SANTANDER MX / STRATEGIC INNOVATION, SERVICE DESIGN & UX
For Santander Mexico, acquiring new clients through salary account agreements with national and international companies was a significant business driver. However, the onboarding process was complex and inconsistent, creating friction for both customers and internal teams. The challenge was to redesign the onboarding experience, streamline processes, and create strategic approaches tailored to different client segments.
(Strategic Innovation, Service Design & UX)
Approach
Mapped the bank’s onboarding ecosystem across frontend and backend systems, capturing actors, activities, needs, and barriers.
Identified opportunity areas to improve efficiency, reduce friction, and enhance experience.
Co-created with Santander development teams to design a new digital product supporting end-to-end onboarding.
Built prototypes of the new process and validated them with key stakeholders.
Developed guidelines for digital transformation to ensure adoption and alignment with both customer and employee needs.
Impact
Streamlined onboarding process across multiple client segments.
Defined a scalable digital product aligned with Santander’s ecosystem.
Enhanced both customer and employee experience during onboarding.
Provided a clear transformation roadmap for implementation.
Key activities
Ecosystem Mapping: Analysed onboarding processes, systems, and stakeholder roles, and end-to-end ecosystem map highlighting barriers and needs.
Opportunity Identification: Defined pain points and areas for strategic improvement with clear prioritisation of high-impact opportunities.
Co-Creation & Design: Collaborated with development teams on new onboarding journeys. Digital product concept + customer journey maps.
Prototyping & Validation: Created and tested process prototypes with stakeholders, using interactive prototypes with feedback integration.
Strategic Guidelines: Designed a roadmap for digital transformation, focusing on both CX and EX (customer and employee experience). Implementation guidelines for short and mid-term roll-out.
Reflection
This project demonstrated the power of combining service design and UX with strategic alignment. By mapping the ecosystem and involving stakeholders early, we not only designed a smoother onboarding process but also delivered a framework for sustainable digital transformation at scale.
