DAU CON TRIO: Cost Accounting Standards
Example Screen Types for CON Trio
Introduction Video
Summary
The CON CAS Trio is a progressive online training series that guides federal acquisition professionals from foundational Cost Accounting Standards concepts through applied interpretation and into advanced compliance scenarios. The content spans CAS fundamentals, real-world application, disclosure statements, practice changes, and cost impact considerations.
From a learner perspective, this is not light material. It is technical, rule-driven, and easy to get lost in if presented poorly. The challenge was to create a unified visual and interaction framework that carried learners across all three courses without increasing cognitive load or making the experience feel repetitive.
By treating the trio as a single connected product rather than three isolated courses, the design emphasized consistency, clarity, and visual storytelling. The result was a cohesive learning experience that supported comprehension, reduced friction, and respected the learner’s time and attention span. No small feat for cost accounting.
Solution
The solution focused on using visual structure as a learning aid rather than decoration. A consistent UI system was applied across all three courses to establish familiarity as learners progressed through increasingly complex material. Graphics and diagrams were designed to make abstract accounting concepts concrete, while animatics were used selectively to show process, flow, and cause-and-effect relationships that are difficult to grasp through text alone.
Content visuals reinforced key ideas without oversimplifying the material, helping learners understand how standards connect, where compliance decisions occur, and why those decisions matter. The approach balanced regulatory precision with visual clarity, ensuring the experience remained credible to subject matter experts while still being approachable for learners.
In short, the courses stopped feeling like three separate rulebooks and started feeling like one intentional learning journey. Still serious content, just delivered without unnecessary pain.
My Role
I led creative direction across the entire CAS Trio and was directly responsible for shaping the overall look and feel of the courses. This included UI and UX design, content graphics, and animatics used to explain complex cost accounting concepts.
I worked closely with instructional design to ensure visuals aligned with learning objectives rather than competing with them. My role sat at the intersection of design and instruction, translating dense regulatory material into visual systems that supported comprehension, consistency, and learner confidence.
In practical terms, I helped turn “read this very carefully” into “oh, that actually makes sense.” Which, in cost accounting, is basically a superpower.