As part of new regulations in India, AWS was required to obtain and store additional customer information during onboarding. This compliance-driven project impacted multiple services within AWS, and while initially consultative, it became a UX-led initiative. I worked with my team to guide them through the design process, collaborated with multiple stakeholders, and ensured alignment across the project’s many moving parts.
Goal
- Ensure AWS could meet the new regulatory requirements while maintaining a seamless onboarding experience for customers
- Achieve cross-team alignment and address stakeholder concerns regarding workflows and customer experience
- Deliver a clear, user-centered solution that balances regulatory needs with usability
Approach
Phase 1: Gaining Alignment and Clarifying the UX
My involvement at the beginning was consultative, providing feedback on early drafts and solutions created by the team. However, as the project evolved, it became clear that we needed dedicated UX support to navigate complex stakeholder concerns.
- I reevaluated existing work and revisited the team’s documents and flows, identifying gaps and discrepancies between the proposed and existing workflows. I presented updated flows with more detail, highlighting areas of improvement and addressing concerns.
- I pushed for more cross-team collaboration, engaging with the other service teams’ UX designers to review and refine the flows, ensuring that all teams felt heard. This helped establish trust across the diverse groups.
- I clarified the vision by creating a more structured and cohesive UX narrative to anchor discussions, helping to address concerns, streamline feedback, and gain alignment across the teams.
Flows
Phase 2: Planning for Design Reviews & Stakeholder Engagement
Once the updated flows and design were ready, we needed to manage the review and approval process. Many of the stakeholders had not gone through this type of UX process before, and there was a need to set expectations and align timelines.
- Milestones: I created a detailed timeline for the UX process, mapping out key activities, meetings, and review sessions. This provided a clear roadmap and helped the team understand how the UX process fit into the overall project.
- Aligned UX and Development Timelines: By negotiating with development teams, we accounted for potential blockers and padded the timeline to ensure proper review time. This allowed for smoother coordination and a more realistic schedule.
- Formal Reviews & In-Meeting Approvals: I led the review sessions, managed expectations and guided the team through the final UI review. As a result, we received a rare in-meeting approval for one of our key design reviews, a significant achievement in a project with so many stakeholders.
Phase 3: Final Design Delivery
With the feedback from various stakeholders incorporated, we delivered the finalized UX, ensuring that all regulatory requirements were met while maintaining a focus on user experience.
High Fidelity Mocks
Results & Impact
UX Win
The structured approach to managing stakeholder communication and timelines helped align the internal teams and avoid delays. By establishing a clear process and timeline for reviews, we got that in-meeting approval, accelerating the project’s momentum. The final UX design complied with the regulatory requirements while minimizing disruption to the customer experience.
Reflection
This project highlights the importance of clarifying the UX process, aligning stakeholders, and setting clear expectations—especially in compliance-driven projects. It also shows how, as a UX designer, I can play a critical role in navigating complex challenges and driving projects forward through strategic planning and effective collaboration.
This project helped me refine my approach to UX and process strategy, especially when working with multiple stakeholders. I’ve become more adept at managing complex workflows, gaining buy-in, and facilitating smoother processes for formal reviews.