As Lead UX Designer, I led the design of new features within an existing product to help users visualize and act on sensitive financial data, while meeting strict legal requirements. I shaped UX strategy from discovery to delivery, balancing user needs, compliance, and product constraints to design for trust and clarity.
Our discovery phase focused on understanding how FinTech teams navigate risk, regulation, and data across fragmented systems. We combined interviews, regulatory reviews, and service blueprinting to uncover how decisions actually get made, and what stands in the way.
We mapped how users were accessing and using customer data to investigate a behavioral pattern, confirm consent, and generate an insight or action. The blueprint revealed trust gaps and compliance risks.
Users didn’t just need dashboards; they needed explainability, permission clarity, and audit-readiness.
| Stage | User Actions | Frontstage (UI/UX Touchpoints) | Backstage Processes | Support Systems & Tools | Regulatory / Legal Checkpoints | Pain Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Search for Customer Record | Enters ID, email, or phone number | Search bar, auto-suggest, error handling | Query across linked datasets, CRM sync | CRM, Data Lake | None at this stage | Inconsistent naming across systems, ambiguous search feedback |
| 2. View User Profile Summary | Opens profile tab to view PII, behaviors, tags | Profile Explorer panel, tabs for data categories | Data aggregation + role-based filtering | Internal User DB, Consent API | Law 1581: Display data owner and collection purpose | Unclear which data is user-provided vs inferred, missing collection dates |
| 3. Check Consent & Permissions | Reviews whether the customer consented to data use | Consent status badge, timeline, jurisdiction filters | Consent engine validates per record | Consent API, Legal DB | Law 1581: Consent validityGDPR Article 7 (future) | Consent history hard to parse, tooltip explanations not screen-reader friendly |
| 4. Explore Behavioral Patterns | Configures Vega-Lite dashboard to investigate anomaly | Behavioral dashboard, filter controls, chart modules | Vega-Lite engine renders based on pre-set templates | Vega-Lite, Analytics Store | CCPA: Limit on use of sensitive categories | Too much cognitive load for non-analysts, no help for configuring charts |
| 5. Trigger Action or Export Report | Flags case to legal, exports audit PDF | “Export”, “Flag for review” buttons | Logs event with metadata, permission audit | Audit Log Service | GDPR Article 20 (portability), Law 1581 export rights | Unclear what gets logged or shared, legal reviewers lack context in export |
| 6. Log Activity & Close Session | User logs out or switches case | Session confirmation, status save indicator | Saves state, generates audit trail | Audit Log, Permissions DB | Colombian data retention compliance | Feedback on saved state unclear, users unsure what was shared and with whom |
Then we developed three personas to highlight a different kind of friction in the system.
We translated user pain points into opportunities and features for the product backlog. Each hypothesis guided a measurable outcome, and design effort was estimated using a Fibonacci scale to support sprint planning.
| Opportunity | Feature | Hypothesis | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unclear data origin and consent status create compliance risk (Mariana) | Consent-aware user profile | If users can trace data lineage and consent history, they’ll make more confident and auditable decisions | 8 |
| Dense visualizations slow task speed for support agents with visual processing differences (Laura) | Accessible, simplified data cards | If we design for clarity and accessibility, agents will complete tasks faster with fewer errors | 5 |
| Data is technically available but context is missing (Felipe) | Contextual insight panels | If insights are paired with metadata (source, freshness, usage rights), PMs will act more decisively and safely | 8 + |
| Spike | |||
| Ambiguous permissions cause hesitation and delays across roles (All) | Action-permission overlays | If actions are tied to visible permission levels, users will feel more in control and reduce back-and-forth | 3 |
| Inconsistent vocabulary across departments leads to errors (Felipe, Mariana) | Design system with regulatory-aligned language | If we align terms across legal, design, and dev, users will experience less friction navigating the interface | 5 |
| Tooltips and modal disclosures are inaccessible and inconsistent (Laura) | Inline, screen-reader-friendly legal cues | If disclosures are designed inclusively, all users—including those with disabilities—will access key legal info equally | 5 |