The Challenge
Successfully launch a digital-first neobank product for H&R Block that has ties to the larger corporation but is a valuable standalone company that is competitive in the challenger banking space.
Summary
Spruce is a neobank with the mission to help provide better banking and tools for an underserved market. Their goal, to make you better with money. I was a part of the broader team from validation of the product through to the public launch of the company and product. I worked with the design team to define the product, features, and functionality, and execute on all fronts. Spearheaded continual research efforts with the team, conducted interviews, and was involved in research synthesis and the application of the research to the product evolution. Integral part of leading the design team and product to successfully launch the within a year.
Results
Successful public launch of product to 160k+ users in the first year.
Industries
Banking, Lending, Financial, Fintech, Neo Banks, Saving, Credit
Banking, Lending, Financial, Fintech, Neo Banks, Saving, Credit
Roles & Services
Design Leadership, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), User Research, Functional Design, Roadmapping, Information Architecture, User Testing, Interviews, Stakeholder Alignment, Design Systems
Design Leadership, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), User Research, Functional Design, Roadmapping, Information Architecture, User Testing, Interviews, Stakeholder Alignment, Design Systems
Website
SpruceMoney.com
SpruceMoney.com
User Research
Research underpinned the entire process. We utilized a fair amount of ethnographic interviews, wireframe stimuli, as well as feature walkthroughs, clickable prototypes, and sorting exercises to understand our customers and begin to build features that they truly needed. The user was always our central focus and guiding light. In a world flooded with banking products, Spruce aimed to stand out with a value driven mission, so we always came back to the users' needs. Below are a couple examples of many (many) Miro boards we utilized to take notes collectively and synthesize our findings.
____PAr
Validation & MVP Definition
After creating divergent ideas for features and functionalities at a low fidelity, and testing those with potential customers, the team began to drill into those that resonated most. Exploring divergent ideas for the top features, we began to define what the MVP launch product would be. We worked hand in hand with some of the senior and C-level leadership team to create the roadmap for a staggered internal launch leading up to the broader public launch. Below we tested different versions of a home screen.
MVP Prototype
Part of the deliverables before moving forward with building the product was a single source prototype, which was used to gain buy in from the whole team, continue to conduct user research, and serve as a guide post for the development team to understand the functionality.
Design Systems
In the initial version of the product and to rapidly prototype and implement the framework, we utilized the existing H&R Block design system as a tool. We did not let it constrain us but optimized for smoother implementation by the existing development team. After an extensive branding exercise and redesign, we began to transition the product's design to take on its own visual language, with some ties to the larger H&R Block brand. Below are a couple examples of screens that went from the initial incubation designs in the H&R Block system to the new Spruce system.
____
Leadership & Culture
Part of the joy of working on this project was the size of the team and the opportunity to both lead and lead by example. It was excellent to work with such amazing talent across the board with all those involved. Instilling a culture of open communication, continual research, constructive critique, and striving for excellence, were instrumental in the success of the product. This also brought on challenges as the broader organization operated in a different way. While Spruce endeavored to work in an agile framework, the H&R Block implemented a waterfall approach. This caused some growing pains especially when dealing with developers who were accustomed to a different cadence. It was important to protect our culture but also be understanding and find ways to bridge the gap when working with cross division teams.
My Life
One of the many fun elements of the project was designing the home page to be a more robust, interactive, and conversational place for users to easily access the most important things to them. interview after interview users told us that the reason they open their banking apps was to check balances, make sure money came in and cleared, and to double check their transactions in order to monitor for fraud. So, we built that in to our app.
The intention of My Life is for it to become your digital financial advisor, looking out for you, nudging you in the right direction, and letting you know what was pressing that needed to be taken care of next. We surface insights, information, action items, activity, and more, contextually when the user wants it most.
Building to Specification
Working with the PMs, Developers, and broader team, we began to push the product through the initial build phases, creating the foundation for the product, and testing along the way. One of the main challenges was bringing the Dev team along, many being offshore and not in our daily meetings. Making time to meet with them at reasonable hours and properly documenting our thinking was instrumental in getting the team on the same page.
Launch & Learn
Ultimately, the product launched successfully and gained users fairly quickly. The road to iterate and improve upon the foundation was set and the team continues to execute on the vision. There were challenges along the way, primarily based on the stack selected to build upon (native v. ionic) which resulted in some technical issues that we had to circumvent through design. The opportunity to work with such a vast cross section of a company and learn from them while also helping to instill a culture of openness, communication, and collaboration, was an experience I will cherish for the rest of my career. An amazing team and culture can have a significant impact on the company and product delivered.
____
