Redesign and test an online membership application for physicians and oncologists

The client is the world’s leading professional organization for physicians and oncology professionals dedicated to cancer care and research.

They offer a membership program for oncologists, physicians, researchers, and trainees, providing access to educational resources, networking, and discounts. However, the existing application process was long, fragmented, and not optimized for modern usage.

We were engaged to redesign and test a more intuitive, accessible, and mobile-friendly application experience, helping reduce drop-offs and support long-term scalability of the membership platform.

This initiative was part of a broader effort to modernize their e-commerce and operational systems. Alongside the frontend redesign, the team worked to integrate with a new order management platform and align with back-end business logic, including discounts, user segments, and profile-based offerings.

These efforts supported the organization’s goals of improving scalability, maintaining consistency across tools, and driving growth across digital products and services.

Complex and fragmented application flow

• Applicants had to complete over five pages before reaching checkout
• Key steps in the process were split across disconnected screens

Poor cross-device experience

• The mobile experience lacked responsiveness and clarity
• Applicants applied from different devices and countries

Data loss and conversion risk

• Application data was not retained across steps
• Frustration and drop-offs impacted conversion rates and applicant satisfaction

My role evolved as the project progressed::

• Facilitating a collaborative workshop with stakeholders
• Collaborating daily with the Product Manager, Business Analyst, Tech Lead, Junior Experience Designer and the Development team
• Hands-on collaboration during design and implementation with the development team
• Leading in-person usability testing and iteration cycles
• Aligning with stakeholders to ensure research-backed design and product decisions

The project began with an Inception phase: a series of workshops to align on goals, pain points, and opportunities. I co-led a journey mapping exercise of the current application flow and a proto-persona workshop, where we defined user types based on business data and previous research insights.

From these sessions, we outlined the structure and content of the future membership journey, identifying key screens and data inputs needed across the experience.

With alignment in place, I moved quickly to sketch and deliver the first low-fidelity screens, focusing on the most critical form steps. These early designs enabled the development team to begin parallel sprints while we refined the user flow.

We developed and reviewed the full application experience in low fidelity to support early feedback and planning. This set the foundation for design testing and visual refinements.

I led an in-person usability study to validate the experience and surface areas for improvement. We tested the application flow with over a dozen participants, both domestic and international, across a range of professional backgrounds.

Key insights from testing:

• Applicants described the new flow as more modern and user-friendly
• There was a strong desire for transparency around data use, especially for demographic and professional fields
• Participants appreciated clear and comprehensive input options
• Many expected fields to be pre-filled when revisiting or progressing through the application

After testing, we iterated on the UI and refined the application flow using the client’s design system.

I began by sketching and exploring more polished versions of the screens, and then applied the design system to build the high-fidelity prototypes.

I also contributed back to the design system by creating and documenting new components, including:

• Autocomplete interactions
• Form field patterns
• Alert component

I also created a service blueprint to visualize frontstage and backstage actions across the MVP flow, supporting collaboration with developers and product teams.

To ensure WCAG 2.1 compliance, I worked with the BA to audit the interface. I created accessibility annotations to document:

• Focus order and keyboard navigation
• ARIA labels and screen reader support
• Clear descriptions for error states and alerts

In parallel, I collaborated with the Project Manager to define key analytics questions:

• Where do users drop off?
• How long does each page take to complete?
• How many errors occur per page?
• What’s the average time to complete an application?

The new application flow was clearer, more intuitive, and mobile-friendly, designed to reduce friction and support business goals like improved conversion rates and platform scalability.

Impact highlights:

• Redesigned flow aligned with best practices in UX and accessibility
• Validated design through in-person testing with global users
• Strengthened internal design system with reusable components
• Delivered service blueprint to align design, dev, and product stakeholders
• Created foundations for future data-informed optimization through analytics

Beyond UX improvements, the work contributed to a larger transformation effort across e-commerce, financial systems, and customer service operations.

The membership application became part of a fully integrated platform supporting memberships, digital products, and events. By connecting to the organization’s new financial systems and user profile services, the project helped modernize internal infrastructure and has already generated significant revenue since launch.

This project was a great example of how UX, accessibility, and product thinking come together to support both user and business needs. ‍ I'm especially proud of:

• The collaborative pace between product, design, and development
• Mentoring a Junior Designer during their first client engagement
• Advocating for accessibility from the start, not as a checklist, but as an integral part of design
• Seeing how testing and iteration translated into a more inclusive and scalable product
• Influencing on the best design practices and maintaining strong relationships with stakeholders throughout the project