UI Redesign: Online Programs

The Challenge

When the pandemic forced Wharton Executive Education to shift from campus-based programs to virtual learning rapidly, their website couldn’t keep pace. The organization needed to launch live synchronous online programs while maintaining their existing asynchronous offerings — but their digital infrastructure wasn’t designed to support both.

My Role

I led this project from strategy through implementation, taking responsibility for information architecture, timeline management, design execution, and WordPress development. My approach combined quantitative insights from Google Analytics with qualitative understanding from heatmap analysis to identify both user behavior patterns and content pain points.

What I Uncovered

The existing site structure created three critical problems:

• Fragmented content
  Online program information lived across multiple sections, creating a confusing experience for prospective students and potential SEO penalties from duplicate content.
• Maintenance burden
  The scattered architecture made it nearly impossible for the content team to keep information current across all touchpoints.
• Lack of differentiation
  Users couldn’t distinguish between three distinct offerings: Wharton LIVE (synchronous individual programs), online certificates (asynchronous third-party programs), and custom organizational solutions (hybrid delivery).

The Solution

I proposed consolidating all online learning into a dedicated section with clear hierarchical organization:

• Created a hub page serving as the gateway to all online programs
• Developed dedicated pages for each program type with distinct positioning
• Designed custom iconography to support visual navigation and reinforce program differentiation
• Migrated content from scattered locations into the new structure, with other site sections linking to this centralized online hub

Impact

The reorganized structure received positive feedback from both internal teams and prospective students. The consolidation simplified content management, improved user clarity, and created a scalable foundation for future program launches.