
Redesigning for engagement: McKinsey Culture Platform
Discovery | Innovation
To drive adoption of a global internal change initiative focused on work-life balance and ways of working, McKinsey sought to increase employee engagement with its internal culture platform. We applied behavioral UX methods, lean experimentation, and data-informed content strategy to reframe the experience—resulting in a 500% increase in engagement in just six weeks.
As part of the Transformation project team, I was asked to define a content strategy for the platform. I designed and executed the discovery and testing process that uncovered adoption barriers and led to a targeted redesign. Collaborated closely with product owners, data team, senior stakeholders, and internal communications to translate research into action.
CLIENT
McKinsey & Company
01. Situation
The platform supported a global initiative to change ways of working and improve work-life balance for consultants, but suffered from poor usability, scattered content, and unclear value. Key audiences couldn’t find what they needed, and engagement metrics showed rapid drop-off after first use.
02. Task
Reimagine the experience to:
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Identify behavioral blockers to adoption
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Clarify the platform’s value to priority user groups
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Structure content for fast access and reusability
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Improve onboarding and content delivery through targeted UX interventions
03. Action
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Conducted user interviews and surveys, triangulated with analytics (Heap, Box logs)
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Identified core audience (80% of users) and their specific content needs
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Mapped task-based journeys and time-based interaction models
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Rewrote and reorganized platform content by persona and intent
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Tested MVP designs weekly with users—focusing on information clarity and retrieval speed
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Implemented onboarding guidance, behavioral nudges, and improved internal search
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Partnered with engineering to release phased redesign with high-visibility features first
04. Result
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500% increase in digital engagement within 6 weeks
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70% onboarding completion (up from 20%)
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Site became primary resource for internal program adoption
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Platform value was re-established through clear, research-driven messaging and flow
Illustrating the process
The iterative and agile research process...

... supported by rapid discovery

...behavioral data

...and detailed feedback

...resulted in a new navigation with clear entry points, and a tailored page per core user group

Key takeaway
This case demonstrates the impact of user-centered content strategy and research-led design on internal engagement platforms. It also shows how UX methods can advance adoption of cultural change when grounded in behavioral insight and data visibility.
Navigator methods & frameworks used
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Design Thinking
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Lean UX Testing Protocols
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Behavioral Design Frameworks
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Role-Based Content Architecture
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Content Strategy Best Practices
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– Product leader, Financial Services (post-GenAI workshop)