Ascension LLC is seeking a CMS Training & Launch Readiness Specialist to support the Columbia Association Website Redesign effort by helping end users, content contributors, and internal stakeholders prepare for successful use of the new website management platform. This role is designed for a practical, detail-oriented training and adoption professional who understands how to translate a new content management system, website workflow, and launch process into clear, usable guidance for non-technical users.

This position is important because Columbia Association’s new website must be more than technically functional. It must be usable, sustainable, and manageable by CA staff after launch. The RFP requires the selected team to support training sessions, documentation, responsive support during content building, UAT support, deployment readiness, launch checklist activities, and post-launch support. This role helps reduce handoff risk by ensuring that CA’s content users, reviewers, and support participants understand what to do, how to do it, where to find guidance, and how to escalate issues during and after launch.

The ideal candidate brings experience supporting CMS training, website launch readiness, end-user documentation, stakeholder coordination, and adoption support. This individual should be comfortable working in a fast-moving implementation environment where content workflows, user permissions, page-building steps, and post-launch support needs must be explained clearly to users with varying levels of technical confidence.

Summary of the Contractor Role

The CMS Training & Launch Readiness Specialist will support the vendor team and Columbia Association stakeholders during the content building, testing, deployment, and post-launch transition phases of the website redesign project. The role will focus on developing practical training materials, job aids, content-user instructions, operational documentation, launch readiness checklists, and support handoff materials.

The candidate should be a strong communicator, organized planner, and user-focused documentation specialist who can convert technical or workflow-based information into simple, step-by-step guidance. The role will support readiness activities tied to CMS use, content governance, page-building processes, workflow approvals, accessibility-aware content practices, launch communications, support workflows, and post-launch issue resolution.

This position is expected to help solve the risk that often occurs when a new website platform is launched but users are not fully prepared to manage content, follow governance workflows, submit issues, validate updates, or sustain platform operations after go-live. The specialist will help ensure that CA staff are trained, equipped, and supported during the transition from implementation to operational use.

Key Responsibilities and Anticipated Day-to-Day Activities

The CMS Training & Launch Readiness Specialist will:

• Develop end-user training materials for CMS users, content authors, reviewers, approvers, and operational support participants.
• Create job aids, quick-reference guides, step-by-step instructions, checklists, and FAQs that explain common CMS activities, including content creation, editing, previewing, publishing, versioning, rollback, and media library use.
• Support training sessions for CA content users and stakeholders during the content building phase, including virtual walk-throughs, demonstrations, and reinforcement sessions.
• Prepare role-based guidance for content authors, approvers, administrators, and support users so each group understands its responsibilities within the CMS workflow.
• Document content governance processes, including approval workflows, content update procedures, escalation steps, and handoff expectations.
• Coordinate stakeholder readiness activities to confirm users understand timelines, responsibilities, content deadlines, training expectations, and launch support procedures.
• Develop launch communications and readiness materials, including go-live reminders, user instructions, support contacts, known issue procedures, and post-launch operating guidance.
• Support UAT readiness by helping users understand test scripts, expected outcomes, defect reporting procedures, and validation responsibilities.
• Assist with post-launch QA validation by collecting user feedback, documenting recurring issues, tracking content-user concerns, and coordinating updates with the project team.
• Maintain training and documentation materials as workflows, CMS configuration, page templates, or support procedures are refined.
• Organize handoff materials for CA staff, including training decks, recorded session notes, user guides, support workflow documentation, launch checklists, and operational reference materials.
• Collaborate with the UX/UI lead, CMS developer, accessibility/QA lead, stakeholder engagement lead, and project manager to ensure training content reflects the final solution.
• Translate technical instructions into plain-language guidance that non-technical users can follow without heavy developer support.
• Identify training gaps, adoption risks, unclear workflows, or user confusion points and recommend corrective actions before go-live.
• Support content-user readiness by reinforcing accessibility-aware content practices, including headings, alt text, link text, document handling, and plain-language web content practices.
• Track training attendance, user questions, action items, support issues, and documentation updates during the launch readiness period.