150,000+
Users
160,000+
Applications
5.3
Sessions Per User
Overview
Role:
UX/Product Designer
Duration:
2 Years (Full Time)
Tools Used:
Figma, FigJam, Maze, Hotjar, Slack, Jira, Smartlook
In New Zealand’s evolving job landscape, the traditional process, CVs, job boards, tedious filtering was failing a whole generation of digital-native job seekers and forward-thinking employers. Enter ZEIL, a platform inspired by the “Tinder for jobs” concept, launched by acclaimed entrepreneur Anna Mowbray to transform how Kiwis discover work and how companies showcase themselves.
As ZEIL’s first-ever hire, I was entrusted to help shape the entire product experience from day one, collaborating closely with Anna and the founding team to turn vision into execution.
Researched pain points and digital habits across Gen Z and Millennial New Zealanders.
Designed and tested ZEIL’s swipe-first, story-driven UX.
Aimed to transform the job search process, making it more interactive, engaging, and tailored to the needs of modern job seekers.
Designing From The Ground Up
When I walked into ZEIL as the company’s very first employee, there was no established product, design language, or even company routine, just a big vision and the trust of our founders to bring it to life. I started at a humble desk, sketching initial wireframes and mapping out raw user flows, feeling both the weight and privilege of shaping not just the next NZ job platform, but the heart of an entirely new company. Every milestone since, each new persona, every round of user feedback, and every spark of insight from real Kiwis, has marked both the company’s and my own evolution. As ZEIL has grown from notes and sticky sketches to a national product with a mission-driven team, so too have my skills and perspective matured. Every touchpoint, from our earliest minimal prototypes to today’s high-fidelity, inclusive designs, bears the imprint of this journey. This section is visually represented by a timeline of images from those earliest days, my first sketched flows, mid-project annotated UIs, and the fully realized ZEIL app, capturing how both the product and I have progressed, side by side, from a solitary beginning into a collective success.
Problem Statement
Job seekers are overwhelmed by rigid, time-consuming application processes that feel impersonal and transactional. These traditional systems often fail to surface relevant opportunities quickly or account for individual values, preferences, and potential, leaving users disengaged and underrepresented in roles they might thrive in.
Our Process
Discover
User Research, Employer Workshops, Competitive Analysis.
Define
Personas, Customer Journey, HMW's.
Deliver
Information Architecture, Sketches, High-Fi Prototyping
Design
Handoff, Iterations
Business Challenges
Rigid, saturated market dominated by Seek and Trade Me with little innovation.
Rising expectations among smartphone-native job seekers for speed, relevance, and visual engagement.
Need for rapid growth and credibility among both employers and job seekers.
Our Product Users
Primary
Gen Z and Millennial Kiwis seeking the perfect job for them, in the most seamless and quickest fashion.
Secondary
Employers/hiring managers wanting stronger matches & competitive hiring advantages
Discover
Discover
Methodology
To gain a comprehensive understanding of job seekers' and employers' experiences, behaviors, and expectations, we employed a multi-method research approach combining qualitative, quantitative, and market analysis techniques.
User Interviews & Focus Groups
Conducted over 15 in-depth one-on-one interviews with diverse participants aged 18–35, including Māori, Pasifika, first-jobbers, and career returners.
Facilitated multiple focus groups to explore collective perspectives on job platform usage, expectations, and frustrations, capturing how social context shapes decision-making and trust.
Employer Workshops
Engaged hiring managers and HR professionals from startups, SMEs, and large corporations.
Explored challenges in attracting culture-fit candidates, communicating the employer brand, and pain points with legacy job platforms.
Discover
User Pain Points
Based on the user interviews, the top 3 pain points that we identified were:
Impersonal and Time-Consuming Applications
Users found the application process to be repetitive, slow, and disconnected. Forms felt transactional, and most never heard back, leading to a lack of motivation and trust in the system.
Poor Job Recommendations
Many job seekers were shown roles that didn’t align with their interests, values, or lifestyle. Platforms relied too heavily on keywords instead of offering relevant, personalized matches.
Uncertainty About What to Search
Younger users, especially first-jobbers, often didn’t know what roles to look for. Without tailored guidance or recommendations, they felt overwhelmed and unsure how to start.
Discover
Employer Pain Points
Based on the workshops, the top 3 pain points that we identified were:
High Volume, Low Quality Applicants
Employers reported that while vacancies often attracted a large number of applicants, very few met the actual requirements or seemed like a good fit for the role or company. Sorting through irrelevant applications was time-consuming and made the hiring process inefficient.
Lack of Tools for Effective Screening and Engagement
Standard recruitment platforms offered few ways to assess candidate suitability beyond the written CV and cover letter. Employers wanted smarter, more interactive tools such as video introductions or tailored prompts to better identify, assess, and engage with top talent early in the process
Difficulty Branding and Standing Out
Many employers struggled to differentiate their business on traditional job boards, where listings looked similar and company culture or values were hard to communicate. This limited their ability to attract candidates genuinely interested in their mission or work environment.
Discover
Competitor Analysis
I conducted a deep analysis of job platforms like SEEK, LinkedIn, and Indeed to evaluate job discovery, filtering, application flows, personalisation, and pain points.
Also, I went through dating app platforms such as Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge with particular attention to onboarding processes, profile completion strategies, gamified swiping interfaces, matching accuracy, retention mechanisms, and engagement drivers.
Pros +
Powerful for building personal brands and networking
Profile endorsements and posts help users stand out
Employers can use visual branding and company storytelling
Cons -
Feeds can feel cluttered, distracting from focused job search
Application process can be complex and lengthy
Personalisation is moderate; not always reflective of unique skills or interests
Indeed
Pros +
Simple, easy-to-navigate interface
One-click applications, especially mobile-friendly
Aggregates jobs from multiple sources, broadening search
Cons -
Limited personalization; many recommendations feel generic
Application process still feels impersonal
Employer branding and company stories are minimal
Tinder/Bumble
Pros +
Highly visual, interactive, and engaging swipe-based discovery
Quick, playful onboarding with personality prompts
Profile completion and prompts encourage users to stand out
Effective algorithm surfaces relevant matches
Cons -
Swiping can feel superficial if not complemented by richer info
Lacks the professional structure needed for career-focused vetting
Hinge
Pros +
Profile prompts support creativity and authenticity
Modular onboarding and guided questions add depth
Emphasizes meaningful, conversation-driven connections
Cons -
More steps in the process; setup is longer than on other social apps
Not designed for professional or employer discovery (requires adapting insights
Lower browsing volume, prioritizes quality matches over quantity
Discover
User Needs
Personalised job recommendations based on interests and values
Fast, intuitive application experience with minimal barriers
Guided role exploration, especially for those unsure where to start
Authentic insights into company culture and team
Confidence that the process is fair and free from bias
Define
Next, I translated research findings into actionable design foundations. This critical stage connected user insights to solution development, ensuring every decision was anchored in real needs and behaviours.
HMW Statements
To reframe user and employer pain points into opportunities, I crafted “How Might We” questions. These HMWs transformed broad challenges into focused, inspiring prompts for ideation—providing a north star for subsequent concept generation.
1
How might we recommend jobs that truly reflect users’ individual interests and values?
2
How might we create an application process that is fast, intuitive, and removes unnecessary barriers?
3
How might we provide authentic, in-depth insights into company culture and the team behind each job?
4
How might we ensure the hiring process is unbiased and instills trust in its fairness for every user?
Personalised Job Matching
Smart matching algorithms that factor in user prefernces, values, and behavior.
Fast, Frictionless Applications
Swipeable job cards for effortless exploration.
Authentic Employer Branding
Visually engaging job cards that showcase both the role and workplace environment.
Bias-Reducing and Inclusive Design
‘Blind’ CV’s that hide personal information to minimise unconscious bias.
Define
Personas
Building on in-depth interviews and themed insights, I developed representative personas. These profiles captured the motivations, goals, and pain points of both job seekers and recruiters, grounding the team’s empathy and design lens throughout the process. Each persona became a touchstone to test whether our ideas met the diverse needs emerging from the research.
Student
Jordan Lee
Location
Auckland
Years of Experience
None
Experience
Entry Level
Goals
Earn extra income to support living, study costs, and social life.
Gain hands-on work experience and develop transferable skills.
Test out different industries to discover what they enjoy.
Build confidence and a basic professional network.
Set a foundation for potential career growth, with a view to upskilling over time.
Needs
Flexible, part-time scheduling that fits around class times.
Clear, simple job applications—no unnecessary barriers or jargon.
Supportive employers who offer on-the-job training and constructive feedback.
Personalised job suggestions that match limited experience but strong willingness to learn.
Visibility into workplace culture and support for young, first-time employees.
Pain Points
Struggles to find jobs that fit their class timetable
Gets discouraged by complex or time-consuming applications
Feels overlooked due to lack of experience or a “thin” CV
Finds it hard to compare company culture or understand progression paths from job ads
Worries about missing out on opportunities due to bias or lack of connections
In-House Talent Acquisition
Sophie Turner
Location
Wellington
Years of Experience
10+ Years
Experience
Senior
Goals
Source high-quality candidates who align with company values and long-term goals
Fill roles quickly to support growth targets and project timelines
Create a positive, engaging candidate experience throughout the process
Build a strong, recognizable employer brand
Use data to improve hiring efficiency and outcomes
Needs
Powerful filtering and search tools to quickly identify promising candidates
Effective ways to showcase company culture and mission to attract top talent
Streamlined communication tools for scheduling, outreach, and feedback
Analytics on candidate funnels and job listing performance
Solutions to reduce hiring bias and promote workplace diversity
Pain Points
High volume of low-quality applicants; time wasted on irrelevant profiles
Difficulty communicating “what makes us special” beyond basic listings
Legacy application systems create friction for both recruiters and candidates
Challenges in engaging passive candidates or diverse talent pools
Balancing speed of hire with quality and right-fit assurance
Define
Customer Journey
Building on deep user research and persona development, I mapped out the candidate journey to reveal critical touchpoints, emotions, and pain points as users navigate the job search process. This visual storytelling approach captures the real-world experience of candidates like Jordan Lee, highlighting the highs and lows encountered along the way.
Scenario
Jordan Lee, a 19-year-old university student with no prior work experience, is seeking a flexible part-time job but becomes increasingly discouraged by the overwhelming and inefficient discovery process of traditional job platforms.
Starting
"I can’t wait to find my first part-time job and start earning.”
Sifting
“This is taking too much time and energy, maybe I should just give up or wait until next semester.”
Conflicting
“This is taking too much time and energy, maybe I should just give up or wait until next semester.”
Quitting
“This is taking too much time and energy, maybe I should just give up or wait until next semester.”
Excited to find a job. Optimistic about his job search
Spends hours scrolling and filtering. Encounters mostly irrelevant or duplicate postings.v
Starts applying to unsuitable jobs out of frustration. Feels lost, considers alternative ways to find work.
Stops searching actively. Ignores job alerts and withdraws from the process, missing potential opportunities.
Develop
Develop
Information Architecture
With personas and HMWs guiding priorities, I mapped the information architecture for the platform. This involved structuring content, features, and user flows—including onboarding, job discovery, application, and profiles—to align with real user journeys. This ensured that every interaction would be intuitive, efficient, and meaningful, setting a solid foundation for prototyping and design.
Develop
Ideation & Low-Fidelity Sketches
I started by translating my key insights and the journey pain points I’d uncovered into quick sketches and initial wireframes. My main focus was on how interactive job cards could streamline and energize job discovery, prioritizing testing big ideas over visual detail.
High-Fidelity Prototyping
In the high-fidelity stage, I focused closely on bringing the smart job card solution to life—both in terms of user experience and its role as a core product innovation.
Crafting the Smart Job Card Experience
The heart of my high-fidelity work centered on the interactive job card interface, which completely reimagines discovery for first-time job seekers. I designed each card to deliver tailored, high-impact information in an approachable, swipeable format—transforming what is normally a tedious list into a curated opportunity feed.
The job card solution is more than a UI upgrade; it solves the fundamental pain point for young and inexperienced job seekers—information overload and lack of relevance. By turning job discovery into an interactive, guided experience, the platform sets itself apart from traditional job boards and positions itself as an enabler of confident, targeted career beginnings.
Design System Foundation
I established a cohesive set of design system components—color, typography, iconography—to keep the experience on-brand, highly accessible, and scalable across the platform.
Deliver
Since launching ZEIL’s smart job card experience, we’ve seen a transformative impact, making job discovery faster, more relevant, and empowering for new job seekers. As the inventor of ZEIL’s iconic swipe-based UI, I’m proud to have been awarded a patent for this innovative system, marking a major milestone not just for my own career but for the future of digital recruitment
150,000+
Users
160,000+
Applications
5.3
Sessions Per User
2,000+
Companies
45%
Faster To Find Jobs
3.5
Applications Per Signed In User
Deliver
My Role as Inventor and Patent Holder
I established a cohesive set of design system components—color, typography, iconography—to keep the experience on-brand, highly accessible, and scalable across the platform.
Learnings After Launch
Mature Job Seekers Prefer Desktop, Not Apps
We found that many experienced candidates didn’t have ready access to their CVs on their phones, making mobile applications inconvenient for this segment. Instead, they preferred to create, upload, and manage their CVs from a desktop environment.
Design System Drives Cohesion
Implementing a robust design system gave us consistency across all user touchpoints and streamlined collaboration between design, engineering, and marketing.
Boosting Application Rates
Implementing a robust design system gave us consistency across all user touchpoints and streamlined collaboration between design, engineering, and marketing.
