Natalie Bello Silva · Bilingual Sr. UX Researcher & Strategist
I research and design the systems people rely on to get care, apply for benefits, manage their money, and stay secure.
Three projects to start with
Client onboarding, down from 4–6 weeks of manual setup
Benefit applications from Spanish-speaking users
Financial Wellness Review, down from an hour, for 3.8M clients
Up to 50% less research time for UN experts using Transcend’s AI agent
All projects
Research is the spec.
I start with the people who live the problem, then trace every design decision back to what we learned. The whole service, not only the screen.
A health diagnosis showed me that having a health issue is a second full-time job. I changed careers to redesign the systems people have to get through.
Since then I’ve chosen work by one test: does it make someone’s life measurably easier? Banking, benefits, cancer care, security, peacebuilding. I’m not interested in flashy products. I care about the difference they make.
Scarves for HealingMy way of giving back: pre-tied head wraps for women going through cancer treatment.Let’s make it work
for real people.
natalie.bellosilva@gmail.comA researcher and strategist at heart.
I’m Natalie, a Bilingual Sr. UX Researcher and Designer. I study how people actually get through the systems they depend on, then help teams redesign them: the app, the website, the phone call, the branch visit, the paperwork.
I didn’t start in design. A health diagnosis put me on the patient side of our health system. I saw the medical terms nobody explains, the cultural and language gaps, and the constant coordination that makes having a health issue a second full-time job.
So I changed careers. I’ve worked on financial wellness at KeyBank, benefits access at USA.gov and USAGov en Español, cancer support at Inova, breast cancer research review for the Department of Defense, AI security at BlueVoyant, and trustworthy AI for UN experts at Transcend. I also design and ship UI, but impact is the point.
Three strengths, one practice
Research & strategy
Mixed methods, field research, interviews, usability testing, diary studies and surveys. In English and Spanish.
Service design
Service blueprints, journey maps, personas and workshops across digital, in-person and behind-the-scenes touchpoints.
Design & delivery
Interaction and UI design, rapid prototyping, design systems and content, through to shipped product.
Scarves for Healing, wrapped in love.
Pre-tied head wraps, handmade in the USA, that help women feel confident and beautiful during cancer treatment. Luxurious, modern and comfortable, for home, work and date nights. It’s my way of giving back to the cancer community.
Where I’ve worked
A senior research and design partner, on retainer.
For agencies, government contractors, health systems and product teams who need senior, bilingual research and design leadership without a long hiring cycle. I research, design the UI, and build prototypes that are proven through user research and strategic working sessions with stakeholders. I work best as an ongoing partner, not a one-off vendor.
Align
Goals, stakeholders, constraints, and the decisions research needs to support.
Research
I join your rituals and roadmap, and run the research that tells us what to build.
Design & prove
UI and prototypes built from the findings, then tested with users and refined in stakeholder working sessions.
Hand off
Developer-ready designs, a research repository and the reasoning behind every decision.
Before we talk
Natalie Bello Silva
Bilingual Sr. UX Designer & Researcher · 7+ years · Public Trust clearance
Let’s make something that helps.
Hiring for a senior research or strategy role, or need a contract researcher on your program? Tell me a little about it.
natalie.bellosilva@gmail.com