BOOKING PLATFORM
Eliminating Tabulation Friction in Competitive Public Speaking
COMPANY
Tabbit
ROLE
Product Designer
EXPERTISE
UX/UI Design
YEAR
2025
Tabbit was designed to replace the fragmented, error-prone spreadsheets traditionally used in competitive public speaking. In a high-pressure tournament environment, "dead time" between rounds is the primary pain point. The challenge: build a real-time "Command Center" that automates complex draws, validates judge scores, and publishes results instantaneously across 1,500+ global events.
Timeline
From explorations to final designs in 5 weeks while working with multiple projects at the same time
As the Lead Product Designer and Logic Architect, I designed the end-to-end tabulation engine and judge ballot interface. I pioneered "Error-Detection UX" to prevent invalid scoring, co-led the technical SEO strategy (resulting in $250k+ organic traffic value), and built a scalable Design System that allows the platform to handle 10,000+ simultaneous participants without performance lag.
This category details the step-by-step approach taken during the project, including research, planning, design, development, testing, and optimization phases.
Research & Planning
Tournament logistics are inherently complex. I started with discovery to understand the "Tab-Room Stress" experienced by organizers. To tackle this, we decided to focus the MVP on the "Draw & Ballot" engine rather than general event management. This focused scope allowed us to launch a tool that solves the single most intimidating task: calculating speaker breaks accurately under time pressure.
Flowcharts
I devised the structure to accommodate three distinct user roles: Admins, Judges, and Speakers. Each role requires a different level of data density. I aligned these flows early using flowcharts to ensure that a Judge on a mobile device has a different, simplified "Input" experience compared to an Admin’s "Full-Data" dashboard. This upfront planning avoided costly re-work and reduced cognitive load for stressed adjudicators.
Design
Since tournaments often take place in dark auditoriums or poorly lit venues, I designed a high-contrast visual identity. Following The Art of Color, I utilized "Saturation Contrast" to make primary CTAs stand out.
Atoms: Standardized score inputs with "Smart-Logic" validation.
Organisms: Live Leaderboards that update in real-time as ballots are submitted.
Testing & Optimization
Initial testing showed that non-tech-savvy judges were accidentally submitting "out-of-range" scores, causing tabulation delays.
The Solution: I redesigned the ballot around an Active Validation UI. If a judge enters a score that violates tournament rules, the system provides real-time feedback before the "Submit" button is ever active.
The Result: This simple interaction pivot led to a 10x increase in tabulation speed, as Admins no longer had to manually chase down judges for corrections.
To keep the experience consistent for 200,000+ users, I developed a Tabbit Design System. This ensured that whether a judge used an iPhone or an Android tablet, the "Ballot Molecule" remained identical in functionality. I also designed a system of cross-app navigation that allowed organizers to move between "Registry" and "Tabulation" apps seamlessly using a color-coded interface.
Initial testing showed that non-tech-savvy judges were accidentally submitting "out-of-range" scores, causing tabulation delays.
The Solution
I redesigned the ballot around an Active Validation UI. If a judge enters a score that violates tournament rules, the system provides real-time feedback before the "Submit" button is ever active.
The Result
This simple interaction pivot led to a 10x increase in tabulation speed, as Admins no longer had to manually chase down judges for corrections.