Duration

April 2022 (2 weeks)

January - February 2023 (2 months)

Overview 

In 2022, we transformed our client's annual employee training from a boring corporate slog into a binge-worthy video series.

The outcome? Our training videos (and related chatter) went viral on internal platforms, which brought about skyrocketing completion rates and unprecedented employee satisfaction.

Building on this success, 2023 tasked us with making the learning experience more fully immersive by seamlessly integrating the videos with other touchpoints.

My Role

Within a diverse team of creatives, strategists, and technical experts, I contributed by:

- Crafting and visualizing the learning strategy

- Mapping out the learner's journey and the integration of various touchpoints

- Generating concepts to heighten learner immersion and boost engagement

- Communicating our strategy to the client and refining it in response to their feedback

2022

When I joined the project, production of the 2022 training was in full swing. My primary responsibility was to visualize and enhance the learner's journey. This involved:

Content Audit

I began by reviewing all learning materials, experiencing the training firsthand, and reviewing feedback from prior iterations.

Integration of Touchpoints

The training was multifaceted, encompassing marketing, communications, a rewards shop, and a microsite with supplementary games. I consolidated these diverse touchpoints into a preliminary map, outlining the tangible learner journey.

Idealized Learner Journey

Drawing from literature on the psychology of learning and motivation, I crafted an idealized internal learner journey. This research, combined with the visual representation, formed the foundation of our learning strategy.

Client Collaboration

After articulating and gaining client approval on our initial concept, we engaged in creative sessions to brainstorm how to merge the two journeys, with a focus on specifics like communications and gamification strategies.

2023

In 2023, I rejoined the A.R.T. team to help bring to life the vision of a fully immersive learning experience. The previous year’s video series and activities had been met with great enthusiasm, but the quiz portions still felt disconnected from the overall experience, and there were doubts as to whether employees were able to retain the necessary information throughout the year. The client wanted us to reimagine the way the learning material and quizzes were presented and embed the entire learning experience into a Netflix-style hub, where employees could “binge” the entire experience without clicking back and forth from video to standard eLearn presentation.

Deconstruction

I began by dissecting the prior year's training landing page and modules to identify the core components.

Reconstruction

Inspired by the simplicity and user-friendliness of various streaming platforms, I reimagined the training design, which included suggesting tweaks to the narrative structure in order to integrate other elements of the overall experience. This new layout was then presented to the client, highlighting potential modifications to the learning flow.

Refinement

Based on client feedback, input from accessibility experts, and additional information about the technical constraints of the learning platform, I iteratively revised the wireframes to ensure we delivered an optimized and inclusive learning experience.

Diverse Touchpoints:

‍The project began with the challenge of unifying diverse content formats, including websites, documents, quizzes, and interactive games.

Regulatory Constraints:

‍Regulatory standards dictated not only the content but also influenced the language and presentation. This required us to be innovative while staying compliant.

Technical Limitations:

‍The learning platform presented its own set of constraints. Collaborating with an external team, we pushed the envelope to redefine what was achievable.

Balancing Incentives:

‍Our prior year's gamification and reward strategy was a hit among employees. However, leadership's concerns about the incentive budget meant we had to rethink our approach.

Addressing Employee Feedback:

Analytics from the previous year revealed varied employee experiences. Some employees found certain topics overly difficult or confusing. For this group, valuable time was lost as they repeatedly failed to progress to the next section. Conversely, another segment of employees raced through the content at a rate that suggested they were not motivated by the gamification aspect and were not fully engaging with the material. We needed to refine the learning strategy to cater to both these groups, ensuring comprehensive learning while maintaining engagement.

A fully integrated experience

The training’s primary touchpoint was elevated from a static landing page where each video session stood isolated from quizzes and other learning materials, into a cohesive Netflix-inspired hub. In this revamped format, training segments existed as "episodes" that seamlessly blended videos, quizzes, and other content. This allowed learners to stream content consecutively, maintaining their immersion in the narrative throughout.

Highlight

One of the contributions I'm particularly proud of pertains to the fluidity of the learning experience, specifically the transitions between video segments and quizzes and back again.  My idea involved incorporating first-person perspective, inviting learners into the storyline and asking them to behave as they would in real life. 

Key transitions would follow this script:

Engaging Decision Points

At the end of each video segment, a character would directly engage the learner by looking into the camera and asking them to decide how they should proceed.

Threefold Choices

Learners were presented with three options:

1. Right decision: Choosing correctly would advance the learner to the next video segment in the primary storyline directly. 

2. Wrong decision: Choosing incorrectly would send the learner on a segue through 3 additional segments, in which they would first experience the repercussions of their choice, then consult with an expert to determine the best way forward, then implement corrective measures to mitigate the adverse effects, before rejoining the primary storyline.

3. Ask for help: If the learner decided to ask for help, they would engage in a single additional segment, in which an expert reviewed the situation, made a recommendation and explained why that was the best route to take. The learner would then have the opportunity to make the right decision and return to the primary storyline.

This narrative approach aimed to underscore certain desired behaviors previously defined by our client. Employees who prioritized speed would learn that making assumptions and hasty decisions could lead to mistakes and cost more time in the long run.  Those who chose to seek guidance would find that the experts were responsive and supportive, and feel confidence in their chosen path. 

While it's unrealistic to expect employees to remember everything from a single training session throughout the year, this method placed learners at the heart of the experience. By repeatedly engaging them with content in a realistic context, we could foster critical thinking and reinforce the desired behaviors. This approach was designed to counteract the overconfidence and impulsiveness that often led to mistakes, and ensure that employees internalized the right actions and mindsets.