Bank of Montreal

• Conducting extensive user research with financial advisors, relationship managers, and institutional administrators to understand their workflows, pain points, and critical needs.
• Translating complex business requirements and research insights into actionable design strategies.
• Developing detailed user personas, B2B-specific user journeys, and a comprehensive information architecture.
• Creating wireframes, interactive prototypes, and detailed mockups for various platform modules.
• Designing the user interface (UI), ensuring professional aesthetics, alignment with brand guidelines, and strict adherence to accessibility and security standards.
• Planning and facilitating expert reviews and usability testing sessions with financial professionals.
• Iterating on designs based on qualitative feedback, quantitative data, and technical feasibility.
• Collaborating closely with product managers, compliance officers, development teams, and business stakeholders.

1. Stakeholder Interviews & Contextual Inquiry

• Methodology: Conducted 15 in-depth interviews with various stakeholders including financial advisors, branch managers, compliance officers, and IT support staff. Performed contextual inquiries by shadowing advisors in their daily tasks to observe workflows and identify bottlenecks firsthand.

Key Insights:

• Time Sensitivity: Advisors prioritize tools that save time, especially for repetitive tasks like report generation and client lookups.
• Data Aggregation: A single, comprehensive view of client information (holdings, history, communications) was critical.
• Customization & Flexibility: Need for customizable dashboards and reports to cater to diverse client needs and internal reporting requirements.
• Regulatory Compliance: Tools must explicitly support compliance checks and audit trails without adding unnecessary friction.
• Training & Onboarding: While sophisticated, the platform needed to be intuitive enough to reduce training overhead for new users.

2. Competitive & Industry Analysis

• Methodology: Analyzed leading B2B financial software, advisor workstations, CRM platforms, and compliance management tools. Reviewed industry best practices for financial data visualization and security.
• Key Findings: Identified superior approaches for portfolio analytics, client relationship management dashboards, and efficient data entry. Noted common frustrations with legacy systems, such as outdated interfaces and disjointed workflows.

• The Client Relationship Manager (Michael, 45): Focuses on client engagement, needs quick access to client data, portfolio performance, and communication tools.
• The Investment Strategist (Jessica, 38): Deep dives into fund performance, asset allocation, and market trends; requires robust analytical tools.
• The Operations Administrator (Chris, 52): Manages client onboarding, data entry, and compliance reporting; needs efficient bulk actions and clear audit trails.

• Dashboard: Personalized overview for advisors (client alerts, upcoming tasks, performance snapshots).
• Clients: Centralized hub for managing individual and institutional clients (profiles, portfolios, interactions).
• Portfolios: Tools for comprehensive portfolio analysis, allocation adjustments, and rebalancing across multiple clients.
• Funds: Detailed fund research, comparison, and selection tools with advanced filters.
• Reporting: Customizable report generation for clients, compliance, and internal analysis.
• Administration/Compliance: Tools for user management, audit trails, and regulatory adherence.

• Onboarding a new institutional client and setting up multiple associated accounts.
• Conducting a comprehensive portfolio review and proposing adjustments.
• Generating a customized quarterly performance report for a client.
• Performing a compliance check on a client's fund allocations.
• Bulk updating client contact information or fund preferences.

1. Sketches & Wireframes

• Initial whiteboard sessions and rapid sketching explored various dashboard layouts, complex data tables, and reporting module structures.
• Low-fidelity wireframes, created in tools like Balsamiq or Miro, defined the functional layout, content hierarchy, and interaction patterns for key advisor workflows. These were used for early validation with internal teams.

2. Prototyping

• High-fidelity, interactive prototypes were developed using Figma, simulating the full platform experience. This allowed stakeholders to navigate complex scenarios, provide realistic feedback on interactions, and visualize the impact of design decisions on their workflows for both desktop and tablet views.

3. Visual Design (UI, Branding, Accessibility & Data Density)

• Professional & Functional UI: The visual design prioritized functionality, clarity, and a professional aesthetic consistent with the bank's enterprise brand. We employed a sophisticated color palette, clear typography (Inter for readability), and judicious use of iconography to aid navigation.
• Advanced Data Visualization: Developed custom data visualizations for portfolio performance, asset allocation, and risk metrics, allowing advisors to quickly interpret complex financial information and explain it to clients.
• Efficient Data Entry & Management: Designed forms and tables for efficient data input, bulk actions, and easy editing, minimizing manual effort.
• Microinteractions & Feedback: Incorporated subtle animations, progress indicators, and clear feedback messages to guide users through complex processes and confirm actions.
• Accessibility & Responsiveness: Designed for compliance with WCAG 2.1 (AA standard), ensuring high contrast, keyboard navigation, and screen reader compatibility. The platform was built with a responsive design approach, optimizing for large desktop monitors and professional-grade tablets.

1. Methodology

• Round 1 (Mid-Fidelity Prototypes): Conducted remote moderated usability tests with 10 financial advisors and operations staff from different branches. Tasks included client search, portfolio analysis, and basic report generation.
• Round 2 (High-Fidelity Prototypes): Conducted in-person moderated tests with 8 new participants, focusing on complex tasks like bulk updates, detailed fund comparisons, and compliance reporting.

2. Key Findings & Iterations

• Initial Discovery: Advisors found it challenging to compare multiple funds side-by-side for client recommendations.
• Iteration: Implemented a robust Fund Comparison tool that allowed users to select, compare, and visualize key metrics (performance, fees, risk) for up to five funds simultaneously.

• Initial Discovery: Generating a custom client report involved too many steps and options.
• Iteration: Introduced a Smart Report Builder with pre-defined templates, drag-and-drop sections, and real-time preview, significantly reducing the time to create customized reports.

• Initial Discovery: Navigating between different client-specific data (e.g., portfolio, communication log, documents) was disjointed.
• Iteration: Created a comprehensive Client 360 View dashboard, consolidating all relevant client information into a single, scrollable interface with clear tab navigation for quick access to specific modules.

• Initial Discovery: Understanding the implications of regulatory changes on client portfolios was difficult.
• Iteration: Developed a Compliance Heatmap feature that visually highlighted potential compliance issues within client portfolios, offering direct links to relevant regulations and recommended actions.

• 20% increase in advisor efficiency for client management and reporting tasks.
• 10% reduction in manual errors related to data entry and compliance documentation.
• Increased advisor satisfaction and adoption rates due to improved usability and streamlined workflows.
• Enhanced capacity for client service, allowing advisors to dedicate more time to relationship building and strategic advice.
• Streamlined onboarding of new institutional clients, reducing initial setup time.

• Complexity as a Feature: In B2B, complexity is often a necessity. The challenge is not to eliminate it, but to manage it through intuitive design, progressive disclosure, and smart defaults.
• Integration is Key: B2B platforms rarely stand alone. Anticipating and designing for seamless integration with other internal systems (CRM, accounting, compliance) is critical.
• Workflow-Centric Design: Understanding the precise, often rigid, workflows of professional users is paramount. Design must support and enhance these existing processes, not disrupt them.