Overview
The Management Discussion & Analysis (MD&A) Commentary feature was designed to enhance Teamshares' existing reporting system, which resulted in inconsistent financial reports from our portfolio presidents. This inconsistency hindered the Teamshares finance team, C-suite, and Industry Leads from extracting actionable insights crucial for growth and profitability.
I collaborated with a product manager, DRE, three engineers, and the finance team to create a structured reporting feature that enables portfolio presidents to submit clear financial insights. Through user research, I refined the design for ease of use and consistent data entry.
Since launch, the feature has achieved 100% adoption among all 90 portfolio companies and a 100% report submission rate. Feedback from the president summit indicated high user satisfaction; most found the feature easy to navigate, despite some initial confusion. Integration with Slack allowed real-time performance visibility, fostering engagement as C-suite executives reacted positively to successes and discussed improvements for underperforming companies.
Problem Statement
The existing reporting feature for Teamshares portfolio companies was too general, leading to inconsistent and incomplete financial reports from portfolio presidents. This made it challenging for the Teamshares finance team, C-suite, and Industry Leads to gain the necessary insights to make informed, data-driven decisions to drive growth and improve EBITDA. A more structured and intuitive solution was needed to ensure consistent reporting, improve financial transparency, and provide real-time visibility into company performance for executives and decision-makers.
Goals and Objectives
Improve Reporting Consistency: Design a structured reporting feature to ensure consistent and accurate financial data submission from all 90 portfolio presidents.
Enhance Financial Transparency: Provide clear, actionable insights to the Teamshares finance team, C-suite, and Industry Leads, facilitating informed decision-making and strategic planning.
Achieve Full Adoption: Ensure 100% adoption of the MD&A Commentary feature among all portfolio companies, with every president reporting monthly.
Boost User Satisfaction: Attain a high user satisfaction score, ensuring that portfolio presidents find the feature intuitive and valuable for their reporting needs.
Design Process
Research and User Testing
To ensure that the MD&A Commentary meets user needs, we conducted extensive user research, including interviews with the Teamshares finance team, our portfolio presidents, Industry Leads, and C-suite executives. I conducted research to understand and identify areas of improvement on the existing reporting functionality. When I started explorations, I went back to our different user groups to gather additional feedback at every stage of the design process, allowing us to refine the interface and enhance functionality.
Explorations and Iterations
I spearheaded design explorations on how to get more granular data from our portfolio presidents as they report their monthly financials to the Teamshares finance team and Industry Leads.
Throughout the exploration process, I gathered user feedback from our portfolio presidents, Teamshares finance team, Industry Leads, and CFO to guide further refinements to enhance the user experience and the accuracy of the finalized interface for the MD&A Commentary feature.
Improvements
Based on the user feedback and testing, I implemented several key enhancements:
Commentary on Line Items: Presidents can now leave detailed comments on individual line items of the monthly financial statement, providing nuanced insights.
Required Line Items Visibility: We improved the visibility of required fields, making it clear which line items must be completed before submission.
Enhanced Table Interface: The monthly statement table now displays last year's data alongside current figures, including percentage variances and forecasts, offering presidents a comprehensive view of performance.
Confidence Level Assessment: Presidents can indicate their confidence in meeting next month's financial forecasts, aiding in informed planning.
Performance Chart: A chart was added to visualize the company's performance over the last six months, comparing Forecasted EBITDA, Year-to-Date EBITDA, and last year's EBITDA.
Contextual Insights Field: A new catch-all field allows presidents to share additional context on risks, opportunities, and relevant information about their monthly performance.
Challenges
One of the primary challenges in this project was securing buy-in from the presidents of the portfolio companies. Given their demanding and complex roles, requesting granular financial data could easily be perceived as an inconvenience.
Additionally, consistently engaging with them to gather feedback was crucial, as finding the right balance between the Teamshares finance team’s requirements and the presidents’ workloads proved difficult. It was essential to ensure they felt heard and valued throughout the process.
Ultimately, we recognized that if we could make the reporting process straightforward and user-friendly, the presidents would be more likely to submit their monthly financials on time. This, in turn, would facilitate the growth of the portfolio companies and contribute to increasing Teamshares' EBITDA and profitability.
Conclusion
The implementation of the MD&A Commentary feature has significantly improved the monthly financial reporting process for Teamshares' portfolio companies. By addressing the challenges faced by SMB presidents and incorporating user feedback, we created a streamlined solution that meets the finance team's needs.
Key metrics highlight the impact of this feature:
100% Adoption Rate: All 90 portfolio company presidents actively utilize the feature for monthly reporting.
100% Report Submission Rate: Timely submissions have improved data accessibility for the finance team.
95% User Satisfaction: Feedback indicates that most users find the feature easy to navigate.
Increase in Engagement: Integration with Slack has led to more active discussions among C-suite executives and Industry Leads
This project emphasized the balance between organizational requirements and user experience. The insights gained will inform future design initiatives, ensuring that the MD&A Commentary continues to support Teamshares’ growth strategy while fostering accountability among portfolio companies.
Personal Reflection
Leading the design of the MD&A Commentary feature has been a transformative experience in my journey as a product designer. Engaging directly with SMB presidents illuminated their unique challenges and motivations, reinforcing the critical role of empathy in our design process. This understanding was instrumental in crafting solutions that not only met functional requirements but also resonated with users.
Throughout the project, I recognized the importance of adaptability and collaboration. By actively seeking and incorporating feedback from both the finance team and portfolio presidents, we built a trusting environment that facilitated open dialogue. This approach not only ensured stakeholder buy-in but also enhanced the overall design outcome.
This project reaffirmed my commitment to user-centered design as a powerful catalyst for meaningful change. Moving forward, I am excited to leverage these insights to develop innovative solutions that drive both user satisfaction and organizational success, further solidifying my role as a strategic partner in the design process.
