CItizens Access

Problem:

At the end of 2019, Citizens offered a new experience to their customers through an innovative web application called Citizens Access. Rapid growth in the usage of this new platform brought in new challenges that required modern solutions to keep up with the growing demand for mobile banking. Additionally, the lack of association with the main Citizens brand raised concerns about brand cannibalization. Finally, the maintenance of multiple and non-complementary design systems and support structures has become ineffective and difficult to scale. 

Discovery

We started by documenting the current experiences of customers owning each type of product, as well as users having multiple combinations of products. We tried to learn how they typically manage their accounts in digital space, what are their primary needs and expectations.

We have asked lots of questions and initiated multiple user research studies to help us get some answers. For example:

• Can we create an architecture flexible enough for deposit customers and landing customers (two distinct groups with very different usage patterns and needs)

• How can we align the architecture between native and web experiences to make the transition from web to app the most intuitive experience for current customers?

• Can we graduate the design, and how would users react to change in their experiences?

This allowed us to create an information architecture mapping, and document some core design principles we wanted to follow. We also created several prototypes that helped align our stakeholders and leadership on the shared vision for the future state of the app.

Design & Development

We have collaborated with multiple development pods, and I have led a team of federated designers to support each pod. To establish a seamless design process, I have worked closely with product owners and developers to educate them on the design process, including discovery, low and high-fidelity deliverables, and prototypes. We have also integrated validation research into our process and ensured that all deliverables are reviewed for accessibility standards.

For pods that did not initially include designers, we organized educational sessions to ensure that all members of the agile team understand the importance of partnering with designers and the benefits of having a proper design process for the entire product development cycle.