Case Study 03 · BI Worldwide
Most employee recognition programs share one thing in common: nobody wants to use them.
How Arcade turned a broken recognition culture into a platform people actually showed up for — driving 45% more employee participation.
Lead UX Designer & Researcher
2019–2020
Web · Mobile-first
PM · PO · 2 Eng · 2 QA
0-to-1 Product
Gamification
User Research
Journey Mapping
Design System
Where it started.
BI Worldwide had a diagnosis before they had a design. Employees described existing recognition programs as "transactional and uninspiring." A point here. A shout-out there. Completely disconnected from daily work.
Managers weren't faring better — participation was inconsistent, impact was invisible, and recognition had become another administrative task rather than something that motivated anyone.
"Employees didn't need more recognition. They needed recognition that felt real, timely, and tied to something they could actually see."
Listening before designing.
I led discovery through interviews and usability tests with employees and managers across pilot organizations. The pattern was consistent: people wanted to feel progress, not just track it. They wanted to know where they stood without being crushed if they were behind.
From discovery to ship.
Discover & Research
Interviews and usability tests with employees and managers. Persona building and 5-stage emotional journey mapping.
Ideate & Sketch
Rapid ideation on challenge flows, leaderboard concepts, reward redemption, and social recognition mechanics.
Prototype & Test
Interactive prototypes tested with pilot organizations — iterated based on real engagement data and drop-off rates.
Build & Ship
Accessible, mobile-first high-fidelity designs. Full engineering and QA collaboration through weekly design reviews.
The people behind the work.
Sarah K., 28
Hybrid Sales Associate
"Recognition feels invisible. I don't even know if anyone sees what I do."
David P., 42
Operations Manager · 12 reports
"I want to motivate my team but I don't have time to build a whole program."
What we built.
Arcade launched as a gamification hub where daily actions connect to challenges, points, badges, and real rewards. Personalized dashboards show clear progress. Tiered leaderboards keep competition motivating without being punishing. Real-time feedback loops register every action immediately. A curated reward catalog replaced the overwhelming wall of options with something that felt personal.
User Flow
Journey Map
Wireframes
Arcade dashboard
Arcade games landing page + Play results
Hi-fidelity designs
Arcade dashboard
Arcade games landing page
Game play results -Play again
Game play results -Exit game
Measurable outcomes.
Engagement isn't something you can mandate. It has to be earned by the experience itself. When recognition connects to real actions and real rewards, people don't need to be reminded to show up. They want to.
0-to-1 Product
Gamification
User Research
Journey Mapping
Design System