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9 min read . Sep 27, 2024

TL;DR:

The Deal Manager platform, built to streamline Corporate Trust operations, was initially a disjointed, inefficient tool that struggled to meet user needs. By leading collaborative workshops, synthesizing key insights, and introducing a design system, I helped reshape the platform’s experience. This effort resulted in a 78% boost in user adoption and a 63% reduction in time-to-completion, making Deal Manager an indispensable asset for internal teams.

Company

BNY Mellon

Year, Time

2022, 8 mos.

My Role

UX Lead

The What & The Why

Deal Manager is the core platform for managing Corporate Trust workflows—from onboarding new deals to servicing and eventually closing them. With over 400 features, it was built to handle complex financial tasks, but its disconnected systems and frustrating user experience were holding it back.

As I took the reins, I noticed that we were dealing with a platform that was overly complex, scattered across various siloed applications, and didn’t provide the level of efficiency or transparency that users needed. There was no clear system unifying client tasks, and the experience lacked consistency. My focus was to lead a complete overhaul—redefining user journeys, modernizing the design, and ensuring the platform aligned with both user and business goals.

This was a platform in need of serious transformation, not just a facelift.

Key Challenges:

Disjointed systems that required re-keying across multiple platforms.
Fast system timeouts, causing data loss.
Lack of autonomy for users to make simple changes.
Manual updates and workarounds for processes like approvals and ticklers.
High turnover rates led to inefficiency, as training took significant time.
Frequent system errors and bugs impacting data integrity.

The How

Cross-Functional Planning: Setting the Stage for Success

Before diving into the Design Sprints, I collaborated closely with the Product Manager Director and Program Managers to establish a framework for Discovery and Visioning. These early discussions were critical in aligning our goals and timelines. I negotiated for dedicated time to conduct user research and define the product vision, ensuring we weren’t jumping straight into design without understanding the core challenges.

This collaborative approach ensured that the entire team—across design, product, and engineering—was aligned on priorities and ready to move forward with clear objectives. It allowed us to approach the Design Sprints with a robust understanding of user needs and a long-term strategy for the platform.

Project Roadmap

Collaborative Design Thinking

To tackle the challenges, I facilitated Design Thinking Workshops, engaging a cross-functional team from Corporate Trust, Engineering, and Operations. Over four sprints, we not only redefined the product strategy but also gathered input from subject matter experts and users via 1:1 interviews about the deal management lifecycle, ensuring our redesign directly addressed real-world pain points.

Ops Personnel

Conversions

Sales

Workshops

1:1 Discovery

Hours

120

Virtual Workshops using smaply

FigJam boards with Interview Data

Persona - Client Service Manager

Persona - Global Conversion Specialist

Current State Journey Map

From Findings to Action

Synthesis

Published key issues

Published key improvements

Identified Opportunities

From
DESIGNED AROUND ACCOUNTS, NOT PEOPLE

Deal Manager is positioned as to be the workstation for internal ops managing clients, but in reality it’s operations staff are using the platform to manage tasks for deals. Currently, there is not a holistic aggregation of a client’s deal life cycle in one place.

To
NETWORKED VIEWS

Corporate Trust Executive Committee and Client Advisory Board seek to have an experience that can map the network of a client - from their individual profile - to each of their deals - to centers of influence.

From
CONTINUOUS COGNITIVE LOAD

The ever-evolving platform is confusing to navigate and complex to learn. The cognitive load required to complete tasks, hunt through dropdown menus, and keep track of isolated tabs makes the experience taxing and off-putting.

To
SIMPLIFYING CHOICE

By prioritizing functionality, features and removing low-value sections based on role, we can offer a more intuitive experience that’s easier to navigate using human language vs. technical internal language.

From
LACK OF CONSISTENT DESIGN

Deal Manager lacks a unifying visual language across core platforms and the UI appears dated and ill considered by today’s standards. These fractures in layouts, typography, and visual elements reflect poorly on BNY’s brand.

To
DESIGN LANGUAGE SYSTEM

Creating a design language system that creates a software ready toolkit of consistent and best-in class quality guidelines, templates, patterns, modules, components and design elements that are easy and fast to implement.

Product Visioning and Personalized Wireframes

Leveraging these insights, we shifted to Product Visioning, where we created wireframes that centered on personalized user experiences. These initial designs were validated with the same users who participated in discovery sessions, ensuring our direction aligned with real user needs.

Wireframes by Persona

Building the Design System and UI Toolkit

To streamline design efforts, we established a Design Language, incorporating a content strategy and interaction guidelines. This work culminated in a UI toolkit within Figma, which expedited the design process, providing reusable components and accelerating design throughput across teams.

Screenshots from UI Kit

High-Fidelity Prototyping

In the final phase, we developed high-fidelity prototypes for multiple future-state user journeys. These prototypes brought our vision to life and demonstrated how the personalized experiences and new UI would function in real-world scenarios.

High Fidelity Prototype

The Results

78% increase in adoption.

87 SUS score for usability.

63% reduction in time-to-completion for key tasks.

What I learned...

Leading this project was a powerful lesson in balancing innovation with practicality. Creating a user-centered platform required close collaboration across teams and continuous iteration. We didn’t just build a product; we shifted the way our teams approached design and problem-solving. I learned that simplifying user choices, maintaining a consistent design language, and embedding research into the heart of product development can transform both user experience and business impact. This project solidified the importance of keeping the end user front and center at every stage of the design process.