Ryan Watkins | Doug Leigh | Roger Kaufman | John Wedman | Jim Altschuld | more to come...
is an associate professor at the George Washington University in Washington DC. Most recently he co-edited the Handbook for Improving Performance in the Workplace: Selecting and Implementing Performance Interventions (Wiley/Jossey-Bass, 2010), with 34 chapters linking alternative improvement activities with the accomplishment of useful results. He is also an author of the E-learning Companion: A learner’s guide to online success (Wadsworth/Cengage, 2005, 2007, 2010), the best-selling e-learning textbook for students now in its third edition. His other books include: Performance By Design: The systematic selection, design, and development of performance technologies (HRD Press, 2006), and 75 E-learning Activities: Making online courses interactive (Pfieffer, 2005), as well as three other books on organizational planning. Ryan has authored than 60 articles and book chapters on instructional design, strategic planning, needs assessment, distance education, and performance technology. Dr. Watkins is an active member of the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) and was a vice president of the Inter-American Distance Education Consortium (CREAD). In 2005 Ryan was a visiting scientist with the National Science Foundation. For more information please visit http://www.ryanrwatkins.com.
Doug Leigh, PhD
is an associatiate professor at Pepperdine University. He is co-author of Assessment Book: Applied Strategic Thinking and Performance Improvement Through Self-Assessments (HRD Press, 2008), Strategic Planning for Success: Aligning People, Performance, and Payoffs (Pfeiffer, 2003), and Useful Educational Results: Defining, Prioritizing, and Accomplishing (Proactive Publishing, 2001). He is an associate director of Roger Kaufman & Associates, two-time chair of the American Evaluation Association’s Needs Assessment Topic Interest Group, and past editor-in-chief of Performance Improvement, the International Society for Performance Improvement's (ISPI) monthly professional journal. He is also 2008 chair of ISPI’s Research Committee. His current research, publication and lecture interests concern cause analysis, organizational trust, leadership visions, and alternative dispute resolution. For more information, visit: http://www.dougleigh.com.
Roger Kaufman, PhD
is Professor Emeritus, Florida State University, and Director of Roger Kaufman & Associates. He is also Distinguished Research Professor at the Sonora Institute of Technology. His PhD is in communications from New York University. He consults with public and private organizations in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, and Europe. He is a Certified Performance Technologist and a Diplomate in School Psychology and a Fellow in Educational Psychology of the American Psychological Association. He has been recognized by the ASTD for Distinguished Contribution to Workplace Learning and Performance. Dr. Kaufman has published 39 books and more than 256 articles on strategic planning, performance improvement, quality management and continuous improvement, needs assessment, management, and evaluation. For more information please visit http://www.megaplanning.com.
John Wedman, PhD
is professor and director of the School of Information Science and Learning Technologies at the University of Missouri. Wedman’s background includes significant experience in business/industry, government, higher education, and K–12 schools. He founded three small businesses dedicated to training design and evaluation and performance improvement. Much to the amazement of his university colleagues, he often uses his business/industry experiences to bring for-profit approaches to his work in higher education. Wedman is the lead developer of the Performance Pyramid framework and associated needs assessment tools. For more information please visit http://needsassessment.missouri.edu.
Jim Altschuld, PhD
obtained his bachelor’s (Case Western Reserve University) and master’s (The Ohio State University) degrees in chemistry. After a brief career in that field he completed his doctorate in educational research and development from the latter institution. Subsequently he worked in a large urban school district, a state department of education (Delaware), and then for 32 years he was an OSU staff member and eventually a professor in educational research and evaluation. He is now professor emeritus at the University where he continues to write books (6 of the 7 on needs assessment), conduct research studies, publish articles, evaluate projects, and present nationally. He has received local, state, and national (the Alva and Gunnar Myrdal Award of the American Evaluation Association) recognitions for his longtime involvement and contributions to the evaluation enterprise. Aside from these endeavors, he and his wife (Ruth) have two sons and a grandson and granddaughter.