UX leadership in e-commerce redesign projects for La Moda

Design Lead
UX Design
UI Design

In the second half of 2021, I was assigned the role of UX Design Lead in the e-commerce redesign projects of Lança Perfume and My Favorite Things.

The projects were split into two stages: design concept and, once approved, the redesign of all pages of the websites in a 45-day window.

Due to budgetary issues, the projects depended on the assignment of junior designers to support the user interface stage. It was up to me to lead and ensure that the work presented by those professionals was up to the high standards expected by the La Moda team.

The concept stage was conducted during the closing of the scope from each of the projects. This way, we guaranteed that the improvements and functionalities proposed in the concept were included in the scope of the project, avoiding surprises during the development of the redesigns.

Meanwhile, we started the recruiting process and developed a workflow that would optimize the UI design hours, giving margin for the learning curve of the rookie designers from our team.

The workflow consisted on dividing the sprints of the project, from the most difficult to the easiest. This way, the initial sprints, with the most demanding interfaces, would be designed by the UX Design Lead. Meanwhile, the final sprints, with the simplest pages, would be designed by the rookie team. At some point in the project, the team would meet halfway through, bringing the project to an end.

Kicking off with simple pages gave small victories to our apprentice designers, who, as the project progressed, felt more confident when working on more complex interfaces. It was up to the leadership to run design critiques that ensured the work presented met the project high standards.

The method proved to be efficient when we finished the first project within the stipulated 45 days. In the second, we even achieved a 33% improvement in performance, concluding in 30 days. Although the team's confidence level was higher, we followed the same action plan, avoiding overloading our designers with complex design flows.

In the end of the day, the projects were a great learning opportunity for both novice and seasoned professionals. Working efficiently and responsibly positively impacted the early journey for these new professionals, while the new responsibilities paved the way for the UX Lead position that I currently hold.

The project was also a great opportunity to improve my UI design skills in a refined project, with a high level of expectation from our stakeholders. I was also able to develop recruitment, workflow, design critique and design direction skills, that are part of my UX leadership job description.