Vice President Instructional Design -Solution

Academian Inc; Pune District; On-site; INR 3,000,000 - 6,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Academian Inc. seeks an experienced Head – Learning Design to lead the learning design function across K12, Higher Education, and Workforce Solutions.

You will translate customer educational objectives into scalable, commercially viable learning solutions and guide instructional design and e-learning operations. You will shape strategy, lead needs assessment, drive digital product development, and shepherd programs from concept to measurable outcomes, partnering with product, delivery, and sales

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Education, Instructional Design, Learning Sciences, Educational Technology, Psychology, or related fields.
• An MBA or equivalent qualification is an advantage.
• 20+ years of experience in learning design, instructional design, educational products, e-learning, digital learning, EdTech, or related domains.
• Proven experience leading Learning Design / Instructional Design teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive learning design strategy across K12, Higher Education, and Workforce Solutions.
• Lead needs analysis and solution design with customers and stakeholders.
• Drive digital learning products, content, and learning experiences in collaboration with product and tech teams.
• Provide leadership and mentorship to a high-performing Instructional Design and Learning Design team.
• Collaborate with Sales, Delivery, Product, and Delivery teams to support opportunities and proposals.
• Establish governance, quality standards, and measurable outcomes for learning design.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Stakeholder management

Learning design

Educational technology

AI in learning

Education

Master's in Education

MBA (advantage)

Tools

LMS platforms

AI tools

Job description

We are seeking an experienced and strategic Head – Learning Design to lead the learning design function across K12, Higher Education, and Workforce Solutions. The role will be responsible for translating customer educational and business objectives into effective, scalable, and commercially viable learning solutions.

The incumbent will lead the Learning Design and Instructional Design function, drive strategic solutioning, strengthen learning design methodologies, optimize e-learning processes, and build innovative educational products and experiences. The role requires a strong understanding of learning design, educational products and platforms, digital learning, instructional design, and e-learning operations, combined with the ability to engage with customers and senior stakeholders.

1. Learning Design Strategy

Define and drive the organization's learning design strategy and vision across K12, Higher Education, and Workforce Solutions.

Translate customer educational objectives, learner requirements, and business goals into effective learning strategies.

Establish scalable frameworks, methodologies, and standards for instructional and learning experience design.

Ensure learning solutions are pedagogically sound, learner-centric, technology-enabled, and aligned with intended outcomes.

Continuously identify opportunities to improve the quality, scalability, and effectiveness of learning design.

2. Customer Needs Assessment & Solution Design

Lead comprehensive needs analysis and discovery to understand customer requirements, learner profiles, educational objectives, business challenges, and operational processes.Work closely with customers and internal stakeholders to define learning objectives and solution requirements.

Develop learning solution architectures, design approaches, delivery models, and implementation strategies.

Act as a strategic advisor to customers, providing recommendations on learning design, digital learning, and e-learning solutions.

Ensure the proposed solution is both educationally appropriate and operationally efficient.

3. Educational Products & Platforms

Drive the design and evolution of digital learning products, educational content, learning experiences, and technology-enabled solutions.

Partner with product, technology, content, and delivery teams to translate learning requirements into effective product features and experiences.

Evaluate existing educational products and platforms and identify opportunities for enhancement.

Ensure products are designed for scalability, usability, accessibility, learner engagement, and measurable outcomes.

Contribute to the development of differentiated learning solutions that address emerging market and customer needs.

4. K12, Higher Education & Workforce Solutions

Provide learning design leadership across diverse learner segments and educational environments.

For K12, guide development of age-appropriate, curriculum-aligned, engaging, and outcome-oriented learning experiences.

For Higher Education, drive development of courseware, online programs, digital learning experiences, assessments, and academic solutions.

For Workforce Solutions, design learning journeys and capability-building solutions aligned with organizational and performance objectives.

Ensure design approaches are adapted appropriately to the needs of different learners, institutions, industries, and customers.

5. E-learning Process & Operational Excellence

Establish and optimize end-to-end e-learning processes, from requirements gathering and solution design through development, quality assurance, deployment, and continuous improvement.

Identify opportunities for standardization, automation, reuse, and process optimization.

Improve efficiency without compromising learning quality or customer outcomes.

Establish appropriate workflows, governance mechanisms, review processes, and quality standards.

Use data and operational metrics to identify bottlenecks and improve productivity and delivery predictability.

6. Instructional Design Leadership

Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing Instructional Design and Learning Design team.

Establish competency frameworks, career paths, performance expectations, and capability-building initiatives.

Provide strategic direction and hands‑on guidance for complex and high‑impact learning engagements.

Foster a culture of innovation, research, collaboration, ownership, and continuous improvement.

Build a strong internal knowledge base and promote sharing of design best practices.

Stay abreast of developments in learning science, instructional design, educational technology, AI, digital learning, and emerging pedagogies.

Translate relevant research and market trends into practical learning design approaches.

Explore innovative methodologies including adaptive learning, personalized learning, simulations, scenario-based learning, microlearning, gamification, and AI‑enabled learning.

Encourage experimentation and prototyping to improve learner engagement and outcomes.

Partner with Sales, Business Development, Pre‑sales, Product, and Delivery teams to support new business opportunities.

Lead learning design inputs for proposals, RFPs, client presentations, solution workshops, and demonstrations.

Develop solution approaches, learning architectures, high‑level estimates, and delivery models.

Articulate the value proposition and differentiation of proposed learning solutions to senior customers.

Contribute to identifying new products, services, and revenue opportunities within the learning domain.

9. Stakeholder & Cross‑functional Collaboration

Collaborate closely with customers, academic SMEs, subject matter experts, product teams, technology teams, content teams, delivery teams, and business leadership.

Build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders to ensure alignment between learning objectives, business requirements, and delivery.

Act as the bridge between educational requirements, technology, product, and execution teams.

Ensure effective communication and decision‑making throughout the solution lifecycle.

10. Quality, Governance & Outcomes

Define and monitor learning design, quality standards and governance frameworks.Establish measurable indicators for learning effectiveness, customer satisfaction, learner engagement, productivity, quality, and operational efficiency.

Conduct design reviews and audits for strategic engagements.

Drive continuous improvement based on customer feedback, learner data, quality metrics, and business outcomes.

Act as the single point of contact for clients and internal stakeholders on learning design initiatives.

• Strategic Learning Design
• Instructional Design & Learning Experience Design
• Educational Product Development
• Customer Needs Assessment
• K12 & Higher Education
• Educational Technology & Learning Platforms
• Process OptimizationResearch & Learning Science
• Stakeholder Management
• Business Acumen

Qualifications & Experience

• Master's degree in Education, Instructional Design, Learning Sciences, Educational Technology, Psychology, or related fields. An MBA or equivalent qualification is an advantage.
• 20+ years of experience in learning design, instructional design, educational products, e‑learning, digital learning, EdTech, or related domains.
• Proven experience leading Learning Design / Instructional Design teams.
• Strong experience in designing and delivering learning solutions for one or more of K12, Higher Education, and Workforce/Corporate Learning, with the ability to work across multiple segments.
• Demonstrated experience in customer needs assessment, solution design, and educational product development.
• Strong understanding of e‑learning development processes, learning platforms, digital content, and technology‑enabled learning.
• Experience working with senior customers and cross‑functional leadership teams.
• Exposure to AI‑enabled learning, emerging educational technologies, and modern learning methodologies is highly desirable.

Leadership Profile

• The ideal candidate will be a strategic learning leader, design thinker, and solution consultant who can connect educational objectives with business outcomes and technology.
• The individual should be equally comfortable engaging with customers, defining learning strategy, designing solutions, guiding product development, optimizing processes, and mentoring design teams.
• A strong One‑Team mindset, ownership, customer orientation, research‑driven thinking, and passion for creating meaningful learning experiences will be critical for success in this role.