Benefits Guide Framework
Pamela Markarian
case study 01 / 04
BENEFITS GUIDE FRAMEWORK
Created an interactive, magazine-quality benefits guide from the ground up, designed to scale annually and maintained across four editions. Extended the design language across related employee publications to keep navigation and hierarchy consistent.
INFORMATION DESIGN • INTERACTIVE PDF • NAVIGATION DESIGN
FIGURE 01 — EMPLOYEE-FACING PUBLICATIONS: Benefits Guide • Open Enrollment Guide • Handbook
scope
Information Architecture • Editorial Design • Data Visualization • Interactive Navigation
CLIENT
Canyon Partners, LLC
(via Syndicatebleu)
scale
4 Annual Editions (2023–2026) • 5 Employee-Facing Publications
Role
Lead Designer • Information Design • Interactive PDF
Section 01 // CONTEXT
design CHALLENGE
Canyon Partners, LLC needed a benefits guide built from the ground up. Instead of iterating on legacy materials, they started with a blank slate, providing raw content and compliance requirements while giving me full latitude to define the structure, navigation, and visual framework.
Organize benefit categories and tiered plan data into a structure employees can navigate without HR support.
Design comparison tables that make complex cost structures scannable at a glance.
Build an interactive PDF with clickable navigation so employees can jump directly to any section.
Maintain visual and structural consistency across four annual editions while adapting to new content each year.
Section 02 // PAGE SYSTEM
INTERACTIVE STRUCTURE
A clickable, branded layout framework that helps employees find answers fast and understand their benefits.
Benefits Guide 2026 — Cover
Branded cover designed to anchor a magazine-quality benefits publication and scale cleanly across annual editions.
Benefits Guide 2026 — Additional Benefits & Interior Spread
Interior spread organizing supplemental benefits — bonding leave, wellness programs, and pet insurance — into a scannable, visually consistent layout.
Benefits Guide 2026 — Scan-First Table of Contents
Organized 28 sections into a scannable, clickable entry point, reducing page-flipping and speeding access to key information.
Open Enrollment Guide 2026 — Enrollment Flow & Action Steps
Three-step enrollment flow — Prepare, Decide, Act — presented alongside plan content to reduce confusion and speed decisions.
Section 03 // APPROACH
Structure-First Methodology
I treated this as a decision-support guide, not a one-off layout. Each year, the content shifted: new programs were added, contribution tiers changed, and sections expanded or consolidated. The design needed to absorb those updates without losing clarity.
The guide began as a Word document with no visual hierarchy or navigation. I rebuilt it as a branded publication with a consistent grid, typographic hierarchy, and interactive PDF functionality. Each annual edition updated cover and interior layouts while keeping the experience familiar and easy to scan. The goal wasn’t just polish, it was to help employees compare options, understand costs, and make informed choices quickly.
↓ WHAT I OWNED
01 LAYOUT FRAMEWORK
Built a layout framework that supports dense tables, long-form program content, and photography across 28+ pages without losing clarity or rhythm.
02 INTERACTIVE NAVIGATION
Designed and produced a clickable table of contents and persistent home icon so employees can jump to any section and return to the TOC from any page.
03 DATA TABLE DESIGN
Structured tiered medical contribution tables, plan comparisons, and rate schedules to be accurate, scannable, and consistent across coverage levels and plan types.
04 ANNUAL UPDATES
Maintained four consecutive editions, updating cover, imagery, and interior layouts each year while keeping the core structure consistent and brand-aligned.
Section 04 // DELIVERABLES
WHAT WAS DELIVERED
● Interactive PDF with clickable TOC, section navigation, and a persistent home icon for quick return.
● Branded layout framework maintained across four annual editions (2023–2026)
● Tiered comparison tables for medical, dental, vision, and voluntary benefits
● Annual cover design refreshes aligned to evolving brand photography
● Production-ready files delivered for firm-wide digital distribution
Section 05 // RESULTS
IMPACT & OUTCOMES
● Adopted as the firm’s annual benefits guide and maintained across four consecutive editions (2023–2026)
● Replaced an unstructured Word document with a navigable, branded publication
● Publications delivered: Benefits Guide • Open Enrollment Guide • Handbook • Code of Ethics • Travel Policy + Guidelines
● Scaled across four annual editions with minimal rework, absorbing new content each year without disrupting navigation
CONFIDENTIALITY NOTE
Select pages have been omitted or redacted to protect employee privacy and proprietary plan information. What’s shown focuses on hierarchy, interactive navigation, and production quality.
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Posted May 30, 2026
Interactive benefits guide designed for Canyon Partners, LLC, maintained across 4 annual editions.
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