Learning design is currently slanted to reflect a course-based approach to learning. This article explores whether the concept of learning design could be applied to support the informal aspects of work-based learning (WBL). It also discusses the characteristics of WBL and presents a WBL-specific learning design that highlights the key features and requirements of the learning design according to a business process structure. A technical analysis of IMS Learning Design (IMS-LD) against the identified requirements is presented, which reveals that while IMS-LD meets most of the requirements, some changes in the specification and tools are necessary for supporting WBL-specific learning design. (Contains 1 figure.)