Northwestern announces a Free MOOC on Content Strategy for Professionals

On January 13, 2014, Northwestern University will add to its record of designing learning systems for the future by offering a unique new MOOC (massive open online course). It is entitled Content Strategy for Professionals - Engaging Audiences for Your Organization and can be found on the Coursera platform. Enrollment is free and open now at: http://bit.ly/1iPXyba

Northwestern produced the MOOC because professionals in every organization – for-profit, non-profit, volunteer, and government – face an enormous challenge. With ever-more information competing for people’s limited time, they need to know how to develop and deploy more engaging content to reach key individuals inside and outside their organization with important information.

The Content Strategy MOOC has been developed to meet this challenge. In the MOOC, 10 expert Northwestern professors share their new insights and actionable advances. The faculty come from the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications and the Kellogg School of Management. They are led by John Lavine, professor and director of Northwestern’s Media Management Center.

“Content strategy is a conversation that provides thought-leadership.” Lavine explained. “Regardless of their level, area of work, or expertise, professionals who use content strategy have new knowledge that enables them to be far more effective with words, graphics, video, social and mobile media. They learn how to give their most important stakeholders trustable, transparent, actionable information that those individuals will value and use.”

The MOOC is divided into six modules with each broken into a number of succinct, easy to complete sessions that will easily fit each user’s schedule. It is a rigorous program, but because it is for professionals, there are no exams or term papers.  There is, however, a case study that weaves throughout the MOOC, allowing the participants to build their content strategy skills and receive feedback on them.

In addition, the MOOC features videos and multimedia from companies and organizations around the world. They are best practice examples of what an effective content strategy looks like in action. The MOOC also has an electronic toolkit for the participants to use in the future to help them and their colleagues as they encounter new challenges in their organization.

“The goal of the MOOC,” Lavine concluded, “is to give those who take it the content strategy knowledge and skills to advance their enterprise and their own careers. It is free, and we welcome those who are interested to join us on January 13^th.”

For more information, view a short video at:  http://bit.ly/18wZ65n