The Nexus Design Method
The Core: Diagnostic Intelligence
My methodology isn't a rigid process—it's an adaptive framework that responds to what root cause analysis reveals. The magic isn't in following steps, it's in knowing which tools to deploy when.
The Fundamental Question: Change or Conform?
Every deep analysis leads to a critical decision:
Change Behavior: When users' mental models prevent them from seeing value (Q.ai)
Map to Behavior: When users' expertise should drive the experience (UDT)
At Q.ai, retail investors needed behavior modification—their preconceptions about trading apps prevented them from understanding AI-managed investing. The 22-step onboarding wasn't about complexity; it was about education and belief-shifting.
At UDT, enterprise users were industry experts using clunky workflows. They didn't need education—they needed their deep knowledge respected and their workflows streamlined. By mapping to their expertise, I eliminated the need for spreadsheet macros and V-lookups, saving hours per day.
The same diagnostic rigor, opposite strategies. That's the power of adaptive design.
The Diagnostic Framework
1. Deep Immersion
Industry fluency (learning medical coding, investment theory, enterprise workflows)
Stakeholder archeology (what they say vs. what they mean)
Constraint mapping (what can't change—regulations, business model, infrastructure)
2. Root Cause Excavation
Behavioral observation (what users do vs. what they claim)
Mental model mapping (beliefs, biases, expertise levels)
Value gap analysis (where expectation meets reality)
3. Strategic Decision Based on findings, choose the approach that creates the most value. This is where 20 years of pattern recognition pays dividends—knowing instantly which strategy fits the discovered problem.
The Selection Intelligence
Knowing which approach to use comes from pattern recognition across industries:
Healthcare: Compliance is king, efficiency saves lives
Strategy: Map to expertise while ensuring compliance
Fintech: Trust is currency, complexity is the enemy
Strategy: Educate while building confidence
Enterprise: Time is money, workflows are sacred
Strategy: Enhance don't replace, automate don't complicate
Consumer: Attention is scarce, delight drives adoption
Strategy: Simplify ruthlessly, surprise strategically
The Execution Principles
Regardless of strategy chosen:
Start with Why: Purpose drives every decision
Design for Scale: Today's edge case is tomorrow's core feature
Build Systems: Patterns over pages
Measure Impact: Real business outcomes, not vanity metrics
Enable Teams: Self-sustaining design that outlives your involvement
The Real Framework
My process is knowing:
What methodology to apply
When to apply it
Why it's the right choice
How to execute flawlessly
This isn't about having a process. It's about having the intelligence to adapt the process to what the problem actually needs.
The obvious solution emerges not from following steps, but from deeply understanding the problem and having the expertise to choose the right approach. That's what 20 years of pattern recognition across industries provides—the ability to diagnose accurately and prescribe precisely.
Every client gets a custom approach because every problem is unique. The value isn't in the framework—it's in knowing how to apply it.
