As BBVA launched its new CX area and began adopting agile, customer-centric practices, it partnered with Uncommon Design Strategy to help bring this vision to life. Through a “learning by doing” approach, we supported the team in developing tools, processes, and capabilities—delivering nine strategic initiatives over one year while building internal know-how.
As BBVA launched its new CX area and began adopting agile, customer-centric practices, it partnered with Uncommon Design Strategy to help bring this vision to life. Through a “learning by doing” approach, we supported the team in developing tools, processes, and capabilities—delivering nine strategic initiatives over one year while building internal know-how.
To support BBVA’s Customer Experience (CX) team in capability building through hands-on project work, designing agile, customer-centric improvement initiatives based on real user insights and quality data. The goal was to create a scalable internal process that empowered different business units to continuously improve the banking experience across a variety of customer segments.
Process
The partnership began by aligning closely with BBVA’s Quality team to identify service gaps through data and experience indicators.
Together, we conducted collaborative workshops to surface opportunity areas, involving key internal stakeholders from across business and support areas. These sessions allowed us to prioritize initiatives for the research backlog and define clear roles internally. For some initiatives, we collaborated actively with BBVA’s internal UX team to ensure alignment in approach and implementation.
Our research efforts were shaped by trend analysis and informed by behavioral patterns observed in BBVA’s existing customer base. We conducted qualitative research—ranging from in-depth interviews and triads to focus groups—as well as quantitative research, including structured surveys. This mixed-method approach allowed us to identify recurring pain points and behavioral patterns in how individuals and businesses interact with the bank, particularly in relation to branch service, investment support, digital onboarding, and account management.
Once the insights were synthesized and prioritized, we facilitated ideation workshops with cross-functional teams to co-design value propositions. Each concept was grounded in real user needs while also meeting strategic business goals. We developed clear concepts and implementation recommendations for key areas of the bank, including SME banking, client retention, and service digitization.
Across different initiatives, my role varied: in some cases, I guided our team through delivery; in others, I was directly responsible for driving the project end-to-end—from research to concept development. I also frequently led the design and facilitation of collaborative sessions to ensure alignment and momentum with BBVA’s internal stakeholders.
Outcome
Design Toolkits and Frameworks
HCD & Agile Practices
Capability-building
User Centered Decision-Making
Strategic Recommendations
