Problem & Goal

CPP Investments, one of the world’s largest retirement funds, relied on a suite of internal applications for managing high-volume, mission-critical workflows. These applications were essential but had grown fragmented, with inconsistent user interfaces and inefficiencies impacting productivity.

The goal was to:

• Unify and modernize the UI/UX of key internal applications.
• Develop a consistent design system to streamline usability and improve efficiency.
• Enhance collaboration between the design and IT teams to ensure seamless implementation.

Solution & Process

1. User Research and Analysis
   • Conducted stakeholder interviews and usability reviews to identify pain points in existing workflows.
   • Mapped user journeys to better understand how different teams interacted with the applications.
2. UI/UX Redesign
   • Designed a consistent and modernized interface across applications, focusing on improving navigation, reducing clutter, and presenting information in a clear, actionable way.
   • Simplified complex workflows with low-fidelity wireframes and prototypes to test and iterate designs with users.
3. Design System Development
   • Created a scalable design system using Bootstrap, ensuring consistency in UI components and interactions across multiple applications.
   • Incorporated responsive design principles to future-proof the applications for use on different devices.
4. Collaboration With IT Teams
   • Worked closely with developers to ensure designs were implementable and aligned with technical constraints.
   • Provided guidance and support for integrating the new UI framework into legacy systems, leveraging tools like Balsamiq and SASS for prototyping and efficient design handoff.
5. Mentorship and Team Enablement
   • Advocated for UX principles within the IT team, conducting workshops and sharing best practices to elevate the role of design in application development.

The Results

• Unified UI Framework: Delivered a cohesive interface across high-volume internal applications, reducing user confusion and improving productivity.
• Streamlined Development: Introduced reusable UI components, reducing engineering efforts by 25% and accelerating future development timelines.
• Enhanced User Experience: Simplified workflows and improved navigation, empowering teams to complete tasks more efficiently.
• Design Advocacy: Helped establish a culture of design thinking within CPP Investments’ IT team, fostering long-term collaboration and innovation.

Core Strengths Highlighted in This Case Study:

• Strategic Problem-Solving: Unified fragmented internal applications into a cohesive, user-friendly experience.
• UI/UX Expertise: Designed intuitive, modern interfaces tailored to complex workflows.
• Collaboration and Leadership: Worked closely with IT teams to bridge the gap between design and development, mentoring them in UX best practices.
• Scalability and Efficiency: Delivered a scalable design system that improved development speed and ensured future adaptability.

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