Optimizing the design x engineering handoff process

I led the end-to-end redesign of our internal analytic tool as the lead product designer and product manager, building a handoff process resulting in the feature shipped on time, driving +76% views, +105% users, and 29% faster time-on-page growth vs legacy feature.

fig. 01 — redesigned sentiment analysis page

Role

Lead Product Designer + (with de facto product management scope)

Team

Joseph Audette, VP of Product and Engineering; Najeeb Chowdhury, Product Manager; Edgar Garza, Director of Engineering; Nick Gilreath, Senior Product Engineer; Leo Cabral, Senior Engineer

Timeline

April 2025 - Aug 2025 (with ongoing client comms)

Platform

Pilotly’s Delta dashboard — Sentiment Analysis page

Users

Pilotly research team; client researchers and stakeholders at major content studios

Skills

User research, UX design, sprint architecture, engineering coordination, QA, client management, cross-functional process design

problem

Our small and fast-moving team had a cross-functional tension — it was easy for engineers to come into a project when big decisions have already been made. The pattern forced rushed decisions, and a fragile handoff between design and engineering.

solution

Operating as both design and product lead, I designed a phased process that pulled engineering in roughly six weeks before development started, with structured moments for alignment, technical review, and scope-locking. The Sentiment Analysis redesign — a high-priority migration from our legacy “Classic” dashboard to our new “Delta” experience — became the proof point for whether the process could actually change how we shipped.

impact

+76% / -6%

Delta vs Classic page views

+105% / -27%

Delta users vs Classic viewers

29% faster

time on page growth (Delta vs Classic)

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the end.

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