & lab director, teaches:
- Instructional Design
This course follows a systematic and systemic instructional design process and employs methods and strategies involved in designing elective instructional interventions for the workplace. Working with a real client, students complete a performance-oriented instructional design project in phases over the duration of the course. PREREQ: OPWL 535 and OPWL 536.
- Needs Assessment
Through analysis of case studies, guided practice, field work, and other methods, students learn to use tools, data and systematic methods to identify and assess current or future problems and their causes, and help decision makers target critical problems with feasible solutions. Students will conduct an authentic project.
- e-Learning Authoring and Development
Through hands-on practice, students demonstrate emerging foundational knowledge and skills required to use e-learning authoring tools and develop performance-based e-learning objects to support workplace learning. Students will produce a video, a web-based instructional module, a scenario-based e-learning object, and a final project with supporting design documentation.
- Storyboarding and Scenario-Based e-Learning
Students create a high-level design document and storyboard for a branching scenario-based e-learning object. Students also learn how to select a design approach best suited for learners who would access the e-learning via mobile devices, desktops, laptops, or any combination of those devices.
- Mentoring Systems in Organizations
In this course, students use an human performance improvement (HPI) process to determine potential mentoring program feasibility, high level design, and preliminary evaluation planning, in organizations. Through hands-on experience of establishing a mentor-mentee relationship, students become acquainted with the benefits and challenges of mentoring relationships. Students also learn to apply evidence-based program planning with a simulated, or when possible an authentic, client.
- Principles of Adult Learning
In this course, students explore how contemporary adult learning theories and practices are applied to the fields of instructional technology and performance technology, particularly with respect to the instructional design process. Students will apply methods, strategies and technologies specific to adult learners to real workplace problems.
- Foundations of Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning
In this course, students study historical foundations, prominent people, and events that contributed to the development of the fields of instructional technology and performance technology. They apply relevant theories and models to real or realistic organizational situations in industry, government, military, and non-profit settings.
