Careem · Head of Design, Rides · 10 markets
One month after launch
10
Markets12%
Increase in23%
Fewer driver95%
CSAT scores142
Features redesignedThe problem
The conclusion inside the business was simple. Competitors were winning because their product was better.
Teams started copying flows, features and UX. That diagnosis was understandable. It was also wrong. Careem operated in different conditions, with different user behaviours and different stakes.
The research found something more specific: GPS wasn't accurate enough, and pickup points were hard to identify. When it went wrong, riders blamed unreliable captains and captains blamed unclear riders. Neither was true.
The product also treated everyone identically. A tourist using Rides once a year moved through the same number of steps as someone booking twice a day. It never got easier to use no matter how well it knew you.
The leadership challenge
Shipping faster was the answer to slipping performance. Every team was under pressure to move quickly and improve metrics.
Flows, features and UX were lifted from market leaders. It reduced risk, but carried the wrong assumptions.
It wasn't flow quality. Riders and captains were both losing trust in the same moments, and each blamed the other.
We slowed down, questioned assumptions and reset direction. That was not a popular position while metrics were slipping. Fixing the right problem mattered more than moving faster.
The strategic shift
I led a rapid research effort while continuing to design. We redesigned the core experiences around the moments where trust broke: cancellations, pickups, earnings transparency and communication between rider and captain.
I worked hands-on across 10 designers while aligning stakeholders across 10 markets.
This wasn't a UI update, it was a systematic rebuild of the interaction model and how the product behaved - 142 features redesigned across the app.
"Luke kept the team steady under pressure while shaping strategies that drove impact. He had a clear sense of priorities, helped us maintain balance and shielded us when stakeholder demands became unpredictable."
Valentina Pozzebon - Lead Product Designer, Careem
Rebuilding trust
The goal was no longer to copy competitor features. It was to rebuild trust in the system. Three changes followed directly from that diagnosis.
01
Airport, mall and venue directions got smarter, with location notes, clearer walking instructions and intelligent defaults that removed the guesswork.
Pickup related cancellations fell 23% once riders and captains were finally looking at the same information.
02
Riders could add, reorder and search for stops mid-journey, with opening hours surfaced so a stop wasn't a wasted one.
A feature customers had been asking for directly, not one the research uncovered.
03
Personalisation moved from declared preferences to predicted intent - likely destinations, repeat routes and next journeys, modelled with AI on real usage data.
04
72 additional safety features, profiles built into the super-app, and full visibility across trips in one place.
Control that was visible and specific, not a generic safety statement.
One month after launch
10
Markets12%
Increase in23%
Fewer driver95%
CSAT scores142
Features redesignedWhat this taught me
The most important decision happened before a single screen was designed. It was understanding what the problem actually was.
When organisations fall behind, the instinct is to copy what works elsewhere - but a competitor's solution carries a competitor's assumptions. The harder thing is holding the line long enough to find out what's actually broken.