What ISDI does

ISDI (International Service Design Institute) is a privately held education and training company founded in 2015 and headquartered in Tampa, Florida, by Steven J. Slater and Naomi Lantzman. The company offers a proprietary sequential learning curriculum in service design, organized as three progressively advanced online courses — The Apprentice, The Journeyman, and The Master — supported by reference handbooks, independently verifiable certifications, and complementary products such as a Service Design Models, Tools and Templates compendium and a non-profit-focused book. Its proprietary e-learning platform supports company branding and custom content insertion and is available as an annual license to organizations, alongside Workshops-in-a-Box annual kits sold to trainers and training departments. The platform is delivered as self-paced online courses with video, diagrams, templates, and case studies, with consulting services (user research, personas, service blueprints, touchpoint plans, prototyping, diagnostics, recovery) offered by the hour or project via Calendly. Revenue is generated from a mix of one-time course and bundle sales to individuals ($57-$299.50), recurring annual enterprise licensing of the e-learning platform and Workshops-in-a-Box, employer assessments, and professional services consulting. Customer segments span individual professionals pursuing service design credentials, corporate training departments and HR, third-party trainers reselling workshops, and historically enterprise clients in aerospace, defense, automotive, energy, hospitality, healthcare, and U.S. government. The company is bootstrapped, with no disclosed external investors or funding rounds, and operates globally through its e-commerce storefront.

Name

ISDI

Legal name

International Service Design Institute, Inc.

Website

https://internationalservicedesigninstitute.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ISDI is a privately held, bootstrapped education company that teaches service design through a proprietary three-tier online curriculum (Apprentice, Journeyman, Master), supported by certifications, handbooks, and an enterprise-licensed e-learning platform, serving individual professionals, trainers, and organizations globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Education and Training

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Training Delivery Providers (In-Person, Virtual, Train-the-Trainer) (BPACANAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Train-the-Trainer & Instructor Enablement Services (BPAEANAL)

Keywords

• Service design education
• Professional certification programs
• Online learning courses
• Employee training solutions
• Service design consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Tampa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Online Course Sales: Individual online courses sold directly to learners. Courses include The Apprentice ($57), The Journeyman ($57), and The Master ($156.50). Self-paced, 2-4 hours per course.
2. Course & Certification Bundles: Bundled offerings combining courses with assessments and certifications. Examples include Apprentice Course & Certification ($89), Journeyman Bundle ($149), and Master Bundle ($299.50).
3. Reference Handbooks: Standalone books or complementary to online courses. Pricing from $37 to $47. Covers content including Service Design Models, Tools & Templates ($37.25).
4. E-Learning Platform Licensing: Annual licenses for organizations to access the complete online course platform. Includes unlimited access to three courses for employee training. Can be company-branded.
5. Workshops-in-a-Box: Annual license for trainers to conduct workshops. Complete kits with step-by-step teaching guides, training videos, moderator guides, and instructional materials for service design topics.
6. Consulting Services: Service Design consulting offered by project or by the hour. Services include user research, personas, blueprints, touchpoint planning, prototyping, and service recovery.
7. Employer Assessments: Standard off-shelf assessments aligned to three-tiered courses for employee competency evaluation, performance measurement, and new employee screening. Custom assessments available.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ISDI sells a sequential, three-level service design curriculum (The Apprentice, The Journeyman, The Master) delivered as self-paced online courses, paired with reference handbooks and independently registered professional certifications. Beyond individual learning, the company licenses its e-learning platform to organizations, sells Workshops-in-a-Box training kits to trainers, offers employer competency assessments, and provides service design consulting by project or by the hour.

Product overview

ISDI offers a sequential learning system for service design education consisting of three progressive online courses—The Apprentice, The Journeyman, and The Master—each available as standalone online courses or bundled with corresponding reference handbooks and certification assessments. The core offering includes three certification levels tied to course completion. Additional products include the Service Design Models, Tools and Templates reference handbook, the Be Relevant! book for non-profits, Workshops-in-a-Box training kits for trainers, a licensed e-learning platform for organizations, and employer assessment tools. All products are focused on teaching service design techniques including personas, journey maps, service blueprints, touchpoints, prototyping, and service recovery.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Apprentice Online Course Entry-level, self-paced online course (6 modules, 2-4 hours) covering service design fundamentals including service concepts, service evaluations, personas, and developing user loyalty. Part 1 of ISDI's sequential learning series. Priced at $57.
• The Journeyman Online Course Mid-level, self-paced online course (six modules) covering service ideation, journey maps, service blueprints, and touchpoints. Part 2 of ISDI's sequential learning series. Priced at $57.
• The Master Online Course Advanced, self-paced online course covering service prototyping, feedback data management, measuring user experiences, diagnosing failing services, and service recovery. Part 3 of ISDI's sequential learning series. Priced at $156.50.
• Service Design Models, Tools and Templates Print reference handbook compiling techniques from the Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master handbooks, with case studies and practical-use guides. Priced at $37.25 (reduced from $55.50).
• Be Relevant! How Brands Rise to the Top Using Service Design (Non-Profit Edition) Book focused on helping non-profit organizations apply service design to earn non-dues revenue and remain relevant. Priced at $34.50.
• ISDI Certification Program Three-tier certification (Apprentice, Journeyman, Master) awarded upon successful completion of the corresponding courses and assessments. Certificates are independently registered and verifiable on the ISDI website.
• Workshops-in-a-Box Turnkey workshop kits for trainers and training departments to conduct engaging service design training sessions. Includes group exercises, discussion topics, moderator guides, and instructional materials. Sold as annual licenses.
• ISDI E-Learning Platform License Proprietary online learning platform available for annual license to organizations. Includes company-branding customization, custom content insertion, and the ability to award registered certifications. Includes unlimited access to three courses for employee training.
• Employer Assessments Service design competency assessments for employers to evaluate employee skills, measure performance, and screen new hires. Available as standard off-shelf assessments aligned to the three-tier courses or as customized company-based assessments.
• Service Design Consulting Services Service design consulting offered by project or by the hour, led by co-founder Steven J. Slater. Services include User Market Research, Creating Personas, Service Design Blueprint, Touchpoint Plan, Service Prototyping, Diagnosing Failing Services, and Building a Service Recovery Plan. Scheduled via Calendly.

Quantifiable outcome

• $2 billion+ in traceable revenue generated by co-founder through service design work
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Nielsen Norman Group: NN/g sells UX training, certifications, and live workshops led by named practitioners, often priced as multi-day training engagements. It overlaps with ISDI on certifications, training delivery, and enterprise training buyers in the UX/service design space.
• Designlab: Designlab offers online UX and UI courses with mentor-led projects and certificates aimed at career switchers. It is a comparable self-paced design school with a similar consumer-pricing model and certification structure.
• IDEO U: IDEO U is the online education arm of design firm IDEO, offering self-paced and cohort courses in design thinking, storytelling, and service design. It is the closest direct peer to ISDI because both sell practitioner-led, design-focused online courses and certificates to individuals and corporate learners.
• UX Design Institute: UX Design Institute delivers university-accredited online UX and design certificates with cohort-based online programs. It overlaps with ISDI on the certificate-driven online learning motion in design fields.
• Interaction Design Foundation: IxDF offers self-paced online courses, certifications, and member content in UX, interaction design, and service design at consumer price points. It mirrors ISDI's e-learning storefront and certification model while operating at significantly larger scale.
• CareerFoundry: CareerFoundry sells self-paced UX and design mentorship programs with career-change positioning and certification outcomes. It competes for the same individual learners seeking design credentials that ISDI targets with its Apprentice/Journeyman/Master tiers.

Broad incumbents

• Frog Design: Frog is a global design and engineering consultancy that runs proprietary learning programs for clients in service design and innovation. It is comparable to ISDI on the consulting and training side, but as a much larger, broader incumbent.
• General Assembly: General Assembly runs bootcamps, short courses, and corporate training in UX, product, and design. It overlaps with ISDI's individual learner and corporate training motion but operates as a much broader, multi-discipline incumbent.

Others

• IxDA: IxDA is the global Interaction Design Association running conferences, local events, and community programming for designers. It is adjacent to ISDI in that it serves the same practitioner community but competes for learning dollars via events rather than courses.

Emerging players

• Service Design Network: SDN is the global industry body for service design, hosting conferences, member chapters, and a Service Design qualification. It is a peer in that it advances service design as a profession and competes indirectly for service designers' learning budgets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/InServiceDesign
• Facebookfacebook.com/InternationalServiceDesignInstitute
• Instagraminstagram.com/servicedesigninstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-service-design-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ISDI