Enterprise SaaS · Design function 0→1
Modernising a decade-old interface
I built Zuora’s design team and made its core product easier to use.
+60%
ease of use in prototype testing
11
core personas from 60+ customer interviews
2×
headcount and budget secured for design
- Company
- Zuora
- Period
- 2018 — 2020
- Role
- Sr. Director, Product Design — reporting to the Chief Product Officer.
Situation
Ten years of changes had made the product hard to use.
The company had no research team, design system or clear design roles.
Task
Set one design plan, start research and systems teams, and fix the hardest customer tasks.
modernising the interface
We started with the task customers used most.
- Redesigned the most important customer task
- Created 11 customer types from more than 60 interviews
- Started the first Design Systems and UX Research teams
- Brought design into changes across more than 50 product teams
making it stick
Shared goals showed the value of design. A summit brought more than 40 leaders around one plan.
Result
Design became part of senior business decisions.
- +60% ease of use in prototype testing with customers
- 2× headcount and budget secured through CPO and CTO alignment
- Career ladders and succession pathways formalised across the organisation
Want to know more?
Email Shernaz