UMA is a workplace technology platform that integrate Office365 and Google Workspace to connect workplace calendars, collaboration software, and technology, resulting in valuable data insights and improved employee experiences.
Upon joining UMA, I was introduced to a rudimentary MVP mobile app. Its primary function was to let users connect their Outlook calendars, facilitating simple room bookings through email notifications. At this juncture, the company had an array of potential features lined up in their roadmap, all awaiting design development. This is where I stepped in. Leading the design evolution, my contributions played a crucial role in obtaining next round of investment and onboarding well known brands like NHS, Manchester United FC.
Certain features of this project were developed concurrently with the requirements of another project, which involved the creation of a web application serving as a space and device management tool for smart buildings. These shared features were designed to seamlessly integrate within both projects, providing consistent functionality across platforms. The web app focused on optimizing the management of spaces and devices within smart buildings, offering a comprehensive solution for monitoring and controlling various aspects of the building environment. By aligning the implementation of shared features, a unified user experience was ensured between this project and the smart building management web app.
The task is to create a solution that offers several key features. Employees need to be able to easily find and book available meeting rooms and desks, see how full a room is, and locate their coworkers. They also need to know who is in the office at any given time. For facility managers, it's important to include a feature for monitoring office air quality. This all has to be done while keeping in mind the various needs and usage of the rooms, and the possible existence of extra meeting spaces in the office.
The Double Diamond design process was an excellent choice for tackling this problem statement due to its structured, yet adaptable approach. This method fostered expansive thinking during the 'discover' and 'develop' phases, enabling us to thoroughly explore all potential features and considerations. Moreover, it promoted critical thinking and decision-making in the 'define' and 'deliver' stages, ensuring that the solution was refined and focused. This process allowed us to adeptly navigate through the complexity of the task, ensuring we addressed all key features and needs, from finding available rooms to monitoring air quality. By testing and refining at each stage, we aimed to deliver a solution that truly met the needs of both employees and facility managers.
The interview was conducted in order to gather information on booking a room for a meeting in the existing apps to better understand users' pain points by user-testing them into a specific task. We adopted a phased approach, implementing and testing each feature progressively. This strategy ensured that every element undergoes rigorous testing and refinement before we move on to the next, ultimately ensuring the highest quality of our solution.
To understand users' pain points regarding booking a room for a meeting in the existing apps, we asked them the following questions:
These questions helped uncover pain points, frustrations, and challenges that users were facing while using the existing apps for booking meeting rooms. Gathering insights from their responses enabled us to identify areas for improvement and design a solution that addresses their needs effectively.
