PropKeep gives independent landlords a single place to run their properties.

Most independent landlords are running their operations inside their heads

My dad manages several rental properties and Airbnb listings. His tenants messaged him on WhatsApp at all hours — trivial questions mixed in with urgent repair requests, no system separating them. He’d keep a mental log, try to diagnose problems over text, then scramble to find someone to fix them. He was constantly flustered, constantly reactive, constantly tied to his phone.

That was the starting point for PropKeep.

Landlords aren’t disorganised — they’re using the wrong tools for an operational problem

The real issue isn’t that landlords are careless. It’s that they’re running an operational system using communication tools. WhatsApp and texts are designed for conversations, not for tracking work states or scheduling repairs. Every task lives in their head or in a thread they’ll never find again. PropKeep’s job was to turn that incoming chaos into structured, trackable workflows.

The risk was building something that added to the problem instead of solving it

Landlords already had enough to manage. The danger with any new tool was creating yet another thing to monitor and maintain. If PropKeep required significant setup, data entry, or daily habit changes, it would fail the people it was designed for. The product had to reduce friction from the first interaction — not introduce new kinds of it.

I scoped the product tightly around the maintenance workflow

Early on I mapped out everything PropKeep could be — rent tracking, cash flow reporting, tenant management, financial dashboards. I ruled all of it out. Adding financial tracking would have split the product’s identity and diluted the core promise. The app needed to do one thing well: make sure no repair ever slipped through the cracks.

What I left out deliberately

• Rent income and net cash flow tracking
• ROI and investment reporting
• Excel-style property management views
• Tenant profiles and lease management

The “Book-a-Pro” feature was the most complex design problem in the product

Connecting landlords to vetted service providers sounds simple but involves location matching, availability windows, trust signals, pricing transparency, and liability questions. I designed a booking flow that surfaced relevant pros quickly and gave landlords enough information to make a confident decision without needing to leave the app or make a phone call.

The dashboard needed to communicate urgency without creating anxiety

A landlord opening PropKeep first thing in the morning should immediately see what needs attention today — not a wall of equal-weight information. I designed the hierarchy around time-sensitivity, surfacing overdue tasks and pending tenant requests above general maintenance logs and completed work.

The strongest signal of success would be landlords stopping their mental notes

PropKeep is a proof of concept, so there are no live usage metrics yet. But I defined a clear behavioural signal for success — landlords stop relying on memory and external notes. If a user says “I don’t have to remember this stuff anymore,” the product has done its job.

Final product

What I learned and what comes next

Building PropKeep sharpened how I think about tools designed for people who don’t think of themselves as “software users.”

• Cognitive load reduction is a design goal, not a side effect
• Scoping ruthlessly early is harder than it sounds when the problem space is genuinely broad
• The most complex UX challenge wasn’t the main workflow — it was the marketplace layer sitting inside a task tool
• Proof-of-concept work still needs defined success signals or there’s nothing to design toward

The next version would start with user testing the tenant-facing request flow — that’s the entry point for every task in the system, and getting it right is what makes everything downstream work.

VoltSafe Winter keeps your engine alive when temperatures drop below freezing.

I joined VoltSafe as founding designer when the company was headed to Dragon’s Den

VoltSafe makes a magnetic smart plug for cold-weather drivers — the kind of people who wake up at 5am in a Canadian January and need to know their engine block heater actually ran overnight. I was the first and only designer at the startup, brought on as the company prepared for its national television debut. My early prototype was used live on air, and that season’s episode became the highest-value deal in Dragon’s Den history — all five Dragons entered a bidding war over VoltSafe.

The original app worked over Bluetooth — which meant it only worked if you were standing next to your car

The first version of the app was Bluetooth-only. That kept everything local and simple to build, but it came with a hard physical constraint: you had to be in range to interact with your device. For a product designed around remote engine management, that was a fundamental mismatch. Schedules weren’t backed up to the cloud, which meant the device needed to be reflashed whenever something went wrong.

Users were asking for remote access, cloud schedules, and status alerts — none of which Bluetooth could deliver

VoltSafe ran a feature upvote program where users logged and ranked what they wanted most. Remote on/off, cloud-backed schedules, and status notifications were the top three. Every request pointed to the same gap: the architecture couldn’t support the product users needed it to be.

A frozen engine at 6am isn’t a UX problem — it’s a safety problem

If a plug was knocked loose overnight, users had no way of knowing until they turned the key. No alert, no status check, no fallback. For drivers in Edmonton or Winnipeg where overnight lows hit −30°C, an unheated engine can mean a missed shift, a missed flight, or a car that won’t start for hours. The Bluetooth architecture couldn’t support the safety layer this product needed to be.

I introduced an IoT framework to move the product beyond its physical limits

Rather than patching Bluetooth with workarounds, I brought IoT architecture into the product scope. This was a strategic shift, not a feature addition — it changed what the product fundamentally was. With IoT, the app could reach the device from anywhere, sync schedules to the cloud, and push real-time status alerts. I worked with the CTO and two back-end developers to scope and implement this within our React Native build.

What I scoped out

• Advanced energy monitoring dashboards — useful, but not the core safety need
• Social or community features — no evidence users wanted shared schedules
• Geofencing auto-triggers — deferred until IoT stability was confirmed in production

Scheduling was the most-requested feature and the hardest to get right

Automated schedules were the top-rated request. The design challenge was making schedule creation feel simple for non-technical users while handling cloud sync, timezone logic, and device state underneath. I worked through multiple iterations of the scheduling interface — testing time-block selection, conflict handling, and confirmation states — before landing on a pattern that felt reliable and easy to trust.

Remote on/off needed to feel instant even when it wasn’t

Latency is unavoidable in any IoT system. The design question wasn’t how to eliminate it but how to keep users feeling in control despite it. I designed optimistic UI states that gave immediate visual feedback on toggle actions, with clear loading and confirmation indicators that set accurate expectations without making the interaction feel slow. Getting this right required close back-and-forth with the front-end developer to sync state transitions between the UI and the hardware response.

The IoT-enabled app launched in Canada alongside the physical product in major retail chains

VoltSafe Winter shipped as the companion app for a product already on shelves at Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Rona, and Federated Co-op locations across Canada. The IoT-enabled version replaced the Bluetooth-only app and delivered exactly what users had been asking for since launch.

What I learned and what comes next

This was my first time designing a connected hardware product from the ground up — solving for the full loop from physical device and firmware through cloud sync and app layer.

• Introducing IoT required building the case with engineering stakeholders before any UI work started — alignment came first, design came second
• Optimistic UI patterns are essential for hardware-connected apps; designing for latency and uncertainty is as important as designing for the happy path
• A feature upvote program is a legitimate prioritisation tool — the data it surfaced directly shaped the product roadmap and the IoT decision
• I would involve QA earlier in the hardware-software integration cycle; several edge cases surfaced late that could have been caught sooner
• The IoT foundation now makes the next layer possible: geofencing triggers, energy usage history, and push notification controls

VoltSafe Home Demo App — designed for CES 2023.

Background

VoltSafe is a Canadian tech startup that has innovated on the electrical plug, with the first-ever prongless magnetic plug for high power. Using groundbreaking, patented technology, VoltSafe has created the world’s safest, simplest, and smartest plug design since electricity came into homes more than 140 years ago.

The VoltSafe Home product was first revealed to the public in a successful appearance in the hit Canadian TV show, Dragon’s Den, in 2018. This case study examines the creation and success of the VoltSafe Home Demo App, which I designed to showcase the VoltSafe Home product at CES 2023 and to potential investors, early adopters, and the general public.

Discovery

The problem that VoltSafe is trying to solve is to create an IoT interface for their new technology that provides real-time energy monitoring at the outlet level, coupled with smart plug capabilities. To design for different user groups, I created several personas, based off user surveying, research and findings from previous discovery phases of our other similar VoltSafe projects such as VoltSafe Marine and VoltSafe Winter. Each persona has different needs and desires when it comes to the VoltSafe Home product, and the app was designed with these needs in mind. Empathy maps were created for each persona to better understand their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Ideation

The experience of the product was created to showcase the key features of the VoltSafe Home product, including its safety, simplicity, and energy monitoring capabilities.

The app was designed to be visually appealing and engaging, with high-quality images and graphics that showcased the product’s unique design and functionality. It was also important for the app to be easy to navigate and use, with clear and concise instructions provided for each feature.

Production

The VoltSafe Home App was designed to not only be visually appealing and engaging, but also highly usable and accessible. The UI style was inspired by the Jony Ive generation iOS 7 — we felt it suited the design of the physical product. The app combined some aspects of the clean minimal aesthetic while using realistic 3D renders to depict the corresponding real-life product.

The design system was built using the Atomic Design model for UI design by Brad Frost, ensuring consistency and scalability across all screens.

Onboarding

The VoltSafe Home app offers a seamless hardware onboarding process. Users can easily add one or multiple devices at once and provision them with their Wi-Fi credentials. To personalize the devices, users have the option to choose an aesthetic face plate that matches their real life device. Additionally, they can name the top and bottom receptacles of the added devices and add an icon for easy identification. The app also features a convenient “create group” feature, allowing users to group several devices together and perform group actions with ease.

Device Status & Monitoring

Users have the ability to control and view the status of each device. Each device card corresponds to a top or bottom receptacle. In the minimized view, the cards display necessary glanceable information, including a toggle switch to turn the device on and off. In the expanded view, users can view live power readings and the activity log. The realistic 3D graphics digitally mirror the live on/off and plugged status of each receptacle.

Scheduling & Circle Slider

With the ability to schedule devices, users can set multiple schedules for each receptacle individually or assign them as a group action. To facilitate this feature, the app incorporates the VoltSafe Circle Slider interface, which was previously used in the VoltSafe Winter product. This interface allows users to easily set on and off times for their devices, providing convenience and control over their electrical usage.

Customisability & Cross Compatibility

The VoltSafe Home Demo App also allows users to edit each device card at any time to update the name, icon, faceplate, control mode, and more. Furthermore, the app is designed to be cross-compatible with other VoltSafe prototypes showcased at CES 2023, such as the industrial unit MP-15 and the power distribution bar VoltSafe PDU. This compatibility enables users to seamlessly integrate and control multiple VoltSafe products within a single app interface.

Dark Mode

Of course, we can’t forget about our dark mode interface. Dark mode provides users with a sleek and modern interface that reduces eye strain and enhances readability. With improved battery efficiency on certain devices, dark mode offers a comfortable and customisable user experience in various lighting conditions. All three tabs are showcased in the dark mode UI theme.

Results

The VoltSafe Home app played a crucial role in testing and refining the VoltSafe Home technology. It effectively demonstrated the capabilities of the VoltSafe Home product, showcasing its safety, simplicity, and energy monitoring features in a clear and concise manner. As a result, VoltSafe Home was able to establish partnerships with homeowners and residential communities, and played a key role in securing funding from the National Research Council of Canada.

The VoltSafe Home was recognised as a CES 2023 Innovation Awards Honoree in the Smart Homes category for its innovation in home automation technology. This recognition significantly raised the profile of VoltSafe Home, attracting investors and generating further interest in the product.

Conclusion

The VoltSafe Home Demo App effectively showcases the innovative features of the VoltSafe plug design and has received positive feedback. By understanding the target audience’s requirements, the app effectively communicates the benefits and potential use cases of the VoltSafe Home product. The official release of the VoltSafe Home product is expected in Q3 of 2025, demonstrating VoltSafe’s commitment to delivering a cutting-edge solution for home automation and electrical safety.

Unifying and scaling Samsung Knox.

At Samsung, I worked on internal operational tools within the Knox Enterprise Suite, helping teams manage and monitor large fleets of devices through a unified platform. My work focused on improving how operational teams access system status, identify issues, and take action in real time, supporting day-to-day operations through clear information architecture, dashboards, and consistent design patterns.

Operational Visibility at a Glance

I designed asset security dashboard cards, data visualizations, and information hierarchy to help operational teams quickly assess system status and identify issues in real time. The goal was to surface critical information at a glance, prioritize actionable signals, and reduce the time required to understand system health and respond to incidents.

Knox Design System

I helped scale the Knox Design System as the product suite expanded across teams and use cases. I audited and unified roughly 65% of the system, aligning foundations such as typography, color, tokens, and documentation to support consistency at scale. I rebuilt core components into flexible, variant-based patterns and introduced new system solutions, including a nested table pattern for complex data. This work reduced one-off designs, improved handoff with engineering, and supported the unification of Knox into a single, cohesive platform used by operational teams.

Competitive Research & Strategic Recommendations

I defined a structured research approach to evaluate how large-scale operational platforms organize data, structure navigation, and communicate complex system concepts. This work helped clarify which system models best support operational tasks, reduce cognitive load, and enable teams to find and act on critical information more efficiently.

Improving MSN’s reading experience without sacrificing advertiser value.

I worked directly on Edge, MSN, and Bing monetization surfaces, designing ad experiences embedded within content feeds and article pages used by millions of users. The challenge was to improve readability on MSN article pages by optimizing banner ad placement — doing so while maintaining advertiser value without disrupting content consumption.

Exploration & Patterns

I identified viable banner placement patterns and evaluated questioning to identify user sentiment across readability, distraction, and perceived quality.

Prototypes

I built interactive prototypes to accurately simulate reading flow and banner behaviour, ensuring feedback reflected real consumption patterns rather than static mockups.

Outcomes

Banner placements that preserve content flow and image hierarchy are perceived as significantly less distracting while maintaining ad visibility. Long-term effects such as banner blindness require continued measurement. I synthesized findings into a clear recommendation aligned across design, product, and engineering, determining whether to iterate further or move forward with development.

Motion & Fit-and-Finish

With a similar methodology I arrived at this animation for the loading state. This animation signals that the space is “not done loading” so when the content loads it doesn’t disrupt the layout or feel as jarring as other motion design concepts with varying durations and bézier curves.

Applying the Pattern

Using the same evaluation framework, I applied these principles to intra-article native ads, where preserving reading flow and layout stability is even more critical. The resulting design integrates naturally within the article, maintains image hierarchy, and clearly communicates sponsorship — reducing disruption while supporting visibility and trust.

End-to-end design for VoltSafe’s marine IoT ecosystem.

In my role as the end-to-end designer for the VoltSafe Marine ecosystem, I was entrusted with the responsibility of creating a cohesive, intuitive, and engaging experience across both digital platforms and physical hardware. My design journey was shaped by the real-world functionality and accessibility needs within the marina industry environment.

The Ecosystem

The VoltSafe Marine ecosystem — comprising the power pedestal hardware, the enterprise web app, and the client mobile app — represents a harmonious blend of design and technology. My contribution as the end-to-end product designer spanned across this entire ecosystem, ensuring consistency, usability, and satisfaction at every touchpoint. Each element is a piece of a larger puzzle, designed to work together to create an efficient, user-friendly marina management system.

Ideation Journey

During the ideation phase, I collaborated closely with the engineering team to define our MVP and MVE, ensuring alignment between technical capabilities and the envisioned user experience. This was followed by hands-on sketching, where initial concepts and features were drafted, setting the foundational blueprint for the project.

Transitioning these ideas from paper to digital form, we conducted collaborative sessions employing a tactile approach with printed dashboard elements. This allowed us to physically rearrange and fine-tune features, fostering a creative synergy between design and engineering expertise.

Design Methodology & Accessibility

I applied the Atomic Design framework within an iterative Agile workflow to establish a robust yet adaptable design system. This dual approach enabled me to efficiently manage design tasks while staying attuned to users’ needs, resulting in a user experience that was both cohesive and responsive to the dynamic marina environment.

Accessibility was a central theme throughout. Following Nielsen’s usability heuristics, I implemented intuitive language and pictography, accommodated maximum font sizes, integrated large touch targets, and maintained high contrast ratios for optimal readability across a broad demographic.

The Enterprise Dashboard

At the heart of the marina’s operations is the enterprise dashboard, a web application designed to be both visually appealing and functionally robust. It’s a real-time visual representation of the marina, where each slip is colour-coded to reflect its current status, power state, and safety alerts. The dashboard empowers marina staff to remotely manage the power pedestals — an essential feature for both routine and emergency scenarios.

Slip Map & Status

A visual representation of slip occupancy and status, crucial for managing marina operations efficiently. The spotlight card provides quick information and a live video feed for selected slips, with a toggle for a detailed list view. The slip map offers a comprehensive visual overview with three distinct lenses: occupancy, power state, and leakage status.

CRM Management

A central hub for managing customer information, payments, and invoicing, ensuring efficient and streamlined operations. I integrated a comprehensive CRM interface enabling marina employees to efficiently manage customer data, track invoices and payments, and log slip assignments for each customer.

Client Check In

I designed the client check-in flow to employ progressive disclosure, guiding marina attendants step-by-step through booking available slips. This process automatically prepares invoices and payment details based on the information entered during check-in, enhancing efficiency and accuracy.

The Client Mobile App

The mobile app, tailored for boaters, provides personalised control and insights. Users can manage their slip’s power, monitor energy consumption, and stay informed through notifications designed to alert them to critical conditions affecting their vessel.

Live Video Feed

The app includes a live video feed option for camera-equipped pedestals, enabling boat owners to view their slip remotely for added convenience and monitoring.

Dark Mode

I integrated a Dark Mode feature providing a visually comfortable alternative for users in low-light conditions, enhancing usability and reducing eye strain. All components were designed to be compatible with a Dark Mode colour palette to improve low-light visibility.

Designing for Real-World Interaction

The effectiveness of the VoltSafe Marine ecosystem is most evident in its seamless integration. When changes occur in the marina’s physical environment — whether a slip becomes occupied or a power pedestal is switched off — these updates are instantly reflected in the user’s app. This immediate feedback loop is crucial, adhering to Jacob Nielsen’s principle of matching the system with the real world, particularly critical in IoT product design.

Outcomes

The deployment of the VoltSafe Marine ecosystem across a growing number of marinas has yielded tangible success, evidenced by robust adoption rates and positive feedback from end-users. The project was recognised with the IBEX Innovation Award from the National Marine Manufacturers Association. The ecosystem’s development was also bolstered by a $180,000 grant from BC Fast Pilot. The product is currently undergoing its pilot program, receiving positive reviews from marinas across British Columbia, with an increasing number of marinas across North America signing up to implement the ecosystem.

Conclusion

Reflecting on the VoltSafe Marine project, my journey as the end-to-end designer has been comprehensive and rewarding. This endeavour has affirmed my commitment to design excellence and showcased my ability to translate complex requirements into user-friendly solutions. The VoltSafe Marine ecosystem is constantly evolving to meet and exceed safety, efficiency, and connectivity standards in the marina industry — representing the future of marina management technology.