Builder
Aligned 5 Teams on One Architecture
Aligned 5 product teams on a unified architecture that scales without breaking.
Albo·Digital Banking·2M+ users
The Problem
- The app started with one product. Then came savings. Then loans.
- Every new feature broke something else.
- Navigation was a maze. Users got lost.
- Growth was coming fast — but the architecture couldn't scale.
What I Did
Product Design Lead · Design Systems
- Led user research across 4 segments: customers, employees, prospects, non-users
- Designed 3-tier priority system for information architecture
- Defined Product Card system — a scalable model where adding any new product = one component
- Aligned 5+ product teams on unified architecture
Key Wins
- Aligned 5 product teams on a unified, scalable architecture
- Created plug-and-play product system — 1 component = 1 new product
- Led cross-functional research across 4 user segments with full stakeholder alignment
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📖 Full Case Study
🎯 The Challenge
Navigating the organization's design process required careful research sprint planning to connect user needs with architectural changes. Communicating architecture decisions to different teams was crucial to maintain alignment and provide certainty to teams shipping value.
✅ The Solution
Created a new architecture serving as the foundation for smart product systems. Minimized user-facing changes while simplifying the experience and enabling feature growth. Established scalable patterns for rapid iteration and system evolution.
Iterative design process
Design Process
Scope Definition
We don't have unlimited time to predict the app's future. That's why we built a timeline to guide our actions and meet stakeholder expectations on schedule.
Definition of Done
I worked with designers, stakeholders, managers, and leadership to establish clear rules: DARCI structure, project goals, and how we'd measure business impact.
Timeline shared with stakeholders
Research
User Interviews
We interviewed people inside and outside the company across four categories: friends and family, employees, customers, and non-users.
Iterative Testing
At every design stage, we ran user tests to validate our ideas. We identified the most efficient solutions and balanced user needs with business requirements.
Key findings from research analysis
Mapping
Navigation Universe
We mapped every process in the application to understand existing patterns and identify opportunities for systematic improvements.
Complete navigation flow maps
Patterns
Priority Hierarchy
Through user research and flow mapping, we discovered the team needed explicit architectural patterns, not emergent ones. We designed a three-tier priority system that gave every product team a shared framework for information architecture decisions.
Architecture interaction hierarchy
Solution
New Home & Navigation
The redesigned home gives users new money management capabilities and a plug-and-play system for adding future products seamlessly.
Communication System
Users and the company needed a way to communicate. We built a banner system that surfaces conversations and gives users a clear interaction channel.
albo 3.0 app design
Impact
Product Card Component
This component is the foundation of scalability. When stakeholders ask "what will it take to add a new product?" the answer is: one component. Simple, powerful, and creates a protocol for consistency.
albo 3.0 app design
Project Learnings
Active Listening
Balancing the needs of different teams while affecting all products simultaneously taught me the value of providing certainty to teams while addressing user needs.
Connecting People
I enjoyed negotiating and aligning teams across products. Connecting team goals with company goals—even during intense sprints—made us stronger designers.
Product Architecture
Team Alignment Model
flowchart TB
subgraph Research["🔬 Research"]
Segments["4 User Segments\nCustomers · Employees\nProspects · Non-users"]
Testing["Iterative\nTesting"]
end
subgraph Architecture["📐 Architecture"]
Priority["3-Tier Priority\nSystem"]
Card["Product Card\nPlug & Play"]
Nav["Unified\nNavigation"]
end
subgraph Teams["👥 5 Product Teams"]
T1["Debit"]
T2["Savings"]
T3["Investments"]
T4["Loans"]
T5["Insurance"]
end
subgraph Alignment["🤝 Alignment"]
DARCI["DARCI\nFramework"]
Stakeholders["Stakeholder\nAlignment"]
end
Segments --> Priority
Testing --> Priority
Priority --> Card
Priority --> Nav
Card --> T1
Card --> T2
Card --> T3
Card --> T4
Card --> T5
DARCI -.-> Teams
Stakeholders -.-> Teams
Interested in working together?
Open to Product Design Lead, Product Design Engineer or Design Manager roles at product companies building products and infrastructure at scale. Remote-first, open to relocation.