SaaS
Streamlining consulting and staffing workflows
Redesigned an internal staffing and resource planning platform used by Bain & Company to replace manual tracking and improve visibility into team capacity and deal-based resourcing.
Role
Product Designer
Company
Merkle
Client
Bain & Company
Platform
Internal web-based tool
Metrics
The staffing platform was adopted firmwide and used daily by managers across Bain
Manual tracking was significantly reduced, improving the speed and accuracy of staffing decisions
The Private Equity Group gained new visibility into deal-based resourcing and future planning
The tool evolved into a scalable system that supported long-term operational goals across Bain
Goals
Build a centralized staffing tool to reduce manual overhead and streamline planning
Enable managers to efficiently allocate staff and rebalance workloads as priorities shifted
Introduce forecasting functionality for the Private Equity Group to plan based on pipeline activity
Improve visibility and leadership oversight through real-time data updates
Challenge
Bain’s staffing processes were heavily reliant on manual tracking, which led to imbalanced workloads, poor visibility, and inefficiencies in planning. The Private Equity Group, in particular, needed more detailed, dynamic forecasting tools to support team allocation based on deal flow and evolving project needs. A centralized, real-time solution was needed to increase transparency and improve firmwide operational efficiency.
Design Process
Discovery & Strategy
Conducted stakeholder interviews to define requirements across different Bain teams
Worked closely with the product owner to map workflows and pain points
Prioritized features for firmwide needs versus those specific to the Private Equity Group
UX & Interaction Design
Designed a drag-and-drop interface for managing team allocations and visualizing workloads
Created Private Equity-specific flows for deal tracking and forecasting
Built interfaces that allowed staffing to flex in response to live updates in team capacity and project scope
Established flexible modules to support future scale and cross-team use
Visual Design & Developer Handoff
Led visual design and interaction models aligned with Bain’s internal systems
Delivered high-fidelity mockups and interaction documentation in 2-week sprints
Supported development teams during handoff and iteration cycles
Helped expand and maintain a design system to ensure consistency as the tool scaled
Outcomes
Joined the project on a 3-month contract that evolved into a 2-year engagement supporting one of Bain’s most strategic internal tools.
Helped expand the design presence and influence on the project, contributing to improvements in firm-wide staffing management.
Partnered closely with product owners and engineers to iteratively refine the experience based on real user feedback.
Demonstrated how thoughtful, behind-the-scenes design can drive meaningful, large-scale impact within a complex internal ecosystem.
The staffing platform was adopted firmwide and used daily by managers across Bain, significantly reducing manual tracking, improving the speed and accuracy of staffing decisions, giving the Private Equity Group greater visibility into deal-based resourcing, and evolving into a scalable system that supports Bain’s long-term operational goals.
