Today's term

Being here at the ASTD 2008 Conference in the US I've had the chance to update my knowledge of the training world. Yes, the emphasis is on the training world in the US, but there is a very strong international contingent. There are 100 members of the NVO2 group from the Netherlands alone, and a very strong representation from South America, all parts of Asia and the Middle East. Germany has a huge area reserved in the Expo, the trade show portion of the conference.

Anyhoo, today's term is "SME". In my experience, recently updated by my interactions here, has always been that "SME" is the equivalent of the Dutch "MKB", small and medium enterprises. However, the most common use of "SME" in the training world appears to be "Subject Matter Expert." These are the content-providers within companies: those who provide the technical background and knowledge for training: technicians, professors, and others who provide the raw content matter for the particular training that is being delivered. A minor use of the term "SME" is "self-made expert", someone who by the dint of their own efforts has become an authority on a given subject.

For network link to doc, click here.