From Nothing to Shipped With Half the Team You'd Expect
Full app redesign owned end-to-end by two designers. Higher retention, more signups, fewer support calls.
From Nothing to Shipped With Half the Team You'd Expect
Full app redesign owned end-to-end by two designers. Higher retention, more signups, fewer support calls.
From Nothing to Shipped With Half the Team You'd Expect
Full app redesign owned end-to-end by two designers. Higher retention, more signups, fewer support calls.
My role
UX/UI Designer
Tags
0->1 · Leadership
Timeline
2020
My role
UX/UI Designer
Tags
0->1 · Leadership
Timeline
2020
UX/UI Designer
0->1 · Leadership
2020
Psst! Hey you! Want a quicker overview of what happened instead of reading the whole use-case? I got you! Click the button ->
Psst! Hey you! Want a quicker overview of what happened instead of reading the whole use-case? I got you! Click the button ->
Psst! Hey you! Want a quicker overview of what happened instead of reading the whole use-case? I got you! Click the button.
The setup
The brief: full app redesign. The team: two designers, including me. No one above us on the design side to make the difficult calls or catch what we missed.
The setup
The brief: full app redesign. The team: two designers, including me. No one above us on the design side to make the difficult calls or catch what we missed.
The setup
The brief: full app redesign. The team: two designers, including me. No one above us on the design side to make the difficult calls or catch what we missed.
IMAGE AVAILABLE SOON
IMAGE AVAILABLE SOON
IMAGE AVAILABLE SOON
How we ran it
Before moving into “the good stuff” (aka Figma), we sorted out how we were going to run it. We started by defining a sprint structure, what we'd deliver and when, how we'd communicate with the client and with engineering, and what handoff would look like. On a project this size with two people carrying it, process wasn’t something to be left to wander, it's what keeps the whole thing from becoming a mess. We built a component library alongside the product. It can’t really be called a design system, the scope didn't call for that, but a proper shared repository that both of us worked from consistently, and could also share with engineering. No more re-explaining components at every handoff, no drift between our work, no engineering surprises.
How we ran it
Before moving into “the good stuff” (aka Figma), we sorted out how we were going to run it. We started by defining a sprint structure, what we'd deliver and when, how we'd communicate with the client and with engineering, and what handoff would look like. On a project this size with two people carrying it, process wasn’t something to be left to wander, it's what keeps the whole thing from becoming a mess. We built a component library alongside the product. It can’t really be called a design system, the scope didn't call for that, but a proper shared repository that both of us worked from consistently, and could also share with engineering. No more re-explaining components at every handoff, no drift between our work, no engineering surprises.
How we ran it
Before moving into “the good stuff” (aka Figma), we sorted out how we were going to run it. We started by defining a sprint structure, what we'd deliver and when, how we'd communicate with the client and with engineering, and what handoff would look like. On a project this size with two people carrying it, process wasn’t something to be left to wander, it's what keeps the whole thing from becoming a mess. We built a component library alongside the product. It can’t really be called a design system, the scope didn't call for that, but a proper shared repository that both of us worked from consistently, and could also share with engineering. No more re-explaining components at every handoff, no drift between our work, no engineering surprises.
Holding the line
Halfway through, the client wanted to add features. Usually, this leads to some issues, right? Well, because we'd set up a sprint-based workflow from the start with exactly this kind of thing in mind, we were able to absorb them and adjust delivery without the project falling apart. The planning we'd done upfront is what made that possible. Without it, new features mid-project would have been a problem. Instead, they were just the next sprint.
Holding the line
Halfway through, the client wanted to add features. Usually, this leads to some issues, right? Well, because we'd set up a sprint-based workflow from the start with exactly this kind of thing in mind, we were able to absorb them and adjust delivery without the project falling apart. The planning we'd done upfront is what made that possible. Without it, new features mid-project would have been a problem. Instead, they were just the next sprint.
Holding the line
Halfway through, the client wanted to add features. Usually, this leads to some issues, right? Well, because we'd set up a sprint-based workflow from the start with exactly this kind of thing in mind, we were able to absorb them and adjust delivery without the project falling apart. The planning we'd done upfront is what made that possible. Without it, new features mid-project would have been a problem. Instead, they were just the next sprint.
The result
The app shipped and got adopted. Signups went up, retention improved, and support call volume dropped. That last one is the measure I care about most, it means people could actually use the thing without needing help.
The result
The app shipped and got adopted. Signups went up, retention improved, and support call volume dropped. That last one is the measure I care about most, it means people could actually use the thing without needing help.
The result
The app shipped and got adopted. Signups went up, retention improved, and support call volume dropped. That last one is the measure I care about most, it means people could actually use the thing without needing help.
Step-by-step summary
Context
Discovery
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Just two of us, no handover, no existing work. We sat with the client, asked the right questions, and figured out together what we were actually solving.
Discovery
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Just two of us, no handover, no existing work. We sat with the client, asked the right questions, and figured out together what we were actually solving.
Definition
FULL INVOLVEMENT
We wrote the rules ourselves -> sprint structure, deliverable cadence, scope. Nobody handed us a process, so we built one that made sense and stuck to it.
Definition
FULL INVOLVEMENT
We wrote the rules ourselves -> sprint structure, deliverable cadence, scope. Nobody handed us a process, so we built one that made sense and stuck to it.
Ideation
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Two opinions, fast decisions. No committee to align, no approvals to wait for. We explored, disagreed sometimes, landed on something, and moved.
Ideation
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Two opinions, fast decisions. No committee to align, no approvals to wait for. We explored, disagreed sometimes, landed on something, and moved.
Design
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Every screen, every component, every edge case, was ours. We built a component repo that actually got used, kept things consistent, and never let the system drift on us.
Design
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Every screen, every component, every edge case, was ours. We built a component repo that actually got used, kept things consistent, and never let the system drift on us.
Validation
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Feedback was constant, not batched. We kept the client and engineering close throughout, catching problems while they were still small rather than fixing them after handoff.
Validation
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Feedback was constant, not batched. We kept the client and engineering close throughout, catching problems while they were still small rather than fixing them after handoff.
Delivery
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Handled handoff directly with engineering. Shipped, adopted, and made a measurable difference -> more signups, better retention, and fewer people calling support.
Delivery
FULL INVOLVEMENT
Handled handoff directly with engineering. Shipped, adopted, and made a measurable difference -> more signups, better retention, and fewer people calling support.
More projects
More projects
Context
Done wtih my hands using Figma and Framer.
oto
Last updated: Jun 2026
Done wtih my hands using Figma and Framer.
Last updated: Jun 2026
oto
Done wtih my hands using Figma and Framer.
Last updated: Jun 2026
oto