Learning design resources

Learning design is the difference between a course that ticks a box and one that changes how people do their job. It blends learning science, structure and practical design so adults actually retain and apply what they learn — not just sit through a slideshow and forget it by Friday.

Good learning design starts with the performance gap, not the content, then shapes the path, the practice and the assessment around a measurable outcome. It’s a discipline, not a template.

“Learning designer” is a big umbrella, and the roles under it are easy to mix up. Knowing which specialist your project actually needs saves budget — and saves an expensive rebuild down the track. Most serious programs lean on more than one of these at different stages.

eLearning

Structures content, sequencing and assessment around learning outcomes.

eLearning developer

Builds the course in tools like Rise 360 or Storyline 360.

LX designer

Shapes the end-to-end learner journey and experience.

Learning strategist

Works at the program and organisation level, not just the course.

Good learning design runs on method, not guesswork. ADDIE — analyse, design, develop, implement, evaluate — is the proven backbone and the basis of how we work. Backward Design flips the order and starts from the outcome. Newer, evidence-led models fold in cognitive load and spaced practice so learning actually sticks.

The guides below explain how each framework works and, more usefully, when to reach for it — because no single model fits every project.

A compliance module for a hospital and an onboarding course for a fintech are worlds apart — different risks, different regulators, different learners on different shifts. We’ve designed for government, health, financial services and high-risk industries, and the craft adapts to each. Same result across all of them: learning that sticks.