Web Application Design

Reinventing Stifel’s FIGLab

Stifel, a leader in investment banking and wealth management, sought to reduce revenue volatility and empower clients with FIGLab, a self-service tool designed to streamline low-value interactions and enhance operational efficiency. This project aimed to create a seamless, intuitive experience for both analysts and clients while transitioning to a subscription-based revenue model.

- UXD & DPM
- Jan 2021 to July 2021

Challenges

Revenue Volatility
The transaction-based revenue model created inconsistent cash flows, hindering financial stability.
Low-Value Inquiries
Analysts spent excessive time addressing routine client inquiries, diverting focus from high-value strategic engagements.
User Adoption
Encouraging clients to transition to self-service tools required intuitive design, proper onboarding and clear value communication.
Technology Integration
Ensuring seamless integration of FIGLab with existing systems while maintaining high performance and reliability.

Approach

Program Management Excellence
- Streamlined workflows to align teams on FIGLab milestones and deliverables.
- Built tracking Kanban board in Jira for real-time visibility and accountability.
- Led sprint reviews and retrospectives to optimize processes.
- Delivered weekly stakeholder updates on progress and priorities.
- Managed risks proactively to avoid delays and ensure smooth execution.
- Coordinated design-to-development handoffs using Figma and Zeplin for seamless integration.

Design-to-development handoffs workflow

Research and Discovery
- Identified system gaps and opportunities through stakeholder interviews and user research.
- Conducted a UX audit with heuristic evaluation to uncover usability issues and improvement areas..
- Benchmarked best practices for self-service tools by reviewing competitive platforms.
- Validated design concepts via unmoderated usability testing with Maze.

Benchmarking and trend analysis

Heuristic evaluation and expert review

Unmoderated testing using Maze and follow-up surveys

Design and Development
- Designed an intuitive interface to streamline routine tasks.
- Iterated designs based on user feedback to meet client needs.
- Built interactive prototypes in Figma to refine workflows.
- Improved scalability and usability with a WCAG-compliant web UI Kit

From lo-fidelity wireframes to high-fidelity mockups

Single sign-on, comprehensive onboarding, smart search and data visualization

Technology and Performance Optimization
- Integrated FIGLab into the cloud for high performance and reliability.
- Optimized load times and responsiveness with engineering collaboration.
- Implemented tools to monitor user engagement and platform metrics.

Outcomes

UX Metrics (Design)
- Task Completion Efficiency:
  ‍28% reduction in time spent on routine tasks like account updates and report generation.
- User Satisfaction:
  23% increase in user satisfaction scores, reflecting improved platform usability.
- Accessibility Compliance:
  ‍Achieved 18% improvement in WCAG compliance, ensuring inclusivity for all users.
Product Metrics
- Feature Adoption:
  ‍20% rise in usage of FIGLab’s self-service tools, indicating strong engagement.
- Session Duration:
  28% increase in average session duration, highlighting better user experience.
- Error Reduction:
  ‍22% drop in errors during key workflows, driven by intuitive design.
Business Metrics
- Revenue Growth:
  ‍15% increase in annual revenue through the subscription model, stabilizing income streams.
- Operational Efficiency:
  Reduced low-value analyst tasks by 30%, allowing focus on high-impact engagements.
- Client Retention:
  ‍18% boost in client retention due to enhanced platform functionality and usability.

Learnings

From UX Leadership
- ‍Iterative user testing is critical to ensuring self-service tools meet user needs and expectations.
- Aligning the UI webkit and guidelines with accessibility standards strengthens usability across diverse user bases.
From Program Management
- ‍Real-time tracking tools enhance visibility and stakeholder confidence in project progress.
- Retrospectives at key milestones foster continuous improvement and team alignment.
Future Best Practices
- ‍Introduce subscription management features early in development to align with user workflows.
- Leverage competitive analysis to identify unique value propositions for future iterations.

The introduction of FIGLab has been a game-changer for both our clients and analysts. The intuitive design and self-service tools have streamlined our operations while stabilizing revenue through the subscription model."
‍
— Director of Digital Transformation (PO), Stifel

Reinventing Stifel’s FIGLab

Challenges

Revenue Volatility

Low-Value Inquiries

User Adoption

Technology Integration

Approach

Program Management Excellence

Research and Discovery

Design and Development

Technology and Performance Optimization

Outcomes

UX Metrics (Design)

Product Metrics

Business Metrics

Learnings

From UX Leadership

From Program Management

Future Best Practices