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Building a Shared Platform Across Six Applications
Platform Strategy and Incremental Adoption
B2B • Fintech • UI/UX Design
Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch Clear: Goals-Based Retirement Tools
Embedded through The Big Studio, I contributed to Merrill Lynch Clear, a suite of seven iPad discovery apps that helped advisers guide more human, goals-based retirement conversations. The suite publicly launched, with approximately 9,000 advisers trained.
Overview
Embedded at Merrill Lynch through The Big Studio, I was the sole designer on an initial 3-person consulting team rethinking how people visualize retirement savings. During a related Bank of America engagement, I led 4 interns through an iPad retirement-balance design exercise. That concept informed work at Merrill Lynch, where a larger Big Studio team and I contributed to Merrill Lynch Clear, a seven-app iPad suite for goals-based conversations. Merrill Lynch publicly launched the suite and trained approximately 9,000 advisers.
My contribution
What I personally owned
- Product and UX
- Advisor research and compliance-aware product design, from information architecture through workflow definition.
- Design ownership
- Hands-on wireframes, interface design, and interactive prototypes for retirement-planning and goals-based discovery experiences.
- Leadership and collaboration
- Sole designer on the initial Merrill Lynch team, leader of four interns on the related Bank of America exercise, and contributor to the larger Clear team.
I personally contributed to every interface shown in this case study. The initial Merrill Lynch work was mine as the sole designer; the later Clear suite was created with a larger Big Studio team.
Discover
Understanding Financial Advisors
Financial advisors needed a way to make retirement planning feel approachable rather than abstract and intimidating for clients. The existing tools presented accumulation and withdrawal in ways that triggered fear and friction rather than confidence. The challenge was to design goals-based conversations around a client's life priorities while applying behavioral-finance ideas within financial-industry compliance requirements.
UX authorship
I created both discovery artifacts shown below.
Whiteboard session for auto-enrollment flow ideation
Auto-enrollment decision tree and branch mapping
Define
Information Architecture
The work began with an iPad retirement-balance exercise during a related Bank of America engagement, which I led with 4 interns. That concept informed work brought into Merrill Lynch, where a larger Big Studio team and I designed the Merrill Lynch Clear suite: seven iPad discovery apps built around goals-based conversations rather than raw account data. I translated the concept into information architecture and interactive prototypes, working within compliance requirements throughout the design process.
UX authorship
I created the information architecture and dashboard wireframe shown below.
Dashboard information architecture and layout planning
Design
Platform & Advisory Tools
- Designed goals-based discovery around life priorities rather than raw account data
- Applied behavioral-finance and gamification principles to make retirement planning feel approachable
- Contributed to account and enrollment dashboards supporting the broader retirement-planning relationship
- Created compliant, consistent patterns for adviser desktop and iPad contexts
Design authorship
I designed all three product interfaces shown below.
Combined Account Balance homepage dashboard
401(k) account summary with performance tracking
Interactive retirement-priorities interface
Dissect
Results & Impact
Merrill Lynch Clear publicly launched as a suite of seven iPad discovery apps that helped advisers guide goals-based conversations around a client's life priorities. The suite supported a broader shift toward goals-based wealth management, with approximately 9,000 Merrill advisers trained at the time of launch.
7
iPad Discovery Apps
Merrill Lynch Clear suite
9,000+
Advisers Trained
At time of public launch
3
Consulting Team
Initial Big Studio team size
Key Achievements
Project Outcomes
Publicly Launched
Merrill Lynch Clear launched as a set of technology-driven retirement tools for advisers.
Goals-Based Design
Discovery conversations organized around a client's life priorities.
Regulatory Compliance
Designed within financial-industry regulatory and compliance requirements.
Adviser Training at Scale
Approximately 9,000 Merrill advisers received training on the launched suite.
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