Emgage App Platform — Overview
Note: This overview highlights several of my contributions in taking the Emgage App Platform, a large-scale PaaS product, from 0 to 1 and then from 1 to N. For more detailed insights into my process and thinking, please visit the following case studies: Agreements, Design System, or Stylizer.
Introduction
Seamless digital transformation is no longer just a dream, thanks to the Emgage App Platform—an all-in-one PaaS app creation ecosystem built to empower anyone with process insights to create powerful, integrated business solutions without developers. At its core, the platform consists of a collection of seamlessly integrated Emgage App Services™, the building blocks of every application, enabling users to accomplish day-to-day business activities in less time, with less friction, and in a more predictable and observable manner.
Leading and collaborating across functions as the principal designer for a large-scale product has been one of the most rewarding challenges in my professional career.
My Role
🎨 Principal Product Designer
🧩 Design System Owner
📣 Squad Lead
Key Expertise
Product Strategy, Product Design, Cross-Functional Leadership, User Research, Problem Solving, Prototyping, Usability Testing, Design Systems, Accessibility
Tools
Figma, React, SCSS, Themr, Github, Azure
Emgage App Platform
An all-in-one app creation platform built to empower anyone with process insights to create powerful, integrated business solutions.
Sample Apps
Cybersecurity Services Automation Suite
Problem
Cybersecurity assessments and audits are time-consuming manual processes filled with data silos and spreadsheets, scattered communication, limited accountability, and virtually no visibility into progress and roadblocks. Resulting in stunted growth and revenue opportunities and a sub-par client experience.
Solution
I partnered with product management, MSSPs and Security Auditors to gain a thorough understanding of the complex world of cybersecurity assessments and audits. I then employed a rapid ideate-prototype–feedback design loop to create this suite of cybersecurity service automation applications within the feature-rich Emgage App Platform—significantly enhancing productivity by consolidating data, automating manual processes, centralizing communication and accountability, and providing actionable persona-specific process visibility.
ESSA Report Cards
Problem
The Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) was struggling to meet the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) annual report card mandate for their schools, placing their federal funding at risk.
Solution
I led the design for the Alabama State Department of Education ESSA Report Cards application, collaborating with stakeholders to understand objectives, constraints, and user needs. I then crafted best-in-class visual and experience designs, partnering with engineers and stakeholders (ALSDE IT) to implement them using a pre-release version of the Emgage App Platform.
I selected a dashboard approach over the tables of raw data used by other states, providing users with an at-a-glance tool for quickly evaluating complex school data and trends, saving them time and cognitive effort.
Alabama's ESSA Report Cards achieved great success with parents, schools, and the media, who were monitoring the situation closely, thanks to their concise, easily understandable information and exceptional visuals.
After their release, a number of lower-performing schools expressed concern over the stigma of letter grades, leading to a decision not to include letter grades in the report cards. This was a straightforward change, thanks to the highly flexible nature of the Emgage App Platform.
Services
Data
I led the design and implementation of the Emgage App Platform's Data experience, empowering users to swiftly define and manage the data at the heart of their applications. Pre-built templates supporting several data types (tabular, hierarchical, file, etc.) served as a jumping-off point, easily customized with over 30 field types, relationships, and time-saving field templates to meet each application's unique requirements.
After creating a data store, users could immediately add, view, and edit data using the auto-generated form and listing UI's, or create and customize their own using the interface builder. Furthermore, robust Elasticsearch-powered data search and powerful data import capabilities made adding, working with, and finding data a breeze.
Interface Builder
I led a cross-functional team in the end-to-end design of the Interface Builder—an intuitive visual tool empowering users to create engaging, responsive, accessible pages and forms for use within their Emgage apps. Collaborating closely with engineering, I overcame complex technical challenges such as page templating, content localization, and multi-context forms. Additionally, I organized and conducted usability testing with client users, leveraging insights to inform future product iterations and enhancements.
Workflow
I led the design for the Emgage App Platform's workflow builder, placing innovative process automation—featuring powerful actions, triggers, conditions, and automatic interface generation—into the hands of business users.
Custom-built templates served as an approachable starting point for automating any process. The innovative sliding panels design provided seamless transitions between step, action, interface, and flow-specific views, anchoring users as they "zoomed" in and out of flow details. This layered approach empowered users to refine and fine-tune each step, action, and interface to meet their unique business-specific needs, before hitting "publish" to deliver a fully responsive experience to end-users.
Messaging
I led design for the Messaging feature, seamlessly integrating data, user, and communication app services to bring data-empowered communication across email, SMS, and in-app channels to the Emgage App Platform. One client, SVSU, successfully uses this feature to send target messages to its 8,000+ students and staff, providing timely notifications of everything from last-minute room changes to campus-wide snow closures.
Agreements
I led design and implementation of the Agreements feature, introducing unique-in-class document creation and e-signature capabilities to the Emgage App Platform. Successfully enabling one client, Georgia DBHDD, to transition all its Housing Voucher Program processes from paper to a "1000 times more efficient" (per stakeholder feedback) digital format using the Emgage App Platform.
User Management
I led the design and implementation of the User Management and Authentication services, encompassing user creation, provisioning, and authentication—including single sign-on (SSO) for a seamless user experience.
Viewing user info and memberships.
Authorization
I led the design of the Authorization service, considering users' mental models to provide intuitive policy creation and assignment, along with clear visibility into the impacts of direct and inherited policies.
Managing entity permissions.
Design System
I led the creation and evolution of Emgage's comprehensive design system (Figma + React), bringing consistency, coherence, and accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA) across all product interfaces—enabling teams to move faster and build better at scale.
