Empowering People Through Simplicity
Creating an Inclusive Platform for Learning and Growth
ROLE
Lead UI/UX Designer
DESIGN DURATION
8 Weeks
READ TIME
10 minutes
Project Overview
RTI aims to equip individuals of all backgrounds and skill levels with the tools and knowledge to confidently manage digital solutions in the restaurant industry. I was excited to be part of this project, whether it meant helping someone refresh their skills or learn something entirely new. The platform’s courses are designed to be practical, approachable, and easy to navigate, making it a valuable resource for employees and anyone eager to grow on Restaurant Technology. This resource has become a key part of the company’s daily operations, especially for onboarding new team members.
Chapter 1:
The Challenge
The RTI platform was born out of our CEO’s vision to offer affordable, accessible resources for everyone, especially our teams and newcomers working with our systems. This project was ambitious, as it required creating both a front-facing platform and a backend dashboard for certification purposes. Our goal was to combine the best features of learning platforms like Coursera while ensuring it was simple, intuitive, and accessible. The main design challenges were maintaining accessibility standards, ensuring a seamless user flow, and collaborating closely with the development team to bring our vision to life, all while keeping the user experience at the forefront.
Chapter 2:
The Research
Competitive Market Analysis
I conducted a competitive market analysis of leading online learning platforms like Coursera, Udemy, and Harvard Online. The goal was to understand how each platform structures its content, engages users, and delivers certification. This analysis informed design decisions to create a seamless, accessible learning experience for RTI.
Strengths
High-quality, accredited content
Guided learning paths and professional certificates
Interactive assignments & peer reviews
WEAKNESSES
More expensive than other platforms
Limited course customization for organizations
FEATURES
Accredited certificates
Guided learning paths
Peer-reviewed assignments
Subtitles & multiple language support
Discussion forums
Business accounts
Strengths
Massive course selection across diverse topics
Affordable and frequent sales
Instructors can publish courses easily
Lifetime access to purchased content
WEAKNESSES
Quality can vary widely between courses
No accreditation
Limited interactivity
Minimal learning structure or guidance
FEATURES
Self-paced learning
Course reviews and ratings
One-time payment model
Downloadable videos
Q&A with instructors
Certificates of completion
Strengths
Ivy League credibility
Rigorous academic content
Partnerships with edX for free and paid access
Structured cohort-based learning
WEAKNESSES
Limited course catalog
Less flexible compared to other platforms
Premium pricing for verified certificates
FEATURES
Cohort-based learning
Certificates (free & paid options)
Video lectures with transcripts
Interactive content & assessments
Discussion boards
Financial aid options
User Flow
To ensure a seamless and intuitive experience, I mapped from the public phasing site to course certification. This flow considers both new and returning users and highlights key decision points along the way. It helped identify potential pain points early on and informed how content, navigation, and dashboard features should be structured.
Question 1
How do top learning platforms structure their user experience to support both new and returning learners?
Question 2
What features make educational platforms like Coursera and Udemy feel approachable, credible, and easy to navigate?
Question 3
How can we structure the course layout in a digestible way while maintaining accessibility and usability?
Chapter 3:
Project Goal
The goal of the RTI project was to create an accessible, user-friendly platform that would offer discounted resources to employees and newcomers, aligning with our CEO's vision of providing affordable education. This platform needed to serve dual purposes: as a front-facing platform for external users and as a dashboard for certification management. We aimed to ensure an intuitive user experience while balancing the need for robust features like certification tracking, accessibility, and a clean, modern design. Drawing inspiration from platforms like Coursera, our goal was to make this platform not only functional but also inviting and easy to navigate for users with varying levels of technical expertise.
Chapter 4:
Collaboration & Challenges
I worked closely with the Learning & Development, Development, Marketing, and Creative teams. We kicked off the project by aligning on goals and mapping out the timeline, making sure everyone’s priorities were heard.
One of the main challenges was balancing different needs—certification structure, branding, and technical limitations. It took a lot of back-and-forth and collaboration to keep things aligned, but working across teams ultimately helped shape a stronger, more thoughtful platform.
The platform successfully launched with a clean, intuitive interface that met both external and internal needs. It’s now being used to onboard new employees and support ongoing learning with easy access to certification tools and resources.
User feedback has been positive, especially around the platform’s ease of use and clear navigation. Internally, teams appreciated how the design balanced accessibility with a branded experience. The project laid a solid foundation for future updates as the platform grows.
