Corient
Designing a world-class digital experience for the world's wealthiest clients at speed, at scale, and without compromising craft.
Design Lead
UX Strategy
Design Systems
Motion
Overview
Scaling Luxury
Design Lead · 2.5 years · Team of 5 Designers
As design lead, I directed a team of five through Corient's transformation from a US boutique wealth management firm into a global player managing $224B in assets for ultra-high-net-worth clients.
Following their acquisition by Mubadala Capital accelerated M&A across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa required us to refactor the web experience for WCAG 2.2 compliance, RTL language support, and international regulatory standards. What began as a run-and-maintain retainer grew into a $3M engagement.
$0M+
$0M+
In new contracts
Won by the design work on this project
20+
20+
Animated ad campaigns
Built & shipped by our team
10+
10+
New components
Added to the design system
Scope
Two and a Half Years,
One Expanding Brief.
From design system foundations to global expansion, this engagement touched every layer of Corient's digital presence.
CORE DELIVERABLES
01.
Marketing site
02.
Design system
03.
Animated ad campaigns
04.
Lead generation optimization
05.
WCAG 2.2 & RTL language updates
06.
Internal AI Tools
The Challenge
Tale of Three Tensions
Every decision on this engagement had to satisfy three non-negotiable requirements simultaneously to appease our users and the Corient team.
Luxury without compromise
Corient's clientele expect a white glove digital experience that felt luxurious and personally catered to them. Visual quality, motion craft, and typographic precision were required for every solution our team brought to the table.
Accessibility without exception
WCAG 2.2 compliance wasn't optional, particularly with EU expansion on the horizon. The challenge wasn't just meeting the standard, it was meeting it without losing the editorial aesthetic that made Corient's experience distinctive.
Execution under pressure
M&A activity moved fast. Legal deadlines were fixed. Client requests arrived without warning. My job was to absorb that pressure before it reached my team by negotiating scope, aligning expectations with senior stakeholders, and finding solutions that delivered value without burning out the people building it.
Design System Overhaul
Building the Foundation
When I began this project, I inherited a skeleton design system that was missing components, states, and viewport designs.
As the engagement scaled, I led a full overhaul: I added 40 new components and added documentation for all components showcasing every interactive state, component resizing behaviour across breakpoints, motion details, and created tokens for colour, spacing, and text to ensure smooth development handoff.
Before
After
Before
After
Data Informed Decisions
Less Friction, Better Leads
Corient's lead generation form had a drop-off problem. Our CDP behavioural data confirmed it, users were abandoning our lead form midway through.
Our initial proposed solution was to reduce inputs to reduce friction. But the Corient team pushed back. Every submission was manually reviewed and an easier form meant more volume, including bot submissions they were already struggling with. Lead quality mattered as much as lead quantity.
We found a middle ground: cut non-essential fields, surfaced the form higher on the page, reduced input field height so users could see more without scrolling, and added motion to make the experience feel considered rather than transactional. Form completions and lead quality both improved as a result.
Scaling the Experience
Volume Without Compromise
Corient's aggressive M&A activity across the US meant a constant flow of new services and business lines needing to show up on the site, each with a fixed legal deadline and a short runway. Over the engagement, that added up to 30+ marketing pages, every one with a distinct brief.
In parallel, I led the design of 80+ animated digital campaigns tied to M&A announcements, quarterly marketing pushes, and persona-driven pushes targeting audiences like entrepreneurs and founders. Digital campaigns were a new venture for me at the start of the project. By the end, I was writing the creative briefs and directing my team to bring them to life.
Navigating Ambiguity
Managing Up
As Corient rapidly expanded across the US, their office locator component couldn't keep up. It's growing alphabetical list of states was becoming difficult to navigate, and with global expansion on the horizon it was only going to get worse.
The CEO loved the look and feel of the original design, so the team knew approaching getting alignment on a full redesign of the component wasn't going to be straightforward.
After several rounds of concepting and feedback, we landed on a tabbed interface organized by region. A user's local tab was pre-selected automatically via IP detection, surfacing the list of offices in their region immediately. This solution made Corient's global scale visible at a glance without sacrificing usability.
It wasn't the pure search experience I would have ideally built, but it solved the user problem, satisfied the CEO, and shipped on time.
Before
After
Before
After
Going Global
Expanding Globally
When Corient was acquired by Mubadala Capital, our scope changed overnight. Corient's boutique US marketing site needed to become a global digital ecosystem spanning across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
In order to meet EU accessibility requirements, I led a full WCAG 2.2 audit and updates across the entire design system without losing it's editorial aesthetic. My team triaged findings by severity, proposed revised components in structured blocks for client approval, and completed the full design phase a month ahead of schedule.
We also solved for RTL layouts, regional content restrictions, and how users transitioned between regional versions of the site.
Reflections
Leadership Learnings
The most important skills I built weren't design related, they were about leading a team through a high momentum project without burning them out.
Shielding your team
Protecting your team is active work, not a passive outcome. It means negotiating scope early, communicating priorities clearly, and checking in often enough to catch problems early. Having momentum doesn't have to mean stress for the people doing the work, you just need to bake in the structure to support them.
Intentionally Checking In
As the pace ramped up, I started running biweekly 1:1 coffee chats with each designer on my team. No agenda, just honest conversations about how things were going and what I could do better as a lead. These chats helped me catch blockers early, build trust, and create space for feedback without having to ask for it.
Matching People to the Work
Those check-ins became a tool for smarter task assignment. In one chat, I learned a designer who was working on the design system was eager to try ad campaigns. When the next batch came in, I gave her the lead and she knocked them out of the park. Matching people to work that stretches them without sacrificing delivery is the leadership skill I am most proud of building here.
Additional Work
Kea Legard
©2026
Corient
Designing a world-class digital experience for the world's wealthiest clients at speed, at scale, and without compromising craft.
Design Lead
UX Strategy
Design Systems
Motion
Overview
Scaling Luxury
Design Lead · 2.5 years · Team of 5 Designers
As design lead, I directed a team of five through Corient's transformation from a US boutique wealth management firm into a global player managing $224B in assets for ultra-high-net-worth clients.
Following their acquisition by Mubadala Capital accelerated M&A across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa required us to refactor the web experience for WCAG 2.2 compliance, RTL language support, and international regulatory standards. What began as a run-and-maintain retainer grew into a $3M engagement.
$0M+
$0M+
In new contracts
Won by the design work on this project
20+
20+
Animated ad campaigns
Built & shipped by our team
10+
10+
New components
Added to the design system
Scope
Two and a Half Years,
One Expanding Brief.
From design system foundations to global expansion, this engagement touched every layer of Corient's digital presence.
CORE DELIVERABLES
01.
Marketing site
02.
Design system
03.
Animated ad campaigns
04.
Lead generation optimization
05.
WCAG 2.2 & RTL language updates
06.
Internal AI Tools
The Challenge
Tale of Three Tensions
Every decision on this engagement had to satisfy three non-negotiable requirements simultaneously to appease our users and the Corient team.
Luxury without compromise
Corient's clientele expect a white glove digital experience that felt luxurious and personally catered to them. Visual quality, motion craft, and typographic precision were required for every solution our team brought to the table.
Accessibility without exception
WCAG 2.2 compliance wasn't optional, particularly with EU expansion on the horizon. The challenge wasn't just meeting the standard, it was meeting it without losing the editorial aesthetic that made Corient's experience distinctive.
Execution under pressure
M&A activity moved fast. Legal deadlines were fixed. Client requests arrived without warning. My job was to absorb that pressure before it reached my team by negotiating scope, aligning expectations with senior stakeholders, and finding solutions that delivered value without burning out the people building it.
Design System Overhaul
Building the Foundation
When I began this project, I inherited a skeleton design system that was missing components, states, and viewport designs.
As the engagement scaled, I led a full overhaul: I added 40 new components and added documentation for all components showcasing every interactive state, component resizing behaviour across breakpoints, motion details, and created tokens for colour, spacing, and text to ensure smooth development handoff.
Before
After
Data Informed Decisions
Less Friction, Better Leads
Corient's lead generation form had a drop-off problem. Our CDP behavioural data confirmed it, users were abandoning our lead form midway through.
Our initial proposed solution was to reduce inputs to reduce friction. But the Corient team pushed back. Every submission was manually reviewed and an easier form meant more volume, including bot submissions they were already struggling with. Lead quality mattered as much as lead quantity.
We found a middle ground: cut non-essential fields, surfaced the form higher on the page, reduced input field height so users could see more without scrolling, and added motion to make the experience feel considered rather than transactional. Form completions and lead quality both improved as a result.
Scaling the Experience
Volume Without Compromise
Corient's aggressive M&A activity across the US meant a constant flow of new services and business lines needing to show up on the site, each with a fixed legal deadline and a short runway. Over the engagement, that added up to 30+ marketing pages, every one with a distinct brief.
In parallel, I led the design of 80+ animated digital campaigns tied to M&A announcements, quarterly marketing pushes, and persona-driven pushes targeting audiences like entrepreneurs and founders. Digital campaigns were a new venture for me at the start of the project. By the end, I was writing the creative briefs and directing my team to bring them to life.
Navigating Ambiguity
Managing Up
As Corient rapidly expanded across the US, their office locator component couldn't keep up. It's growing alphabetical list of states was becoming difficult to navigate, and with global expansion on the horizon it was only going to get worse.
The CEO loved the look and feel of the original design, so the team knew approaching getting alignment on a full redesign of the component wasn't going to be straightforward.
After several rounds of concepting and feedback, we landed on a tabbed interface organized by region. A user's local tab was pre-selected automatically via IP detection, surfacing the list of offices in their region immediately. This solution made Corient's global scale visible at a glance without sacrificing usability.
It wasn't the pure search experience I would have ideally built, but it solved the user problem, satisfied the CEO, and shipped on time.
Before
After
Going Global
Expanding Globally
When Corient was acquired by Mubadala Capital, our scope changed overnight. Corient's boutique US marketing site needed to become a global digital ecosystem spanning across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
In order to meet EU accessibility requirements, I led a full WCAG 2.2 audit and updates across the entire design system without losing it's editorial aesthetic. My team triaged findings by severity, proposed revised components in structured blocks for client approval, and completed the full design phase a month ahead of schedule.
We also solved for RTL layouts, regional content restrictions, and how users transitioned between regional versions of the site.
Reflections
Leadership Learnings
The most important skills I built weren't design related, they were about leading a team through a high momentum project without burning them out.
Shielding your team
Protecting your team is active work, not a passive outcome. It means negotiating scope early, communicating priorities clearly, and checking in often enough to catch problems early. Having momentum doesn't have to mean stress for the people doing the work, you just need to bake in the structure to support them.
Intentionally Checking In
As the pace ramped up, I started running biweekly 1:1 coffee chats with each designer on my team. No agenda, just honest conversations about how things were going and what I could do better as a lead. These chats helped me catch blockers early, build trust, and create space for feedback without having to ask for it.
Matching People to the Work
Those check-ins became a tool for smarter task assignment. In one chat, I learned a designer who was working on the design system was eager to try ad campaigns. When the next batch came in, I gave her the lead and she knocked them out of the park. Matching people to work that stretches them without sacrificing delivery is the leadership skill I am most proud of building here.
Additional Work
Kea Legard
©2026
Corient
Designing a world-class digital experience for the world's wealthiest clients at speed, at scale, and without compromising craft.
Design Lead
UX Strategy
Design Systems
Motion
Overview
Scaling Luxury
Design Lead · 2.5 years · Team of 5 Designers
As design lead, I directed a team of five through Corient's transformation from a US boutique wealth management firm into a global player managing $224B in assets for ultra-high-net-worth clients.
Following their acquisition by Mubadala Capital accelerated M&A across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa required us to refactor the web experience for WCAG 2.2 compliance, RTL language support, and international regulatory standards. What began as a run-and-maintain retainer grew into a $3M engagement.
$0M+
$0M+
In new contracts
Won by the design work on this project
20+
20+
Animated ad campaigns
Built & shipped by our team
10+
10+
New components
Added to the design system
Scope
Two and a Half Years,
One Expanding Brief.
From design system foundations to global expansion, this engagement touched every layer of Corient's digital presence.
CORE DELIVERABLES
01.
Marketing site
02.
Design system
03.
Animated ad campaigns
04.
Lead generation optimization
05.
WCAG 2.2 & RTL language updates
06.
Internal AI Tools
The Challenge
Tale of Three Tensions
Every decision on this engagement had to satisfy three non-negotiable requirements simultaneously to appease our users and the Corient team.
Luxury without compromise
Corient's clientele expect a white glove digital experience that felt luxurious and personally catered to them. Visual quality, motion craft, and typographic precision were required for every solution our team brought to the table.
Accessibility without exception
WCAG 2.2 compliance wasn't optional, particularly with EU expansion on the horizon. The challenge wasn't just meeting the standard, it was meeting it without losing the editorial aesthetic that made Corient's experience distinctive.
Execution under pressure
M&A activity moved fast. Legal deadlines were fixed. Client requests arrived without warning. My job was to absorb that pressure before it reached my team by negotiating scope, aligning expectations with senior stakeholders, and finding solutions that delivered value without burning out the people building it.
Design System Overhaul
Building the Foundation
When I began this project, I inherited a skeleton design system that was missing components, states, and viewport designs.
As the engagement scaled, I led a full overhaul: I added 40 new components and added documentation for all components showcasing every interactive state, component resizing behaviour across breakpoints, motion details, and created tokens for colour, spacing, and text to ensure smooth development handoff.
Before
After
Data Informed Decisions
Less Friction, Better Leads
Corient's lead generation form had a drop-off problem. Our CDP behavioural data confirmed it, users were abandoning our lead form midway through.
Our initial proposed solution was to reduce inputs to reduce friction. But the Corient team pushed back. Every submission was manually reviewed and an easier form meant more volume, including bot submissions they were already struggling with. Lead quality mattered as much as lead quantity.
We found a middle ground: cut non-essential fields, surfaced the form higher on the page, reduced input field height so users could see more without scrolling, and added motion to make the experience feel considered rather than transactional. Form completions and lead quality both improved as a result.
Scaling the Experience
Volume Without Compromise
Corient's aggressive M&A activity across the US meant a constant flow of new services and business lines needing to show up on the site, each with a fixed legal deadline and a short runway. Over the engagement, that added up to 30+ marketing pages, every one with a distinct brief.
In parallel, I led the design of 80+ animated digital campaigns tied to M&A announcements, quarterly marketing pushes, and persona-driven pushes targeting audiences like entrepreneurs and founders. Digital campaigns were a new venture for me at the start of the project. By the end, I was writing the creative briefs and directing my team to bring them to life.
Navigating Ambiguity
Managing Up
As Corient rapidly expanded across the US, their office locator component couldn't keep up. It's growing alphabetical list of states was becoming difficult to navigate, and with global expansion on the horizon it was only going to get worse.
The CEO loved the look and feel of the original design, so the team knew approaching getting alignment on a full redesign of the component wasn't going to be straightforward.
After several rounds of concepting and feedback, we landed on a tabbed interface organized by region. A user's local tab was pre-selected automatically via IP detection, surfacing the list of offices in their region immediately. This solution made Corient's global scale visible at a glance without sacrificing usability.
It wasn't the pure search experience I would have ideally built, but it solved the user problem, satisfied the CEO, and shipped on time.
Before
After
Going Global
Expanding Globally
When Corient was acquired by Mubadala Capital, our scope changed overnight. Corient's boutique US marketing site needed to become a global digital ecosystem spanning across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
In order to meet EU accessibility requirements, I led a full WCAG 2.2 audit and updates across the entire design system without losing it's editorial aesthetic. My team triaged findings by severity, proposed revised components in structured blocks for client approval, and completed the full design phase a month ahead of schedule.
We also solved for RTL layouts, regional content restrictions, and how users transitioned between regional versions of the site.
Reflections
Leadership Learnings
The most important skills I built weren't design related, they were about leading a team through a high momentum project without burning them out.
Shielding your team
Protecting your team is active work, not a passive outcome. It means negotiating scope early, communicating priorities clearly, and checking in often enough to catch problems early. Having momentum doesn't have to mean stress for the people doing the work, you just need to bake in the structure to support them.
Intentionally Checking In
As the pace ramped up, I started running biweekly 1:1 coffee chats with each designer on my team. No agenda, just honest conversations about how things were going and what I could do better as a lead. These chats helped me catch blockers early, build trust, and create space for feedback without having to ask for it.
Matching People to the Work
Those check-ins became a tool for smarter task assignment. In one chat, I learned a designer who was working on the design system was eager to try ad campaigns. When the next batch came in, I gave her the lead and she knocked them out of the park. Matching people to work that stretches them without sacrificing delivery is the leadership skill I am most proud of building here.
Additional Work
©2026