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Product design case study

Making sustainability reporting more accessible to SMEs.

A digital sustainability platform concept designed to help small and medium-sized businesses organise sustainability information, navigate reporting and access expert support.

Client

greenimpact.io

Role

Visual & UX Designer

Scope

Product discovery, UX flows, visual identity and UI design

Status

Closed beta · Not publicly launched

The greenimpact wordmark — Your one-stop platform for sustainability reporting — over softly blurred dashboard cards

01 — The opportunity

From a sustainability community to a digital product.

Green Impact began as an initiative to promote and monetise a community of SMEs committed to accelerating the green transition.

Interviews with potential users revealed a broader opportunity: businesses needed more accessible ways to navigate sustainability reporting, organise information and find appropriate support.

The concept evolved into a digital toolkit combining reporting tools, a central workspace, expert guidance and visibility for sustainable businesses.

  1. Starting pointA community of green SMEs
  2. What interviews showedReporting, information and support were hard to navigate
  3. DirectionA sustainability toolkit

02 — The problem

Sustainability shouldn't require a dedicated team.

SMEs often manage sustainability responsibilities alongside everyday business operations. Without dedicated expertise, understanding reporting expectations, collecting information and knowing where to get help can be challenging — whether or not a business falls under specific legal requirements such as the CSRD.

Three challenges informed the design direction.

  1. Complexity

    Sustainability reporting can be difficult to navigate without specialist knowledge.

    Design responseGuided onboarding and accessible reporting tools.

  2. Scattered information

    Sustainability data and supporting documents may be spread across teams and systems.

    Design responseA central workspace for sustainability information and files.

  3. Limited access to expertise

    Businesses may need guidance beyond what a self-service tool can provide.

    Design responseA Help Center and a route to specialist consulting.

03 — The approach

Understand the problem before designing the solution.

I used the Double Diamond framework to structure the work, moving from exploring user needs to defining the opportunity, developing the experience and delivering the interface concept.

The Double Diamond Two diamonds side by side. The first covers the problem: Discover, then Define. The second covers the solution: Develop, then Deliver. Discover Define Develop Deliver Problem Solution

  1. Discover

    Explore user needs through interviews with potential end users, market analysis and competitive research.

  2. Define

    Clarify the target audience, core challenges, product direction and key user journeys.

  3. Develop

    Translate the product direction into user flows, wireframes and interface concepts.

  4. Deliver

    Develop the visual identity, interface design, iconography and reusable components.

04 — The design goals

One toolkit. Three core user needs.

  1. Make it easier to get started

    Guide users through registration and tool activation, making the first steps more approachable.

  2. Bring information together

    Create a central place to access sustainability data, files and relevant tools.

  3. Make support accessible

    Combine self-service guidance with a path to specialist expertise.

The wider product concept also included Green Profiles, helping businesses communicate their sustainability initiatives and connect with the wider green community.

05 — The solution

Five flows. One connected sustainability toolkit.

The platform concept brings together five key experiences designed to help SMEs get started, manage sustainability information, find support and communicate their sustainability efforts. These are the designed flows from the closed beta.

Screen recording of easy registration: from the “Simplifying CSRD for SMEs” sign-up page into creating an account

01

Easy registration

A straightforward registration journey designed to help users get started with the platform.

Screen recording of tools activation: locked tools on the dashboard — Green Impact Assessment, Policy Maker, CSRD Reporting and Carbon Footprint Calculator — each with a Get Started button

02

Tools activation

A guided flow for activating the tools users need, helping them move from registration towards using the platform.

Screen recording of the Help Center: after signing in, a support panel offers FAQ, Tutorials, Write To Us and Book A Consultant, leading to choosing a date for a consultant session

03

Help Center

A self-service support experience designed to help users find guidance and navigate the platform when they need assistance.

04 · The central workspace

Data Overview & Files

A central workspace designed to make sustainability information and supporting files easier to access and manage.

Screen recording of the dashboard — Green Impact Score, CO2 emissions by scope and a yearly data overview — moving into Files, with an upload area and a shared file list
Screen recording of a Green Profile: the company's impact scores across environmental, social, governance, economic and life-cycle dimensions, alongside company and investment details

05 · Complementary

Green Profiles

A way for businesses to communicate their sustainability identity and initiatives, supporting visibility and potential connections within the wider green business community.

Together, the five flows connect initial setup, tool access, ongoing support, information management and business visibility.

06 — Design system

A consistent foundation for the experience.

The visual identity, iconography and reusable UI components established a consistent design language across the platform's different areas.

Green Impact design system: logo variations at 500, 300 and 150px; sustainability and targets symbols; the Basic Sans family in Regular 400, Semi-Bold 600 and Bold 800; a green primary and grey secondary colour palette with success, warning and danger colours; and a typescale from h1 to small text

07 — Key design decisions

Designed around clarity and accessibility.

  1. Break down complexity

    Organise the experience around distinct user tasks rather than presenting sustainability reporting as one overwhelming process.

  2. Centralise information

    Bring sustainability data and files into a shared workspace to make information easier to find and manage.

  3. Combine self-service with expert support

    Offer accessible guidance while providing a route to specialist help when needed.

  4. Connect reporting with visibility

    Include Green Profiles as a complementary benefit, extending the platform beyond reporting into communication and community.

08 — Outcomes

Early interest in the concept.

120
Pre-registrations Users pre-registered in connection with the concept presentation at the SDG Tech Awards 2024, according to the project records.
5
Core user flows Easy registration, Tools activation, Help Center, Data Overview & Files, and Green Profiles.
Closed beta
Product status The product was not publicly launched, so post-launch adoption and retention metrics were unavailable.

Pre-registrations signal early interest in the concept — not usability, sustained adoption or product-market fit.

09 — Reflection

Turning complexity into a clearer experience.

This project reinforced the importance of understanding user needs before defining a product solution. It also highlighted the challenge of making a complex domain feel approachable through clear user flows, accessible support and a consistent interface.

With more time, I would validate the core journeys through usability testing and use observed user behaviour to prioritise further improvements.