ux research product design ux/ui design
Client Manager
Overview
Pulse Analytics provides decision support tools for market access and field teams in oncology and specialty therapeutics. In 2019, the team launched an internal-facing Client Manager tool to help consultants manage user accounts and configure access to tools, pages, and datasets tailored to each client team.
As the product evolved, the original Client Manager tool no longer met the needs of the consultants that used it. Key workflows like assigning permissions and tracking client access had become cumbersome, and newer business needs weren’t supported by the original system. The project goals were to: streamline the workflow for creating and updating client access, reduce manual effort and errors in permission management and incorporate new functionality that allows consultants to track client subscriptions and associate them with client teams.
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In 2024, I was asked to redesign the Client Manager tool to improve the consultant experience using the app.
Original Design
(Not by me)
Final Design
(My work)
Process
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1
To kick off the project, I conducted user research to better understand how consultants were using the Client Manager tool and how the experience could be improved. Since the application did not yet have integrated user analytics, I designed and distributed a user survey to gather qualitative insights. The survey focused on understanding:
Typical usage patterns
Core motivations for using the tool
Pain points with the current experience
Desired features or missing functionality
The feedback revealed several opportunities for improvement:
Modernized UI: Users wanted a refreshed, more intuitive interface. The existing experience relied heavily on modals, which interrupted workflows and caused full page reloads when switching between them—resulting in a frustrating, "jumpy" experience.
At-a-glance clarity: Consultants needed a more immediate understanding of each client, team, and subscription—specifically their source, current status, purpose, and associated data permissions.
Higher-level reporting: Users requested built-in reporting capabilities (e.g., user reports, subscription reports, and access reports) to help them view and query data at a broader level without needing to request engineering support.
2
To explore layout possibilities and evaluate different design directions, my colleague and I began by creating low-fidelity wireframes. Each of us then selected a wireframe concept to develop further. We translated our chosen layouts into interactive prototypes, allowing us to simulate key workflows and gather actionable user feedback.
3
I developed a user testing protocol designed to evaluate the usability and clarity of both prototypes. We conducted remote, moderated testing sessions with 8 consultants who regularly use the Client Manager tool, where users ranked the ease of completing their typical tasks and preference for each option.
Users preferred the prototype I designed, citing the following reasons:
Clean, modern interface with more intentional use of color and iconography, resulting in a less distracting experience
Team-level summaries that provide high-level context before entering edit mode, allowing users to assess relevance at a glance
Smooth editing experience through the use of collapsible side panels rather than modals
Clear active/inactive states, which helped users focus on teams that required their attention
4
I incorporated the additional feedback and annotated key interactions for engineering implementation.
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Final Solution
The preferred design was implemented. In follow-up interviews, users shared that the new interface was significantly easier to navigate and had meaningfully improved their day-to-day workflow.
Consultants reported that:
The updated layout made it easier to find and edit client permissions
High-level summaries helped them quickly assess each team’s setup
The overall experience felt more intuitive, responsive, and aligned with their needs