As the Product Designer on this project, my role extended beyond interface design. I was responsible for leading the design effort, significantly influencing product strategy and ensuring we delivered a solution that was usable, valuable and feasible, directly impacting our users and the business.
Vision
Our guiding principle was that customers' end-users should interact with company processes without leaving their preferred communication tool. For many, Microsoft Teams is this hub.
Strategic hypothesis
With Approvals, every Microsoft customer becomes a Matrix42 customer!
Understanding the playing field
When I joined, collaboration between product, design and engineering at Matrix42 was maturing. I championed a more integrated, design-led "trifecta" approach, with this project as a key example of building better products, faster.
The core problem
Managers and executives, key Matrix42 users, are time-poor. Switching apps for approvals was a business risk, potentially stalling operations. Research confirmed Teams as the dominant platform for our DACH region customers. Integrating approvals was a strategic move to meet users where they work, solving a major pain point and increasing the Matrix42 ecosystem's value.
Project-specific challenges I navigated
New territory
(Teams Apps)
Led UX research into MSFT Teams design guidelines to de-risk development.
Parallel work
streams
Established feedback loops and iterative design reviews to align engineering and design work.
Aggressive deadline (3 months to GA)
Actively contributed to prioritization efforts, advocating for user-centric scope decisions.
Resource constraints (Frontend skills)
Influenced the design towards leveraging a robust design system (Fluent UI) for quality and speed.
Mobile responsive
support
Championed a mobile-first consideration and implemented code for responsive support.
Learning from
past attempts
Analyzed a previous stalled attempt to ensure a clearer scope and stronger alignment from day one.
Team structure & next steps
As the sole Product Designer, I worked with 1 PM, 3 Engineers and 1 QA.
My initial strategic steps included:
Choosing Fluent UI as our design system.
Driving direct end-user research to validate assumptions.
Reviewing all existing UI/UX artifacts.
Identifying "low-hanging fruit" for quick, strategic wins.
Discovery & data-driven decisions
I facilitated discovery sessions with the team and stakeholders, asking relevant questions like:
What's the core problem and why is it strategically vital now?
Who are the primary users and what's the impact on their work?
How are users currently managing approvals and what are the inefficiencies?
The initial problem definition was "murky." A key early contribution of mine was bringing clarity by advocating for data. Three themes emerged: simple vs. complex approvals, multi-language support and user role/benefit ratio. I pushed for data on all three.
Digging into the data
Analysis of data from ~300 cloud customers was instrumental:
~70% of approvals were simple, recurring tasks. (My argument: focus the MVP here).
~30% were complex, multi-step requests.
Complex approvals took, on average, 60% more time to complete.
The strategic conclusion
Considering the data, potential technical complexities, the tight deadline and the Product Manager's domain expertise, the team reached a consensus:
The MVP would focus on simple approvals, use English as the primary language and target a well-defined generic core user role.
This collective strategic decision was important for managing risk and ensuring we could deliver a quality product on time.
Design process
With a focused strategy, I led a design process marked by continuous collaboration.
User personas
Grounding decisions in user needs
I guided the team to focus the MVP on a generic but well-understood persona (IT admins, busy managers, executives), addressing common core needs like quick review, easy access to info and reduced mental load.
User flows & system diagrams
Creating shared understanding
I created detailed user flow diagrams and conceptual models, used as daily communication tools to map interactions and answer critical questions early (e.g. "minimum info needed on an approval card?").
User interviews
Validating & iterating with real users
I planned and conducted interviews with internal stakeholders and external end-users (Rhenus, Magna). This validated scenarios, aligned features with needs and identified future opportunities.
Feedback (e.g. Rhenus: "Table grid for high volume, card for low volume," need for filtering) directly influenced the design.
Mobile-first design & responsive implementation
Recognizing the importance of accessibility for busy, on-the-go users, I designed and prototyped the mobile experience.
Beyond the initial design, I also took on the responsibility of coding the responsive frontend coding (React/CSS) to ensure the mobile interface was not just an afterthought, but a polished and truly usable experience that adapted perfectly to smaller screens.
Engineering collaboration
Bridging design and development
Connected with engineering, I often acted as a liaison between design, product and development, translating user needs into technical requirements and design specs into actionable tasks.
Participated in most of the engineering meetings, resulting is a close collaboration - key to a smooth implementation process.
Outcomes
Our focused strategy and collaborative execution led to:
On-Time GA Release Successfully delivered within the aggressive 3-month timeline.
Overwhelmingly Positive Internal feedback Validated our strategic direction.
Strong External User feedback Confirmed we solved a real pain point, with qualitative feedback pointing to significant efficiency gains.
Strengthened Cross-Functional Collaboration This project became a model for effective teamwork at Matrix42.
Conclusions
My role involved shaping product strategy, fostering collaboration and delivering tangible value. It reinforced my conviction in the "trifecta" model, iterative development, data-informed decisions and advocating for user feedback.
What's next?
More data-driven iteration Implement robust event monitoring (e.g. Mixpanel, PostHog) for ROI demonstration, systematic feedback collection, UI enhancements for complex flows, keyboard-first navigation, accessibility audit and strategic A/B testing.
More user-validated features Advanced approvals, deeper analytics, enhanced customization, proactive AI assistance.
