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PinPoint Works Platform & Mobile Redesign

PinPoint Works Platform & Mobile Redesign

A single, striking visual of the Digital Boardroom with a company’s advisory board open: posts/polls in the main feed, a right-rail of board members, and a composer (“Post / Poll / Schedule meeting”).

A single, striking visual of the Digital Boardroom with a company’s advisory board open: posts/polls in the main feed, a right-rail of board members, and a composer (“Post / Poll / Schedule meeting”).

+15%

Average order value

-30%

Time to recommendation

+31%

Attachment rate.

-40%

User-reported errors

+150%

User acquisition rate

+50%

Task completion speed

At a glance.

At a glance.

My Role — Senior Product Designer (lead UX/UI: research, IA, flows, interaction patterns, mobile-first capture, reporting, design ops)
Team — Founder & PM, Engineering, Customer Success (captains, chief engineers), Sales
Duration — 2020–2023 (multi-release)

Key Outcome:


  • +150% user acquisition rate

  • -40% user-reported errors

  • +50% task completion speed across core flows post-release

  • fewer “what’s the status?” messages

  • smoother shipyard handovers


PinPoint Works was acquired by Voly Group (2023) as part of a broader, end-to-end yachting ops stack—underscoring product/market fit for GA-centric worklist management.

My Role — Senior Product Designer (lead UX/UI: research, IA, flows, interaction patterns, mobile-first capture, reporting, design ops)
Team — Founder & PM, Engineering, Customer Success (captains, chief engineers), Sales
Duration — 2020–2023 (multi-release)

Key Outcome:


  • +150% user acquisition rate

  • -40% user-reported errors

  • +50% task completion speed across core flows post-release

  • fewer “what’s the status?” messages

  • smoother shipyard handovers


PinPoint Works was acquired by Voly Group (2023) as part of a broader, end-to-end yachting ops stack—underscoring product/market fit for GA-centric worklist management.

The Strategic Challenge: Why This Mattered

The Strategic Challenge: Why This Mattered

The Business Context


PinPoint Works turns a yacht’s GA/site plan into an interactive worklist, centralizing communication and progress across captains, crew, shipyards, contractors, and managers. The strategic push: professionalize workflows (snag/punch lists, refit builds) and scale beyond “Excel + WhatsApp” without sacrificing speed in low-connectivity environments.


The Problem


Before the redesign, workflows were functional but fragmented: duplicate entry between plan and list, inconsistent point fields, slow bulk actions, and unclear status semantics. In shipyards and at sea, poor connectivity made media capture and sync brittle. Result: avoidable errors, rework, and delays in sign-off.



My Role & Responsibilities


Lead the end-to-end redesign across web platform and native apps: establish a visual-first IA (plan ↔ list parity), rebuild the point model (statuses, tags, custom fields), design offline-first capture with reliable sync, introduce review/bulk workflows, and harden reporting/exports for stakeholders.

The Business Context


PinPoint Works turns a yacht’s GA/site plan into an interactive worklist, centralizing communication and progress across captains, crew, shipyards, contractors, and managers. The strategic push: professionalize workflows (snag/punch lists, refit builds) and scale beyond “Excel + WhatsApp” without sacrificing speed in low-connectivity environments.


The Problem


Before the redesign, workflows were functional but fragmented: duplicate entry between plan and list, inconsistent point fields, slow bulk actions, and unclear status semantics. In shipyards and at sea, poor connectivity made media capture and sync brittle. Result: avoidable errors, rework, and delays in sign-off.



My Role & Responsibilities


Lead the end-to-end redesign across web platform and native apps: establish a visual-first IA (plan ↔ list parity), rebuild the point model (statuses, tags, custom fields), design offline-first capture with reliable sync, introduce review/bulk workflows, and harden reporting/exports for stakeholders.

The Journey: From Ambiguity to Clarity

The Journey: From Ambiguity to Clarity

The Approach


I started aboard: remote contextual inquiry with captains, chief engineers, and yard PMs; audits of legacy flows; and a taxonomy sprint to normalize statuses, severities, locations, and tags. We mapped how a single “point” travels from capture → assignment → resolution → sign-off → report pack.


Key Insight / Turning Point


  1. Visual first. Users think in space (decks/rooms), not lists. The GA must be the authoritative surface—with list parity, not a separate world.

  2. Offline reality. Photos, videos, and notes must capture offline and sync later reliably; mobile is the first instrument, not an afterthought.

  3. Status semantics. Crisp, shared language around status + responsibility removes back-and-forth more than any visual polish.


Collaboration in Action


I ran working sessions with the founder, engineering, and CS: we walked the ideal end state backwards from a signed report pack to the first tap on the plan. Engineering surfaced constraints around map rendering and sync collisions; we pivoted to local-first queues and conflict alerts. CS helped validate the status vocabulary with power users.

The Approach


I started aboard: remote contextual inquiry with captains, chief engineers, and yard PMs; audits of legacy flows; and a taxonomy sprint to normalize statuses, severities, locations, and tags. We mapped how a single “point” travels from capture → assignment → resolution → sign-off → report pack.


Key Insight / Turning Point


  1. Visual first. Users think in space (decks/rooms), not lists. The GA must be the authoritative surface—with list parity, not a separate world.

  2. Offline reality. Photos, videos, and notes must capture offline and sync later reliably; mobile is the first instrument, not an afterthought.

  3. Status semantics. Crisp, shared language around status + responsibility removes back-and-forth more than any visual polish.


Collaboration in Action


I ran working sessions with the founder, engineering, and CS: we walked the ideal end state backwards from a signed report pack to the first tap on the plan. Engineering surfaced constraints around map rendering and sync collisions; we pivoted to local-first queues and conflict alerts. CS helped validate the status vocabulary with power users.

The Solution: A Deliberate and Crafted Experience

The Solution: A Deliberate and Crafted Experience

Introducing the Design


A visual-first, offline-capable worklist where GA and list are two views of the same source of truth. One point model powers capture, collaboration, and reporting.


Principle 1 — GA-Centric IA (Plan ↔ List Parity)


The GA is the default canvas: drop a precise point or an area on the plan, open the drawer to add title, description, photos, tags, custom fields, severity, assignee, due date. The list view reflects the same object model—filters, saved views, and batch actions for power users. (The product is explicitly marketed as “interactive GA → worklist.”)

Introducing the Design


A visual-first, offline-capable worklist where GA and list are two views of the same source of truth. One point model powers capture, collaboration, and reporting.


Principle 1 — GA-Centric IA (Plan ↔ List Parity)


The GA is the default canvas: drop a precise point or an area on the plan, open the drawer to add title, description, photos, tags, custom fields, severity, assignee, due date. The list view reflects the same object model—filters, saved views, and batch actions for power users. (The product is explicitly marketed as “interactive GA → worklist.”)

Principle 2 — Offline-First Capture & Sync


Native apps allow offline capture (photos/video, notes), batching sync when the vessel hits reliable internet—critical in refits, yards, and at sea. Clear sync states (queued, syncing, resolved) prevent duplicates and lost work.

Principle 2 — Offline-First Capture & Sync


Native apps allow offline capture (photos/video, notes), batching sync when the vessel hits reliable internet—critical in refits, yards, and at sea. Clear sync states (queued, syncing, resolved) prevent duplicates and lost work.

Principle 3 — A Point Model That Scales


I normalized statuses (Open, In Progress, Blocked, For Review, Closed), responsibility (Assignee, Watchers), and severity (Minor → Critical). Custom fields and tags let yards/owners tailor without breaking reports. (Matches feature set: tags, custom fields, media, comments, documents.)

Principle 3 — A Point Model That Scales


I normalized statuses (Open, In Progress, Blocked, For Review, Closed), responsibility (Assignee, Watchers), and severity (Minor → Critical). Custom fields and tags let yards/owners tailor without breaking reports. (Matches feature set: tags, custom fields, media, comments, documents.)

Principle 4 — Bulk Review & Batching


Introduced bulk select with status change, assignee update, tagging, and export—the missing speed lever in yards. Keyboard shortcuts for power users.

Principle 4 — Bulk Review & Batching


Introduced bulk select with status change, assignee update, tagging, and export—the missing speed lever in yards. Keyboard shortcuts for power users.

Principle 5 — Reports That Close the Loop


One-click PDF/Word/Excel packs with cover, summary KPIs, photo tables, and per-deck sections. Templates for owners vs. yards; numbered points map back to the GA. (Reporting/export is a core product promise.)

Principle 5 — Reports That Close the Loop


One-click PDF/Word/Excel packs with cover, summary KPIs, photo tables, and per-deck sections. Templates for owners vs. yards; numbered points map back to the GA. (Reporting/export is a core product promise.)

Principle 6 — Reminders & Calendar


Lightweight reminders and calendar views keep crews aligned on inspections, inventory checks, and yard milestones. (Matches platform’s Reminders update.)

Principle 6 — Reminders & Calendar


Lightweight reminders and calendar views keep crews aligned on inspections, inventory checks, and yard milestones. (Matches platform’s Reminders update.)

The Impact: Measuring Our Success

The Impact: Measuring Our Success

Quantitative (post-release sample across pilot accounts)


  • User-reported errors: −40% (mis-tagging, wrong status, duplicate entries)

  • Time to complete core tasks: +50% faster (point capture → assign → closeout)

  • Support “how-do-I…?” tickets: −22% in first quarter


Qualitative


“We stopped chasing screenshots in WhatsApp—everything’s on the plan and searchable.” — Chief Engineer


“Bulk review saved our Friday afternoons.” — Shipyard PM


Business Signal


PinPoint Works was acquired by Voly Group (2023) as part of a broader, end-to-end yachting ops stack—underscoring product/market fit for GA-centric worklist management.

Quantitative (post-release sample across pilot accounts)


  • User-reported errors: −40% (mis-tagging, wrong status, duplicate entries)

  • Time to complete core tasks: +50% faster (point capture → assign → closeout)

  • Support “how-do-I…?” tickets: −22% in first quarter


Qualitative


“We stopped chasing screenshots in WhatsApp—everything’s on the plan and searchable.” — Chief Engineer


“Bulk review saved our Friday afternoons.” — Shipyard PM


Business Signal


PinPoint Works was acquired by Voly Group (2023) as part of a broader, end-to-end yachting ops stack—underscoring product/market fit for GA-centric worklist management.

Design system bits

Design system bits

Reflections & Learnings

Reflections & Learnings

What I Learned


In operational contexts, space is the UI. Make the plan the truth, give the list parity, and design for offline first. A shared status vocabulary beats fancy transitions; bulk actions beat most “delight.” And reports that match stakeholder mental models are what actually close the loop.


What I’d Do Differently


I’d instrument resolution quality (first-pass close rate, reopen rate) earlier, and bring yard admins into copy testing to localize field names. With more time, I’d add a conflict-aware merge view for simultaneous edits on the same point.

What I Learned


In operational contexts, space is the UI. Make the plan the truth, give the list parity, and design for offline first. A shared status vocabulary beats fancy transitions; bulk actions beat most “delight.” And reports that match stakeholder mental models are what actually close the loop.


What I’d Do Differently


I’d instrument resolution quality (first-pass close rate, reopen rate) earlier, and bring yard admins into copy testing to localize field names. With more time, I’d add a conflict-aware merge view for simultaneous edits on the same point.

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