VP, UX Design Lead
Engagement Location: Columbus, OH

Engagement Goals

Steer a drifting ship

This agile team was not operating with all of its members for quite some time. This lead to the product team dealing with what they had available to them. In that time, some bad habits formed and I was tasked with helping guide the team back to a design-led and process-oriented workflow.

Outcome

Full agile team harmony

We worked to course correct constantly. I placed an emphasis on understanding our users more deeply by designing and conducting a research effort that would provide a baseline understanding for us to build upon while demonstrating the effectiveness of the design process. All while managing the design team and helping facilitate a major team effectiveness workshop.

I served as a design lead, collaborating with writers, researchers, and fellow designers to support a product utilized by bankers for streamlined customer service outside of the teller line. My mandate was to introduce and cement design methodologies that had yet to be embraced by product partners.

Upon assessment, it became evident that the product suffered from deficiencies in its processes. I invested a significant amount of time to comprehend the existing shortcomings, align partner expectations, and facilitate the team's transition to our design-led product methodologies.

Moreover, I led the design team in research initiatives, established a productive work cadence, and provided managerial guidance and coaching to two designers, thereby enhancing their skills and performance.

Tablet Experience Team Lead

Design Process Advocate

Upon my arrival, I was confronted with a multitude of challenges, including entrenched processes, an unclear decision-making hierarchy, absence of a guiding north star, time-sensitive research needs, and the presence of strong personalities. These hurdles posed significant obstacles that demanded careful attention and strategic navigation.

We were a new team

We talk about process to an almost exhausting end. But it is important to get right. Agile workflows are a tool like any other tool we use to achieve our end goal, but wielded incorrectly it can also cause harm. As it was, the process prioritized expanding features and meeting business metrics.

As this was a new product so those priorities made sense. But as the product matures we needed to shift focus to the user experience and make sure we were implementing the correct features in the correct fashion.

The process

Two-day team workshop

I advocated for and helped build a successful team workshop that would help align our expectations, product roadmap, process changes, and demonstrate how these design-led changes will have positive impact.

The implementation of problem statements is a critical practice that enables us to define the issue at hand, identify the desired outcome, pinpoint the obstacles hindering our progress, and determine the metrics for success. This approach is not limited to design, as we aimed to involve the entire team in crafting these statements, promoting transparency and collective brainstorming across all levels.

Implementing problem statements

Research

With the changes above implemented it was time for us to practice our teachings and start the process.

Research

1. Research, design, and content first

Following problem statements the next step is to conduct the research. This is not just the first step in the process, but the first step in demonstrating it's effectiveness.

2. Heavy lift roadmap item

During our team workshop we came together to create a two-year roadmap. With that information we were able to lock down our next big objective, SCHEDULING.

3. Consulted our research partners

We the design team were taking on this lift as the research teams were booked in advanced. This also gave my team, who have not participated in user research interviews, exposure to the topic.

We consulted with our research partners to ensure we were crafting meaningful discussion guides and being as unbiased as possible.

4. Conduct and interpret

I identified our demographic, which were a mix of in branch bankers ranging from associate bankers to multi-branch managers. I made sure to find participants from all regions of the country and variations in tenure.

Consolidated sample