Tawanda Mapondera

Hi, I'm

Tawanda
Mapondera

UX/UI/Product designer
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I’m a UX & Product Designer crafting intuitive, research-driven digital experiences for finance, mobility, and emerging tech.

Skills
Grounded in structured design thinking and research, I guide teams through a methodical UX process that uncovers meaningful insights and delivers value through real user impact.
  • Discovery workshops and stakeholder alignment
  • User interviews and contextual inquiry
  • Defining clear problem statements and user needs

  • Journey mapping, empathy mapping, and task analysis
  • Usability testing (moderated and unmoderated)
  • Insight synthesis and experience strategy
My UI design approach is focused
on consistency, clarity, and system scalability to ensure users can confidently navigate and engage
with digital products.
  • Design system creation and governance
  • Atomic design principles and reusable components
  • Accessibility standards (WCAG) and responsive layouts
  • Interaction design and micro-interactions
  • Visual hierarchy, typography, and color theory
  • UI audits and visual refinement for handoff
Using prototyping as a core design
tool, I enable quick iteration, shared understanding, and validation before development
  • High-fidelity prototyping using Figma
  • Interactive flows for web and mobile platforms
  • Multi-variant testing and iteration cycles
  • UAT support with clickable, testable prototypes
  • Developer handoff with detailed specs and annotations
  • Feedback integration loops across teams
Software stack
AI & Prompt Engineering

I incorporate AI tools into my design and research workflow to accelerate ideation, automate tasks, and uncover insights. My work includes:

  • Contextual Prompt Engineering: Crafting precise prompts and structured context to guide LLMs toward accurate, usable responses

  • Research Synthesis & Analysis: Using AI to collect, cluster, and summarize user feedback, competitor data, and market insights

  • Agent Design: Building and testing autonomous agent flows with task loops for services like automated data retrieval, notifications, and content generation

  • AI Tool Integration: Coding with Replit and Gemini for rapid prototyping and AI-driven code generation

  • Visual Design with Generative AI: Creating mood boards, icons, and concept visuals using AI image generation tools

These capabilities enhance my product design work by enabling deeper research, faster iteration, and new creative possibilities.

Professional experience
2022 – Present (3yrs)
Senior Product designer
Nedbank Group – Johannesburg
  • Helping business & agile teams define, ideate and implement design strategy for products & services
  • Designing product journeys for investment & procurement platforms
  • Defining clear problem statements & user needs
  • Supporting ERP UI with research, style guides & multimedia content
2022 – Present (3yrs)
UX Design practice lead 
RedScreen (Pty) Ltd  Johannesburg
  • Leading UX delivery and digital team coordination
  • Responsibble for design practice reporting 
  • Mentoring and training design team as the lead
  • supporting the business development team with scoping design work and effort
2011 – 2022 (11yrs)
Multimedia Designer
Primedia Retail (X/procure Division)
  • Created digital content for pharmaceutical procurement platforms
  • Led marketing campaigns, onboarding flows, and web design
  • Produced data-driven marketing visuals for 3,000+ pharmacies nationwide
2005 – 2010 (5yrs)
Graphic & Web Designer
Wetpaint Advertising
  • Delivered web, print, and multimedia campaigns
  • Developed creative concepts and collaborated with agencies
  • Designed layouts, digital collateral, and websites for corporate clients
  • Built front-end designs and supported marketing efforts
Tawanda Mapondera

My  Work

User Experience Design

In my work, I strive to create seamless and intuitive user experiences that meet business objectives and drive measurable results. I am dedicated to staying up-to-date with the latest design trends, tools, and techniques to ensure that my designs are innovative and effective.
Design Showcase - Click on the tile cards to explore some of my most recent UX design work.

The Sunflower Group auction platform

Tawanda August 4, 2025
UX Case Study The Sunflower Group Auction platform Client: The Sunflower Group (Specialty Retail & Auction Startup)Timeline: July 2025 – 4 WeeksRole: Solo UX/UI Designer & PrototyperTools Used: Figjam, Gemini,…
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Investment Options Journey – Nedbank Money App

Tawanda July 31, 2025
Case Study: Investment Options Journey – Nedbank Money App Client: Nedbank GroupTimeline: 2024/5Role: Senior Product DesignerTools Used: Figma, FigJam, Maze, Miro, PowerPointScope: UX strategy, journey redesign, user education, UI design,…
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Tawanda Mapondera

Multi-media Design

19 years design industry experience

As a designer, I specialize in brand design, which involves creating and managing visual elements that represent a company's identity, values, and personality. My goal is to develop cohesive and compelling brand identities that resonate with target audiences and differentiate my clients from their competitors.

Copyrights 2025 - Tawanda Mapondera

  • +27614197328
  • tawanda.em@gmail.com