Digital Passport
Award-winning learning platform helping Kiwis gain digital skills, fit for today’s workplaces.
TL;DR.
Project Overview.
Digital Passport is a free learning platform I designed with the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and academyEX to help New Zealanders build basic digital skills. It’s aimed at people with low confidence online—like older adults, parents returning to work, and those with little formal education.
I led UX/UI and brand design, creating an LMS and experience that was simple, inclusive, and motivating. Since launch, it’s supported 13,000+ users, helped hundreds get off MSD benefits, and won a global award for citizen engagement.
Project Duration
2 years - academyEX
2023 - ongoing
My Role
Brand Design
UX Design
UI Design
LMS Design
Tools
The challenge.
MSD supports hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders, and a huge number of their clients couldn’t apply for jobs, access services, or fully participate in society because they didn’t have basic digital skills.
We needed to create a platform that:
Felt safe and inviting for people with low digital confidence
Represented a wide range of ages, cultures, and abilities
Made learning feel achievable—even fun
Met accessibility and privacy requirements
Delivered a working MVP in just 6 weeks (!)
USER testimonial“Loved the course. Was the best upgrade of skills I could have asked for. Would recommend this to everyone I know.”
Designing Without Direct User Access
Due to privacy restrictions, we couldn’t interview users before launch—but we weren’t designing blind. MSD shared detailed personas, research reports, and goals. After launch, we gathered feedback through surveys, customer service tickets, social media, and email.
What We Learned:
Visual accessibility really matters. Big buttons, plain English, clear navigation.
Representation builds trust. We included translated transcripts and diverse imagery across courses.
Motivation is fragile. Badges, email nudges, certificates and even competitions helped learners stay on track.
Client testimonial“Really amazing to work with.”
That’s what the Ministry of Social Development says about this project delivery team at academyEX. Together, we created Digital Passport, engaging, free and easy accessible learning platform to help New Zealanders develop essential digital and workplace skills. From concept to launch, we delivered the full experience in just six weeks, reaching 13,000 learners and counting.
User-Centered
Design Process.
Design Process.
One of my biggest priorities was to design a learning experience that didn’t feel intimidating. Many of our users hadn’t done formal learning in years (or ever), and they were often nervous about whether they could even “do” online learning. I focused on making things simple, clear, and visually accessible—large fonts, big buttons, plain English, and minimal distractions.
I designed the entire learning experience, including the LMS interface, dashboard, course selection flow, and progression tracking. Users could unlock new courses as they went, and see their badges and achievements build up in their profile. I also did full QA of all course content and UX, working closely with developers to ensure everything worked smoothly across devices.
USER testimonial“I appreciated that the course wasn't just a series of PowerPoint slides. It was presented in a really engaging way.”
Brand Design
Right from the start, it was clear that this couldn’t feel like a government platform. We didn’t want users to feel like they were being monitored or assessed—we wanted it to feel safe, welcoming, and supportive.
I developed the full brand identity for Digital Passport, including the name, logo, colour palette, type system, illustration style, and imagery. I chose a friendly, modern aesthetic with a warm, open tone of voice. We represented a wide range of ages, ethnicities, and abilities in our imagery, and we introduced language options and transcripts to reflect the needs of Māori and Pacific learners in particular.
The goal was to say: “You belong here, and you can do this.”
Example of an ad for Digital Passport.
Nurture Journeys & Retention
Keeping learners engaged was just as important as getting them through the door. Many of our users signed up with great intentions—but needed reminders, encouragement, and support to keep going.
I designed an email nurture journey in Hubspot that followed users from the moment they signed up. It included gentle nudges when people hadn’t started yet, encouragement if they dropped off, and celebrations when they completed a course. We also ran prize draws and giveaways as fun motivators—this helped drive completions without needing a paid marketing budget.
Later, I introduced segmentation to tailor email content to different user groups, which led to a 10% increase in open and click-through rates.
Example of a nurture journey email, encouraging users to continue learning.
USER testimonial“Since I uploaded the badges to my LinkedIn profile, I've noticed a big difference in how I approach job hunting. I feel more confident and organised, which has helped me stand out to potential employers.”
Support Collateral
Outside the platform itself, I also designed all the supporting materials for the project—everything from posters and business cards for MSD offices, to digital signage, onboarding emails, and landing pages for partner promotions.
These assets helped drive awareness and trust in the platform, particularly among MSD clients who were wary of government services or didn’t feel confident accessing online tools.
Example of print and digital collateral for the launch of the AI-Skills course.
Key Learnings.
✅ What We Delivered:
A fully branded, accessible learning platform with clear pathways for Digital, Job-Ready, and AI skills
A custom-designed learning management system that unlocked new courses as users progressed
A user dashboard showing progress, earned badges, and downloadable certificates
An email nurture journey to keep users engaged from sign-up through to completion
Supporting content and assets: brochures, posters, landing pages, social collateral, and competition campaigns
Inclusive content design, with translated transcripts, Māori language options, and diverse visuals throughout
A structured data reporting system that respected user privacy while giving MSD visibility into engagement and success
📊 Results:
13,000+ users joined the platform (160% of target)
763 MSD clients moved off benefit after completing courses
Over 2,100 certificates delivered through My eQuals
Awarded a WSA Global Award for Citizen Engagement and contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals
Email campaigns saw an average 36.8% open rate and 14.8% click-through rate
Feedback showed users felt more confident, employable, and digitally capable after completing the programme
USER testimonial“I really enjoyed the course. It was so well organised and thought out, and I loved that it was presented in both English and Māori.”
Reflections
What I’m proud of:
Honestly, this is one of the most meaningful projects I’ve ever worked on. We built something from the ground up that’s not just functional—it’s genuinely helping people.
I’m proud that we made Digital Passport feel friendly and achievable, especially for people who have been excluded from traditional learning or digital tools. Many of our learners were stepping into a digital environment for the first time, and the fact that they felt confident enough to finish a course (or keep going!) shows that the design is doing its job.
What I’d do differently:
Like any project, there are things I’d tweak if I had the chance. The biggest challenge was not having direct access to users in the early stages due to privacy constraints from MSD. We had to rely on secondary research, which meant making educated assumptions early on—and while most of those paid off, direct insights always make a stronger foundation.
I also would’ve pushed for earlier definition of the course structure. The LMS needed to support a flexible and evolving content model, but early on, we weren’t sure how many levels, steps, or unlock requirements there would be. That created a bit of design guesswork, and we had to adapt as we went.
That said, the team was incredibly agile and collaborative, and we were able to evolve the platform quickly as the content solidified.
What I learned:
The importance of designing for motivation, not just usability—especially with users who’ve had negative experiences with learning in the past
How to build retention loops using plain-English UX copy, progress tracking, and small celebratory moments like badges and competitions
How to navigate large-scale government projects while balancing privacy, accessibility, and scale
That when users feel seen and supported, they’ll come back—on their own terms