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MY ROLE

As a Product Designer, I am currently leading the design process for Polarin's Network-as-a-Service platform, working closely with a cross-functional team to deliver a high-quality user experience.

Key responsibilities:

  • Taking full ownership of the design process for Polarin's Network-as-a-Service platform.

  • Collaborating with developers, product managers, assistant product managers, stakeholders, and the testing team to ensure a successful product launch.

  • Gathering requirements and feedback from internal users across different departments to inform design decisions.

  • Creating wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity designs to visualize the platform's features and interactions.

  • Collaborating closely with developers to ensure accurate implementation and address any design bugs that may arise.

  • Developing educational video series to help internal and external customers understand the platform's capabilities and benefits.

TIMELINE

Oct 2022 - Present

INDUSTRY

NaaS Platform

Live

DEVICE

Web App - Responsive

TEAM

1 Product Designer

1 Product Manager

2 Assistant Product Manager

12 Developers

COLLABORATION WITH

Product Managers

Developers

Internal Stakeholders

Internal/External Users

TOOLS

Figma - For Design

Illustrator - For Illustrations

After Effect + LottieFiles - For Micro Interaction

Jira - For Project Management

Productboard - For Product Roadmap

The Challenge

The Challenge

The Market Gap Polarin Addresses

The Market Gap Polarin Addresses

Network provisioning has historically been complex, time-consuming, and inaccessible to non-technical stakeholders. We set out to create a platform that would democratize network management from day one.

Network provisioning has historically been complex, time-consuming, and inaccessible to non-technical stakeholders. We set out to create a platform that would democratize network management from day one.

Complexity in Network Setup

Enterprise network configuration requires deep technical expertise, leading to lengthy deployment cycles and high error rates.

Complexity in Network Setup

Enterprise network configuration requires deep technical expertise, leading to lengthy deployment cycles and high error rates.

Complexity in Network Setup

Enterprise network configuration requires deep technical expertise, leading to lengthy deployment cycles and high error rates.

High Barrier for Non-Technical Users

Product managers and business users struggle to provision services without engineering support, creating bottlenecks.

High Barrier for Non-Technical Users

Product managers and business users struggle to provision services without engineering support, creating bottlenecks.

High Barrier for Non-Technical Users

Product managers and business users struggle to provision services without engineering support, creating bottlenecks.

Lack of Centralized Orchestration

Multiple disconnected tools and interfaces make it difficult to manage network services holistically.

Lack of Centralized Orchestration

Multiple disconnected tools and interfaces make it difficult to manage network services holistically.

Lack of Centralized Orchestration

Multiple disconnected tools and interfaces make it difficult to manage network services holistically.

OPPORTUNITY

Why Network Provisioning Needs Redesign

Why Network Provisioning Needs Redesign

By creating an intuitive, unified interface for network service provisioning, we can democratize network management, reduce deployment times from weeks to minutes, and enable businesses to scale their infrastructure with confidence.

By creating an intuitive, unified interface for network service provisioning, we can democratize network management, reduce deployment times from weeks to minutes, and enable businesses to scale their infrastructure with confidence.

Watch the polarin introduction video

Objectives

Objectives

Goals & Success Metrics

Goals & Success Metrics

We established clear, measurable objectives to guide our design decisions and validate our impact.

We established clear, measurable objectives to guide our design decisions and validate our impact.

Reduce Onboarding Friction
75%

Decrease time-to-first-deployment for new users

Standardize Service Flows
100%

Create consistent patterns across all network services

Enable Non-Technical Adoption
60%

Increase usage by non-engineering stakeholders

Time to Deploy Network Services

Time to Deploy Network Services

Before

Before

Industry Standard: 5-7 days

Industry Standard: 5-7 days

After

After

Polarin: 15 minutes

Polarin: 15 minutes

Customer Satisfaction Score

Customer Satisfaction Score

Before

Before

Competitor Average: 6.2/10

Competitor Average: 6.2/10

After

After

Polarin: 9.1/10

Polarin: 9.1/10

Service Configuration Accuracy

Service Configuration Accuracy

Before

Before

Industry Average: 73%

Industry Average: 73%

After

After

Polarin: 97%

Polarin: 97%

Discovery

Discovery

Research Insights

Research Insights

We conducted comprehensive research to understand user pain points, competitive landscape, and market opportunities.

We conducted comprehensive research to understand user pain points, competitive landscape, and market opportunities.

Competitive Analysis

Megaport

Console Connect

Packet Fabric

Equinix

  • Most platforms prioritize power users over accessibility

  • Documentation-heavy with steep learning curves

  • Limited visual feedback during provisioning

User Interviews

24 participants across 12 enterprises

  • 87% felt overwhelmed by current network tools

  • Non-technical users rely heavily on engineering teams

  • Deployment delays directly impact project timelines

Market Validation

Industry trends & adoption patterns

  • NaaS market projected to grow 35% annually

  • Cloud-native businesses demand simpler infrastructure

  • Self-service capabilities are key differentiator

"I shouldn't need to be a network engineer just to spin up a new service. It takes our team weeks to configure what should be simple."

"I shouldn't need to be a network engineer just to spin up a new service. It takes our team weeks to configure what should be simple."

Product Manager

Product Manager

SaaS Startup

SaaS Startup

"The documentation is extensive, but I just want to see what I'm building as I build it. Visual feedback would save us hours of debugging."

"The documentation is extensive, but I just want to see what I'm building as I build it. Visual feedback would save us hours of debugging."

DevOps Engineer

DevOps Engineer

Enterprise Fintech

Enterprise Fintech

Approach

Approach

Product Strategy & Design Principles

Product Strategy & Design Principles

Our design philosophy centered on simplifying complexity without sacrificing power or flexibility.

Our design philosophy centered on simplifying complexity without sacrificing power or flexibility.

Modular

Break complex workflows into digestible, reusable components that can be combined flexibly.

Modular

Break complex workflows into digestible, reusable components that can be combined flexibly.

Modular

Break complex workflows into digestible, reusable components that can be combined flexibly.

Predictable

Create consistent patterns and clear expectations at every step of the user journey.

Predictable

Create consistent patterns and clear expectations at every step of the user journey.

Predictable

Create consistent patterns and clear expectations at every step of the user journey.

Transparent

Provide real-time visibility into network state, configurations, and service health.

Transparent

Provide real-time visibility into network state, configurations, and service health.

Transparent

Provide real-time visibility into network state, configurations, and service health.

Primary User Journey
Primary User Journey

1

Discovery

User explores available services

2

Configuration

Guided setup with smart defaults

3

Validation

Pre-deployment checks and previews

4

Deployment

One-click provisioning

5

Management

Monitoring and optimization

key Screens

key Screens

This section highlights the most critical screens that shape the Polarin user experience—from service discovery and ordering to deployment, monitoring, and network visibility. Each screen is designed to reduce complexity, improve decision-making, and give customers real-time control over their network.

3D Globe View

The 3D Globe View brings the customer’s network to life. It offers a real-time, global perspective of active connections, regions, and performance alerts—making it easy to monitor network health and spot issues at a glance.

2D Flat Map View

The 2D Map View offers a simplified, flat representation of the customer’s network. Customers can quickly view service locations, active connections, and performance alerts, making it easy to monitor and manage the network at a glance.

Order Flow

During the order flow, customers can select both endpoints to check committed availability before creating a connection. This helps validate service feasibility and performance commitments between any two data center locations upfront.

All Services

The All Services page gives customers a complete view of Polarin’s connectivity portfolio.Customers can explore all available services, understand use cases, and quickly choose the right solution for their infrastructure needs.

Order Success Screen

Real-time visibility into deployment, right after ordering. Polarin visually guides customers through the live deployment of their connection, keeping them informed at every step.

Design System

Design System

Comprehensive Design System

Built a scalable component library with 100+ reusable components, documented design variables, and clear usage guidelines to ensure consistency across the entire platform.

100+

Components

20+

Variables

100%

Coverage

Impact

Impact

Impact & Outcomes

Polarin's launch delivered measurable improvements across deployment speed, user adoption, and customer satisfaction compared to industry standards.

Deployment Speed

95%

Faster

From 5-7 days to 15 minutes

User Adoption

+340%

Growth

Non-technical users now self-serve

Customer Satisfaction

9.1/10

CSAT Score

Significant improvements from 6.2

Learnings

Learnings

Learnings & Next Steps

Learnings & Next Steps

Key insights from the design process and our vision for the future of network provisioning.

Key insights from the design process and our vision for the future of network provisioning.

Progressive Disclosure Works

Hiding complexity behind progressive disclosure patterns allowed us to serve both novice and expert users without compromise. 'Basic' mode onboarded new users, while 'Advanced' mode satisfied power users.

Progressive Disclosure Works

Hiding complexity behind progressive disclosure patterns allowed us to serve both novice and expert users without compromise. 'Basic' mode onboarded new users, while 'Advanced' mode satisfied power users.

Progressive Disclosure Works

Hiding complexity behind progressive disclosure patterns allowed us to serve both novice and expert users without compromise. 'Basic' mode onboarded new users, while 'Advanced' mode satisfied power users.

Visual Feedback is Critical

Real-time visual representations of network topology and service states reduced cognitive load and helped users build accurate mental models of their infrastructure.

Visual Feedback is Critical

Real-time visual representations of network topology and service states reduced cognitive load and helped users build accurate mental models of their infrastructure.

Visual Feedback is Critical

Real-time visual representations of network topology and service states reduced cognitive load and helped users build accurate mental models of their infrastructure.

Standardization Accelerates Adoption

Creating consistent patterns across all services meant users only had to learn the interface once. This consistency reduced training time by 60%.

Standardization Accelerates Adoption

Creating consistent patterns across all services meant users only had to learn the interface once. This consistency reduced training time by 60%.

Standardization Accelerates Adoption

Creating consistent patterns across all services meant users only had to learn the interface once. This consistency reduced training time by 60%.

Conclusion

Conclusion

Delivering Value Through Design

Delivering Value Through Design

The Polarin redesign transformed complex network provisioning into an intuitive, accessible experience. By deeply understanding user pain points, iterating rapidly on design solutions, and maintaining a relentless focus on simplification, we delivered a platform that democratizes network management.

The Polarin redesign transformed complex network provisioning into an intuitive, accessible experience. By deeply understanding user pain points, iterating rapidly on design solutions, and maintaining a relentless focus on simplification, we delivered a platform that democratizes network management.

The measurable impact—95% faster deployments, 340% growth in non-technical user adoption, and industry-leading satisfaction scores—validates our human-centered approach to enterprise software design.

The measurable impact—95% faster deployments, 340% growth in non-technical user adoption, and industry-leading satisfaction scores—validates our human-centered approach to enterprise software design.

INDEX

Overview

The Challenge

Objective

Discovery

Approach

Key Screens

Design System

Impact

Learnings

Conclusion