ADAPT[IT] (Advanced Design Approach for Personalized Training - Interactive Tools) is a European project within the Information Society Technologies program that is providing design methods and tools to guide a training designer according to the latest cognitive science and standardization principles. ADAPT[IT] addresses users in two significantly different domains within the aviation industry: aircraft maintenance training and air traffic control training. Because these two subject domains are quite different and because those who perform associated tasks also differ in significant ways, it is hypothesized that outcomes will generalize to other complex domains and users. The methods integrated into ADAPT[IT] are based on van Merrienboer's (1997) four-component instructional design model. The model provides guidelines for the design of training programs in highly complex domains and consists of four layers: (1) principled skill decomposition; (2) analysis of constituent skills and related knowledge; (3) selection of instructional methods; and (4) development of a learning environment. These layers prescribe and contextualize the activities that instructional designers should perform in order to produce effective training for complex cognitive skills. This paper reports the needs assessment procedures and outcomes associated with the effort and indicates how they are informing the evaluation plan. (Contains 10 references.) (Author/AEF)