Introduction

A career in IBM Software means you’ll be part of a team that transforms our customers’ challenges into industry-leading solutions. 

We are an infinitely curious team, always seeking new possibilities, and dedicated to creating the world’s leading AI-powered, cloud-native software solutions. Our renowned legacy creates endless global opportunities for our network of IBMers. We are a team of deep product experts, ensuring exceptional client experiences, with a focus on delivery, excellence, and obsession over customer outcomes.

IBM’s product and technology landscape includes Research, Software, and Infrastructure. Entering this domain positions you at the heart of IBM, where growth and innovation thrive.

Your role and responsibilities

As a Principal Instructional Designer, you will lead the creation and delivery of innovative learning solutions that cater to high-stakes personas, ensuring that content is engaging, impactful, and aligned with adult learning principles. You will operate with a high level of autonomy to design and prototype novel learning experiences, integrating both current and emerging technologies to meet the needs of diverse learners. Your role will involve strategic oversight, guiding the development of self-paced courses, instructor-led training, student guides, step-by-step tutorials, and eLearning modules.

Your primary responsibilities include:

• Architecting Learning Solutions: Design innovative learning solutions that set industry standards for engagement, scale, and long-term maintenance, solving complex problems with a focus on high-stakes personas. 
• Course Ownership and Maintenance: Own the lifecycle of courses, conducting regular reviews and updates to ensure content stays relevant, accurate, and engaging for learners. Utilize data and learner feedback to inform the design, evaluation, and refinement of learning programs.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Define and curate the optimal modalities for learning delivery, collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to ensure alignment with business goals and learner needs.
• Project Management: Lead and manage multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring timely and successful completion with a focus on quality and outcomes.
• Onboarding and Mentorship: Lead the onboarding of new instructional designers, offering guidance and mentorship to help them thrive and succeed in the role.
• Expertise and Recognition: Be recognized as a top producer and expert in instructional design, influencing and setting the standard for excellence across the organization.

Required education

High School Diploma/GED

Preferred education

Bachelor’s Degree

Required technical and professional expertise

• Extensive experience (5+years) designing eLearning, instructor-led, and blended learning solutions using ADDIE and 4-CID instructional design models.
• Experience with HTML and CSS for course design and customization.
• Strong project management skills, with experience working in high-paced environments and managing multiple projects.
• Proficiency in content development tools (e.g., Camtasia, Adobe Creative Suite) and Learning Management Systems (e.g., Moodle, Adobe LMS).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred technical and professional experience

• Knowledge of ADA compliance for accessible learning experiences.
• Experience working in global teams across different time zones and cultures.
• Experience with tools like Gainsight PX to create step-by-step in-app engagements.

About Business Unit

IBM Software infuses core business operations with intelligence—from machine learning to generative AI—to help make organizations more responsive, productive, and resilient. IBM Software helps clients put AI into action now to create real value with trust, speed, and confidence across digital labor, IT automation, application modernization, security, and sustainability. Critical to this is the ability to make use of all data, because AI is only as good as the data that fuels it. In most organizations data is spread across multiple clouds, on premises, in private datacenters, and at the edge. IBM’s AI and data platform scales and accelerates the impact of AI with trusted data, and provides leading capabilities to train, tune and deploy AI across business. IBM’s hybrid cloud platform is one of the most comprehensive and consistent approach to development, security, and operations across hybrid environments—a flexible foundation for leveraging data, wherever it resides, to extend AI deep into a business.

Your Life @ IBM

In a world where technology never stands still, we understand that, dedication to our clients success, innovation that matters, and trust and personal responsibility in all our relationships, lives in what we do as IBMers as we strive to be the catalyst that makes the world work better.

Being an IBMer means you’ll be able to learn and develop yourself and your career, you’ll be encouraged to be courageous and experiment everyday, all whilst having continuous trust and support in an environment where everyone can thrive whatever their personal or professional background. 

Our IBMers are growth minded, always staying curious, open to feedback and learning new information and skills to constantly transform themselves and our company. They are trusted to provide on-going feedback to help other IBMers grow, as well as collaborate with colleagues keeping in mind a team focused approach to include different perspectives to drive exceptional outcomes for our customers. The courage our IBMers have to make critical decisions everyday is essential to IBM becoming the catalyst for progress, always embracing challenges with resources they have to hand, a can-do attitude and always striving for an outcome focused approach within everything that they do. 

Are you ready to be an IBMer?

About IBM

IBM’s greatest invention is the IBMer. We believe that through the application of intelligence, reason and science, we can improve business, society and the human condition, bringing the power of an open hybrid cloud and AI strategy to life for our clients and partners around the world.

Restlessly reinventing since 1911, we are not only one of the largest corporate organizations in the world, we’re also one of the biggest technology and consulting employers, with many of the Fortune 50 companies relying on the IBM Cloud to run their business. 

At IBM, we pride ourselves on being an early adopter of artificial intelligence, quantum computing and blockchain. Now it’s time for you to join us on our journey to being a responsible technology innovator and a force for good in the world.

Other Relevant Job Details

IBM offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits program. Eligible employees may have access to:

• Healthcare benefits including medical & prescription drug coverage, dental, vision, and mental health & well being
• Financial programs such as 401(k), the IBM Employee Stock Purchase Plan, financial counseling, life insurance, short & long- term disability coverage, and opportunities for performance based salary incentive programs
• Generous paid time off including 12 holidays, minimum 56 hours sick time, 120 hours vacation, 12 weeks parental bonding leave in accordance with IBM Policy, and other Paid Care Leave programs. IBM also offers paid family leave benefits to eligible employees where required by applicable law
• Training and educational resources on our personalized, AI-driven learning platform where IBMers can grow skills and obtain industry-recognized certifications to achieve their career goals
• Diverse and inclusive employee resource groups, giving & volunteer opportunities, and discounts on retail products, services & experiences

We consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable law.

This position was posted on the date cited in the key job details section and is anticipated to remain posted for 21 days from this date or less if not needed to fill the role.

IBM will not be providing visa sponsorship for this position now or in the future. Therefore, in order to be considered for this position, you must have the ability to work without a need for current or future visa sponsorship.

The compensation range and benefits for this position are based on a full-time schedule for a full calendar year. The salary will vary depending on your job-related skills, experience and location. Pay increment and frequency of pay will be in accordance with employment classification and applicable laws. For part time roles, your compensation and benefits will be adjusted to reflect your hours. Benefits may be pro-rated for those who start working during the calendar year.