Data Visualization & Business Intelligence UX

Data Visualization & Business Intelligence UX

Elevate by Principal

Role:

Senior Product Designer

Timeline:

3 months

Team:

PM, Data Analyst, Engineering, Customer Success

The Challenge

Users of Elevate’s dashboard weren’t seeing or understanding their potential savings, leading to lower contract activation and missed upsell opportunities. Data visualization and insights were buried, and feedback from customer success pointed to frequent confusion. Business Impact: • Low engagement with dashboard features • Missed revenue from under-leveraged savings insights • Support team overburdened by repeated “how do I?” questions

My Approach

1. Data Visualization Audit • Mapped current dashboard flows and user interactions • Partnered with data analysts to surface actionable insights • Conducted user interviews to clarify what “savings” meant to different personas 2. Insight-Driven Redesign • Introduced a new visual language for clear, immediate savings recognition • Created scenario-based recommendations tied to business goals • Embedded contextual help and tooltips for self-serve guidance 3. Engagement-First Approach • Developed a “revise data” workflow for users to update inputs and see instant results • Ran usability tests to validate changes and fine-tune information hierarchy

Success Goals

Clarify

Potential Savings

Increase

Engagement

Accelerate

Contract ACT

Optimize

Data Accuracy

Enhance

CRM Implementation

Improve

User Satisfaction

Data Visualization & Business Intelligence UX

Elevate by Principal

Role:

Senior Product Designer

Timeline:

3 months

Team:

PM, Data Analyst, Engineering, Customer Success

The Challenge

Users of Elevate’s dashboard weren’t seeing or understanding their potential savings, leading to lower contract activation and missed upsell opportunities. Data visualization and insights were buried, and feedback from customer success pointed to frequent confusion. Business Impact: • Low engagement with dashboard features • Missed revenue from under-leveraged savings insights • Support team overburdened by repeated “how do I?” questions

My Approach

1. Data Visualization Audit • Mapped current dashboard flows and user interactions • Partnered with data analysts to surface actionable insights • Conducted user interviews to clarify what “savings” meant to different personas 2. Insight-Driven Redesign • Introduced a new visual language for clear, immediate savings recognition • Created scenario-based recommendations tied to business goals • Embedded contextual help and tooltips for self-serve guidance 3. Engagement-First Approach • Developed a “revise data” workflow for users to update inputs and see instant results • Ran usability tests to validate changes and fine-tune information hierarchy

Success Goals

Clarify

Potential Savings

Increase

Engagement

Accelerate

Contract ACT

Optimize

Data Accuracy

Enhance

CRM Implementation

Improve

User Satisfaction

Power to the Owner.

Power to the Owner.

Power to the Owner.

Approach

Visual Storytelling

Used simple charts and segmentation to show users how much they could save based on their actual spend—and how to take action.

Modular Design

Built reusable card components to allow the dashboard to scale with new categories, supplier programs, and personalized insights.

Re-Engagement Built In

Integrated prompts and dynamic alerts tied to new data, giving users a reason to return, recheck, and act every quarter.

Turning Spend into Strategy.

Turning Spend into Strategy.

Validation & Iteration Process

Testing methodology:

  • Tested dashboard prototypes with real users and customer success reps

  • Used A/B tests to optimize CTA placements and graph interactivity

  • Iterated on content clarity and visual hierarchy based on feedback

Decision-making framework:

  • Prioritized changes that improved clarity, engagement, and conversion to contract activation

  • Regularly synced with PM and analytics to measure user actions and business impact

Results & Business Impact

Quantified Outcomes:

  • 60% increase in dashboard engagement within two months of launch

  • 30% boost in contract activation from dashboard touchpoints

  • Significant reduction in support tickets related to “how does this save me money?”

  • Clearer path to revenue expansion through targeted upsell features

Qualitative Impact:

  • Users reported the new dashboard “made it real” and felt more confident in the platform

  • Customer success cited faster onboarding and fewer “what does this mean?” calls

  • Dashboard became a key differentiator in sales conversations

Strategic Learning & Reflection

Biggest insight:
Making savings feel personal and transparent built user trust and accelerated adoption.

Process innovation:
Integrated real-time data, user feedback, and design system components for rapid iteration.

Leadership growth:
Learned to translate business objectives and technical requirements into clear, user-centered solutions—aligning product, engineering, and customer-facing teams along the way.

Why This Project Demonstrates Senior-Level Design Thinking

  1. Business Alignment: Tied design to revenue, adoption, and customer satisfaction

  2. User Advocacy: Drove meaningful, measurable improvements in the experience

  3. Systemic Solutions: Created scalable, modular dashboards for future features

  4. Team Collaboration: Brought cross-functional teams together for faster, better outcomes

  5. Rapid Impact: Launched, validated, and refined a mission-critical feature in record time

Process & Validation

  • Audited user analytics to spot where users dropped off.

  • Designed rapid prototypes showing prioritized savings and user-specific insights.

  • Partnered with marketing/CX for in-app nudges and lifecycle messaging.

  • Validated with A/B tests and user feedback.


“It was the first time a business owner said, ‘I didn’t know I could save this much—where do I sign?’”

New users are guided from onboarding to entering spend data and instantly see their personalized savings and actionable recommendations.

Business owners can easily edit vendor and savings information on the fly, making it simple to update data and keep projections accurate.

A series of savings page screens illustrates the iterative process of refining each detail for clarity, accuracy, and ease of use.

Mapping every touchpoint and stakeholder from registration to new user onboarding, ensuring seamless collaboration between business owners, customer managers, and marketing