The Compatibility Overhaul

A ground-up UX redesign that consolidated five legacy tools into a single scalable, in-house platform for Best Buy’s EPM team.

Launched: March 2024
Role: Sole UX Designer
Result: Consolidated 5 tools into 1 | Reduced average rule creation time by 50%

Overview

The Product Compatibility tool enables Best Buy’s Enterprise Product Managers (EPMs) to research, create, and manage product relationships like which accessories are compatible with which devices.

Before this redesign, users had to toggle between five separate tools, one of which was external and nearly a decade old. This slowed productivity, introduced inconsistencies, and made onboarding new users difficult.

As the sole designer, I led research, strategy, and design from the ground up, transforming a fragmented workflow into a cohesive, scalable tool tailored to a diverse user base.

SKIP TO OUTCOME

Business Goals

Reduce time spent managing product relationships
Improve data accuracy by eliminating manual copy-paste between tools
Make rule creation accessible to non-technical users
Minimize dependency on external legacy systems
Create a scalable framework for future relationship types

User Goals

Easily create and maintain product compatibility rules
View and compare related products in one place
Duplicate or modify existing relationships to save time
Avoid needing SQL or technical workarounds
Reduce context-switching across systems

Discovery

UX Audit

I began with a hands-on audit of the current tool ecosystem—mapping each step of the workflow and identifying friction points. I noted inconsistent UI patterns, redundant navigation, and the overreliance on manual SQL queries.

Stakeholder Workshops

Together with product and business analyst partners, I facilitated workshops with EPM team members across experience levels, from new hires to power users. These sessions uncovered unmet needs, tool hacks, and core frustrations.

Key Pain Points

Fragmented workflow
Creating one relationship required using five different tools, including Omega PCM, Semaphore, Multi Product Lookup, Fill Rate Report, and the outdated P2P tool.
SQL dependency
Rule creation required custom queries, creating a steep learning curve and frequent support bottlenecks.
No duplication functionality
Users couldn’t clone existing rules, adding hours of repeated manual work each month.

How Might We…

streamline product relationship management into one cohesive tool that reduces time and eliminates unnecessary technical complexity?

Information Architecture Redesign

Consolidating five tools into one required a complete IA overhaul. I developed a new structure that prioritized search, creation, editing, and duplication—all within one tool.

I worked closely with developers to vet the feasibility of each feature and ensure our solution aligned with technical constraints and business goals.

Design Solutions

From many tools to one

I consolidated the research, creation, and management workflow into a single interface, eliminating tool-switching.

From manual entry to duplication support

I introduced a “duplicate rule” feature with editable fields, cutting creation time in half for repeated tasks.

From SQL to intuitive UI

I replaced complex queries with a visual rule builder, enabling non-technical users to build logic through simple inputs and dropdowns.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

I collaborated with developers to validate every interaction and system requirement. Our team co-reviewed the sitemap and user flows early, helping us catch complexity before it reached development. This also ensured alignment with backend logic and scalability for future product relationship types.

Outcome

The new Product Compatibility tool offers a unified, modern workflow that supports EPM users at every experience level - without needing to write a single line of SQL.

Results

50%+ reduction in average rule creation time

100% of test users preferred the new UI over the legacy tools

Reduced onboarding time for new team members

Fully retired a decade-old external system

Created a scalable foundation for other compatibility-based relationships

Reflection

This project reinforced the importance of deeply understanding legacy systems - not just to replace them, but to improve them with empathy and precision. As the only designer, I had to balance usability, scalability, and feasibility while building trust across engineering, product, and the EPM team.

The result was more than a tool replacement: it was a complete redesign of how Best Buy manages compatibility at scale.

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