Curated portfolio for:

Senior Product Designer at Xero — Growth

Simplifying complex workflows and driving measurable product outcomes through evidence-led, iterative design.

Photo of Michelle

Hi, I’m Michelle! A product designer with experience delivering measurable improvements across operational and customer-facing digital products within government, fintech, and business service environments.

At NZTE, I’ve led product discovery, UX research, and delivery for initiatives that improved customer acquisition, service efficiency, and digital product engagement. I’m passionate about designing practical, scalable tools that simplify complexity, increase operational efficiency, and unlock growth opportunities.

I thrive in cross-functional squads where experimentation, evidence-based iteration, and collaborative product thinking fuel outcomes that genuinely make a difference for users and businesses.

Summary of 3 relevant case studies below ⬇

1. Live Deals Adviser Access Pilot

Increasing platform engagement through rapid discovery, pilot testing, and iterative MVP design.

🤔 Problem

NZTE’s Live Deals investment platform excluded advisers, frustrating key ecosystem users and limiting platform growth.

⛳ Approach

I led end-to-end discovery and delivery for this high-impact feature:

  • Ran pre-planning and alignment sessions with business and product leads

  • Co-facilitated scoping and sizing workshops with the delivery squad

  • Conducted 6× generative user interviews to validate unmet needs

  • Designed, launched, and tracked a 3-month MVP pilot with 20 advisers

  • Gathered and synthesised quantitative product metrics and 8× evaluative interviews

  • Iterated permissions management patterns and added a deal sharing feature

✅ Outcomes

  • 67% increase in migrant investor engagement

  • Doubled monthly active investor users post-pilot

  • 95% adviser login adoption rate by month 3

  • Validated MVP scope while surfacing clear iteration opportunities

  • Built confidence in evidence-led, incremental product delivery

  • Screenshots of desktop and mobile designs of Advisor Access
  • Summary of project quant metrics
  • Summary of project qual metrics
More information on Advisor Access→

2. Digitising Customer Financials Collection

Streamlining operational workflows and freeing up capacity for customer-facing work.

🤔 Problem

Financial data collection involved 10 manual steps and 2 hours per customer — limiting productivity and data quality for strategic reporting.

⛳ Approach

  • Mapped current state processes and time-on-task data

  • Conducted 6× evaluative interviews to test and refine concepts

  • Delivered a digital form within myNZTE, paired with process improvements

  • Created and handed over 11 reusable components into NZTE’s design system

✅ Outcomes

  • Reduced manual steps from 10 to 7 in pilot

  • Saved ~500 hours annually across 1,000 Focus customers

  • Established a roadmap for automation targeting 1,500 hours saved/year

  • Before and after of the designs for Customer Financials
  • Current and proposed process
  • Screenshot of financials designs with components
More information on Customer Financials →

3. Customer Needs Discovery

Uncovering invisible workflow gaps and reframing product priorities through discovery.

🤔 Problem

NZTE lacked visibility into how customer needs were documented globally, preventing strategic product insights and alignment.

⛳ Approach

  • Co-led 9× generative interviews across 6 regions

  • Mapped inconsistent customer needs capture practices

  • Created a visual analysis against the existing Customer Way framework

  • Presented findings to product and leadership to influence product direction

✅ Outcomes

  • Paused a misaligned product initiative

  • Uncovered CRM data hygiene issues and market maturity tag inconsistencies

  • Enabled adjacent discovery streams and future product scoping

  • Final artefact for Customer Needs Discovery
  • Initial project message to cleaned up summary
  • Image summary of next steps
More information about Customer Needs →

If you’re building digital experiences where operational efficiency meets business growth - let’s talk!

For additional projects in service design, operational platform optimisation, and digital product strategy, click through to my full portfolio.

“I've worked closer with Michelle this quarter and am so impressed with everything she does! I particularly love the way that she creates simple visuals to aid explaining complex problems and solutions. Having Michelle as part of a squad while we're working together on something has been really valuable.”

- Senior Developer, NZTE

“Michelle is such a rockstar when it comes to UX design and research. Her organisational skills are next level - from how she prepares for research or a workshop, through to her expert analysis skills and how she plays these insights back to the team!”

- Product Owner, NZTE