Bank of Ireland · via All Human
Bank of Ireland - Loans App
Automating an analogue loans process into a new digital experience, with every major design decision driven by usability testing each sprint.
- 2 Loan applications launched
- Thousands Of users nationwide
- Every Sprint Usability testing sessions
- Analogue to Digital Replaced phone calls and paperwork
The Brief
Context
Bank of Ireland needed a new product that automated their loans applications with a new digital experience that mitigated applicant confusion, reducing customer service workload. I joined as Lead UX Designer, with the singular focus user experience via user flow design and usability testing.
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Responsibilities
- Translate an analogue process of phone calls, pen and paper into a modern digital experience.
- Deliver a new digital product for public and business loan applicants.
- Leverage the newly created design system to construct new user flows.
The contract was with the agency All Human, then called Strata3, whose client was Bank of Ireland. The client needed to modernise their loans application system, to reduce customer services queries, and streamline the process for both users and internal employees by providing a new digital experience that automates the process. Being solely UX focused, the role required leveraging the newly created design system to construct new user flows and conduct multiple usability testing interviews every sprint.
Validation
Testing every sprint
Design was driven by regular usability testing sessions I conducted every sprint with users of different personas, planned in close collaboration with the loans teams.
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- Conducted usability testing sessions and qualitative interviews every sprint.
- Tested with users across different personas.
- Synthesised the insights into regular presentations for stakeholders.
Discovery began with close collaboration with the loans teams to plan regular testing sessions with customers. The insights gathered were synthesised into regular presentations and used to drive all major design decisions. This process was repeated constantly, refining the experience of the application until it was deemed ready to launch.
Structure
Building the flows
Design commenced by utilising the newly created design system to construct complex user flows, driven by user testing insights and stakeholder input.
- Constructed complex user flows from the new design system.
- Shaped every flow around testing insights and stakeholder input.
- Covered journeys for both public and business loan applicants.
Systems
Working to the governance model
With a newly created design system in place, I built the application from its components while complying with the governance model recently set up by the team's UI Designer.
- Built the application using the new design system components.
- Complied with a newly established governance model.
- Raised documented update-requests for new components and patterns.
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When a situation involved a new component or pattern needing to be built, it was my duty to communicate the designs and specifications with the UI Designer. A strict process was in place and documented for me to follow, which required designing the relevant assets and creating an update-request, specifying what it was and why it was needed.
Alignment
Providing guidance to the team
As a risk averse industry, regular meetings were held with outside teams like legal and copywriters to improve the app by adhering to the bank's compliance and risk guidelines.
- Held regular meetings with legal, copywriting and compliance teams.
- Adhered to the bank's compliance and risk guidelines throughout.
- Advised and mentored a non-product banking team on agile methodologies.
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The design had to satisfy legal, copy and compliance review as well as the people using it, so those teams were brought in regularly rather than at the end. Much of the wider team had not worked this way before either, so alongside the design work I advised and mentored a non-product banking team on agile methodologies and the product design process.
Mobile
Designing for mobile
The same public and business loan journeys had to hold up on a phone, built entirely from the new design system's components rather than a scaled-down copy of the desktop screens.
- Applied the design system's components to a fully mobile experience.
- Carried the same public and business loan journeys onto a smaller screen.
- Refined the mobile flows through the same sprint-by-sprint testing.
Desktop
Designing for desktop
Desktop gave the same components more room to work with, suited to the more detailed steps of the loan application journey.
- Built the same design-system components into a full desktop layout.
- Gave the more detailed steps of the loan journey room to breathe.
- Kept desktop and mobile visually and functionally consistent.
Impact
Outcome
Two loan applications launched to market, now used by thousands of users nationwide, with a repository of insight left behind to keep future decisions data driven.
- Launched two loan applications to market, now used by thousands of users nationwide.
- Built a comprehensive repository of user insights and usability documentation, creating a definitive foundation for data driven decisions.
- Significantly reduced customer services calls and email enquiries, drastically reducing overheads and staff costs.
- Helped install an understanding of agile methodologies and product life cycle workflows.
- Eliminated the need for outdated technologies and practices.