Protected Case Study

This work is under NDA.

This case study is password-protected. If you've been given access, enter the password below to continue.

Incorrect password — please try again
Case 01 / Payments · Network International × SquadX · 2020

From paperwork
to self-onboarding.

Network International wanted to expand across MENA — but their merchant onboarding was a manual, paper-heavy process that could take weeks. Over two weeks, we mapped the full journey, diagnosed the cracks, and designed an end-to-end digital system that put the merchant back in control.

My Role
Service Design Lead
Duration
Two weeks on-site
Deliverables
Service blueprint · Journey maps · North Star concept · Hi-fi mockups
Lenses
Leadership · Merchants · Internal resources
4.
Merchants interviewed
9.
NI employees shadowed
5.
Locations covered
10+
Documents analysed
01 / Context

Growth plans ran into 1999-era processes.

NI was preparing to scale across MENA, but its merchant onboarding depended on physical documents, manual Salesforce entry, and Relationship Managers acting as the single point of contact for days — sometimes weeks — at a time.

For e-commerce merchants, processing took five to twelve times longer than the industry benchmark. Leadership asked SquadX to map the whole thing, find what was breaking, and propose a way forward.

02 / Findings · 08 weaknesses

Process weaknesses we uncovered.

01
Poor application reliability — documents missing, invalid, or outdated at submission.
02
Process still required stacks of physical paper documents.
03
Status communication was manual — the rest of the org had to be updated by hand.
04
Digital tools like EIDA were available but chronically underutilised.
05
Salesforce implementation wasn't customised to merchant realities.
06
RMs became the default point of contact — clogging bandwidth, slowing everything.
07
E-commerce onboarding took 5–12× longer than industry benchmarks.
08
Lead generation relied heavily on individual RM initiative, not systems.
03 / Service Blueprint

The intersection of service and experience.

EMOTION
Positive
Medium
Negative
LAYERS
Customer Journey
Frontstage
Backstage
Support
PHASES
Collect Documents
POS: 3–1 days · Ecom: 5–2 days
Application Review
POS: 2–1 days · Ecom: 25–15 days
Installation
POS & Ecom: 2–1 days
Customer
JourneyWhat merchant does
Get in touch with Network International
Merchant reviews proposal and approves prices
Merchant signs Merchant's Agreement doc
Merchant replies to operation requests
Merchant tests service and starts using it
FrontstageVisible to merchant
RM contacts Merchant and starts process
RM assesses business and sends proposal~
RM collects documents after asking merchant to prepare them!
POS — RM logs info to Salesforce~
Ecom — submitted as paper application!
Merchant is contacted to start implementation
Operations supports testing
Backstage
ActionsInternal, hidden
If needed, Team Leader approves change in business rate~
Team Lead adds Merchant's IBAN info & reviews application
Sales Support creates application tracker on Salesforce
Sales Support reviews application & submits to AFU
Ecom — applications sent to Credit Risk Management!
POS — Only high-risk applications sent to risk management
AFU team undergoes KYC check!
AFU undergoes last review of business rates!
AFU creates MID
Support
ProcessesSystems & compliance
Credit Risk & Fraud assessment
KYC compliance review
↔ Scroll horizontally to explore the full blueprint
04 / Merchant Journeys

We walked two paths — and watched both collapse.

S
Sara
Physical + Digital Store Rep · ECOM

Sara represents a gift wrapping shop. The owner runs two shops using NI POS machines. Sara has finally convinced the owners of the importance of e-commerce and is looking for viable solutions.

Discover
Explore & Decide
Application
Onboarding
Motivation Search Meet Rep Agree Deal Docs Deadline missed Testing
Emotion curve — Sara (E-commerce merchant)
D
David
Physical Store SME · POS

David owns a supermarket. He is not tech-savvy and already has a POS machine from another provider but is unhappy with their service. He's decided to move to a new provider.

Discover
Explore
Apply
Onboard
Post-Install
Bad experience Getting contact Compare offers Installed Credit problem Resolved
Emotion curve — David (POS merchant)
05 / Design Direction · 04 Principles

End-to-end digital onboarding that keeps NI at the forefront of user experience.

Automated
A system with the least possible human interference.
Simplified
Only the most essential documents and steps.
User-centric
Tools and interfaces that empower throughout the process.
Secure
Risk and compliance baked in, never bolted on.
06 / Innovations

Ten moves that unlocked self-onboarding.

01 /
Complete self-onboarding capability
02 /
Multi-language support
03 /
Online + offline operation
04 /
Instant merchant detail validation
05 /
Autofill via public APIs
06 /
Purpose-built merchant interface
07 /
Signposting + chatbot guidance
08 /
Automatic status updates
09 /
Direct secure messaging
10 /
Automated document digitisation
+ RM TOOLS /
A new digital toolkit for relationship managers
+ WEBSITE /
Restructured IA, clear CTAs, conversion-first layout
Back to Portfolio