ROUND
Web platform to connect leaders of technology with their peers.
My role: Senior Product Designer
Timeline: Year 2022
What is Round
Round was a cutting-edge social platform designed to connect business leaders across various industries, including C-suite executives. Its primary focus was on facilitating peer networking and professional development events, helping members build valuable relationships and enhance their skills in a collaborative, supportive environment.
What set Round apart from platforms like LinkedIn was its emphasis on privacy and exclusivity. Unlike open forums, Round was a private space reserved for top-tier business leaders, fostering a sense of trust and camaraderie among members and enabling deeper, more meaningful connections.
A standout feature of Round was its Core Groups—curated micro-networks of peers with shared interests and goals. These groups allowed for more intimate discussions on industry-specific topics, providing members with unique opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Overall, Round proved to be an invaluable resource for business leaders seeking to expand their networks, refine their skills, and stay ahead in their industries, all within a highly exclusive, privacy-focused platform.
Upon joining, I noticed that Round had a solid business strategy and an admirable goal. However, the user interface did not align with the platform's message. The functionality failed to cultivate a sense of community necessary for driving adoption.
Problem
My Role
To create a product that would meet the needs of our community, a design workshop was organized for Round's leadership and colleagues. The seminar centered on contemporary design thinking, which involved empathizing with potential community members and identifying their needs. The objective was to develop a platform that would cater to these needs and provide the necessary functionality.
As the data available was limited, we conducted the workshop in person and digitally via Microsoft Teams. The brainstorming session began with post-it notes being used to gather the high-level needs of the community. The data were then categorized and prioritized to create a visual summary of the community's high-level needs.
This workshop proved invaluable in helping Round's employees think like potential community members and develop a customer-focused mindset. By taking this approach, we were able to identify the needs of our community and create a platform that would provide the necessary functionality to meet those needs. The result was a product tailored to the community's needs and well-received by its members.
Research
I created an informative infographic based on the insights and data collected from the workshops.
I was able to rank and categorize data to develop workflow diagrams successfully. These diagrams proved invaluable in pinpointing individual requirements and dependencies, enabling me to isolate the essential features necessary for the Round platform.
After gathering valuable customer feedback and analyzing relevant data, I skillfully crafted task flows that gave us insight into how the users would use the application. I prioritized ensuring that all actions could be efficiently completed in five steps or less by Miller's Law. My meticulous attention to detail allowed me to create a comprehensive task flow with all the necessary features for practical and seamless navigation, resulting in an exceptional user experience.
