Simplifying Complex and Data-heavy Workflows for Effortless Compliance
Simplifying Complex and Data-heavy Workflows for Effortless Compliance
What is Compliance?
Every time you buy/sell something online there's a transaction between you and the buyer/seller. This transaction has to be reported to the Tax Authorities so they can ensure taxes are being calculated and paid correctly.
For global businesses, this means they must comply with different rules in each country where they operate, often in real time, which can be complex and requires precise systems to handle. Fonoa e-Invoicing automatically reports transaction data to Tax Authorities around the globe to ensure businesses are compliant.
As Lead Designer, I built a product that simplifies Tax Managers’ workflows to report, track, troubleshoot transaction data to stay compliant but also gain strategic insights.
Today, e-Invoicing processes over 700,000 transactions monthly, with the value of €26 million for our clients.
Role
Senior Product Designer, Design Team Lead
Role
Senior Product Designer, Design Team Lead
Role
Senior Product Designer, Design Team Lead
Team
Francois Bacourt (PO), Antonio Kristicevic (EM), Sara Tan (Full Stack), Rui Magalhães (BE), Valentin Mezev (BE), Flavio Silva (Full Stack), Kelly Muniz, Trent Targa, Enis Gencer (TaxTech), Nemanja (Designer)
Team
Francois Bacourt (PO), Antonio Kristicevic (EM), Sara Tan (Full Stack), Rui Magalhães (BE), Valentin Mezev (BE), Flavio Silva (Full Stack), Kelly Muniz, Trent Targa, Enis Gencer (TaxTech), Nemanja (Designer)
Team
Francois Bacourt (PO), Antonio Kristicevic (EM), Sara Tan (Full Stack), Rui Magalhães (BE), Valentin Mezev (BE), Flavio Silva (Full Stack), Kelly Muniz, Trent Targa, Enis Gencer (TaxTech), Nemanja (Designer)
duration: 1m17s
Achievements
• 30+ features and functionalities designed end to end.
• Evangelised a user-centric approach in the product development process.
• Established the product’s front-end architecture.
• Streamlined client workflows to enhance efficiency, minimize errors, and reduce costs associated with manual processes and compliance risks.
• Shifted user behavior from manual, tactical tasks to automated, strategic processes.
Achievements
• 30+ features and functionalities designed end to end.
• Evangelised a user-centric approach in the product development process.
• Established the product’s front-end architecture.
• Streamlined client workflows to enhance efficiency, minimize errors, and reduce costs associated with manual processes and compliance risks.
• Shifted user behavior from manual, tactical tasks to automated, strategic processes.
Achievements
• 30+ features and functionalities designed end to end.
• Evangelised a user-centric approach in the product development process.
• Established the product’s front-end architecture.
• Streamlined client workflows to enhance efficiency, minimize errors, and reduce costs associated with manual processes and compliance risks.
• Shifted user behavior from manual, tactical tasks to automated, strategic processes.
Increase in ARR
941.67
%
Jul 2022 - Aug 2024
Client's FTE saved
€42,500
p.a
from manual intergration
Reduced error rate
8.5
%
one month after release
Increase in ARR
941.67
%
Jul 2022 - Aug 2024
Client's FTE saved
€42,500
p.a
from manual intergration
Reduced error rate
8.5
%
one month after release
Increase in ARR
941.67
%
Jul 2022 - Aug 2024
Client's FTE saved
€42,500
p.a
from manual intergration
Reduced error rate
8.5
%
one month after release
Resource limitations, evolving regulations, data quality, and error management are the key challenges to compliance.
Through user interviews, I identified the core challenges Tax Managers face:
Resource limitations, evolving regulations, data quality, and error management are the key challenges to compliance.
Through user interviews, I identified the core challenges Tax Managers face:
Resource limitations, evolving regulations, data quality, and error management are the key challenges to compliance.
Through user interviews, I identified the core challenges Tax Managers face:
Resource Constraints
Under-resourced tax departments struggle to secure necessary engineering support for integration with multiple tax authorities, creating compliance bottlenecks that delay market entry and raise the risk of penalties.
Resource Constraints
Under-resourced tax departments struggle to secure necessary engineering support for integration with multiple tax authorities, creating compliance bottlenecks that delay market entry and raise the risk of penalties.
Resource Constraints
Under-resourced tax departments struggle to secure necessary engineering support for integration with multiple tax authorities, creating compliance bottlenecks that delay market entry and raise the risk of penalties.
Complex and Constantly Changing Regulations
TAs frequently update mandates, requiring time-intensive tracking and adaptation. This evolving complexity diverts TMs focus from strategic tasks.
Complex and Constantly Changing Regulations
TAs frequently update mandates, requiring time-intensive tracking and adaptation. This evolving complexity diverts TMs focus from strategic tasks.
Complex and Constantly Changing Regulations
TAs frequently update mandates, requiring time-intensive tracking and adaptation. This evolving complexity diverts TMs focus from strategic tasks.
Data Quality Issues
Transaction data from multiple sources (ERPs, APIs, manual entries) is often inconsistent, requiring extensive manual verification and sanitization, which impacts the efficiency of compliance processes.
Data Quality Issues
Transaction data from multiple sources (ERPs, APIs, manual entries) is often inconsistent, requiring extensive manual verification and sanitization, which impacts the efficiency of compliance processes.
Data Quality Issues
Transaction data from multiple sources (ERPs, APIs, manual entries) is often inconsistent, requiring extensive manual verification and sanitization, which impacts the efficiency of compliance processes.
Cryptic Error Messages
Tax authority error messages are often ambiguous, untranslated, and lack resolution guidance, increasing reliance on support for troubleshooting. This dependency delays compliance reporting and strains both clients and Fonoa’s CX and Engineering teams.
Cryptic Error Messages
Tax authority error messages are often ambiguous, untranslated, and lack resolution guidance, increasing reliance on support for troubleshooting. This dependency delays compliance reporting and strains both clients and Fonoa’s CX and Engineering teams.
Cryptic Error Messages
Tax authority error messages are often ambiguous, untranslated, and lack resolution guidance, increasing reliance on support for troubleshooting. This dependency delays compliance reporting and strains both clients and Fonoa’s CX and Engineering teams.
Design Strategy: Simplify, automate manual, labour-intensive tasks. Provide transparency, guidance and insights.
Design Strategy: Simplify, automate manual, labour-intensive tasks. Provide transparency, guidance and insights.
Design Strategy: Simplify, automate manual, labour-intensive tasks. Provide transparency, guidance and insights.
Simplify labor-intensive workflows
Ease data scoping and gathering with clear guidance.
Simplify labor-intensive workflows
Ease data scoping and gathering with clear guidance.
Simplify labor-intensive workflows
Ease data scoping and gathering with clear guidance.
Automate knowledge acquisition
Through real-time regulatory updates.
Automate knowledge acquisition
Through real-time regulatory updates.
Automate knowledge acquisition
Through real-time regulatory updates.
Improve confidence in data
By unifying data sources, ensuring clear status visibility and enabling flexible queries for in-depth analysis.
Improve confidence in data
By unifying data sources, ensuring clear status visibility and enabling flexible queries for in-depth analysis.
Improve confidence in data
By unifying data sources, ensuring clear status visibility and enabling flexible queries for in-depth analysis.
Clarify and offer actionable guidance to streamline troubleshooting
Empowering users to resolve issues independently and reducing support dependency.
Clarify and offer actionable guidance to streamline troubleshooting
Empowering users to resolve issues independently and reducing support dependency.
Clarify and offer actionable guidance to streamline troubleshooting
Empowering users to resolve issues independently and reducing support dependency.
Deliver strategic insights
With aggregated analytics to enhance Tax Managers’ influence in financial discussions
Deliver strategic insights
With aggregated analytics to enhance Tax Managers’ influence in financial discussions
Deliver strategic insights
With aggregated analytics to enhance Tax Managers’ influence in financial discussions
Notable Solutions and Impacts
Fonoa Required Data simplifies labour-intensive Data Scoping and Gathering
A centralised, country-specific guide outlining essential data requirements to simplify data gathering.
Fonoa Required Data simplifies labour-intensive Data Scoping and Gathering
A centralised, country-specific guide outlining essential data requirements to simplify data gathering.
Fonoa Required Data simplifies labour-intensive Data Scoping and Gathering
A centralised, country-specific guide outlining essential data requirements to simplify data gathering.
Design Approach
Provide clear descriptions, examples, and grouped similar needs to reduce complexity and cognitive load.
Design Approach
Provide clear descriptions, examples, and grouped similar needs to reduce complexity and cognitive load.
Design Approach
Provide clear descriptions, examples, and grouped similar needs to reduce complexity and cognitive load.
Impact on User Workflow
Enable Tax Managers to independently scope and gather data for integrations, reducing engineering dependencies and speeding up market entry and expansion.
Impact on User Workflow
Enable Tax Managers to independently scope and gather data for integrations, reducing engineering dependencies and speeding up market entry and expansion.
Impact on User Workflow
Enable Tax Managers to independently scope and gather data for integrations, reducing engineering dependencies and speeding up market entry and expansion.
Strategic Impact
Empowering clients to confidently and quickly enter new markets:
• Reduced Remote.com's new country integration time from 2 months to 3 hours.
• Helped Uber expand to 3 new markets in a month.
• Saves clients up to €42,500 per annum on manual data scoping and gathering costs
Strategic Impact
Empowering clients to confidently and quickly enter new markets:
• Reduced Remote.com's new country integration time from 2 months to 3 hours.
• Helped Uber expand to 3 new markets in a month.
• Saves clients up to €42,500 per annum on manual data scoping and gathering costs
Strategic Impact
Empowering clients to confidently and quickly enter new markets:
• Reduced Remote.com's new country integration time from 2 months to 3 hours.
• Helped Uber expand to 3 new markets in a month.
• Saves clients up to €42,500 per annum on manual data scoping and gathering costs
Compliance Centre automates and provides tailored regulatory updates
A real-time compliance radar that tracks regulatory changes and allows users to receive tailored updates based on their interests.
Compliance Centre automates and provides tailored regulatory updates
A real-time compliance radar that tracks regulatory changes and allows users to receive tailored updates based on their interests.
Compliance Centre automates and provides tailored regulatory updates
A real-time compliance radar that tracks regulatory changes and allows users to receive tailored updates based on their interests.
Design Approach
Enable users to select only the updates relevant to their use cases, reducing noise and the need for manual monitoring.
Design Approach
Enable users to select only the updates relevant to their use cases, reducing noise and the need for manual monitoring.
Design Approach
Enable users to select only the updates relevant to their use cases, reducing noise and the need for manual monitoring.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers are freed from manual tracking, significantly lowering compliance effort.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers are freed from manual tracking, significantly lowering compliance effort.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers are freed from manual tracking, significantly lowering compliance effort.
Strategic Impact
Transforming compliance monitoring into a background task, keeping users informed without demanding significant time or attention.
The feature evolved into a strategic asset, enabling partnerships with consulting firms by providing a platform that delivers compliance insights to their clients.
Strategic Impact
Transforming compliance monitoring into a background task, keeping users informed without demanding significant time or attention.
The feature evolved into a strategic asset, enabling partnerships with consulting firms by providing a platform that delivers compliance insights to their clients.
Strategic Impact
Transforming compliance monitoring into a background task, keeping users informed without demanding significant time or attention.
The feature evolved into a strategic asset, enabling partnerships with consulting firms by providing a platform that delivers compliance insights to their clients.
Unified Transaction Records helps monitor and track data in one place
Consolidates and validates transaction data from various sources, offering a structured, error-marked display for easy verification, saving users time on data quality checks.
Unified Transaction Records helps monitor and track data in one place
Consolidates and validates transaction data from various sources, offering a structured, error-marked display for easy verification, saving users time on data quality checks.
Unified Transaction Records helps monitor and track data in one place
Consolidates and validates transaction data from various sources, offering a structured, error-marked display for easy verification, saving users time on data quality checks.
Design Approach
Provide a clear, structured layout displaying transaction records, statuses, progress, and marked errors for easy identification.
Support deep dives and troubleshooting without navigating multiple systems.
Design Approach
Provide a clear, structured layout displaying transaction records, statuses, progress, and marked errors for easy identification.
Support deep dives and troubleshooting without navigating multiple systems.
Design Approach
Provide a clear, structured layout displaying transaction records, statuses, progress, and marked errors for easy identification.
Support deep dives and troubleshooting without navigating multiple systems.
Impact on User Workflow
Enables Tax Managers to quickly access and verify transaction data, eliminating time-intensive data monitoring and troubleshooting.
Impact on User Workflow
Enables Tax Managers to quickly access and verify transaction data, eliminating time-intensive data monitoring and troubleshooting.
Impact on User Workflow
Enables Tax Managers to quickly access and verify transaction data, eliminating time-intensive data monitoring and troubleshooting.
Strategic Impact
Consolidates data in a single view, establishing e-Invoicing as a Single Source of Truth for transaction data, enhancing client confidence in the platform.
Increased product MAU by 16% one month after launch.
Strategic Impact
Consolidates data in a single view, establishing e-Invoicing as a Single Source of Truth for transaction data, enhancing client confidence in the platform.
Increased product MAU by 16% one month after launch.
Strategic Impact
Consolidates data in a single view, establishing e-Invoicing as a Single Source of Truth for transaction data, enhancing client confidence in the platform.
Increased product MAU by 16% one month after launch.
Compliance Analytics Dashboard provides insights and elevates Tax to a strategic asset
Offers insights like reporting success rates and error frequencies, enabling Tax Managers to proactively monitor compliance health and contribute strategically to financial planning.
Compliance Analytics Dashboard provides insights and elevates Tax to a strategic asset
Offers insights like reporting success rates and error frequencies, enabling Tax Managers to proactively monitor compliance health and contribute strategically to financial planning.
Compliance Analytics Dashboard provides insights and elevates Tax to a strategic asset
Offers insights like reporting success rates and error frequencies, enabling Tax Managers to proactively monitor compliance health and contribute strategically to financial planning.
Design Approach
Leverage data visualisation to present insights clearly, minimising the effort required to interpret data.
Design Approach
Leverage data visualisation to present insights clearly, minimising the effort required to interpret data.
Design Approach
Leverage data visualisation to present insights clearly, minimising the effort required to interpret data.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers can now quickly assess compliance health at a glance, identifying potential risks without manual data review.
Highlight patterns and trends shifting users’ focus from routine fire-fighting to high-level decision-making.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers can now quickly assess compliance health at a glance, identifying potential risks without manual data review.
Highlight patterns and trends shifting users’ focus from routine fire-fighting to high-level decision-making.
Impact on User Workflow
Tax Managers can now quickly assess compliance health at a glance, identifying potential risks without manual data review.
Highlight patterns and trends shifting users’ focus from routine fire-fighting to high-level decision-making.
Strategic Impact
Offers Tax Managers strategic compliance insights, securing a role in key financial discussions.
Elevates the product’s value from a Continuous Transaction Control (CTC) tool to a critical source of strategic insights.
Serves as an essential and effective demo tool, visualising complex integration process, helping unblocking 100% of opportunities in commercial pipeline.
Strategic Impact
Offers Tax Managers strategic compliance insights, securing a role in key financial discussions.
Elevates the product’s value from a Continuous Transaction Control (CTC) tool to a critical source of strategic insights.
Serves as an essential and effective demo tool, visualising complex integration process, helping unblocking 100% of opportunities in commercial pipeline.
Strategic Impact
Offers Tax Managers strategic compliance insights, securing a role in key financial discussions.
Elevates the product’s value from a Continuous Transaction Control (CTC) tool to a critical source of strategic insights.
Serves as an essential and effective demo tool, visualising complex integration process, helping unblocking 100% of opportunities in commercial pipeline.
Error Management System makes troubleshooting a less dreaded task
Translates and standardises error codes and error messages across countries, offering actionable solutions and analytics that help users resolve errors independently, reducing reliance on support.
Error Management System makes troubleshooting a less dreaded task
Translates and standardises error codes and error messages across countries, offering actionable solutions and analytics that help users resolve errors independently, reducing reliance on support.
Error Management System makes troubleshooting a less dreaded task
Translates and standardises error codes and error messages across countries, offering actionable solutions and analytics that help users resolve errors independently, reducing reliance on support.
Design Approach
Craft clear, helpful error messages.
Present error analytics in an insightful format, transforming error management from a guessing game into a structured, preventable process.
Design Approach
Craft clear, helpful error messages.
Present error analytics in an insightful format, transforming error management from a guessing game into a structured, preventable process.
Design Approach
Craft clear, helpful error messages.
Present error analytics in an insightful format, transforming error management from a guessing game into a structured, preventable process.
Impact on User Workflow
With actionable error descriptions and analytics, Tax Managers can address compliance errors swiftly and independently, minimizing delays and support dependency.
Impact on User Workflow
With actionable error descriptions and analytics, Tax Managers can address compliance errors swiftly and independently, minimizing delays and support dependency.
Impact on User Workflow
With actionable error descriptions and analytics, Tax Managers can address compliance errors swiftly and independently, minimizing delays and support dependency.
Strategic Impact
Standardised and improved errors messages across different Tax authorities and languages (+20)
Creates a unified troubleshooting framework share by clients, Fonoa CX, Sales Engineers, Engineering, and Product. This closed-loop approach minimises reporting disruptions and empowers users to resolve issues autonomously.
Error rates decreased by 8.5% one month after launch.
Reduced CX tickets by 12%.
Strategic Impact
Standardised and improved errors messages across different Tax authorities and languages (+20)
Creates a unified troubleshooting framework share by clients, Fonoa CX, Sales Engineers, Engineering, and Product. This closed-loop approach minimises reporting disruptions and empowers users to resolve issues autonomously.
Error rates decreased by 8.5% one month after launch.
Reduced CX tickets by 12%.
Strategic Impact
Standardised and improved errors messages across different Tax authorities and languages (+20)
Creates a unified troubleshooting framework share by clients, Fonoa CX, Sales Engineers, Engineering, and Product. This closed-loop approach minimises reporting disruptions and empowers users to resolve issues autonomously.
Error rates decreased by 8.5% one month after launch.
Reduced CX tickets by 12%.
Notable Iterations
Over four years of iterations, two primary themes have remained top of mind for Tax Managers: Operational Efficiency and Strategic Value Delivery.
Notable Iterations
Over four years of iterations, two primary themes have remained top of mind for Tax Managers: Operational Efficiency and Strategic Value Delivery.
Notable Iterations
Over four years of iterations, two primary themes have remained top of mind for Tax Managers: Operational Efficiency and Strategic Value Delivery.
Enhanced flexibility to improve Operational Efficiency
Despite common tasks and goals, each Tax Manager follows a unique workflow, requiring greater personalisations. We addressed this by introducing data table customisations to help to prioritise key information without horizontal scrolling. Nested filters were added for robust queries, improving workflow efficiency.
Enhanced flexibility to improve Operational Efficiency
Despite common tasks and goals, each Tax Manager follows a unique workflow, requiring greater personalisations. We addressed this by introducing data table customisations to help to prioritise key information without horizontal scrolling. Nested filters were added for robust queries, improving workflow efficiency.
Enhanced flexibility to improve Operational Efficiency
Despite common tasks and goals, each Tax Manager follows a unique workflow, requiring greater personalisations. We addressed this by introducing data table customisations to help to prioritise key information without horizontal scrolling. Nested filters were added for robust queries, improving workflow efficiency.
Targeted analytics for Strategic Values
Discovery sessions highlighted the analytics most valuable to users, providing clear guidance on which data points to prioritise and aggregate.
Targeted analytics for Strategic Values
Discovery sessions highlighted the analytics most valuable to users, providing clear guidance on which data points to prioritise and aggregate.
Targeted analytics for Strategic Values
Discovery sessions highlighted the analytics most valuable to users, providing clear guidance on which data points to prioritise and aggregate.
Ideation & Prioritisation
We used an Impact/Effort Matrix to select features that aligned with our goal of achieving low-effort compliance for clients
I led How Might We (HMW) workshops with Product Manager, Engineering Manager, engineers, and in-house Tax Managers to generate ideas that addressed user needs.
Ideation & Prioritisation
We used an Impact/Effort Matrix to select features that aligned with our goal of achieving low-effort compliance for clients
I led How Might We (HMW) workshops with Product Manager, Engineering Manager, engineers, and in-house Tax Managers to generate ideas that addressed user needs.
Ideation & Prioritisation
We used an Impact/Effort Matrix to select features that aligned with our goal of achieving low-effort compliance for clients
I led How Might We (HMW) workshops with Product Manager, Engineering Manager, engineers, and in-house Tax Managers to generate ideas that addressed user needs.
Takeaways
Takeaways
Takeaways
Understanding the Real Cost of Compliance
User interviews revealed how compliance demands drain resources, especially where tax compliance has low engineering priority. Added complexity risks adoption, underscoring the need for low-maintenance features. This insight shaped Fonoa Required Data, focusing on only essential data to streamline scoping and gathering.
Understanding the Real Cost of Compliance
User interviews revealed how compliance demands drain resources, especially where tax compliance has low engineering priority. Added complexity risks adoption, underscoring the need for low-maintenance features. This insight shaped Fonoa Required Data, focusing on only essential data to streamline scoping and gathering.
Understanding the Real Cost of Compliance
User interviews revealed how compliance demands drain resources, especially where tax compliance has low engineering priority. Added complexity risks adoption, underscoring the need for low-maintenance features. This insight shaped Fonoa Required Data, focusing on only essential data to streamline scoping and gathering.
The Power of Clear, Actionable Information
Client feedback highlighted how vague, cryptic error messages create friction. To address this, we designed the Error Management System to translate, standardise, and clarify errors, offering steps for resolution. This reduced support dependency and empowered users to troubleshoot independently, aligning with our low-effort strategy.
The Power of Clear, Actionable Information
Client feedback highlighted how vague, cryptic error messages create friction. To address this, we designed the Error Management System to translate, standardise, and clarify errors, offering steps for resolution. This reduced support dependency and empowered users to troubleshoot independently, aligning with our low-effort strategy.
The Power of Clear, Actionable Information
Client feedback highlighted how vague, cryptic error messages create friction. To address this, we designed the Error Management System to translate, standardise, and clarify errors, offering steps for resolution. This reduced support dependency and empowered users to troubleshoot independently, aligning with our low-effort strategy.