Charlie Dowd
#1
Case study #1
user research • problem design • UI design & testing
I enabled £220k ARR by redesigning neurorehab's gold standard of behaviour-capture
Challenge
The product we were building caught the attention of a thought-leader in treating brain injuries. We soon discovered that his organisation was using a very inefficient paper-based workflow that he'd authored. This workflow involved capturing patient behaviours in a special way on a sheet of paper, then transcribing that into Excel for analysis. Translating a chaotic printout into a As with all teams in this domain, they were overworked, non-technical, with limited-to-no technology on the wards.
Outcome
I researched how the tool was used through recurring very short interviews and onsite observations, and refactored the design into a digital version. To evaluate designs with overworked teams without any research incentives I set up "speed-dating” style usability tests onsite to minimise their off-ward time. We shipped it and clinicians loved it. Workflows became far more efficient, my work drove the 3yr £150k ARR contract, and it created FOMO too. Their main competitor eventually signed a 3y £70k ARR deal. This project with the start of establishing Melo as a trusted standard and opened doors to other influential sites.
Enabled £220k ARR
Positioned our tool as a trusted standard in neurorehabilitation
#1
Case study #1
user research • problem design • UI design & testing
Made a key reporting workflow 97% faster in 1 day’s work; delighted a big customer before renewal
Challenge
I noticed a pilot customer was regularly printing out 50 in-app pages, then scan-to-emailing each one back into the printer. The email recipient had to then open all 50 emails to download for analysis. This was costing ~4 hours a week. Renewal was upcoming but we had a lot on. My goal as solo designer at a 5-person startup was to deliver some well-timed value without committing full dev resources.
Outcome
I designed a simple UI addition reducing the key workflow from 60 down to 2 minutes, and it took us less than 1 day of resource. I added a “merge multiple documents into 1 PDF” capability using tickboxes and an export button to a table. This unpolished addition preceeded their £50k renewal without us getting distracted.
Dropped the process from ~60 minutes to ~2 minutes (saving ~4hr/week)
Cost under 1 day of resource
Timed with £50k customer renewal
#3
Case study #3
user research • problem design • UI design & testing
Secured £15k Innovation Grant in by Designing & Building a Healthcare SaaS Prototype
Challenge
Joining as the first hire at a pre-product healthcare startup, I was tasked with proving both user need and market potential through a prototype. The goal was to support an innovation grant bid around reducing agitated behaviours in neurorehabilitation.
Outcome
The prototype and evidence won the £15k innovation grant, validating the concept with clinicians and unlocking our startup’s first external funding. To achieve this I sourced neuropsychologists for interviews and usability testing, and built a functional web app using a low-code tool.
Secured £15k of innovation grant
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