R by Cactus Global – Research Platform UX Redesign

Year: 2021
Role: UX Researcher, Service Designer

R is an integrated digital ecosystem designed to support researchers through every stage of their academic journey. As part of Cactus Global’s product team, this project focused on redesigning R Upskill—a learning platform within the R suite—and developing a gateway experience that connects users with other ecosystem tools, including journal readiness, community support, and funding access. The work involved deep primary research with academic users across career stages, competitor analysis of major learning platforms, and heuristic evaluations of the existing system.

The resulting experience strategy reimagined how researchers engage with skills development, emphasizing accessibility, micro-learning, and user autonomy. Key outcomes included a revised information architecture, a refreshed visual direction, and UX recommendations to streamline discovery, subscription, and learning flows—laying the foundation for a more supportive and scalable researcher ecosystem.