designerlab.

Building a CPMS from scratch: designing the unknown

2019 - present

The story

The creative challenge

When I stepped into the eMobility space, I was meet with three disconnected systems that needed to become one seamless platform. The challenge? We were designing for an industry that was still figuring itself out.

 

User research was scarce, making it impossible to validate assumptions or follow traditional design thinking processes. Standards were evolving in real-time, and feature requests shifted as fast as the industry grew.

As the sole designer for the first few years, I had to prioritize functionality over perfection – MVP mindset over polished experiences. Without established design systems, I was creating interaction patterns from scratch for features that didn't exist elsewhere.

It felt like iterating in real-time while the train was already moving.

Making It Work

Those three fragmented systems evolved into a unified charge point management platform through rapid prototyping and continuous iteration. Every constraint sparked innovation, every user pain point taught us something new, and every creative solution helped define what a CPMS could become.

 

What I'd do differently

Looking back, I'm not entirely satisfied with some compromises. If I could start over, I'd establish a solid design system and component library from the start, making implementation and execution easier and faster, and follow a more structured design process. But working with limited resources and tight timelines meant making tough choices between good and good enough.

Fast forward to now

Now we have a full design team, user-centered design is our primary focus, and user research informs our design decisions. We're finally building those design systems and following proper design sprints. It's rewarding to see how far we've come from those early "build the tracks while driving" days. Today the platform manages +50k charge boxes and +1200 customers.

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Copyright © 2009 - 2025 | Dennis B Johansen, designerlab.dk | All rights reserved.

designerlab.

Building a CPMS from scratch: designing the unknown

2019 - present

The story

The creative challenge

When I stepped into the eMobility space, I was meet with three disconnected systems that needed to become one seamless platform. The challenge? We were designing for an industry that was still figuring itself out.

 

User research was scarce, making it impossible to validate assumptions or follow traditional design thinking processes. Standards were evolving in real-time, and feature requests shifted as fast as the industry grew.

As the sole designer for the first few years, I had to prioritize functionality over perfection – MVP mindset over polished experiences. Without established design systems, I was creating interaction patterns from scratch for features that didn't exist elsewhere.

It felt like iterating in real-time while the train was already moving.

Making It Work

Those three fragmented systems evolved into a unified charge point management platform through rapid prototyping and continuous iteration. Every constraint sparked innovation, every user pain point taught us something new, and every creative solution helped define what a CPMS could become.

 

What I'd do differently

Looking back, I'm not entirely satisfied with some compromises. If I could start over, I'd establish a solid design system and component library from the start, making implementation and execution easier and faster, and follow a more structured design process. But working with limited resources and tight timelines meant making tough choices between good and good enough.

Fast forward to now

Now we have a full design team, user-centered design is our primary focus, and user research informs our design decisions. We're finally building those design systems and following proper design sprints. It's rewarding to see how far we've come from those early "build the tracks while driving" days. Today the platform manages +50k charge boxes and +1200 customers.

Prev case

Next case

Copyright © 2009 - 2025 | Dennis B Johansen, designerlab.dk | All rights reserved.

designerlab.

Building a CPMS from scratch: designing the unknown

2019 - present

The story

The creative challenge

When I stepped into the eMobility space, I was meet with three disconnected systems that needed to become one seamless platform. The challenge? We were designing for an industry that was still figuring itself out.

 

User research was scarce, making it impossible to validate assumptions, standards were evolving in real-time, and feature requests shifted as fast as the industry grew, making it hard to follow traditional design thinking processes.

As the sole designer for the first few years, I had to prioritize functionality over perfection – MVP mindset over polished experiences. Without established design systems, I was creating interaction patterns from scratch for features that didn't exist elsewhere.

It felt like iterating in real-time while the train was already moving.

Making It Work

Those three fragmented systems evolved into a unified charge point management platform through rapid prototyping and continuous iteration. Every constraint sparked innovation, every user pain point taught us something new, and every creative solution helped define what a CPMS could become.

 

What I'd do differently

Looking back, I'm not entirely satisfied with some compromises. If I could start over, I'd establish a solid design system and component library from the start, making implementation and execution easier and faster, and follow a more structured design process. But working with limited resources and tight timelines meant making tough choices between good and good enough.

Fast forward to now

Now we have a full design team, user-centered design is our primary focus, and user research informs our design decisions. We're finally building those design systems and following proper design sprints. It's rewarding to see how far we've come from those early "build the tracks while driving" days. Today the platform manages +50k charge boxes and +1200 customers.

Prev case

Next case

Copyright © 2009 - 2025 | Dennis B Johansen, designerlab.dk | All rights reserved.