Design for Growth

When Groundswell, a platform dedicated to helping HR teams cultivate a culture of employee giving and boost engagement, needed to design their platform, they faced a significant challenge. Their design team was swamped with other projects, and they needed someone to take the helm of their web-based experience. That’s when they brought me in.

• Research: I conducted interviews with users, diving deep into their needs and preferences to ensure that the features and overall experience aligned with their actual goals and day-to-day workflow.
• Design: Building on Groundswell's existing brand standards, I designed an experience that harmonized with their core brand identity. This created a unified and compelling identity that resonated with users at every interaction.

I helped Groundswell create a platform that not only looked and felt cohesive but also effectively supported HR teams in building a culture of giving. The end result was a thoughtfully designed experience that empowered users and aligned perfectly with Groundswell's mission of boosting employee engagement.

The founders of Birchbox had only a strategy and logo, seeking to establish the first-ever cosmetic box subscription service. Despite the novelty of this subscription model and my unfamiliarity with the cosmetic industry, I successfully crafted a high-performing e-commerce experience that not only attracted but also retained a loyal customer base.

• To achieve this, I initiated an extensive research phase, focusing on understanding target personas, examining their purchasing behaviors and preferences both in physical stores and online.
• Equipped with these insights, I meticulously designed the e-commerce platform with a primary objective: to create an engaging and seamless shopping journey that encourages conversions and fosters long-term customer loyalty.
• A significant part of my effort was dedicated to refining the subscription process and sign-up funnels, ensuring they were both user-friendly and captivating, ultimately enhancing the overall customer experience.

Birchbox was valued at $485 million in just 4 years, due in large part to the performance and impact of the meticulously designed experience I crafted.

A global gift card management platform decided to overhaul their frontend with a modern tech stack, aiming to refresh their UX and UI. Over four months, I contributed fresh insights and creativity to this vision.

Key initiatives included:

• UI Redesign: I transformed the platform’s interface into a visually stunning and industry-leading design, incorporating modern principles for both beauty and functionality.
• UX Reimagining: I crafted a more intuitive user experience, simplifying navigation and processes to empower users and encourage deeper engagement.
• Cohesive Brand Experience: I unified the platform's presence across the marketing website, desktop platform, and mobile app, ensuring a seamless and consistent brand interaction.

The project not only updated the platform but also redefined the user experience to align with strategic goals, exceeding user expectations and positioning the platform as a top contender in the industry.

DataWollet, a UK startup, approached me to reinvent their product to stand out in a competitive market in order to grow revenue. Collaborating with the Founder and CTO, we embarked on a transformative journey to realize their vision.

• User Journey Optimization: I streamlined the sign-up and onboarding processes, reducing the number of steps to boost conversion rates and minimize drop-offs, ensuring a seamless user entry.
• UI Redesign: I crafted a new visual identity aligned with their branding, selecting colors, typography, and design elements that resonated with their ethos and attracted their target audience, resulting in a cohesive and attractive interface.
• Enhancing Engagement and Retention: By introducing interactive dashboards, personalized experiences, and intuitive navigation, we increased app interactivity, encouraging users to spend more time on the platform and improving loyalty.

Through user-centric design and innovation, I designed a solution that positioned DataWollet as a market contender and laid a foundation for healthy revenue growth.

Vitacost focuses on healthier living through selling vitamins, supplements, and organic groceries. Although their product selection was excellent, mobile conversion rates were low and revenue was stagnant. They needed an outsider’s perspective and a thorough audit to identify friction points and increase conversions.

• Research: I conducted a comprehensive audit of the core shopping paths, analyzed session recordings, and did an in-depth analytics review. This diligence revealed that improving mobile navigation was a key leverage point.
• Design: I created dozens of concepts for enhancing mobile navigation, along with detailed prototypes used in user testing sessions.
• Optimization: After testing various mobile navigation concepts with real customers and reviewing A/B testing results, I refined the designs to further optimize the mobile navigation.

Just 30 days after launching the new mobile navigation, Vitacost experienced remarkable results from my designs. They saw the largest increase in mobile conversion rates in their history, and mobile-related revenue reached record levels. Shortly thereafter, Kroger purchased Vitacost for $280 million.

When Rayse, a real estate CRM platform, approached me with their vision of connecting agents and clients through powerful insights, I knew I had a challenge ahead that I was eager to tackle. Their goal was to create an experience so seamless and insightful that users would wonder how they ever managed without Rayse. My role? To turn this vision into a tangible, standout product.

• Research: Leveraging my extensive experience in the real estate sector. I conducted interviews with potential users, drew from industry knowledge, and even gained insights from the CEO. The wealth of information I gathered was staggering, providing a foundation to differentiate our product in a crowded marketplace.
• Design: I designed a product that felt both premium and approachable. It was crucial that both agents and clients found it easy to engage with, while still perceiving it as a high-value, top-quality tool.
• Optimization: Armed with feedback from agents, I refined the user experience to align perfectly with their everyday tasks and processes. My focus was on eliminating any friction, ensuring that Rayse wasn't just another tool in their arsenal but an indispensable part of their workflow.

Before the Olympics rolled around, Adidas faced a pressing challenge: how to efficiently share media assets and articles with the press. Before, they were stuck in an outdated system — fielding email requests and using whatever method was handy to upload and share large assets. What we needed was a secure, centralized repository where the press could access the assets at their convenience.

• Research: I sat down with several members of our internal Adidas press team to get a clear picture of their daily workflow and identify ways to streamline and enhance it with the new platform.
• Design: I tapped into the iconic Adidas brand aesthetics, crafting a platform that was both intuitive and efficient. It allowed press members to download assets effortlessly while giving our PR team an easy management experience.
• Refinement: The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Both the press and our internal team were thrilled with the new experience. I fine-tuned the platform even further, automating more of the PR management process.

The project was a resounding success. Just in time for the Olympic buzz, we had a system that everyone—from the press to the PR team—absolutely loved.

When a top-tier training facility for Olympic athletes decided to transition from pen-and-paper to a mobile-based platform, they saw the perfect opportunity to bring me on board. My mission was clear: to craft an experience that was finely tuned to the rigorous demands of an Olympic athlete’s training regimen while delivering robust, real-time analytics for their trainers.

• Design: More than 200 screens were designed to complement their new brand identity. By aligning the design with their brand values, I created a cohesive visual language that resonated with both athletes and trainers alike.
• Design System: The custom Design System I created streamlined both the design and engineering processes, allowing for rapid development and ensuring consistency across the platform.
• Reception: The response from the athletes was overwhelmingly positive. They quickly embraced the mobile app, praising its tailored and intuitive design. Trainers were thrilled with the real-time, intuitive reporting features.

Overall, this project was a testament to the power of thoughtful design and strategic collaboration. By focusing on the unique needs of Olympic athletes and their trainers, we created a platform that not only modernized their workflow but also enhanced the training experience, setting a new standard in athletic performance management.

When an all-in-one safety management product for the construction industry decided to rebuild their platform, they saw it as a golden opportunity to rethink and refresh their UI and UX. They realized, however, that they needed an outsider with fresh perspectives and the right design expertise to truly bring their vision to life. That’s where I came in.

• Brand: My transformation was not just about aesthetics; it was about creating a user interface that perfectly complemented their refreshed brand identity. By aligning the visual design with their brand values, I helped create a cohesive and compelling user experience that resonated with their target audience.
• Design System: Establishing a comprehensive Design System was another critical aspect of my role, which boosted development velocity and consistency across the platform.
• Design: I focused on making the platform more intuitive and easier to navigate, which greatly improved the onboarding process. By creating a more self-serve experience, users could accomplish tasks independently, significantly reducing the need for support center intervention. This not only enhanced user satisfaction but also cut down on operational costs for my client.

Overall, this project was about more than just redesigning a platform; it was about reimagining the entire user experience to better meet the needs of users while aligning with my client's strategic goals. The end result was a modern, efficient, and user-friendly platform that set a new standard in the safety management industry.

When an emerging stealth startup in the mental health space realized they needed a cutting-edge design to compete with industry leaders and attract the right investors, they turned to me. I worked closely with their CEO, CPO, CTO, and engineers to craft a product that could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the leaders in the field.

• Identity: The identity needed to resonate across all platforms—mobile, marketing, social media, and the product itself. This unifying brand presence was essential not only for appealing to users but also for making a strong impression on potential investors.
• Design System: The system I created not only streamlined the design process but also significantly increased both design and engineering velocity.
• Design: The experience was designed to be modern and intuitive, meeting the diverse needs of clinicians, their clients, and clinic managers.
• Strategy: I also played a significant role in shaping the product strategy and pricing model. This holistic approach was key to positioning the startup for success in a challenging market.

I helped the startup not only achieve a standout product but also a strategic foundation that would support long-term growth and sustainability.