Case Study:

Improving Investment Research Efficiency with a Unified Platform

Overview

Institutional investment researchers at Allstate relied on multiple disconnected tools, making data comparison and decision-making inefficient. I worked with stakeholders and users to consolidate their workflow into a single, unified platform with improved data visualization, usability, and efficiency.

Key Outcomes

  • Consolidated multiple tools into a single platform
  • Enabled seamless data comparison with interactive graphs and grids
  • Created a scalable design system for consistency across all features
  • Improved research workflows, saving time and reducing frustration
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The Challenge

Investment researchers struggled with:

  • Data fragmentation – Essential information was spread across different apps.
  • Inefficient workflows – Researchers manually compiled spreadsheets to compare data.
  • Limited visualization – Graphing capabilities were cumbersome, making insights harder to extract.
  • Inconsistent design – Different tools had different interfaces, adding to user frustration.

To solve these problems, we needed to create a centralized, intuitive, and efficient research platform.

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My Role

As the lead UX designer, I worked closely with researchers, product owners, and developers to:

  • Conduct user interviews to understand workflow challenges
  • Create wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI designs
  • Develop an intuitive design system for consistency
  • Work directly with developers to ensure seamless implementation
  • Guide interaction design and front-end strategies to optimize usability
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The Solution

The new investment research platform:

  • Consolidates all necessary research tools into a single app
  • Enables seamless data comparison with interactive graphs and feature-rich data grids (sorting, filtering, etc.)
  • Improves usability with a consistent design system and familiar interactions
  • Optimizes research workflows, making investment decisions faster and easier

Impact & Results

Although we don’t have precise KPIs, we estimate:

  • 40% reduction in time spent gathering and comparing data
  • 30% increase in workflow efficiency, minimizing redundant tasks
  • High user satisfaction, with researchers and upper management praising usability

User feedback highlights:

  • “The new platform makes research so much easier—everything we need is in one place.”
  • “Graphing data is finally intuitive, and comparing investment options is much smoother.”

Challenges & Lessons Learned

  • Understanding the domain was key – Institutional investing is complex, and deeper knowledge earlier would have reduced design revisions.
  • Collaboration was essential – Close relationships with researchers and stakeholders helped refine usability iteratively.
  • Technical constraints required adaptation – We optimized API calls and React-based interactions to improve performance.
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What’s Next?

  • Ongoing Improvements: Further usability refinements based on continued user feedback
  • Expanding Features: Adding support for additional investment products
  • Optimizing for iPad: Enhancing the layout and interactions for better mobile usability

Conclusion

This project transformed a fragmented, time-consuming research process into a unified, user-friendly platform. By streamlining workflows, improving visualization tools, and ensuring design consistency, we helped investment researchers make faster, better-informed decisions.

Interested in improving your product’s user experience? Let’s chat!