San Diego Zoo & Safari Park Mobile Apps
2021–Present · San Diego Zoo & San Diego Zoo Safari Park · UX/Product Lead
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Joined the SDZWA mobile apps initiative at launch and helped scale it to millions of users. Took on UX leadership across design, visual strategy, and cross-functional coordination. Beyond guest-facing design, responsibilities included usability testing, integrating beacon technology, data analysis, producing training materials and documentation, and supporting facility operations teams. Led end-to-end user flows, system design, and development collaboration for ticketing, navigation, content, and branding — transforming the app into a critical guest experience touchpoint.
Challenge
The SaaS platform powering the app was flexible but generic and had no defined UX direction. Without focused ownership, the experience risked becoming fragmented, inconsistently branded, and confusing for guests.
Solutions & Outcomes
Partnered with developers on implementation and improvements, designed new flows for ticketing and navigation, built a Figma system for rapid mockups, and directed wayfinding map design. Delivered a consistent, branded experience that supported steady growth, with daily active users increasing nearly 6x to ~8,000 across both facility apps.
User flow for proposed in-app reservation system.
Various design and development documentation.