Tallo 2.0
Redefining Education and Career Pathways
Enabling students to connect their passions, talents, and interests with their perfect career.
OVERVIEW
ROLE
UX/UI Designer
CONTEXT
Full platform redesign of Tallo for Stride, Inc.
TOOLS
Figma
Miro
Notion
Jira
TEAM
4 designers,
2 UX researchers,
3 product owners, 1 project manager
off-site dev team
TIMELINE
6 Months
Tallo is an innovative online platform designed to bridge the gap between students and talent-seekers by fostering a dynamic ecosystem where aspirations meet opportunities. The platform empowers students (ages 13 and up) to showcase their academic and technical skills, explore scholarships, and connect with colleges and employers.
Background
Following Stride, Inc.'s acquisition of Tallo, an MVP redesign was attempted but failed to meet user expectations. Our team was tasked with reimagining the platform from the ground up, leading to the development of Tallo 2.0—a complete transformation that enhances usability, engagement, and career development potential for students while providing valuable tools for recruiters.
The Problem
Despite Tallo’s vision to connect students with opportunities and recruiters with early talent, the platform struggled to deliver value for either group.
Students found the navigation cumbersome, profile setup overwhelming, and the platform’s purpose unclear.
For recruiters, inefficient tools, limited filtering options, and a lack of insights into hiring campaigns hindered the recruitment process.
Audiences
Students (Talent):
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Ages 13+, seeking scholarships, internships, and career opportunities.
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Need an engaging and personalized platform to showcase their accomplishments and discover relevant opportunities.
Recruiters (Talent Seekers):
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Employers, universities, and organizations seeking early talent.
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Require advanced filtering tools, intuitive job posting workflows, and actionable analytics..
Project Goals
The redesign focused on achieving the following objectives:
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Improve Student Engagement:
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Simplify profile creation and onboarding processes.
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Design engaging features such as profile personalization and progress tracking.
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Enhance Recruitment Features:
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Deliver intuitive tools for creating job postings, managing campaigns, and tracking analytics.
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Support diversity and inclusion efforts through advanced filtering options.
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Streamline Navigation:
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Provide a clear, mobile-first interface for seamless user journeys.
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Reduce clicks to key actions, like finding opportunities or managing profiles.
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Success Metrics
Increased profile completion rates, higher participation in job postings, and improved recruiter satisfaction scores.
Revamped Profile
Simplified layout with progress tracking, clearer onboarding, and profile customization options.
Resume Builder
Provided guided templates, tooltip integration, and inline editing functionality.
TALENT SEEKER
Enhanced Talent Search
Enhanced search with robust filters (location, DEI, skill-based badges), and saved search functionality.
TALENT SEEKER
Streamlined Opportunities Hub
Easier job postings with structured templates and better categorization.
RESEARCH APPROACH
Discovery
Our research approach included:
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Conducted user interviews and surveys with students, families, and recruiters to identify pain points and goals.
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Analyzed usability gaps in the original MVP, focusing on profile completion rates, navigation issues, and recruiter workflows.
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Benchmarked against competitors like LinkedIn and Handshake to identify best practices.
Tallo User Discovery Interview
ABOUT THE PROFILE
STUDENT
“When I don't complete the whole thing it says that it's 80% complete and that kind of does bother me…”
ALL OF TALLO
STUDENT
“the same thing as the last time I came in. there's nothing new”
Insights & Findings
STUDENTS:
Overwhelmed by profile setup, particularly badging and progress tracking.
Requested clearer guidance and engaging features like personalization options
RECRUITERS:
Needed advanced analytics and filters for targeting diverse talent pools
Desired tools to track and communicate DEI efforts effectively
THE PROBLEM
Design Question
How might we redesign Tallo to be an intuitive, engaging platform that aligns with user needs, fosters meaningful connections, and empowers students and talent seekers to achieve their goals?
DESIGN
User Flows & Exploration
Our team mapped out key user journeys, identifying friction points and opportunities for streamlining the experience.
We iterated through sketches and wireframes to define the best layout and flow.
Recruiter (Talent Seeker) Talent Search Flow
First New Student Profile Concepts
For Gen Z Audiences:
Focused on bold, vibrant designs and gamified elements to increase engagement.
For Recruiters (talent-seekers):
Developed a "MasterClass-style" professional interface, emphasizing clean layouts and data-driven tools.
Final Direction
We selected the Untitled UI design system, which offered a middle ground between the previously used Tetrisly system and our users’ needs. This allowed for efficient design work while maintaining flexibility and consistency.
Testing & Iterating
Prototyping & Testing
Built high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, focusing on:
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Talent/Student Profile: Redesigned the badging system, profile purpose quiz, and updated progress indicators for a smoother user experience.
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Resume Builder:
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Created guided templates and for various use cases (e.g., college applications or job-seeking).
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Introduced inline helper tooltips as value props for content.
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Recruiter & Student Badges:
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Designed enhanced, digital badging feature for both student and recruiter workflows.
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Badging opportunity options streamlined.
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Student Profile & Badging Iterationas
Resume Builder Iteration #1
Testing & Iterating
Prototyping & Testing
Built high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, focusing on:
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Talent/Student Profile:
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Simplified progress indicators and added inline editing options for profile sections.
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Badging feature on Profile simplified.
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Resume Builder:
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Created guided templates and for various use cases (e.g., college applications or job-seeking).
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Introduced inline helper tooltips as value props for content.
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Recruiter & Student Badges:
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Designed enhanced, digital badging feature for both student and recruiter workflows.
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Badging opportunity options streamlined.
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Student Profile & Badging Iterationas
Lessons Learned
Leading this project taught me the importance of:
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Building a strong understanding of legal and technical requirements for government projects.
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Constant communication and proactive collaboration to minimize delays.
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Involving user feedback and testing earlier in the design process to balance stakeholder and audience needs.
Personal Growth as a Designer
This project ignited my passion for accessibility-first design and its role in fostering inclusivity.
It underscored that accessibility is vital not only for public-facing websites but for all digital products and experiences.
