Z Rewards

Limited customer insight: No comprehensive view of customer spending habits was limiting the ability to create targeted offers to increase spend and brand loyalty.
‍
Competitive pressure: A recent competitor's loyalty programme launch used price competition and decreased Z's market share.
‍
Fragmented customer experience: The existing loyalty programme focussed solely on fuel purchases, missing opportunities across Z's expanding product portfolio.

App Store Rankings: #1 on Android and #2 on iOS app stores.

Engagement: Users exchanged points for vouchers 357 times in the first week.

Transaction Growth: Fuel purchased in-app increased from 6% to 18%.

The development team needed detailed estimates and a clear understanding of risks and dependencies to meet the launch date.

Rather than low-fidelity wireframes, we designed mid-fidelity flows utilising the existing design system, providing clarity the developers needed whilst still moving quickly. I established clear guiding principles to reduce development complexity and streamline decision-making such as using existing UX patterns and UI components wherever possible.

We conducted multiple rounds of user testing to de-risk functionality and ensure an intuitive experience. Initial online sessions explored core UX and user flows, while in-person testing revealed how homepage animations motivated engagement with the loyalty programme. Throughout testing, we achieved consistently high System Usability Scores, validating our design approach.

One solution I'm particularly proud of addressed users having to adopt a new behavior (scanning a digital loyalty card). By using the user's location, the app automatically pushes the loyalty card to the banner when a customer arrives on site, enabling them to scan without tapping any buttons. This small but significant reduction in friction exemplifies our user-centered approach.

A partnership approach with the client was essential for success. I implemented several key rituals:
‍

• 2x weekly working sessions focussed on current epics, to huddle around design work, discuss risks and form tasks to prevent blockers.
• Weekly design review sessions as work progressed rapidly reiterating clear expectations by outlining: where we were, where we were going, and specific feedback needed.
• Presentation of all designs to the development team early and often driving discussions around complexity, risks, and scalability to incorporate technical feedback into our design approach.

When I joined the project, the client relationship was strained. I transformed this into a productive partnership by:

‍

• Taking time to understand the stakeholders as people.
• Providing public recognition for their contributions.
• Establishing clear expectations on what we could address within constraints.
• Practicing radical candor in all communications.

‍

Both client stakeholders and internal team members recognised this collaboration as their most successful to date.

The dual role of Product Lead and Design Lead on a large enterprise project taught me valuable lessons:

‍

1. The power of true partnership: Building genuine relationships based on trust creates an environment where challenging deadlines and requirements can be navigated successfully. The deep level of trust we established created an environment where both teams could do their best work—a principle I've carried forward into subsequent product design leadership roles.
2. Clarity in constraints: Being explicit about what feedback we were seeking and what we could realistically change given time and budget constraints kept the project moving forward.
3. Strategic prioritisation: When facing tight timelines, focussing on user-centered principles and existing patterns allowed us to deliver value quickly without sacrificing quality.

While the initial launch has been successful, I see opportunities to enhance the Z Rewards programme further:

‍

1. Examining end to end customer touch points rather than just an app experience.
2. Exploring further gamification based on the peak-end rule to enhance engagement.
3. Optimising cross-sell opportunities to drive customers into physical stores (where margins are higher).