# Prepare SME interview questions to capture expert know-how

A structured interview plan that pulls the real decisions, mistakes, and shortcuts out of a subject matter expert, not just theory.

- Topic: Learning & Teaching
- Framework: Few-Shot
- Level: Standard
- Tags: Analyze, Plan, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/prepare-sme-interview-questions-to-capture-expert-know-how

## Prompt

```text
Help me prepare to interview a subject matter expert (SME) so I can build training from what they know.

**Topic or task:** [WHAT THE TRAINING COVERS]
**SME's role:** [e.g. "senior claims adjuster, 12 years"]
**Learners:** [WHO WILL TAKE THE TRAINING and their experience level]
**Time I have with the SME:** [e.g. "two 45-minute sessions"]
**What I already have:** [existing docs, slides, SOPs, or "nothing"]

Build an interview plan that:
- Focuses on what people must DO, not everything the SME knows.
- Uses cognitive task analysis techniques: walk me through a real recent case, critical decision points, cues they notice, what a novice would miss.
- Surfaces the most common and most costly mistakes, and why people make them.
- Separates "must know" from "nice to know" and "can look up".
- Captures real stories and examples I can turn into scenarios.

Return:
1. A one-paragraph pre-interview note to send the SME (purpose, time, what to bring).
2. Interview questions grouped by phase: warm-up, task walkthrough, decisions and judgment, mistakes and edge cases, wrap-up. Mark the 8 must-ask questions.
3. Follow-up probes for when answers are vague ("It depends" - on what?).
4. A note-taking template: Task step | Decision or cue | Common error | Example or story | Must/Should/Could know.
5. Tips for keeping a talkative SME on track and for validating content afterward.
```

## What to fill in

- WHAT THE TRAINING COVERS
- e.g. "senior claims adjuster, 12 years"
- WHO WILL TAKE THE TRAINING and their experience level
- e.g. "two 45-minute sessions"
- existing docs, slides, SOPs, or "nothing"

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.