As a Key UI/UX Designer for the award-winning Cardinal Financial (CF) website redesign, I played a critical role in transforming the digital experience for CF customers. This project earned the 2022 W³ Gold Award, recognizing excellence in web design and functionality. My contributions spanned across UI/UX and visual design, ensuring an intuitive, visually appealing, and highly functional interface. 

UI Design Contributions

• Engineered desktop and mobile navigation, ensuring a seamless experience across different screen sizes and devices.

• Designed a series of interactive mortgage calculators, allowing potential customers to easily compare loan options and make informed financial decisions.

• Integrated an intuitive loan originator search tool, streamlining the process of finding and connecting with loan professionals.

• Built an interactive job portal, enhancing CF’s career section with a visually engaging and user-friendly interface.

• Ensured interface design elements aligned with Usability Heuristics standards.

• Reviewed and prepared finalized designs for development hand-off.

UX Design Contributions

• Developed comprehensive wireframes and interactive prototypes to visualize user flows and key interactions before development.

• Conducted usability testing to ensure readability and color contrast met usability standards.

Visual Design Contributions

• Translated creative concepts into usable design patterns and components for seamless implementation.

• Designed multiple introductory landing pages for various sections of CF.com, enhancing the site’s visual appeal and reinforcing Cardinal’s friendly and approachable design tone.

• Developed content block patterns and page templates to provide reusable design assets for other members of the design team.

• Conducted design reviews to ensure consistency in style, adherence to usability standards, and alignment with brand guidelines. 

• Developed multiple marketing landing page templates for the marketing team, enabling use across various campaigns and channels, including consumer sales, wholesale, and recruitment.

Design System Contributor for Octane

As a key contributor to Octane, Cardinal Financial’s enterprise-grade, multi-theme design system, I helped establish a scalable, consistent design language across all CF digital products. My responsibilities included:

• Designing and refining UI components to ensure brand alignment and reusability across various platforms.

• Developing interactive prototypes to demonstrate design intent and gather feedback from stakeholders before implementation.

• Conducting heuristic evaluations and accessibility audits to meet WCAG standards, ensuring a more inclusive and user-friendly experience.

Front-End Overhaul of HUB4 (CF’s National Communication Portal)

I played a pivotal role in conceptualizing, prototyping, and engineering component library elements for the front-end modernization of HUB4, CF’s national internal communication hub. This included:

• Redesigning the site header to introduce enhanced search functionality, improving discoverability and efficiency for users.

• Developing structured document libraries, allowing for easier organization and retrieval of key information.

• Implementing a calendar scheduling system, streamlining internal events and meetings.

• Creating a new design theme based on the Octane design system, ensuring consistency while adapting to the unique needs of HUB4.

Lead Designer for HUB4 Content Management System

As the Lead Designer for the HUB4 content management system, I spearheaded design efforts to enhance usability and functionality. My work was informed by:

• Stakeholder interviews, gathering insights from key users to define requirements and pain points.

• User flows and wireframes, mapping out optimal interactions for a seamless experience.

• Interactive prototypes, providing a tangible representation of the system for testing and feedback.

• Layout designs, ensuring a visually cohesive and structured UI within a tailored design system.

Through these projects, I helped elevate the digital presence of Cardinal Financial, improving user engagement, accessibility, and overall experience across multiple platforms.