Health & Wellbeing | Experience Design | B2C | Digital Transformation
AXA's Digital Wellbeing Revolution
Client
AXA Health
Timeline
12 months
Role
Design Director
Overview & Challenge
AXA Health was on a mission to move beyond their traditional role as an insurance provider to help people bring out their best selves through wellbeing services. However, the market was already saturated with wellbeing products.
Our challenge was to create a market-leading vision and launch a Minimum Viable Product that could deliver affordable, personalised, and expert-led services in this competitive landscape.
Key Challenges
- Identifying which patients needed urgent referral for specialist care
- Standardising the comprehensive patient evaluation process
- Creating a digital tool that healthcare professionals with varying technical skills could use easily
- Designing for different healthcare scenarios and practitioner roles (pharmacists, nurses, GPs)
- Addressing the liability concerns associated with health recommendations
- Balancing clinical requirements with usability and patient experience
- Integrating the tool with existing healthcare workflows
My Approach & Contribution
I embedded a human-centred design methodology within the AXA Health team, creating an environment free from existing corporate structures and assumptions. Over the course of a year, I led the team through research, concept development, and launch of the beta version of the AXA Health app.
What I did
1. Conducted hundreds of interviews with potential customers to gain deep insights into user behaviour
3. Ran five design sprints to explore different health journeys as proposed services
5. Developed a comprehensive customer experience vision and signature journey
7. Shifted our personalisation approach to balance user needs with business constraints
2. Mapped emotional pathways and uncovered pain points, barriers, and opportunities to address unmet needs
4. Created service concepts that were tested with potential users at the end of each sprint
6. Led the UI and UX design process from wireframes to final designs
We initially set out to give users health advice based on their answers to assessment questions. We spent quite a while designing a smart system to create personalised plans. However, this approach proved challenging due to its expense, the risks of making health recommendations without clinical oversight, and complications with data privacy and third-party integrations.
So, we pivoted to offering pre-set behaviour change programmes, like two-week meditation courses or month-long healthy eating plans. This new approach was more cost-effective, reduced liability risks, and better protected user information while still helping people make positive health changes.
Results & Impact
01
Successfully launched the beta version of the AXA Health app within 12 months
03
Developed pre-set behaviour change programmes focused on specific health outcomes
05
Established a platform that continued to evolve based on user feedback over the next 1.5 years
02
Created a unified digital experience for health assessment, programmes, partner services, and journaling
04
Built strong partnerships with healthcare specialists and wellbeing experts
Key Learnings
Practical design trumps technological complexity. The most effective health solutions prioritize human connection and usability over advanced technology—focusing on what truly changes behavior rather than what's technically impressive.
Vision provides direction, flexibility ensures success. While starting with clear objectives, we built adaptability into our approach from day one, including measurement frameworks that objectively signaled when to pivot in response to real-world constraints.
Clinical partnerships elevate digital innovation. The strongest health solutions emerge when technology and medical expertise develop in tandem, creating experiences that balance innovation with safety, effectiveness, and credibility.
Design Sprint Methodology
Collaborative exploration of prioritised user journeys through intensive sprints. By engaging subject matter experts, individuals with lived experiences, and competitive analysis, we iteratively refined solutions with diverse perspectives driving each phase of development
Service Concepts
We created various service concepts during the ideation sessions of the 2-week-sprints. We tested these ideas with potential users at the end of each sprint and collated the feedback in one large repository.
Customer Experience Vision
Our 3-year 'Signature Journey' narrative served as the north star for AXA's wellbeing experience transformation. This storytelling approach, centered on our persona Emma, aligned stakeholders around a cohesive vision while defining partner requirements and establishing a seamless, relevant customer journey that would evolve with users' changing life stages.
Iterative design evolution
From concept wireframes to a cohesive design system. Our visual language evolved through constant user testing and feedback, culminating in a unified experience only after beta launch revealed real-world usage patterns.
