Challenge:

Improve the functionality of a newly-developed set of web tools.

Key Insight:

External users were unclear on the purpose and relationship of the tools. I delivered a prototype that unifies them on one platform with consistent visual design.

background & Goals

The Minneapolis office of Cushman & Wakefield (a major commercial real estate services company) has developed four web tools for new and existing clients. Currently, three are linked together on one platform and the fourth is in active development. They asked my team to discover useful and meaningful changes to the application, then prototype my recommendations for their development team to implement.

Research methods & Findings

• Cognitive Walkthrough: I attempted a series of tasks from the perspective of a new user. This evaluation helped to identify likely stumbling blocks for a client accessing this site for the first time. I presented my design team with a list of high-priority fixes to address issues with system learnability.
• Contextual Evaluation: Together with my design team, I interviewed two internal users at the client office and two external clients. We conducted interviews in users' typical work environments to understand the context of use for these tools. 
• Analysis: Client users understood the tools and used them fluently, however, they were concerned about the presentation to external users. These concerns were validated during external user testing. Specific issues were excess text, unclear communication, and inconsistent visuals among the different tools. 

design prototyping

I began sketching designs to address the issues found in my research. Starting with pen and paper, I explored multiple concepts, then moved to Sketch for digital mockups. Next, I modeled the most important and unique interactions in InVision for prototyping. Finally, I recorded a walkthrough presentation to communicate my rationale and highlight specific proposed changes. 

final recommendations

My delivered prototype presents a cohesive visual identity for the platform and incorporates it into the main company site. I focused on one tool in particular, "Diagnose My People," because it was most highly valued by the external users. The new version makes existing functionality more usable by improving system visibility and feedback, and clearly communicating value to the user.