Apps and Platforms: Articulate Storyline 360, Synthesia/HeyGen, Visme, PowerPoint

Design approach: Scenario-based learning, experiential learning, meaningful gamification, performance-based assessment

My role: Learning experience design, instructional strategy, content research, gamification design, storyboarding, visual design and eLearning development

Client: Self-initiated portfolio project (fictional business scenario)

Project status: In design and development

Context

• New finance and accounting employees need more than an understanding of financial terminology. They must learn to interpret transactions, recognise their implications and understand how individual accounting decisions affect financial records and reporting.

• The Finance Files was conceived as a redesign of conventional, content-driven accounting training, shifting the focus from acquiring information to applying knowledge in realistic workplace situations.

• The learning experience follows a new employee joining the finance team at Northstar Office Solutions, a fictional company preparing its month-end financial reports.

Challenges

• The central instructional challenge was transforming complex and interconnected accounting concepts into an engaging, practical learning experience without oversimplifying the subject matter.

• Traditional gamification elements, such as points, badges and leaderboards, offered limited value for the intended learning outcomes. The design needed to encourage careful reasoning, meaningful decision-making and opportunities to learn from mistakes.

• Another challenge was creating a coherent experience in which learners could progressively develop their skills, rather than completing a series of disconnected activities.