Instructional Design · Articulate Storyline 360 · Branching Scenario · JavaScript Integration
The High-Risk Offboarding —
A Compliance Scenario for HR & IT Leaders
A corporate instructional design portfolio piece following the full design process — needs analysis, learning objectives, content map, and a Storyline 360 branching scenario with custom JavaScript-generated audit reporting.
The Problem
One misstep costs millions — and most teams don't train for it
When a senior employee with privileged system access is terminated, organizations face two simultaneous threats: a data security window and a legal liability window. Most compliance training addresses these as separate policy topics — a list of steps to memorize, not decisions to practice.
The cost of getting it wrong is measurable. A malicious insider breach costs an average of $4.99 million and takes 292 days to contain. A single mishandled conversation can trigger wrongful termination litigation worth hundreds of thousands in legal fees — before a verdict is reached.
This module was designed to close that gap — placing HR Managers and IT Directors inside a high-stakes offboarding scenario where every decision has a tracked, realistic consequence.
$4.99M
Average Malicious Insider Breach Cost
IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2024
292 days average containment timeline
Articulate Storyline 360 · JavaScript
Design Process
From business problem to branching scenario
Following the full instructional design process — analysis, objectives, content map, build, and evaluation planning.
Needs Analysis
Identified the performance gap and root cause before writing a single objective. The financial and legal exposure from poor offboarding execution is a knowledge and skill gap — not a policy awareness problem. Scenario-based practice was the right intervention.
Learning Objectives
Four objectives written to Bloom's Taxonomy — progressing from sequencing access revocation (Application) through applying compliant conversation techniques (Application) to interpreting a dynamic audit report (Analysis).
Content Map
A full 14-slide content map documented before building — mapping each decision point, branching path, variable trigger, consequence screen, and debrief to specific learning objectives.
Branching Architecture
Three decision points track distinct risk categories: data security (access timing), legal compliance (conversation tone), and chain of custody (hardware retrieval). Wrong answers produce realistic consequence screens with sourced financial data — not grade penalties.
JavaScript Integration
Four Storyline variables — isAccessRevoked, conversationTone, hardwareSecured, and riskScore — are read by a custom JavaScript trigger at the end of the module. The trigger generates a dynamic, personalized Offboarding Audit Report based on the learner's exact decision path.
Source Content Synthesis
Consequence screens and dialogue are grounded in real industry data synthesized via NotebookLM — IBM breach cost figures, SHRM employment law guidelines, and IT security deprovisioning protocols. The $4.99M figure and 292-day containment timeline are sourced, not invented.
Storyline Module
Take the Scenario
A branching Storyline 360 scenario — three decisions, real consequences, and a JavaScript-generated audit report personalized to your exact decision path.
Learning Design
Objectives written to Bloom's Taxonomy
The four learning objectives follow a deliberate Bloom's Taxonomy progression — three at the Application level (sequencing, communicating, executing) and one at Analysis (interpreting the audit report output). All four tie directly to measurable on-the-job performance, not policy recall.
The most common failure mode in high-risk offboarding isn't ignorance of policy — it's sequence and tone. HR Managers know they need to revoke access. They don't always know that the 15-minute window before the meeting is when the breach happens. Decisions 1 and 2 are designed specifically to build that judgment.
The JavaScript audit report at the end of the module connects all three decisions to a single financial exposure figure — making the consequence of each choice concrete and cumulative.
Sequence access revocation and meeting timing
Application — prevent the data exfiltration window
Apply legally compliant conversation techniques
Application — reduce wrongful termination exposure
Execute hardware retrieval protocol
Application — maintain chain of custody
Interpret a post-offboarding risk audit
Analysis — evaluate decision quality and financial exposure
Branching Architecture
Three Decisions. Nine Paths.
Every choice triggers a variable update and routes to a distinct consequence or confirmation screen before converging at the JavaScript-generated audit report.
Instructional Arc
14 Slides. 3 Decisions. 1 Audit Report.
Each slide maps to a deliberate phase — Hook, Setup, Decision, Consequence, or Debrief — moving the learner from framing to action to personalized reflection.
| # | Phase | Slide Title | Content Summary | Interaction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hook | The High-Risk Offboarding | Role framing, stakes line, single CTA to begin. | Title card, Begin button |
| 2 | Setup | Meet Marcus Webb | Senior DevOps Engineer, 8 years, root access to GitHub, AWS, and all client databases. Meeting in 30 minutes. | Character card with image |
| 3 | Decision | Decision 1: Access Timing | It's 9:00 AM. Meeting at 9:30. What do you do first? Three choices: conference room, email IT, or coordinate simultaneous revocation. | Branching multiple choice — sets isAccessRevoked + riskScore |
| 4 | Consequence | Consequence: Data Breach | Marcus forks 47 repos from his phone during the meeting. DATA BREACH ALERT — $4.99M average cost, 292-day containment. | Consequence screen — Try Again |
| 5 | Consequence | Consequence: Email Warning | IT email unread. Access window stays open through the meeting. | Warning screen — proceed with elevated riskScore |
| 6 | Decision | Access Synchronized | IT confirms 9:30 AM revocation. Correct deprovisioning order displayed: IdP/SSO → AWS → GitHub → VPN → API tokens → Slack/Email → Badge. | Confirmation screen — proceed |
| 7 | Decision | Decision 2: The Conversation | Marcus enters. He's tense. Three conversation openers — aggressive, legally compliant, or vague and reversible. | Branching multiple choice — sets conversationTone + riskScore |
| 8 | Consequence | Consequence: Legal Retaliation | Marcus challenges the reason. No documentation exists. Vague justification reads as pretext. ATTORNEY LETTER — $180,000 claim. | Consequence screen — Try Again |
| 9 | Decision | Correct: Compliant Conversation | Marcus is upset but composed. Severance signed. | Confirmation screen — proceed |
| 10 | Consequence | Consequence: Ambiguity Risk | Marcus leaves uncertain. No severance signed. Attorney follow-up three days later. | Warning screen — proceed with elevated riskScore |
| 11 | Decision | Decision 3: Hardware Retrieval | Marcus says he left his laptop at his desk. Collect now or allow drop-off tomorrow? | Branching multiple choice — sets hardwareSecured + riskScore |
| 12 | Decision | Hardware Secured | Device collected, serial numbers documented, forensic hold initiated for 90 days. | Confirmation screen — proceed to audit |
| 13 | Consequence | Consequence: Chain of Custody Broken | Laptop returned next day. Forensic imaging inadmissible. Evidence of exfiltration cannot be used in legal proceedings. | Consequence screen — proceed to audit |
| 14 | Debrief | Offboarding Audit Report | JavaScript reads all four variables and generates a personalized audit report — color-coded risk level, decision log, financial exposure estimate, and pass/fail per category. | JavaScript trigger — dynamic output |
Technical Design
Variables + JavaScript
Four Storyline variables track every decision. A custom JavaScript trigger reads them at the end and generates a dynamic audit report — no two learners see the same output.
| Variable | Type | Default | Tracks |
|---|---|---|---|
| isAccessRevoked | True/False | False | Whether access was revoked before the meeting |
| conversationTone | Number | 0 | 0 = compliant, 1 = vague/risky, 2 = aggressive |
| hardwareSecured | True/False | False | Whether hardware was collected during the meeting |
| riskScore | Number | 0 | Cumulative risk score — increments at each wrong decision |
// Audit Report trigger — fires on Slide 14 timeline start
const player = GetPlayer();
const accessRevoked = player.GetVar("isAccessRevoked");
const tone = player.GetVar("conversationTone");
const hardware = player.GetVar("hardwareSecured");
const risk = player.GetVar("riskScore");
// Generates personalized audit output based on all four variablesProcess Artifacts
Full ID Process. Documented.
This project follows a complete instructional design process — analysis through evaluation. Download the artifacts below.
Design Document
Needs analysis, objectives, content map, branching logic, variable reference
Storyboard
Slide-by-slide script, branching logic, dialogue, and variable triggers
Style Guide
Colors, typography, tone, animation standards, and variable reference
Results
- 01
Completed a full end-to-end portfolio piece — needs analysis through deployed Storyline module — without a client brief, demonstrating independent design judgment.
- 02
Custom JavaScript audit report generates a unique debrief for each of nine possible decision paths, personalizing the learning experience without requiring additional slides.
- 03
Financial consequence framing sourced from IBM's 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report grounds learner decisions in real organizational stakes rather than abstract compliance language.
- 04
Module is live, publicly accessible, and has been reviewed by hiring managers and recruiters as part of active job applications in corporate L&D.
Learnings & Next Steps
- 01
Consequence realism matters more than consequence severity. Sourced financial figures ($4.99M, $180K) created more learner engagement than generic penalty language in early reviews.
- 02
JavaScript in Storyline requires careful variable scoping — early builds had audit report inconsistencies when variables weren't reset between attempts. Solved with explicit reset triggers on slide entry.
- 03
Next iteration would add a downloadable PDF audit report so learners leave with a personalized reference artifact tied to their exact decision path.
- 04
A facilitator guide and job aid pairing this module with a live debrief session would extend its value for organizations running manager onboarding cohorts.