The development of course materials at the Open Learning Institute, British Columbia, Canada, is examined from two perspectives: as an industrial process and as a social process. The public institute provides distance education through paced home-study courses. The course team model used at the Institute is a system approach. Course development occurs in a clearly defined sequence of steps within the context of a course team composed of a course writer, consultant, course designer, visual designer, program coordinator, and copyright officer. The criteria used to describe the industrial process of course development are: division of labor, mechanization and automation, application of organizational principles, mass production, and quality control. The course development process is also conceptualized as a social process, based on the following criteria: hierarchy and power, personality, fear and resentment, novelty, workloads, and frustration. Ways in which the independent but related social and industrial processes can be integrated into an overall framework for effective and efficient course development are suggested. Appendices include: a bibliography; data on enrollments, student characteristics, courses, programs, student support series, and staff; components of the course package; a list of the main function of course team members; and a diagram of the course development process. (Author/SW)