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All work

Masterstart, Stellenbosch Business School

Concept visualisation

Making systems theory learnable

Role
Visual & Layout Designer
Client
Masterstart, Stellenbosch Business School
Year
2024
Built in
Articulate Rise

The challenge

How do you make abstract Business Systems Analysis models land for a learner reading them for the first time?

What it turned out to be

Infographics built on constraint. Simplify until the concept is visible, then stop.

A learner meeting a systems model for the first time has no prior structure to hang it on. Every element you leave in is one they have to hold.

I worked alongside a subject matter expert and a learning designer on a Business Systems Analysis course. The learning designer led content structure. My job was to support that structure visually, drawing infographic assets that made the conceptual models clear.

Most of the work is deciding what to take out.

The method

Simplify until the concept is visible, then stop

An expert describes a model with every qualification intact, because that is what makes it correct. A learner needs the relationship first. The work is finding the reduction that stays true.

AS THE EXPERT DESCRIBES ITREDUCED TO THE RELATIONSHIPWHAT THE LEARNER SEESThree parts, one direction123The work is deciding what to remove without breaking what the model actually claims.
From the expert's description to the learner-facing asset

The models needed simplifying, not decorating.

Approach

Four rules I worked to

  1. 01

    Infographic-led

    Complex BA models drawn as structured visuals rather than text walls.

  2. 02

    Collaborative brief

    Iterated with the SME on accuracy, and with the learning designer on placement and pacing.

  3. 03

    Native to Articulate Rise

    Designed inside Rise's constraints. It rewards visual restraint and hierarchy over embellishment.

  4. 04

    Accessible by default

    Layouts built for all devices and learner needs from the start, not retrofitted.

What the course covers

Systems thinking

Conceptual models and stakeholder mapping made visual through infographic design.

Process flows

Business process analysis represented as accessible, structured visual assets.

Requirements mapping

Functional and non-functional requirements communicated through clear layout hierarchy.

Responsive layout

All content built in Articulate Rise for consistent delivery across devices.

Open the live courseArticulate Rise

Findings

What working with an SME taught me

Insights

  1. 01

    Complex conceptual models need visual simplification

    not decoration

  2. 02

    Working alongside subject matter experts requires active listening and iteration

  3. 03

    Layout discipline in Articulate Rise directly affects learner focus

  4. 04

    Infographics that communicate well require constraint

    not embellishment

Outcome

The course went live on Masterstart, built for Stellenbosch Business School. I enjoyed this one.

Reflection

What I took from it

  • 01

    Designing for learning means designing for comprehension, and the bar is higher than in most design work

  • 02

    Working with an SME and a learning designer sharpened the brief

  • 03

    Articulate Rise rewards visual restraint and clear hierarchy above anything else