Bill McDonald led the Aviation Industry Computer-Based Training Committee (AICC) during one of the most challenging periods in eLearning standards history. As the industry shifted its attention from SCORM to xAPI, McDonald recognized that xAPI alone wouldn't be enough to replace SCORM in enterprise LMS environments. Something was needed to bridge the gap.
Under McDonald's leadership, the AICC working group developed cmi5 — an xAPI Profile that defines how an LMS launches, tracks, and manages xAPI-based content. The specification reintroduced the launch mechanism, content packaging, and defined completion vocabulary that xAPI had deliberately omitted, combining xAPI's modern architecture with the interoperability guarantees that had made SCORM ubiquitous.
McDonald navigated the complex politics of developing a specification that sat at the intersection of multiple organizations' interests — ADL (xAPI's steward), IMS Global (competing standards), and the broader LMS vendor community. His diplomatic skills were essential in building consensus around cmi5's design decisions.
The AICC officially disbanded in 2014, but not before completing the cmi5 specification. McDonald continued to champion cmi5 through its 1.0 release in June 2016 and beyond, ensuring that the AICC's final contribution would be its most enduring.
The name "cmi5" itself — a nod to the CMI (Computer Managed Instruction) data model that has been at the heart of eLearning standards since AICC's founding — was McDonald's tribute to the organization's legacy.
Key Achievements
- [+]Chaired the AICC during its critical final years
- [+]Led the development of the cmi5 specification
- [+]Bridged xAPI's flexibility with LMS interoperability needs
- [+]Ensured AICC's legacy lived on through cmi5