Washington DC, United States
LIBRA
Transforming the legacy SAP application into a modern, cloud-based platform with an enhanced, user-friendly experience.
LIBRA
LIBRA Project Overview
Project Libra is a strategic modernization initiative focused on transforming the Integrated Loans Administration Platform (iLAP)—a mission-critical system that has supported the World Bank Group’s lending operations for over two decades. iLAP currently manages a loan portfolio exceeding USD 500 billion, covering IBRD loans and guarantees, as well as IDA loans, credits, and guarantees.
The objective of Project Libra is to reimagine iLAP as a fully cloud-native, internally developed solution that enhances scalability, usability, and operational efficiency. Key transformation efforts include:
The objective of Project Libra is to reimagine iLAP as a fully cloud-native, internally developed solution that enhances scalability, usability, and operational efficiency. Key transformation efforts include:
- Redesigning system interfaces to align with a modern, modular platform architecture and improve user experience.
- Replacing the legacy Loan Information System (LIS) with a more intuitive and integrated solution.
- Rebuilding and reintegrating the Client Connections portal to streamline stakeholder interactions.
- Migrating business intelligence and reporting capabilities to Power BI to enable self-service analytics, data visulization and data-driven decision-making.
Lead UX Designer
UX Researcher
Interaction Designer
User Research
UX Strategy
User Interviews
Usability Testing
Lo-Fi & Hi-Fi Prototyping
Figma
Figjam
Generative AI
Uizard
Sep 2024 – July 2025
Team Size: 125+Challenges
The current legacy application, developed on the SAP platform over the past 20+ years, has undergone extensive customizations to meet evolving business needs. However, it now presents significant usability and scalability challenges that hinder user efficiency and overall experience.
Key UX-related issues include:
- Steep Learning Curve: Due to its complex interface and non-intuitive workflows, the application requires lengthy training sessions, increasing onboarding time and reducing user productivity.
- Poor Workflow Design: Existing workflows are convoluted and difficult to follow, resulting in cognitive overload, user frustration, and increased likelihood of errors.
- Limited Flexibility: The platform offers minimal capability to customize or extend features without significant development effort, impeding responsiveness to changing business or user requirements.
- Attribute Constraints: Users face restrictions in creating or modifying data attributes, limiting the system’s adaptability and usefulness in dynamic scenarios.
- High Cost of Innovation: Introducing new features or enhancing functionality is both time-consuming and expensive due to the monolithic architecture and tightly coupled components.
- Usability Issues: The overall user experience suffers from outdated UI patterns, inconsistent interaction models, and a lack of modern design standards, leading to reduced task efficiency and user satisfaction.
Solutions
UX team conducted comprehensive user research, including contextual inquiries, stakeholder interviews, and collaborative workshops with business owners, SMEs, and business analysts. These efforts helped us clearly define user needs and align product goals with strategic delivery milestones set by the World Bank.
We thoroughly reviewed all user stories and functional requirements, and participated in detailed system walkthroughs with business analysts to understand the current system’s pain points and identify key areas for improvement. This deep immersion enabled us to map out enhanced workflows and reimagine the end-to-end user journey.
Based on our research and insights, the team designed scalable microservice-based page structures and introduced a modular layout system that promotes reusability and design consistency. We also established a comprehensive UI design system, including interaction patterns, accessibility guidelines, and visual standards that ensure a cohesive user experience across all touchpoints.
Prototypes and interactive design concepts were tested with both core business stakeholders and actual end users to validate usability and relevance. Iterative usability testing ensured the final interfaces aligned with users’ day-to-day work and mental models.
The UX approach was centered around improving user productivity, ensuring system scalability, enforcing visual and behavioral consistency, and embracing design minimalism to reduce cognitive load.
We thoroughly reviewed all user stories and functional requirements, and participated in detailed system walkthroughs with business analysts to understand the current system’s pain points and identify key areas for improvement. This deep immersion enabled us to map out enhanced workflows and reimagine the end-to-end user journey.
Based on our research and insights, the team designed scalable microservice-based page structures and introduced a modular layout system that promotes reusability and design consistency. We also established a comprehensive UI design system, including interaction patterns, accessibility guidelines, and visual standards that ensure a cohesive user experience across all touchpoints.
Prototypes and interactive design concepts were tested with both core business stakeholders and actual end users to validate usability and relevance. Iterative usability testing ensured the final interfaces aligned with users’ day-to-day work and mental models.
The UX approach was centered around improving user productivity, ensuring system scalability, enforcing visual and behavioral consistency, and embracing design minimalism to reduce cognitive load.
Information Architecture
Low Fidelity Prototypes
High Fidelity Prototypes
Where we left off
The UX team laid the foundation for a scalable and robust design system aimed at ensuring visual and behavioral consistency across all micro-applications. This included the development of a shared component library, standardized design tokens, and reusable interaction patterns. The team also established governance practices to maintain and evolve the system with product growth.
We also conceptualized and designed a dynamic configuration framework that enables business users to easily create and manage attribute definitions within the loan management system and other modules—without requiring technical expertise. This low-code solution significantly reduces dependency on development cycles and empowers end-users to adapt the system based on evolving business needs.
All core workflows were tested through structured usability testing sessions with target users. Their feedback was collected, analyzed, and incorporated through iterative design cycles. Final prototypes received validation and approval from key stakeholders, including business leads, product owners, and technical architects.
The redesigned user interface received strong positive feedback from stakeholders and executive leadership for its improved accessibility, usability, and visual clarity. As a result, the enhanced UI was approved for development and is now being integrated into upcoming release cycles.
We also conceptualized and designed a dynamic configuration framework that enables business users to easily create and manage attribute definitions within the loan management system and other modules—without requiring technical expertise. This low-code solution significantly reduces dependency on development cycles and empowers end-users to adapt the system based on evolving business needs.
All core workflows were tested through structured usability testing sessions with target users. Their feedback was collected, analyzed, and incorporated through iterative design cycles. Final prototypes received validation and approval from key stakeholders, including business leads, product owners, and technical architects.
The redesigned user interface received strong positive feedback from stakeholders and executive leadership for its improved accessibility, usability, and visual clarity. As a result, the enhanced UI was approved for development and is now being integrated into upcoming release cycles.
