When Dr. Sean Kruger, Doctor of Business Management at UP, introduced Adobe Express into his third-year business management module, his goal was clear: shift student outputs from traditional static documents to dynamic, visually engaging presentations. He says:
“The course’s primary objective is to stimulate creative and innovative thinking within a business context. The emphasis on design thinking and creative problem-solving methods, as outlined in the module, reflects the commitment to providing students with practical tools to prepare them for real-world business challenges. This naturally aligns with the creative capabilities Adobe Express offers.”
Some 300 students from the Chartered Accounting stream undertook a structured, real-world project addressing business challenges faced by Anglo American Platinum.
“Students developed innovative solutions that could address specific operational challenges…the assignment spanned five phases, including strategic analysis, creativity and design thinking, prototyping and concept development, innovation strategy, and a final presentation to industry stakeholders. Over 300 students, working in groups of approximately six, were involved in this assignment.”
The results, measured through a student feedback survey, tell an impressive story. Out of 269 responding students, approximately 87% rated Adobe Express as easy or very easy to learn and use, highlighting its intuitive interface even for those without graphic design experience.
“Through engagements with the University’s Future of Work initiative, the Economic and Management Sciences Department was selected for a pilot project in collaboration with Learning Curve, involving a coordinated group of students.”
Students were effusive in praising the experience:
“Using Adobe Express helped us visually organise key EMS concepts through engaging infographics, which made complex information easier to understand. It also improved our final artefact by allowing us to create a more professional and visually appealing presentation that captured the main ideas clearly.”
“The final artefact looked way more professional than it would with traditional tools. It demands the attention of anyone who comes across it as it is eye-catching.”
Creativity was another significant win. Nearly 39% of students said Adobe Express helped them present their business ideas more creatively than traditional tools. At the same time, 56% of students explicitly mentioned in their qualitative feedback that Adobe Express positively improved their final outputs or understanding of the material. Feedback consistently emphasised how easy it was to use Adobe Express and how it facilitated through creative infographics, graphic design elements, and AI-generated imagery.
Dr. Kruger’s observations align closely with the data. He noted increased enthusiasm, deeper engagement, and heightened creativity among students, showing that when a tool such as Adobe Express is well integrated, it can enhance their understanding and professional presentation capabilities.
According to Dr. Kruger, the tool allowed students to showcase how they turned their ideas intocompelling narratives, significantly enhancing the quality of their final artefacts. He says:
“Students leveraged graphic design capabilities, creative infographics, AI-generated imagery, and compelling storytelling, resulting in clear and professional presentations.”
Dr. Kruger adds that integrating Adobe Express offered enhanced outcomes over existing methods. The partnership with Learning Curve supported the students in preparing them for the future world of work.
The students, for their part, were delighted with various aspects of the experience. Approximately 8% of students specifically praised Adobe Express for its infographic and graph-making features, highlighting the value of visual representation in their projects. Nearly 13% of students explicitly mentioned that Adobe Express improved clarity and ease in visually organising or presenting their ideas and information.
Over 15% of students explicitly noted in their qualitative feedback that Adobe Express significantly improved the professionalism of their presentations.
Approximately 9% of students gave Adobe Express the highest possible rating (5 out of 5) for ease of use, indicating exceptional intuitiveness and user-friendliness.
Even more students confirmed their glowing impressions of the tool:
“Adobe Express helped me mainly with designing the report and making it look professional with backgrounds, icons, colours, and images. Visual effects are easy to generate on the platform.”
“It helped me to visually organise key concepts through graphs and the layout.”
Conclusion
Ultimately, the data and narrative from this module clearly show how educational technology like Adobe Express can substantially enrich business education, equipping students with the creative and professional skills essential for today’s dynamic workplace.