Sony Connectivity Control
🔒 Confidential Case Study Notice:
This case study is shared strictly for interview and evaluation purposes. It is protected under NDA and contains work done for Sony and KDDI via Station Digital Media. Please do not reproduce, share, or distribute this content outside the hiring process. For access, a password is required and provided upon request. Thank you for respecting the confidentiality of this project.
From February 23 to March 13, 2025, I designed the B2B and B2C portals for Sony’s suite of Portable Data Transmitters (PDT-FP1), which enable high-speed cloud uploads through global eSIM technology and KDDI’s dynamic network platform.
Collaborating closely with the CEO of Station Digital Media, PMs (collected requirements from Sony team), BAs, and a design manager (who provided requirements and strategic feedback), I translated business needs into complete Figma designs for real-time device tracking, user management, network monitoring, and cloud content uploads. The PMs and BAs defined the core features and flows, and I executed the UX/UI for multiple portals based on their groundwork.
The portals were critical for selling flexible SaaS subscriptions — offering data plans, connection speeds, and cloud storage options to enterprises, freelancers, and prosumers using all of Sony’s Portable Data Transmitters. Our multi-role system supported Sony Org Admin (KDDI / Station Digital Media), Sony Account Manager, B2B Admin (NYT, Reuters, etc.), B2B Users (photographers, journalists, etc), and B2C users (freelancers).
* We conducted weekly review sessions with Sony stakeholders to present iterative progress. By day 18, we delivered a clickable prototype covering most core portal flows and key pages, which impressed Sony leadership and helped move the project into internal budgeting and contract discussions. This project demonstrated how lean UX practices, rapid design sprints, and strong cross-functional collaboration can deliver enterprise-grade outcomes — even under extreme time pressure.
Client
Sony, KDDI
Team
Stakeholder - Sony Team & KDDI Team, Station Team: CEO, Project Manager (3), Dev Team (2), Business analysis team (2), Design Team (2)
Location
Long Beach, CA
Tokyo, Japan
Role
UI/UX product designer
Tools
Figma, Jira, Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft 365
Duration
Full-time
2.23 - 3.10.2025 (3 weeks)
Updated Process Breakdown
Weekly Client Reviews Built In
Click on each button to view the details of each section
Week 1 - Strategy & Foundations
Teams: stakeholder, project managers, business analysis team & UI/UX product designers Jonas & Sophie
Goals
Align on goals, flows, and feature scope.
Challenges
The team had limited time to fully understand Sony’s new SaaS strategy, user roles, and technical constraints across multiple data transmitter products. Requirements were still evolving, and we had to align quickly on what would make the biggest business impact.
Solutions
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Worked closely with the BA team to analyze storyboards, map flows, and clarify the core feature set.
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Prioritized must-have features for the POC based on sales value (e.g., network reservation, subscription management, user roles, user support & help center).
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Established a shared Figma design system early to support fast iteration.
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Mapped user roles and access levels (Sony Admins, B2B Admins/Users, B2C users).
Outcome
A clear scope for MVP feature design, aligned with Sony’s sales goals.
1. Kickoff with team and client
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Held a cross-functional kickoff with KDDI, Station (CEO, PDs, BAs), and Sony stakeholders
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Aligned on Sony’s goals for selling subscriptions tied to their Portable Data Transmitters
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Sony shared product details and user personas (enterprise, freelancers, prosumers)
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Discussed how KDDI’s global network tech and Station’s SaaS tools can support sales growth
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Defined early success metrics and clarified business impact of the proposed portals
Sony PDT-FP1 and the SaaS Portals – Updated with User Roles
Sony’s PDT-FP1 is a portable data transmitter for high-speed cloud uploads, connecting through global eSIMs and KDDI's Sphere platform into Sony’s Creator’s Cloud.
Key technologies inside PDT-FP1:
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eSIM Technology: Enables global, SIM-free network connectivity
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KDDI’s Spheres Platform: Automatically connects to the fastest available network in real time
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Sony’s Creator’s Cloud: Instantly stores and processes uploaded media (photos, videos, etc.)
My design work focused on building SaaS portals (B2B + B2C) to help different types of customers manage network reservations, devices, users, and subscriptions.
User Role Structure
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Sony Org Admin (KDDI/Station)
System-level admin. Manages the master environment, system settings, oversees B2B and B2C account creations.
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Sony Account Management Team
Onboards enterprise customers (like NYT, Reuters) by creating their B2B portals and admin accounts.
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B2B Admins (Enterprise Customers)
Manages company-level operations: creates user accounts (photographers, field staff), assigns devices, monitors usage.
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B2B Users (Photographers, Journalists or Cameramen)
Uses the PDT-FP1 devices in the field to upload content to Creator’s Cloud. Views network status, upload history, location.
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B2C Users (Freelancers, Prosumers)
Individual users managing their own devices and uploads. Simpler experience focused on usability and subscription management.
How This Strengthens Sony’s Strategy
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Global Scale Ready
Centralized admin control with decentralized user flexibility.
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Faster Adoption
B2B organizations and freelancers can start using devices quickly with minimal training.
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Sales-Ready Proof
Demonstrates a full customer journey — from account setup to real-time device tracking — during the sales pitch to Sony executives.
2. Brainstorm on the Whiteboard
During a collaborative brainstorming session with Station’s cross-functional teams, we mapped out key user flows, feature priorities, and administrative hierarchies. This workshop not only deepened my understanding of the project but also clarified several open questions I had around system roles, user management, and data allocation.
Note: Click on the image to view it in a larger size.
3. User Flow Exploration
In Phase 1 and 2, I was responsible for designing all portal experiences. Due to the tight 18-day timeline, we focused on delivering the most impactful flows for Sony by prioritizing the B2B Admin, B2B User, and B2C User portals.
These three user types were strategically selected to demonstrate how the portals work together to create a virtuous business cycle — from content creators to enterprise oversight — showcasing the value of the core SaaS features. The goal was not only to map user journeys, but also to clearly support the sales pitch of the subscription model and device ecosystem.
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Information Architectures
The project manager has created the IAs. I updated the IAs at the end of the project.
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User Flows
The project manager created the user flows after our brainstorming meetings. These were used to present to the Sony team and also helped me build the Add User and Add Device pages.
Note: Click on the image or arrow to view it in a larger size or to see more slides below.
Week 2 - UI/UX Design
Teams: project managers, business analysis team & UI/UX product designers Jonas & Sophie
Goal
Design high-fidelity user interfaces for the B2B Admin, B2B User, and B2C portals — showcasing core features and aligning with Sony’s brand to create an enterprise-grade experience.
Challenges
We needed to establish a consistent design system while building multiple user journeys in parallel, all under tight time constraints. Some features, like network reservation and geofencing, had unclear technical requirements early on, requiring thoughtful placeholder solutions.
Solutions
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Conducted rapid visual research to define a design style that balanced modern UI trends with Sony’s branding.
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Built a foundational design library in Figma to reduce design inconsistencies and speed up iterations.
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Prioritized the B2B Admin portal first — finalizing the dashboard with the design manager before expanding to other features.
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Designed the Network Reservation feature later in the week using temporary geofence logic inspired by fleet management UIs, pending confirmation from PMs and BAs.
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Reused design patterns to streamline the B2B User portal, followed by the B2C portal.
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Presented all three portals to Sony in our Week 2 review — the team received strong praise for the clarity, consistency, and scalability of the designs.
Workload Summary
This week focused on executing the core UI across three portal types. I began by conducting quick design research to align the visual direction with both Sony’s brand and modern SaaS UI patterns. While designing, I also built a reusable component library in Figma to reduce future revision time.
I prioritized the B2B Admin portal first, finalizing the dashboard layout with the design manager based on initial whiteboard sketches. Some features — like Network Reservation — required deeper clarification from the BA and PM teams. While waiting, I implemented a placeholder geofencing design using fleet software logic for the concept.
Once the B2B Admin flows were solid, I moved on to the B2B User portal (leveraging shared styles/components) and then designed the B2C experience.
During the Week 2 presentation, Sony stakeholders were impressed by the overall consistency, structure, and user-centered design of the portals.
1. Design & Competitor Research
While diving into high-fidelity UI design, I conducted rapid visual and competitive research to define a design direction that aligned with modern SaaS standards and Sony’s brand tone.
I explored trending SaaS portal interfaces on Dribbble for layout and component inspiration. For specific feature references:
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Speed graphs were inspired by UI patterns found via Google Search
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Billing flows referenced Amazon’s subscription management
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Subscription UX took cues from Dropbox’s clean, tier-based models
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Notification systems were influenced by Jira’s task/status alerts
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Data usage tracking and Help Center flows were inspired by Google products
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Geofencing logic was temporarily modeled after fleet management portals, due to similar spatial-use cases
This focused research informed the overall interaction style and component choices, setting a solid foundation for consistent, scalable UI work across all portals.
Note: Click on the image or arrow to view it in a larger size or to see more slides below.
2. UI/UX Design Process
The B2B Admin portal was the starting point and took a few focused days to complete. Once the dashboard layout was finalized (within the first two days), designing the remaining features became significantly faster thanks to a clear structure and reusable components.
The more complex screens — like Network Reservation and Data Usage — were completed toward the third week, as they required additional input from the BA and PM teams. Despite the scope, I was able to design most of the core features across three separate portals (B2B Admin, B2B User, and B2C) within a single week.
A few key factors made this rapid execution possible:
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The Figma design system I built early on helped reduce repetition and speed up consistency.
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Well-defined user flows and information architecture laid out by the BA team gave me a solid foundation.
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And yes — I put in long hours, working 10–11 hours daily to keep pace with the sprint.
B2B Admin Portal
Note: Click on the image or arrow to view it in a larger size or to see more slides below.
B2B User Portal
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B2C User Portal
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3. Design System
While designing the Sony portals in Figma, I simultaneously built a comprehensive design system to maintain visual consistency and speed up my workflow. The system was carefully organized into clearly labeled categories—such as color palette, typography, icons, buttons, cards, navigation, tables, and input components—which made it easy to access, reuse, and update assets as needed.
By structuring components into logical groups (e.g., Lists & Tables, Inputs & Dropdowns, Misc.), I was able to design faster and reduce repetitive tasks. It also ensured alignment with the Sony branding and made collaboration smoother across the team.
The system included:
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A full color palette (main, neutral, secondary, gradients, and shadows)
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Typography scale that matched Sony's brand
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Custom icons and buttons
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Chips, cards, nav bars, and various UI elements tailored for B2B and B2C portals
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Reusable patterns for network reservation modules and data dashboards
This system played a crucial role in helping me complete three fully designed portals within 3 weeks.
Note: Click on the image or arrow to view it in a larger size or to see more slides below.
4. What to Improve
If I had more time to enhance this project, I would have several forward-thinking suggestions to further polish the UI/UX design:
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Color Accessibility
The vibrant color palette is visually engaging but may not meet all WCAG contrast ratios. Especially text over color backgrounds. I would run an accessibility audit on primary components. -
Component Tokenization
Break common values (e.g., padding, margins, border radius, spacing units) into design tokens in Figma. This makes the system more maintainable if I ever theme it or scale across products. -
Microcopy and Context
In some UI areas, labels and buttons could be more descriptive for clarity. Use microcopy to explain technical terms or processes, especially for admin portal. Consider adding contextual help icons or tooltips for dense data view. -
Improve the Design System
Add hover, active, disabled, and focus states for interactive components. For modals, dropdowns, or confirmation toasts, include micro-interaction previews or states.
Week 3 - Polish & Present
Teams: project managers, business analysis team & UI/UX product designers Jonas & Sophie
Goal
Deliver a high-fidelity, clickable prototype that captures the core portal flows (B2B & B2C) and key functionality to support Sony’s internal buy-in, budgeting, and contract evaluation.
Challenges
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Time zone limitations: Final design presentation was scheduled in Japanese business hours, making it challenging for full design team participation.
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Compressed timeline: Balancing deep UI polish with UX completeness across multiple portals under tight deadlines.
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High-stakes delivery: Sony leadership was evaluating the design as part of a go/no-go decision for contractual engagement.
Solutions
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Created a clickable prototype that showcased the full journey across key user types and core features, enabling self-guided exploration by Sony teams.
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Aligned closely with the PM and design manager to ensure visual consistency and alignment with Sony’s branding expectations.
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Despite missing the live presentation, maintained open asynchronous communication, and followed up post-demo for feedback.
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Received direct praise from Station’s CEO, noting Sony’s strong interest in moving forward after reviewing the prototype. The design became a catalyst for contract discussions and internal greenlighting.
Prototypes
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Click the buttons below to interact with three different portals prototypes.
Access password: xing
Final Presentation with Sony
The final presentation was conducted during Japanese business hours and attended by the project manager, CEO of Station Digital Media, and the KDDI team (Station’s parent company), without direct participation from the product design team due to time zone constraints.
The session was structured in two main parts:
1. Project Organization
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Feature List
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Team Roles
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Project Phases
2. Deliverables
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User Journey Maps
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Proposed Notification Flows
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Key Wireframes
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Backend Topology
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Implementation Roadmap
Due to NDA restrictions, some sensitive content cannot be shared publicly, but a selection of key slides is included.
The Sony team responded positively, describing the presentation as clear, well-thought-out, and highly professional. They specifically praised the UI/UX design of the portal, which played a key role in moving the initiative into internal budgeting and contract discussions.
While the final decision is still pending—as Sony’s internal processes typically take time—we received strong signals of intent and a direct note from Station’s CEO confirming Sony’s enthusiasm about the design and direction of the project.
Note: Click on the image or arrow to view it in a larger size or to see more slides below.
🔒 Confidential Case Study Notice:
This portfolio piece is password-protected to respect confidentiality agreements and client privacy. It's shared solely for evaluation during the hiring process. Thank you for keeping this content private and secure.
