Product Design

Situation

When I joined Michigan Software Labs as Senior Product Designer, I encountered a fundamental gap in how the organization approached design. While the company had strong UX capabilities, it lacked an understanding of Product Design as a strategic discipline.

This gap led to inefficiencies, missed opportunities for innovation, and strained client relationships.

Knowledge Gap in Product Design

Product Design was unfamiliar across the organization — from leadership to individual contributors. Its role in balancing user needs, business goals, and technical constraints was not well understood.

Narrow UX Focus

Design work was limited to traditional UX execution, without incorporating broader product strategy, discovery, or systems thinking. This prevented designers from operating at their full potential.

Underwhelming Client Deliverables

Without product design thinking, client solutions often addressed surface-level needs rather than deeper systemic problems.

Product Decisions Without User Insight

Product decisions were largely driven by Product Managers, often without sufficient user research or behavioral insight, increasing risk and limiting innovation.

Inefficiencies and Rework

A lack of upfront product thinking led to frequent rework, higher costs, and project delays.

Task

My objectives were to:

1. Introduce and advocate for Product Design principles
2. Demonstrate the value of Product Design beyond traditional UX
3. Implement Product Design methodologies on appropriate projects
4. Improve product outcomes for both clients and internal teams

Action

Stakeholder Education

• Initiated discussions with leadership on the role of Product Design
• Clarified distinctions between UX Design and Product Design
• Framed Product Design as a business enabler, not a design add-on

Advocacy and Team Building

• Partnered with a senior designer who shared interest in Product Design
• Used this collaboration to build internal momentum and credibility

Strategic Implementation

• Recognized the challenge of shifting active projects midstream
• Proposed piloting Product Design on new, lower-risk initiatives

Patience and Persistence

• Continued advocating while waiting for the right opportunity
• Reinforced the message through conversations, examples, and outcomes

Challenges Faced

Resistance to Change

Some team members were comfortable with an established UX-only workflow and initially resisted new methodologies.

Client Education

Clients needed help understanding why Product Design added value beyond what they were already receiving.

Resource Allocation

Product Design required more upfront investment, which initially appeared to slow delivery.

To address these challenges, I:

• Ran workshops and training sessions
• Built internal case studies from early pilot projects
• Worked with sales to clearly articulate Product Design value to clients

Result

Improved Product Development

Upfront discovery and strategy reduced friction, misalignment, and rework.

Enhanced Client Satisfaction

Clients received more holistic, durable solutions aligned with both user needs and business outcomes.

Balanced Decision Making

Designers became active contributors to product decisions, complementing Product Managers with user-centered insight.

Competitive Advantage

Michigan Software Labs differentiated itself as a more strategic, product-focused consultancy.

Team Growth

Designers expanded their skill sets and impact, becoming more versatile contributors.

Concrete Example

In one project for a non-profit organization, we applied Product Design principles to build a Relief Supply Exchange platform.

Rather than creating a basic donation portal, we mapped the full disaster-relief ecosystem, identifying inefficiencies in supply chains and coordination.

The result was a centralized platform — effectively an “Amazon for disaster relief” — where non-profits could source supplies and donors could contribute to specific needs with full transparency.

Metrics of Success

• Reduced supply delivery time by 25%
• Increased donor engagement by 45%
• Cut average delivery time from 7 days to 3.5 days
• Increased registered non-profits by 50% in year one
• Improved supply-to-need matching accuracy by 22%
• Reduced non-profit administrative overhead by 40%
• Increased donor retention from 30% → 50%
• Boosted overall donation volume by 85%

Client Feedback

“Michigan Software Labs didn’t just deliver what we asked for — they delivered what we actually needed. The impact on our business was measurable.”

— CEO, mid-sized tech company

Long-term Impact

Market Differentiation

Positioned the firm as a consultancy delivering strategic, product-level solutions.

Talent Attraction

Product Design focus helped attract stronger design talent.

Expanded Services

Enabled offerings such as product strategy workshops and discovery engagements.

Future Directions

AI Integration

Exploring AI-assisted research, prototyping, and behavioral analysis.

Sustainability Focus

Embedding sustainability into product decision-making frameworks.

Cross-Industry Innovation

Applying insights from one industry to unlock innovation in others.

Reflection

Introducing Product Design at Michigan Software Labs required persistence, trust-building, and a willingness to challenge norms. The result was not just better products, but a stronger, more resilient design practice.

This experience reinforced my belief in strategic design leadership — where design connects user needs, business goals, and long-term value.

By successfully integrating Product Design, we raised the bar for what a software consultancy could deliver and positioned the organization for sustained growth.