UX Research – DANFORTH

Case Study: Shaping Crypto Innovation for Schwab

How can a trusted financial institution like Schwab innovate in the rapidly evolving world of cryptocurrency while maintaining its credibility and regulatory alignment?

As Schwab’s leadership grappled with how to approach the crypto market, they were facing substantial outflows, losing hundreds of millions of dollars each month as investors turned to competitors for crypto investments. They needed a strategy that would recapture these investors while preserving their reputation for trustworthiness and regulatory adherence. I led research for an initiative within Schwab’s Innovation Accelerator to explore whether, how, and to what extent they should enter the crypto space. Through in-depth market analysis, investor research, and strategic ideation, we developed a path forward to provide Schwab with a competitive edge without undermining the brand’s core values.

In collaboration with the Innovation Accelerator team, I provided crucial decision-making insights, revealing the mindsets of both existing Schwab clients investing in crypto elsewhere and crypto-focused investors not yet using Schwab. Our evaluation of key competitors such as Fidelity and Robinhood informed a risk-reward analysis for various entry strategies. Beyond a direct crypto offering, we identified a valuable opportunity for Schwab to enhance its position by providing advanced decision-making tools—offering investors clarity while aligning with Schwab’s trusted brand image.

Results Snapshot:

Key Market Opportunity Uncovered: Our research identified a major opportunity for Schwab to provide advanced decision-making tools for crypto-curious investors, bridging the gap between the brand’s trusted reputation and the growing interest in cryptocurrency.
Data-Driven Insights for Executive Decision-Making: Provided Schwab leadership with comprehensive data on crypto investor mindsets, including both existing clients investing in crypto elsewhere and new investor segments. This data was crucial for evaluating market entry options.
Competitive Analysis for Strategic Differentiation: Offered an in-depth comparison of competitors like Fidelity and Robinhood, highlighting the risks and rewards of various entry strategies. Schwab’s competitive edge was tied to a differentiated platform focused on credible, robust decision-making tools.
Positioning Schwab for Strategic Growth: Our work provided a comprehensive strategy that positioned Schwab as a forward-thinking leader in the crypto space, offering a path to maintain brand trust while exploring new market opportunities.

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Case Study: Redesigning Job Budget Allocation for Indeed’s Enterprise Employers

How do you increase user trust in an automated system they don’t understand?

Indeed Enterprise was facing a growing problem. Employer clients were increasingly frustrated with the lack of transparency in a recently implemented automated payment allocation algorithm. The behind-the-scenes process distributed funds to job postings based on market conditions and other metrics. While well-intended to help employers maximize the value of Indeed’s advanced job market advertising model, users didn’t trust the system. Many employers bypassed the algorithm entirely, manually allocating funds per job, which led to inefficiencies, misaligned priorities, and mounting dissatisfaction.

As Senior UX Researcher, I led research for a redesign initiative to address these concerns, focusing on creating a more transparent, user-centered solution. Through in-depth user research and iterative prototyping, we developed a system that empowered employers with greater control over job postings’ budget allocation. The new solution not only increased user engagement and trust in the algorithm, but also shaped the product roadmap for future enterprise clients.

Results Snapshot:

Higher User Engagement: Clients who adopted the new workflow reported greater confidence and efficiency in managing job priorities and budget allocation, resulting in better overall platform satisfaction.
Increased Trust in Algorithm: The added transparency and control features significantly improved trust in the automated system, leading to higher adoption rates.
Strategic Product Influence: The success of this project directly shaped the future direction of Enterprise product strategy, influencing key roadmap decisions.
Model for User-Centered Design: The initiative was widely recognized internally as a benchmark for applying user-centered design principles, setting a new standard for the organization.

Case Study: Transforming Merck’s Chronic Illness Research Through Design Thinking

Can design thinking methodologies uncover new opportunities for patient engagement while ensuring innovation readiness for senior teams?

In an effort to engage patients more deeply with the Merck brand and explore new digital opportunities, I led a design thinking initiative focused on chronic illness research. The project aimed to mitigate the risk of Merck’s pharmaceuticals losing exclusivity to generics by identifying digital solutions that would enhance patient engagement. This initiative was also part of a broader digital transformation to build digital acumen across the organization. The challenge was twofold: develop patient-centered digital solutions while guiding senior team members to embrace new methodologies and strategies.

As a design thinking coach, I introduced the team to the Design Thinking model, guiding senior product and marketing leaders through iterative research processes. Together, we uncovered actionable insights into patient behaviors and attitudes, enabling Merck to explore new health-tech solutions that aligned with patient expectations and extended the value of their pharmaceutical offerings.

Results Snapshot:

Identified Health-Tech Opportunities: The research uncovered areas where Merck could introduce digital health solutions that aligned with the needs of chronic illness patients and physicians, extending their engagement beyond traditional pharmaceuticals.
Leadership Empowerment with New Methodologies: Senior market researchers and product leaders gained hands-on experience with design thinking and new digital research methods, which helped them adopt more innovative approaches across other initiatives.
Paved the Way for Future Digital Initiatives: The project laid the groundwork for future patient engagement strategies, positioning Merck to explore further digital transformations in the healthcare space.

Case Study: Enhancing Wawa’s Self Serve Kiosk for New Dinner Options

How can Wawa introduce new dinner options while ensuring an intuitive, high-quality ordering experience for customers in both established and new markets?

As Wawa expanded into new markets and introduced a dinner menu, the company faced unique challenges: maintaining their reputation for high-quality, made-to-order food, and overcoming the negative connotations associated with traditional gas station fare. Additionally, Wawa needed to enhance the functionality of their self-serve kiosks and mobile app to support these new dinner options, while making the ordering experience smoother and more intuitive for users.

I was engaged as a UX Research Consultant, drawing on my expertise in customer research and menu taxonomy to help Wawa tackle these issues. Our goal was to refine the kiosk and mobile app experience, using qualitative and quantitative methods to gather insights into customer behavior, and ultimately improve both satisfaction and order completion rates.

Results Snapshot

Optimized Menu Taxonomy: Streamlined the ordering process by revising the dinner menu structure and improving overall navigation.
Improved User Satisfaction: Real user feedback drove enhancements that boosted customer satisfaction with the kiosk and mobile app experience.
Actionable Insights: Delivered key findings on user preferences, helping Wawa introduce new offerings while maintaining brand consistency across markets.

Case Study: Streamlining Carton Tracking Workflows for Enhanced Efficiency

How do you transform a legacy logistics system into an efficient, user-centered platform without major infrastructure overhauls?

PCSTrac, a carton tracking solution for online retailers, had proven its value in core functionality but was hindered by a cumbersome user interface and workflow inefficiencies. Although technically robust, users often relied on time-consuming workarounds that slowed down operations. My role was to collaborate with senior engineers to bring a user-centered perspective, aligning design improvements with the existing technical constraints of the legacy platform.

Through contextual inquiries, persona development, and usability testing, I led the research that informed both workflow optimizations and interface redesigns. The project resulted in more streamlined processes that significantly improved user satisfaction and system usability. Additionally, the PCSTrac team embraced user-centered design principles, applying these to future product development.

Results Snapshot:

Balanced Technical Constraints and User Needs: Despite the limitations of the legacy system, the user-centered design approach introduced practical solutions that enhanced the user experience without necessitating expensive system overhauls.

Increased Efficiency through Streamlined Workflows: By addressing key workflow bottlenecks, the system allowed users to eliminate redundant manual processes, leading to measurable improvements in operational productivity within 3PL operations.

Improved User Satisfaction and Task Efficiency: The redesigned interface, with a cleaner and more intuitive layout, led to increased satisfaction among users who had previously been frustrated by the outdated interface. This improvement enhanced task efficiency and reduced friction in daily operations.

Case Study: Uncovering New User Segments for Comcast’s WiFi On Demand Service

How did unexpected user insights help Comcast re-engage customers and improve product workflows?

Comcast’s WiFi On Demand service experienced unexpected growth among various user demographics, including low-income users and former subscribers. Originally designed for business travelers, our research revealed that many users viewed the service as an alternative to traditional home internet, especially during life transitions. These insights provided Comcast with an opportunity to re-engage these customers with targeted payment plans, as well as enhance the product’s application interface to address key pain points and workflow inefficiencies.

Through buyer interviews, personas, user journey mapping, and surveys, I led a comprehensive research effort to understand these diverse behaviors and pain points. This informed strategies to re-engage key user segments and improve the interface design, ultimately increasing recurring pass purchases and expanding the service’s reach across underserved demographics.

Results Snapshot:

Re-engaged Former Customers: Comcast developed targeted re-engagement strategies for lapsed customers who had switched to daily passes due to overdue bills. This included customized payment plans aimed at bringing them back into monthly subscription services.
Enhanced Workflow and UI Efficiency: Direct improvements to the product’s user interface and workflow design were made based on the pain points identified during user research. These changes optimized the service’s overall usability and reduced friction in the ordering process.
Increased Revenue from Underserved Demographics: Insights revealed untapped customer segments, leading to increased recurring pass purchases from previously overlooked user groups, including recent movers and transient users.