South Africa

Graphic Design

UX Design

UI/ Visual Design

Branding and Identity Design

Service Design

Product Design

Interaction Design

Growth Design

Customer Experience (CX)

Generalist Product Management

Technical Product Management

Growth Product Management

Data Product Management

Platform Product Management

Group Product Management

UX Research

Service Design Research

Full stack

Content Strategy

Product Marketing

Darshan Naidoo

Product Lead

Public Speaking

Problem-solving

Empathy

Leadership

Negotiation

Asana

Balsamiq

ChatGPT

Figma

HubSpot

Adobe Creative Suite

Stakeholder management

Communication

Team player

Presentation skills

Critical-thinking

Brand strategy

Design systems

Information architecture

Marketing strategy

Usability Testing

Social media marketing

Sales plan and process

Relationship management

Monetisation

Product analytics

Prototyping

Product roadmap

Product strategy

Understand the process of training, motivating and directing your team members.

Managing people

Steps to building and maintaining a strong, cohesive and effective team.

Building an effective team

Learn essential burnout prevention techniques and replenish physical and emotional energy.

Managing burnout

Best practices for running productive design critiques.

Running effective design critiques

How to define and execute a successful launch and managing stakeholders expectations. (eg. MVP)

Launching new products or features

Methods of prototyping and solution validation. When to use which kind of prototype (eg. Webflow, Notion, etc)

Prototyping methods and tips

Identify and define potential product problems and generating possible solutions.

Identifying problems vs solutions

Tips on how to work and collaborate with designers.

Working with designers

How to work with team members with different skill sets but towards a common goal?

Working cross-functionally

Navigating the working relationship with PM's and engineers as a designer.

Working with product and engineering

How to create personas, and leverage them in design.

Creating and leveraging user personas

Ways to provide constructive feedback to team members.

Giving effective feedback

How to define an ambitious product vision and how to best communicate it to stakeholders?

Creating a product vision

Tips on how to work and collaborate with engineers and developers.

Working with engineers

What is a successful user onboarding flow and how to achieve it?

Onboarding new users

Best practices for documenting projects, epics, and stories

Writing product requirement documents

How to conduct interviews, what to ask, and how to analyze your results? (eg. user interview)

Conducting effective customer interviews

Learn the career path and progression for product managers.

Product management career path

Creating affordable access to healthcare products for underserved communities

I steer our technical AI products from concept to launch. Collaborating with research scientists, marketing, business-dev, and executives to strategically build our product roadmap, understand our users’ needs, and benchmark against global competitors to refine our product development strategy. I translate needs into actionable development tasks, oversee acceptance testing, and ensure product readiness in our playground and production environments.

A Payments Product Manager for the Business Systems Engineering Team at Takealot Group, I supported the group vision and roadmap for the Checkout and Payments portfolio across takealot.com web and app platforms. I collaborated with engineering, design, operations, and executive teams to enhance the Checkout and Payments experience.

My responsibilities included but were not limited to:
- Partnered with business owners to align strategy and priorities, translating needs into Checkout projects.
- Defined and tracked metrics to inform decisions on product features and functionality.
- Conducted workshops to gather business requirements and define project scope and objectives.
- Worked with technical leads and experts to balance usability and performance needs.
- Implemented Product Management practices for a dynamic environment to ensure effective execution.
- Ensured development and QA teams understood requirements through backlog grooming and sprint planning sessions.
- Reviewed test plans, scripts, and business analysis documentation for quality and coverage.
- Stayed current with payment trends and developed business cases for new projects.

I achieved the following:
- Orchestrated the Payment Systems Refactor in collaboration with the Engineering Team.
- Launched an enhanced SABC TV Licence API for seamless integration with payment and checkout.
- Developed and implemented a robust SOP for handling payment errors, reducing engineering support load by over 75%.
- Co-led the successful integration of Payflex into takealot.com's payment options.

- Developed and rolled out Pargo's Returns Product from concept to launch at network stores nationwide.
- Launched Pargo's POC Self-Service Checkout trial at a flagship Pickup Point in Cape Town.
- Launched the Pargo App Dashboard for parcel delivery, collection, and analytics, used by The Foschini Group, and further rolled out to all Pickup Points within the network.
- Developed the POC customer-driven app envisioning futuristic parcel tracking, delivery, and collection for Logistics in SA.

- Spearheaded the strategy, implementation, and rollout of HubSpot CRM Cloud Software during South Africa's Covid-19 lockdown.
- Built an AI chatbot assistant for customer support and implemented WhatsApp for Business for sales teams within HubSpot.
- Built a custom Sales Onboarding App with integrated FICA/KYC services within HubSpot.
- Overhauled Business Financing experience, powered by Retail Capital, on the iKhokha App.
- Streamlined business processes and automated digital sales and support funnels.

I specialised in developing and moderating IT learner guides, ensuring alignment with MICT SETA industry standards. Collaborated with Professors and Deans to create engaging learning materials and implement innovative technologies in technology education. I additionally researched technology's impact that contributed to the academic curricula and designed assessment criteria for Higher Certificate and Diploma Programs.

- Developed module guides for training programs.
- Ensured content was current and aligned with industry standards.
- Collaborated with subject matter experts to create engaging learning materials.
- Moderated IT module guides for quality and adherence to standards.
- Developed assessment criteria and conducted assessments.
- Conducted research on technology's impact on education.
- Contributed to academic curricula and course materials.
- Authored and moderated IT module guides for clarity and relevance.
- Ensured accuracy and alignment with learning outcomes.

- Served as the product expert, addressing queries about functionality, system processes, and integrations, and collaborating with various business units to enhance iKhokha's product offerings.
- Conducted product and market research to recommend optimal products and launch strategies, increasing company profitability.
- Led the optimization and rollout of advanced customer relationship management software, focusing on business automation.
- Trained sales and support staff on software usage, sales techniques, and objection handling.
- Worked closely with the Marketing team to effectively position the product on digital and traditional platforms, enhancing the customer experience with CRM communications through chatbots and AI assistants.

Empowering Brands, Igniting Growth, and Elevating Excellence. We are a collective of seasoned professionals with a track record of success at highly esteemed companies, both nationally and internationally. With over 15 years of expertise in Product, Brand, Marketing, and Design, we're here to supercharge proudly African and global brands. As the founder, I'm committed to driving strategic brilliance and making our clients shine in the market.

Would you like to jump on a project and have expert skills? Let's chat at > hello@digic.africa

Darshan Naidoo🇿🇦