What do you think design is? While definitions of design may vary from person to person, one thing is certain: the essence of design lies in planning and creating.
Wadiz, which provides services via web and app, has product designers. They constantly improve features and redesign them to provide users with a better experience.
We met withthe Product Design Team, who constantly strive to deliver the best experience for service users.
What does a Wadiz Product Designer do?
Jin-seop: Hello, I'm Jinseop Lee from the Product Design Team. TheWadiz tech organization is divided into purpose-driven 'bands' to solve problems quickly and make an impact. Product designers belong to the Payment Volume, Open Project Volume, and Active Member bands. I work in an organization focused on increasing payment transactions, identifying and defining service issues, and designing the experiential impact we deliver to users. Although our team members belong to different bands, we operate as one team, regularly exchanging feedback and collaborating.
Yunhye : Hello. I'm Park Yoonhye, an active member and band product designer. I work to improve the service experience Wadizusers, especially our supporters.
Yeonkyung : Hello. I'm Park Yeon-kyung, Product Designer at Open Gansu Band. I help connect supporters and makers, designing the entire process from project preparation to reward shipping.
Joo Chong-myeong: Hello. I'm Joo Chongmyeong, a Product Designer. As Jinseop mentioned, Wadiz tech organization bands consist of PO, Product Designers, FE, BE, App Developers, and QA team members. I'm working on the Payment Volume band, improving the user experience from navigation to checkout on Wadizdesktop web and mobile apps. I'm constantly refining the service with the band's goal of increasing payment volume in mind.
What are the most important skills and experience for a Wadiz product designer?
Jin-seop: I believe it's problem-solving skills and flexible communication and collaboration abilities. A product designer's role is to identify problems, derive insights, and solve them to deliver the best possible service. They must not stop at merely discovering problems, but persistently dig deep to analyze root causes and make quick judgments.This process requires the ability to present effective solutions through various approaches like data analysis, user research, and A/B testing. process requires the ability to propose effective solutions through various approaches like data analysis and user research, as well as A/B testing.
Yoon Hye: I believe the ability to see the whole picture—from the WHY to the HOW of a task—is crucial. Wadizhas multiple operational teams, each making various attempts to achieve their goals. Since these goals must be reflected in the service, I believe the ability to understand the business objectives and view the service through that lens is crucial.
Insight: The most crucial capability for any task is the perspective through which you view the work. For Wadiz product designers, I believe these two aspects are vital. First, user experience that considers not only data but also business scalability. Second, decision-making that doesn't obscure the core essence of the task's objectives.
From a business perspective, it's crucial how naturally you can implement the elements you want to showcase within the service. Of course, presenting solutions based on data is a fundamental capability you must possess. However, if you don't consider the business context alongside this, the product will struggle to succeed in the long run.
Second, it relates to communication with relevant departments. Here, adopting a stance that represents the user is crucial. When focusing too much on differing interests, usability can sometimes be overlooked. Given that this role is closely tied to the user, I believe we must take responsibility for usability. To achieve this, close communication and coordination between business and development are essential.
What do you think is the most unique aspect of being a product designer Wadiz?
Jin-seop : Wadiz services span diverse domains. We providean environment where supporters (users) and makers thrive together. In this process , product designerscan craft a unified user experience encompassing all stages from both perspectives.We gain deep insight into how each domain connects and interacts, finding solutions to bridge gaps and reduce friction. What makes being a Wadiz product designer special isgoing beyond simple product design to empathize with anddeliberate onboth the service connections and the perspectives of both users.
Yeonkyung: We have a culture that allows us to take full responsibility for projects from top-level planning all the way through deployment. You can experience the entire project lifecycle—from defining service policies and designing user flows to communicating with relevant departments— whichbrings a sense of accomplishment and responsibility.
Sharpness: Band members can engage in more focused discussions to achieve objectives. While working on tasks, we communicate most frequently with the Product Owner (PO). The PO possesses deep understanding of the service, collaborates on solutions to problems presented by the Product Designer, and jointly develops strategies. If the development team needs specific data, they proactively implement the necessary test environments. Sometimes they create prototypes first, making it easier to identify issues that would arise in actual implementation. They also propose efficient interactions tailored to both web and native environments.
Wadiz Product Design Team
Does the Product Design Team have its own unique culture or way of working?
Jin-seop: While working within our respective purpose-driven organizations, we're designing experiences that span across platforms and domains. We hold weekly design meetings to align the team. We share ongoing projects from each organization, exchange constructive feedback, and manage design quality.
Yoon Hye: As Director Jinseop mentioned, during design meetings we share ongoing projects by team. We learn what challenges other teams are facing and exchange opinions on areas that could be improved from a designer's perspective. We also discover connections between other projects and my own, proactively suggesting ideas or exchanging feedback.
Brightness: The Product Design Team follows one of Jin-gook's working principles: 'If you're scared, report it; if you're not scared, decide.'This is a team that actively utilizes Jin-gook's approach to work. When we have concerns, we exchange countless opinions even outside meetings. Everyone actively contributes diverse perspectives, and most offer efficient solutions and sharp questions, yielding tremendous insights. We understand and synthesize differing opinions, take responsibility for usability, and make decisions.
Jin-gook's Work Method 7. If you're scared, report it; if you're not scared, make a decision.
I understand the Product Design Team utilizes a 'design system.' What is it, and why was it created?
Intelligence: Because of the title 'product designer,' many people think it's mainly about tasks like setting text sizes or colors, designing button shapes, or creating visually pleasing layouts. While aesthetic elements are important, a product designer's primary goal is to identify problems within the user experience and 'design' solutions. The tool that enables creating these solutions is design system (WDS).
Jin-seop: In product design, consistency and flexibility are paramount. Especially since the Wadiz service spans diverse domains and user demographics, consistent experienceis key. The design system ensures all design elements maintain this unity. We continuously update and refine the design system to respond quickly to changing requirements.
When designing, I believe subjective perspectives are the most dangerous element. I strive to maintain a user-centered mindset. I incorporate feedback gained through user research and testing into the design process, aiming to make design decisions based on data and actual user experiences.
Yoon Hye: I'm striving to structure screens using the design system. Since this involves not just design but also development, adhering to it ensures smooth scheduling and communication until the actual service implementation. When designing, I focus not just on drawing screens, but on whether the design can achieve the goal and whether it enables efficient development.
Yeonkyung: When developing a design system, efficiency is the top priority. It's crucial to build an infrastructure that enables diverse practitioners—like Product Owners, Product Designers, and Developers—to immerse themselves in hypothesis validation faster. The design system is what makes this possible. Wadizoperates with multiple bands and task forces organized by purpose, moving swiftly to solve problems. A robust design system is essential for enabling this rapid execution.
Wadiz Design System
What are the key challenges the Product Design Team would like to focus on moving forward?
Jin-seop: Lately, our team has been focusing on enhancing our design system to respond quickly to changing services and business needs. We're striving to maintain consistency and efficiency, from component usage policies to interactions and UI requirements for each component. We're working hard to manage them as common modules.
I believe the Product Design Team's mission is to collaborate with PO, developers, and even the business team to design experiences that drive impact on both the service and the business. I want to focus on fostering a culture where collaborating product professionals can freely exchange healthy opinions and create an atmosphere of mutual growth.
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