Case Study: The Economist
Emerging Market Certificate Program
Company Profile:
Edited in London since 1843, The Economist is a weekly international news and business publication offering clear reporting, commentary, and analysis on world politics, business, finance, science, technology, culture, society, media, and the arts.
With a growing global circulation and a reputation for insightful analysis and opinion on every aspect of world events, The Economist is one of the most widely recognized and well-read current affairs publications.
The Business Challenge:
Drawing on The Economist tradition of reporting and analysis from around the world, The Economist Education group desired to create an educational program designed to help business managers thrive in a global economy. The certificate program is being made available worldwide and gives perspectives of emerging markets from some of the top business leaders in the world. The client wanted a sound educational experience enveloped in rich media, videos, interactives, and quizzes.
Solution:
The original project required that I and two other IDs were to write the content. After the first pass, it was clear that the Economist stringent style would be better served having their staff journalists write the content and pass it to the IDs to be molded into content appropriate for eLearning.
The majority of the time spent on this project was spent designing the visual treatments screen-by-screen with a large group of reviewers. Once the visual treatment was decided on, the focus was put on the interactivity of the courses. I worked closely with an SME from the Economist to take data from their reports, tables, and charts and turn them into interesting interactives that would convey the same data in an informative, but exciting new way.
Outcome:
The original five courses designed and developed for The Economist were completed and the sale of the complete course commenced. The courses garnered high praise from top CEOs throughout the world.
View an interactive storyboard for this project.