Dr Dayo Abinusawa

User Researcher

Generating insight that helps teams build better products

Experienced in User Experience Research. Passionate about helping teams build products that solve user problems, having worked with talented teams across Financial Services, Government, Energy and EdTech.

36
42
20K
100K
Interviews
Usability Tests
Research Hours
Interactions Analysed

Selected works

Projects spanning the full research lifecycle — from discovery to design validation

Co-operative Bank
Financial Services · Usability Testing

Co-op Bank Card Hub - Unmoderated Remote Usability Study

Challenge

The Card Hub prototype needed usability evidence before handoff, specifically how customers would interact with card management, multi-card navigation and additional cardholder updates.

Approach

Ran an unmoderated remote usability study on a Figma prototype via UserTesting.com, structured across three sections: initial impressions, task-based testing with ease and clarity ratings, and attitudinal measurement (SUS and NPS). Participants thought aloud throughout.

The result

SUS 91 ('Excellent / Best Imaginable'), NPS 60, no detractors.

Key finding: blue header text was mistaken for clickable links. A specific, actionable fix for the design team ahead of handoff.

Financial Services · Concept Testing · Accessibility Evaluation

Co-op Bank Card Hub Carousel — Concept Testing & Accessibility

Challenge

Before building the card hub carousel, the team needed evidence on mental models for card switching, additional cardholder management expectations, and accessibility across a range of needs.

Approach

Ran an unmoderated remote concept test (Figma, UserTesting.com), building on a prior PIN study (n=20). Four objectives: carousel navigation and cardholder management (primary); usability clarity and accessibility — screen readers, keyboard navigation, tap targets, state feedback — (secondary). Screener ensured a mix of customers and participants with accessibility needs.

The result

Evidence covered navigation mental models, cardholder management expectations and specific accessibility gaps — including visual state feedback and tap target adequacy. Findings informed design revisions and briefed the accessibility team ahead of development.

Financial Services · Comparative Usability Testing · n=16

Co-op Bank PIN & Card Details — A/B Unmoderated Usability Study

Challenge

The team needed evidence to choose between two designs for PIN and card details in the mobile app — both incorporating PIN reveal, an auto-hide timer and full card details display — before development handoff.

Approach

Within-subjects, counterbalanced unmoderated study (n=16), with order counterbalanced to control bias. Three objectives: clarity (timer comprehension, card field interpretation), usability (PIN reveal, navigation errors) and preference. Findings segmented by customer status.

The result

Evidence on which version performed better across all three dimensions, segmented by customer status — directly supporting design decisions ahead of handoff without assumptions.

Financial Services · Usability Testing · n=8–12 · Desktop

Co-op Bank Accounts Dashboard — Redesign Usability Testing

Challenge

Before releasing a redesigned Accounts dashboard — featuring a hide/show balances toggle, quick actions and a Manage tab — the team needed evidence that the changes were useful, clear and navigable.

Approach

Unmoderated remote study (n=8–12, UserTesting.com) structured around seven research questions: secondary account information, hide/show balances discoverability, quick action utility, account management discoverability, Manage tab usefulness, expected options by account type, and natural navigation. Participants held a current account plus at least one additional product.

The result

Evidence across all seven research questions validated what worked and identified specific improvements — informing final design adjustments before release.

Financial Services · Voice of Customer · Glassbox · Consumer Duty

Help & Support Page — Voice of Customer Diagnosis

Challenge

Analytics revealed a 12-point drop in page usefulness on the Help & Support page (64% to 52%) — a primary self-service destination. Left undiagnosed, it risked rising contact centre volume and Consumer Duty failures.

Approach

Designed a triggered VoC survey in Glassbox, deployed at page exit. Four structured questions with conditional branching isolated three variables: task intent, task success and failure point — producing more actionable data than a generic rating.

The result

Moved the team from a single aggregate score to an intent-based view of failure — distinguishing users who couldn't find information from those who found it but couldn't complete their task. Directly informed improvement prioritisation.

Financial Services · Mixed Methods · B2B · Four Customer Segments

BaCB Paperless Statements — Mixed-Methods Research Programme

Challenge

Before development could begin on digital statement access for BaCB customers, the team needed to validate what customers wanted and where the journey was failing — across four segments: sole traders, SMEs, larger commercial customers and charities/CICs.

Approach

Three-phase programme: depth interviews across all four segments (covering format preferences, paperless concerns, notification needs, bulk download and historic access), a prototype usability test, and a stakeholder readout with decision log. Research questions were co-designed with the Product Owner.

The result

Delivered a synthesis pack with verbatim quotes, jobs to be done by segment, friction points and prioritised gaps. The research-backed scope envelope gave the Product Owner clear boundaries for story drafting.

Financial Services · Sequential Studies · FinTech · B2B

Go Get Paid — Payment Request Flow Research

Challenge

Go Get Paid's payment request flow required four inputs: amount, reason, recipient and channel. The team needed evidence on the most logical field order, field treatments and where shortcuts would reduce effort.

Approach

Three sequential studies: a baseline (Study 1), comparison of three field-order variants — amount-first (A), recipient-first (B), single-screen (C) — (Study 2), and a refined prototype test (Study 3). Participants were sole traders and small business owners recruited via UserTesting.com. SEQ and SUS captured per study.

The result

Delivered a recommended field sequence, field treatment specifications, review screen requirements and shortcut expectations for repeat users — directly informing the product roadmap.

Financial Services · Competitor Research · B2B Account Opening

BaCB Online — Companies House Sign-Up Flow Competitor Analysis

Challenge

The BaCB team needed to understand how competitors handle the Companies House search step in business account opening journeys — to inform the BaCB Online design and identify opportunities to differentiate.

Approach

Structured walkthroughs of NatWest, HSBC and Lloyds, plus a scan of four challengers (Tide, Starling, Mettle, CAF Bank). Evaluated five dimensions: CH step placement, search experience, data accuracy handling, eligibility restrictions and pre-population rates. Findings synthesised into design implications.

The result

CH pre-population is low across all three high-street banks (11–16%) — a clear differentiating opportunity. All three share a gap: no dormant company warning at the search step. Prioritised implications fed directly into the BaCB Online design.

Government & Public Sector
Government · GDS Compliance · Heuristic Evaluation

HMRC Digital Assistant — GDS Service Standard Compliance

Challenge

The HMRC Digital Assistant needed assessing against GDS standards. Users lacked a notification feature, making services difficult to access and queries hard to resolve.

Approach

Worked with designers, a BA, PM and Engagement Lead to review the interface and develop a prototype. Assessed GDS compliance across styles, components and patterns. Used click maps (heatmap and click density grid) to identify where users expected to find notification controls.

The result

Findings informed the resolution of 25% of pain points — including adding 'print or save chat'. Following research-informed changes, over 60% of users completed tasks on the first click.

Energy — Shell
Enterprise B2B · Portal UX · Service Design

Shell MarketHub — Self-Service Portal Optimisation

Challenge

Shell partners found it difficult to complete tasks on MarketHub — a self-service portal for orders, account management, reporting and training — driving up customer operations contacts.

Approach

Analysed feedback surveys and facilitated a stakeholder workshop to align on priorities. Mapped user journeys, identified and prioritised pain points, then validated enhancements through UAT.

The result

Research findings informed changes that reduced prioritised user pain points by 50%.

Enterprise B2B · User Journey Mapping · Service Design

Shell — User Journey Mapping for Order Fulfilment

Challenge

Stakeholders needed to understand how different customer types moved through the online ordering journey and where the experience was breaking down.

Approach

Facilitated stakeholder workshops to define priorities, then led user research — mapping journeys across buyer personas to surface friction points and inform the interface design.

The result

Research findings contributed to a 60% increase in online order completions over three months. The approach was adopted by the management team to standardise how user insight was gathered and applied.

Enterprise B2B · Service Blueprint · WCAG 2.1 AA

Shell — Service Blueprint for Accessibility Compliance

Challenge

Shell needed to improve accessibility compliance against WCAG 2.1 AA — the existing interface had not been formally assessed.

Approach

Ran a colour assessment diagnosis (CAD) test and heuristic evaluation to identify design issues. Produced a service blueprint mapping processes and touchpoints. Provided evidence-based recommendations to the UI designer on font size, publication format and colour filters.

The result

Findings informed the resolution of 50% of service failures and improved accessibility compliance within three months. The blueprint identified key touchpoints and optimisation opportunities.

Earlier Work
Process Design · Workflow Mapping

Content Management System — Workflow Research

Challenge

The existing CMS workflow was unclear to users — they couldn't identify the people, tools and resources needed — and contained bottlenecks and redundant steps.

Approach

Mapped and documented the existing workflow in Figma, making process gaps and resource requirements visible. Collaborated with stakeholders to validate findings and agree priorities.

The result

Surfaced bottlenecks, redundant steps and role ambiguities — providing a clear evidence base for workflow redesign and improving the team's shared understanding of the process.

User Research · Qualitative Interviews

User Personas — Needs Discovery

Challenge

The team needed a structured understanding of user needs, goals and expectations before designing a new service.

Approach

Conducted stakeholder interviews to identify key demographics, goals and concerns. Synthesised findings into user personas representing distinct user types.

The result

Informed the design of a new service through a deeper, evidence-based understanding of user behaviours and needs.

Product Design · A/B Testing · Mobile

Thought Leadership Platform — Mobile Research

Challenge

The client needed evidence to inform the design of a mobile interface for accessing thought leadership content on demand.

Approach

Cross-sectional study of stockbrokers and regulators using interviews and secondary sources. Unmoderated A/B tests validated design hypotheses; prototype iterated based on user feedback.

The result

Research informed a design that achieved over 100 downloads in week one via mobile and supported the case for partnerships with media and financial services firms.

EdTech · User Journey Mapping · Survey Research

Virtual Learning Environment — User Journey Mapping

Challenge

Users were unable to access relevant content on the VLE, leading to high non-completion rates across programmes.

Approach

Created a user journey map to identify where the experience was breaking down. Administered a structured questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions, supplemented by observation of VLE use.

The result

Research findings informed a redesign that achieved a 100% completion rate across key programmes.

Research & Strategy · Secondary Research · Framework Design

Decision-Making Analytical Framework

Challenge

The team needed to understand how managers and customers make decisions and interact with the service.

Approach

Analysed secondary data spanning 30 years and conducted primary interviews to identify challenges in decision-making.

The result

The framework helps firms refine or establish an effective decision-making system, grounded in longitudinal secondary data and primary user insight.