Overview
Led product design for GETTR, a social media platform serving 5.5M active users. Owned end-to-end UX/UI design across web and mobile platforms, established scalable design system architecture, and delivered 42 user flows and 300+ wireframes to support rapid feature development while maintaining consistency and quality under tight timelines.
Context
GETTR operated as a rapidly growing social media platform with 5.5M active users, requiring continuous UX and system-level decisions to support platform growth. As a mobile-first application, core interaction patterns and information architecture were established on mobile, then extended to web. The platform needed to ship multiple major features in parallel across web and mobile while preventing UX fragmentation. One of the main risks was UX degradation due to parallel feature development without a unified design foundation.
Problem
The platform faced UX fragmentation as new features were introduced rapidly without a unified design foundation. Legacy design patterns were inconsistent across web and mobile, creating friction when shipping parallel feature work. Design-to-development handoff lacked clear specifications, leading to implementation drift and rework. The absence of a scalable design system slowed feature delivery and increased maintenance overhead. High delivery pressure, incomplete requirements, and multiple stakeholders created tension between speed and quality.
Key issues included
- •Inconsistent navigation patterns and interaction models across web and mobile platforms
- •Fragmented component usage leading to visual and behavioral inconsistencies
- •Design-to-development handoff inefficiencies causing implementation delays and quality issues
- •Limited design system coverage requiring custom design work for each feature
- •Risk of UX degradation due to parallel feature development without systematic foundation
Solution
Established a scalable design system using Atomic Design methodology as enabling infrastructure, not parallel overhead. Created reusable component libraries for both web and mobile platforms with aligned design tokens. This system allowed multiple teams to ship features in parallel without UX drift. Redesigned core user flows with consistent interaction patterns and information architecture, balancing flexibility for feature-specific needs with standardization for speed and quality.
Approach
I followed a structured, iterative approach aligned with large product teams:
- •Synthesized conflicting inputs from product managers, growth teams, and marketing through continuous alignment rather than upfront consensus, prioritizing based on user impact and technical feasibility
- •Conducted pragmatic, time-boxed user behavior analysis through product analytics, identifying engagement patterns and friction points in core social loops
- •Performed competitive benchmarking focusing on established patterns from leading social platforms, identifying what to adopt and what risks to avoid
- •Audited existing design patterns across web and mobile, documenting inconsistencies and technical constraints to inform system architecture
- •Designed 42 user flows covering content creation, feed interaction, discovery, profile management, and engagement features, highlighting the complexity of social platform UX
- •Created 300+ wireframes as fast decision-making and alignment tools, exploring different approaches to information architecture, interaction patterns, and feature layouts before committing to high-fidelity designs
- •Established Atomic Design system architecture with atoms, molecules, organisms, and templates for scalable component organization
- •Developed design tokens for typography, spacing, color, and elevation that aligned web and mobile libraries, enabling cross-platform consistency
- •Built component libraries in Figma with variants, states, and documentation for engineering handoff, reducing implementation time
- •Made trade-off decisions balancing design quality, development speed, and platform constraints under time pressure, with partial data and incomplete requirements
- •Established design review processes and handoff workflows to improve design-engineering alignment and reduce rework
Impact
- •Improved UX consistency across web and mobile platforms through standardized component libraries and design tokens, reducing visual and behavioral fragmentation
- •Accelerated feature delivery velocity by enabling component reuse and reducing time spent on repetitive design work
- •Enhanced design-engineering alignment through clearer specifications, component documentation, and collaborative review processes, reducing implementation drift
- •Reduced design-to-development handoff time by establishing structured workflows and documentation standards
- •Enabled multiple teams to ship features in parallel without UX drift through scalable design system infrastructure
- •Improved product maturity at scale (5.5M users) through systematic approach to design patterns and cross-platform consistency
Reflection
"This project reinforced the importance of system thinking when designing at scale. Establishing a design system foundation early enabled the team to ship features faster while maintaining quality, but required upfront investment and ongoing governance. Working under tight timelines with multiple stakeholders and incomplete requirements taught me to make clear trade-offs between ideal design solutions and practical constraints. The experience of designing 42 flows and 300+ wireframes highlighted the value of rapid iteration and exploration as decision-making tools, not just deliverables. Balancing web and mobile design while respecting platform-specific patterns required careful consideration of user context and technical constraints. Key learnings included the importance of design system governance, the need for clear documentation in fast-moving environments, and how to maintain design quality while supporting rapid product development under pressure."
