A training curriculum is usually developed as a result of the acquisition of a new system, the adaptation of an existing curriculum to a new discipline, or the conversion to enhanced courseware. An entire robust new curriculum, rather than a new course, is required because the curriculum either serves a number of diverse audiences or a single course cannot cover all of the complex dimensions of the new system in a single introductory offering. What gets developed, then, is a curriculum with multiple modules or layers. This is the case when the skill level of the new system has changed as a result of adding a cognitive component or components or a prerequisite skill has been added as a requirement for using the new component (whether it be for use in performing calculations or system maintenance).
Competencies required to operate, maintain, or manage the operation of a new system requirement can be discovered in a number of different ways. The research was conducted for the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Aviation Safety to develop an Aviation safety certification program for the FAA Safety Management System (SMS) to identify certified aviation safety professionals.