Digital Investment Experiences
Shaping the future vision
Client
NDA
Role
Design Researcher
Design Teams
1 UX Designer
1 Service Designer
1 Content Designer
Where
Glasgow, Scotland
Duration
3 months
This project is subject to a NDA.
All content displayed on this page has therefore been modified accordingly .
What?
Strategy
Investments
Pension
Finance
Research
Sprint
Desk research
Personas
North Star
This initiative focused on defining a clear long-term vision for how customers could view, adjust, and manage their investments within their pension provider ecosystem. The goal was to establish a “North Star” experience to guide future design and delivery decisions.
Untapped markets and experiences
Money myths and fear hold back young UK investors
Around one-third of younger adults in the UK ; 31% of millennials and 34% of Gen Z ; plan to start investing within the next year. However, many face key barriers: 55% believe they need a large amount of money to begin, 40% fear losing money, and 22% feel they lack sufficient understanding.
Meeting the young wealth's expectations
Traditional financial institutions have strong growth potential among new investors, especially through long-term value. To capture this, they need user-focused platforms that compete effectively in the digital investment space.
A holistic vision piece
1. Research
A mixed-method approach
In order to come into our design sprint well-informed, my team and I carried out several rounds of research. Here is how we laid the groundwork...
7 Research projects
& reports analyzed
9 competitor experiences
reviewed
5 Investment SMEs interviewed
Different minds, tailored paths, shared narratives
Divergent learning needs
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Beginners need clear, bite-sized education to move from basic concepts (budgeting) to advanced products.
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Experienced investors find introductory content patronising and want faster access to sophisticated options.
Personalisation is needed
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Both new and experienced investors expect content and recommendations tailored to their financial savviness, interests, and product usage.
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Lack of personalised support risks inaction or switching to competitors.
Social influence and misconceptions
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Family and friends are the most trusted source of advice, but recommendations often carry biases and misinformation.
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Even high-asset customers can lack financial literacy, reinforcing the need for education across all segments.
Frameworks & artefacts
To synthesise my research, I created three key artefacts:
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Pain Point Map – outlining the barriers design teams face when creating inclusive services within a large financial organisation.
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Stakeholder Map – identifying internal and external actors involved in adapting services for multicultural audiences, based on interviews and observations.
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Designer Journey Maps – developed from interviews with four designers working on inclusive service adaptation. These maps charted their processes, highlighted effective practices, and exposed gaps—helping define key phases and pain points in the journey.
Findings
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The FCA Is Driving Inclusive Design in Financial Services
The FCA’s 2023 Consumer Duty pushes UK financial institutions to deliver positive outcomes for all customers, including the vulnerable and foreign-born—beyond basic compliance. -
Silos and Hierarchies Hinder Progress
Design, strategy, and tech teams often work in silos, with rigid hierarchies slowing innovation and limiting inclusive design at scale. -
Cultural Adaptation Lacks Strategic Priority
Inclusivity is often seen as a "nice-to-have", not a business priority. Designers struggle to gain leadership buy-in as focus stays on compliance, speed, and quantifiable results. -
No Standardised Approach to Inclusive Design
Inclusive design efforts are fragmented and short-term. Designers lack consistent tools and frameworks to drive lasting, systemic change. -
Inclusivity Needs a Seat in the Boardroom
To create meaningful impact, inclusivity must be recognised as a core business value and embedded in executive-level decision-making.
From research to solution
Identifying my point of action
I merged three Designer Journey Maps into a single ideal process for adapting services to multicultural audiences.
This revealed key pain points and opportunities for impactful design interventions.
With limited time, I focused on the first stage: building a business case to secure buy-in and funding for inclusive service initiatives.
I designed a toolkit to help designers in large financial organisations gather the right data to build a strong business case for multicultural inclusion and secure budget for service adaptation.
After wireframing, I ran three iterative rounds with financial SMEs and stakeholders, refining the tools based on feedback.
The process in picture.
What is the toolkit?
The tools follow a nine-stage process to help designers promote inclusivity and drive internal culture change in financial organisations.
Their main goal is to support a business case that persuades executives to adapt services for multicultural audiences.
Based on Service Design methods, the tools focus on collecting insights from foreign customers, while also engaging stakeholders through workshops and focus groups to foster collaboration and shared ownership.
True transformation requires more than leadership approval—it depends on involving the right people throughout the process to influence, support, and sustain inclusive practices from within.
