Leading Cross-Platform UX Strategy Across Expanding Product Lines
Questrade had historically focused on trading and investing. As the company entered a phase of rapid growth by expanding into additional busines lines including mortgages, and others - the existing customer platform could no longer support the business. It lacked the flexibility, scalability, and user experience quality required to accommodate new lines of business. A complete redesign of both the web and mobile platforms was needed to reflect the company’s evolution. This was my team's mission.
Year
October 2022 - October 2023
Topics
Leadership, 0-1 Concept, Content, Design Patterns/Systems, Stakeholder Alignment
Company
Questrade
/ My Role
Note: Due to the sensitivity of this project, screenshots will provided when approved by Questrade.
I was brought in to lead the new platform effort and build alignment across the organization. This included:
Leading a multidisciplinary team of 11 designers (6 reporting directly to me) across UX design, research, content, and visual design.
Owning design strategy and execution for core experiences such as navigation, help, chat, search, and platform-level features like Move Money.
Redesigning the investing business line into the new portal
Advocating for the redesign at the executive level and shaping the roadmap to ensure alignment with both business and user needs.
Collaborating closely with business units and partner design teams to ensure the platform felt cohesive while meeting specialized workflows.
/ Strategic Collaboration Across a Complex Organization
A significant part of this work involved cross-functional alignment. Each product line had its own goals, usage patterns, and customer expectations. For example, the needs of a customer managing daily trading activities differed significantly from those managing their mortgage.
To create a unified experience, we:
Partnered with each business unit, including their design teams, to align on shared design principles.
Created a framework for when teams should follow standard patterns versus when they could diverge to meet line-specific needs.
Worked with the design system team to translate these shared patterns into prioritized component backlogs for development.
/ User Research as a Guiding Voice
We conducted a mix of formative and evaluative research, including:
Navigation studies to test various IA models and naming conventions.
Onboarding usability testing to identify drop-off points and friction.
Sentiment benchmarking to compare new vs. existing customers, helping guide transitional decisions.
This research played a key role in informing design priorities and validating decisions with both quantitative and qualitative data.
/ Content Strategy
We developed a set of principles that would drive our new information architecture (IA) and tone of voice. This was also instilled into the design system and pattern documentation to help with governance.
/ Evolving the Team Structure
To ensure long-term sustainability, I identified a gap in our team’s structure: there was no one with the skillset to take ownership of the common pattern library, and my time was already coordinating other initiatives.
I partnered with HR to define and introduce a new Principal Designer, one that had not existed at the company before.
This not only filled a critical leadership need for the project, but also elevated the entire design organization by establishing a senior-level path for craft leadership. Since then, the role has become a part of the design career framework, benefiting designers across teams and creating new opportunities for growth and impact.
/ Influencing Executive Decisions
The platform redesign required consistent executive engagement. I influenced:
Shaping the MVP scope by defining which product lines and features would launch first.
Navigating legal and compliance concerns around cross-selling and navigation.
The decision to delay a home screen feature that didn’t yet provide clear value, helping the team focus on more pressing needs.
/ Design Challenge 1: Common Patterns Across Diverse Products
We needed a shared library of interaction patterns that could be used across very different use cases. My team:
Synthesized business requirements across lines into a set of prioritized design problems.
Created standard solutions for repeated UI structures—page layouts, empty states, calls to action, and more.
Developed an internal site and hosted regular education sessions to socialize these patterns across both design and business stakeholders.
Partnered with the design systems team to develop these patterns so teams had confidence they were being consistent
/ Design Challenge 2: Navigation Under Legal Constraints
A key challenge was designing navigation that respected legal boundaries (e.g., not cross-promoting mortgages within investing). We:
Created a navigation structure that separated cross-business activities like Move Money and Help from product-specific areas.
Designed onboarding flows tailored to both new customers and those expanding their relationship with Questrade.
/ Design Challenge 3: Pressure from Executives for a Home Screen
Early pressure from leadership pushed for a home screen, without clear purpose. I paused development, built a case grounded in data and user needs, and ultimately secured alignment to deprioritize the feature which allowed the team to focus on an already large list of priorities.
/ Impact
New platform on track to be shipped across both web and mobile
Multiple business lines on-track to be launched on a unified platform
Executive alignment achieved on platform direction, onboarding, and feature prioritization
90% of legacy investing features redesigned to fit into new platform
Revamped onboarding for investing shipped with 20% increased conversion rate & 40% reduction in support tickets
20+ common design patterns created, adopted, and incorporated into the design system
New Principal Designer role created, enabling better ownership of system design
Leading Cross-Platform UX Strategy Across Expanding Product Lines
Questrade had historically focused on trading and investing. As the company entered a phase of rapid growth by expanding into additional busines lines including mortgages, and others - the existing customer platform could no longer support the business. It lacked the flexibility, scalability, and user experience quality required to accommodate new lines of business. A complete redesign of both the web and mobile platforms was needed to reflect the company’s evolution. This was my team's mission.
Year
October 2022 - October 2023
Topics
Leadership, 0-1 Concept, Content, Design Patterns/Systems, Stakeholder Alignment
Company
Questrade
/ My Role
Note: Due to the sensitivity of this project, screenshots will provided when approved by Questrade.
I was brought in to lead the new platform effort and build alignment across the organization. This included:
Leading a multidisciplinary team of 11 designers (6 reporting directly to me) across UX design, research, content, and visual design.
Owning design strategy and execution for core experiences such as navigation, help, chat, search, and platform-level features like Move Money.
Redesigning the investing business line into the new portal
Advocating for the redesign at the executive level and shaping the roadmap to ensure alignment with both business and user needs.
Collaborating closely with business units and partner design teams to ensure the platform felt cohesive while meeting specialized workflows.
/ Strategic Collaboration Across a Complex Organization
A significant part of this work involved cross-functional alignment. Each product line had its own goals, usage patterns, and customer expectations. For example, the needs of a customer managing daily trading activities differed significantly from those managing their mortgage.
To create a unified experience, we:
Partnered with each business unit, including their design teams, to align on shared design principles.
Created a framework for when teams should follow standard patterns versus when they could diverge to meet line-specific needs.
Worked with the design system team to translate these shared patterns into prioritized component backlogs for development.
/ User Research as a Guiding Voice
We conducted a mix of formative and evaluative research, including:
Navigation studies to test various IA models and naming conventions.
Onboarding usability testing to identify drop-off points and friction.
Sentiment benchmarking to compare new vs. existing customers, helping guide transitional decisions.
This research played a key role in informing design priorities and validating decisions with both quantitative and qualitative data.
/ Content Strategy
We developed a set of principles that would drive our new information architecture (IA) and tone of voice. This was also instilled into the design system and pattern documentation to help with governance.
/ Evolving the Team Structure
To ensure long-term sustainability, I identified a gap in our team’s structure: there was no one with the skillset to take ownership of the common pattern library, and my time was already coordinating other initiatives.
I partnered with HR to define and introduce a new Principal Designer, one that had not existed at the company before.
This not only filled a critical leadership need for the project, but also elevated the entire design organization by establishing a senior-level path for craft leadership. Since then, the role has become a part of the design career framework, benefiting designers across teams and creating new opportunities for growth and impact.
/ Influencing Executive Decisions
The platform redesign required consistent executive engagement. I influenced:
Shaping the MVP scope by defining which product lines and features would launch first.
Navigating legal and compliance concerns around cross-selling and navigation.
The decision to delay a home screen feature that didn’t yet provide clear value, helping the team focus on more pressing needs.
/ Design Challenge 1: Common Patterns Across Diverse Products
We needed a shared library of interaction patterns that could be used across very different use cases. My team:
Synthesized business requirements across lines into a set of prioritized design problems.
Created standard solutions for repeated UI structures—page layouts, empty states, calls to action, and more.
Developed an internal site and hosted regular education sessions to socialize these patterns across both design and business stakeholders.
Partnered with the design systems team to develop these patterns so teams had confidence they were being consistent
/ Design Challenge 2: Navigation Under Legal Constraints
A key challenge was designing navigation that respected legal boundaries (e.g., not cross-promoting mortgages within investing). We:
Created a navigation structure that separated cross-business activities like Move Money and Help from product-specific areas.
Designed onboarding flows tailored to both new customers and those expanding their relationship with Questrade.
/ Design Challenge 3: Pressure from Executives for a Home Screen
Early pressure from leadership pushed for a home screen, without clear purpose. I paused development, built a case grounded in data and user needs, and ultimately secured alignment to deprioritize the feature which allowed the team to focus on an already large list of priorities.
/ Impact
New platform on track to be shipped across both web and mobile
Multiple business lines on-track to be launched on a unified platform
Executive alignment achieved on platform direction, onboarding, and feature prioritization
90% of legacy investing features redesigned to fit into new platform
Revamped onboarding for investing shipped with 20% increased conversion rate & 40% reduction in support tickets
20+ common design patterns created, adopted, and incorporated into the design system
New Principal Designer role created, enabling better ownership of system design
Leading Cross-Platform UX Strategy Across Expanding Product Lines
Questrade had historically focused on trading and investing. As the company entered a phase of rapid growth by expanding into additional busines lines including mortgages, and others - the existing customer platform could no longer support the business. It lacked the flexibility, scalability, and user experience quality required to accommodate new lines of business. A complete redesign of both the web and mobile platforms was needed to reflect the company’s evolution. This was my team's mission.
Year
October 2022 - October 2023
Topics
Leadership, 0-1 Concept, Content, Design Patterns/Systems, Stakeholder Alignment
Company
Questrade
/ My Role
Note: Due to the sensitivity of this project, screenshots will provided when approved by Questrade.
I was brought in to lead the new platform effort and build alignment across the organization. This included:
Leading a multidisciplinary team of 11 designers (6 reporting directly to me) across UX design, research, content, and visual design.
Owning design strategy and execution for core experiences such as navigation, help, chat, search, and platform-level features like Move Money.
Redesigning the investing business line into the new portal
Advocating for the redesign at the executive level and shaping the roadmap to ensure alignment with both business and user needs.
Collaborating closely with business units and partner design teams to ensure the platform felt cohesive while meeting specialized workflows.
/ Strategic Collaboration Across a Complex Organization
A significant part of this work involved cross-functional alignment. Each product line had its own goals, usage patterns, and customer expectations. For example, the needs of a customer managing daily trading activities differed significantly from those managing their mortgage.
To create a unified experience, we:
Partnered with each business unit, including their design teams, to align on shared design principles.
Created a framework for when teams should follow standard patterns versus when they could diverge to meet line-specific needs.
Worked with the design system team to translate these shared patterns into prioritized component backlogs for development.
/ User Research as a Guiding Voice
We conducted a mix of formative and evaluative research, including:
Navigation studies to test various IA models and naming conventions.
Onboarding usability testing to identify drop-off points and friction.
Sentiment benchmarking to compare new vs. existing customers, helping guide transitional decisions.
This research played a key role in informing design priorities and validating decisions with both quantitative and qualitative data.
/ Content Strategy
We developed a set of principles that would drive our new information architecture (IA) and tone of voice. This was also instilled into the design system and pattern documentation to help with governance.
/ Evolving the Team Structure
To ensure long-term sustainability, I identified a gap in our team’s structure: there was no one with the skillset to take ownership of the common pattern library, and my time was already coordinating other initiatives.
I partnered with HR to define and introduce a new Principal Designer, one that had not existed at the company before.
This not only filled a critical leadership need for the project, but also elevated the entire design organization by establishing a senior-level path for craft leadership. Since then, the role has become a part of the design career framework, benefiting designers across teams and creating new opportunities for growth and impact.
/ Influencing Executive Decisions
The platform redesign required consistent executive engagement. I influenced:
Shaping the MVP scope by defining which product lines and features would launch first.
Navigating legal and compliance concerns around cross-selling and navigation.
The decision to delay a home screen feature that didn’t yet provide clear value, helping the team focus on more pressing needs.
/ Design Challenge 1: Common Patterns Across Diverse Products
We needed a shared library of interaction patterns that could be used across very different use cases. My team:
Synthesized business requirements across lines into a set of prioritized design problems.
Created standard solutions for repeated UI structures—page layouts, empty states, calls to action, and more.
Developed an internal site and hosted regular education sessions to socialize these patterns across both design and business stakeholders.
Partnered with the design systems team to develop these patterns so teams had confidence they were being consistent
/ Design Challenge 2: Navigation Under Legal Constraints
A key challenge was designing navigation that respected legal boundaries (e.g., not cross-promoting mortgages within investing). We:
Created a navigation structure that separated cross-business activities like Move Money and Help from product-specific areas.
Designed onboarding flows tailored to both new customers and those expanding their relationship with Questrade.
/ Design Challenge 3: Pressure from Executives for a Home Screen
Early pressure from leadership pushed for a home screen, without clear purpose. I paused development, built a case grounded in data and user needs, and ultimately secured alignment to deprioritize the feature which allowed the team to focus on an already large list of priorities.
/ Impact
New platform on track to be shipped across both web and mobile
Multiple business lines on-track to be launched on a unified platform
Executive alignment achieved on platform direction, onboarding, and feature prioritization
90% of legacy investing features redesigned to fit into new platform
Revamped onboarding for investing shipped with 20% increased conversion rate & 40% reduction in support tickets
20+ common design patterns created, adopted, and incorporated into the design system
New Principal Designer role created, enabling better ownership of system design