UX planning and execution
Zone29 - University of Westminster
Overview
Zone29 is a multi-million career and enterprise hub requiring a new digital presence within the University ecosystem. The goal was to create a user-centred platform that clearly communicates the offering, supports key user journeys, and integrates with existing services.
Impact
79% avg. Engagement rate of Students dedicated section
+83% avg. Business lead generation
4.3/5 avg Happiness score
-48% of career-related enquiries received by customer services
My role
Led the end-to-end UX design in collaboration with the Content Lead
Defined project structure, timelines, and responsibilities across teams
Introduced templates and frameworks to standardise discovery and design work
Aligned stakeholders across user needs and design solutions
Discovery
Gathering user needs via online workshop with stakeholders and user research
Activities
We followed a user-centred approach to define the right problem before designing solutions.
Scoped user needs and business goals
Conducted user interviews to identify expectations and pain points
Prioritised requirements using MoSCoW framework
Defined key journeys and success criteria
Outcome:
Clear understanding of user needs and priorities, aligned across stakeholders
Highlights
Online workshops: a new approach to stakeholders collaboration
Challenge
This was the first time the team had run remote UX workshops at this scale, as the product owner initially preferred in-person sessions. However, we successfully demonstrated that a remote approach would be more inclusive and efficient, allowing more stakeholders to participate.
Solution
The process was designed to be inclusive and efficient, starting with preparatory exercises to familiarise participants with the tools.
Pre-workshop preparation:
To ensure participation across different backgrounds, we provided small preparatory exercises, guiding stakeholders in logging in and using FigJam for basic sticky note creation.
First workshop:
Stakeholders worked in groups by expertise to identify user needs based on specific user groups. The session started with a general user needs discussion to ensure overarching requirements, such as knowing where Zone29 is, were covered before moving into specific audience groups.
Between sessions:
I worked with the junior UX designer to categorise and de-duplicate user needs, preparing a structured set of items for MoSCoW prioritisation.
Second workshop:
A week later, stakeholders MoSCoWed the refined list of user needs, using a FigJam voting plugin to streamline the process. The session finished on time, even a few minutes early, making the backup session unnecessary.
Ideation
Creating a welcoming and fresh feel with a smooth user flow
Activities
Information acrhitecture
Defined the overarching IA within the wider university structure
Explored multiple internal navigation models
Validated approaches remote (using Maze) and on campus tree testing
Main pages/sections design
Designed key landing pages and primary user journeys across the platform
Established page frameworks balancing content discoverability and engagement
Iterated layouts through stakeholder reviews and usability testing
Secondary sections design
Created supporting page templates
Developed consistent structure and patterns to improve scalability and maintainability
Ensured seamless navigation and hierarchy across primary and secondary experiences
New components design and handover
Designed new reusable components aligned with the existing UI library
Produced detailed specifications and interaction guidelines for development
Delivered documentation to support implementation and future growth
Highlights
Structuring Ideation and Collaboration
To ensure a cohesive approach to design and content production, I developed a structured ideation plan. This helped align efforts across teams and provided a clear roadmap for the design process. Additionally, I worked closely with the content design lead to establish effective workflows, ensuring a seamless collaboration between design and production teams.
Challenge
Needed a structured approach to ideation to ensure design efforts were focused and effective
Lack of clear collaboration processes between design and the new content design team risked inefficiencies
Solution
Developed a macro plan for ideation, providing a clear roadmap for structuring design efforts
Collaborated with the content design lead to establish streamlined workflows for the production team, ensuring alignment and efficiency
Prototype and testing
Validating signposting, core tasks and IA proposal
Activities
Validated IA trough remote (using Useberry) and on campus testing
Validated new pages and component designs
Validated main user journeys for specific core tasks
Highlights
Remote and on campus user testing: validate IA through tree testing
To validate the information architecture and assess awareness of key employability programmes, we conducted multiple rounds of user testing for Zone29.
This included remote testing using Useberry to validate the initial task set, alongside in-person recruitment and testing on campus. Over three days, we conducted 15 moderated sessions with a diverse mix of international and home students across undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
Challenge
Recruiting a balanced mix of students within a short timeframe
Assessing both programme awareness and navigation effectiveness within one test
Solution
Conducted targeted on-campus recruitment to ensure diverse representation
Structured testing into two phases:
awareness questions
tree testing tasks
Identified gaps in awareness, leading to recommendations for clearer signposting and descriptions
Reported issues by standardised level of criticality and recommended for each mitigation/solution
“I have heard about this Programme. I don't have a clear idea of what that is."
User 6 (International, PG, She/Her, 23y)
Findings
Students correctly understood the purpose of the three primary navigation sections: Get career ready, Find jobs and opportunities, and Start or grow your business
Users consistently preferred clear, straightforward language, with simplified terminology improving comprehension, particularly among international students
Recommended refining labels to balance programme branding (e.g. Westminster Employability Award) with descriptive language to improve navigation, findability, and understanding
Solution and impact
Designing and delivering a scalable employability platform
Activities
Simplified the enrolment journey into three clear stages to improve understanding and reduce uncertainty.
Replaced internal terminology with user-centred language informed by research findings. Redesigned content structure and page hierarchy to make key information easier to find.
Introduced clearer status messaging to help students understand their progress and next steps.
Designed targeted guidance for high-friction moments, such as photo upload and verification steps.
Highlights
Supporting high-friction enrolment tasks with clear, reusable guidance
A key focus of the solution was reducing confusion in moments where students were most likely to drop off or contact support, particularly around photo upload and verification steps. Rather than relying on dense written instructions, I designed a set of reusable guidance templates and short video walkthroughs that clearly demonstrated each step of the process.
This approach shifted the experience from static instructions to task-based support, helping students understand exactly what was required and how to complete it successfully. The templates ensured consistency across enrolment touchpoints, while the videos provided an accessible, visual alternative for users who needed additional reassurance.
Impact
79%
Students section engagement (GA4)
4.3/5
Avg Happiness score
-48%
Career-related enquiries received by customer services