Elevate
Designing an onboard app for 5,000 employees of 120+ research labs. Led by the hospital's president, our team designed a scalable solution, piloting in five departments with executive support.
MY ROLE
As the primary designer, I transformed 10-12 complex workflows and 100+ task requirements, spanning multiple departments, into an intuitive platform. I contributed to the product vision and UX strategy by crafting iterative wireframes, high-fidelity mockups, and prototypes. I refined interaction patterns and information architecture, collaborating closely with the creative lead to ensure a cohesive experience.
This is an ongoing project. This case study highlights Phase 1, which took place from September to October 2024. If you're interested in the next phases, let's chat!
PROJECT TEAM
Senior Product Designer: Jamie Kang 🙋🏻♀️
Creative Lead: Tate Leyba
Engagement Lead: Alex Foucre-Stimes
Product Manager: Jonathan Astry
Senior Architect: Chris Maier
2 Client Sponsors
5 Departmental Admins / 20+ test users
TOOLS
Figma, Lucid, Teams, Slack
TIMELINE
8 weeks (Sep-Oct 2024)
01 THE CHALLENGE & OUR DESIGN SOLUTION
The organization's fragmented onboarding process—spread across different departments, team types, and several tools—caused hiring delays and inefficiencies. This lack of cohesion made onboarding difficult for both new hires and hiring managers, failing to reflect the organization's reputation for excellence.
In response, we created a streamlined, centralized onboarding experience that provides full visibility into the process while improving efficiency for all stakeholders.
A sneak peek into our design solution...
Effortless multi-hire tracking with smart filters
Hiring manager & recruiter dashboard
Easily preview and assign custom plans
Hiring manager task
Streamlining plan template creation and editing with an organized database and structured workflows
Hiring manager and new hire tasks
Streamlining task management and progress monitoring
Hiring manager and new hire feedback loop
Establishing a feedback review process for continuous enhancemen
But...how did we get here? 🤔
02 DEFINING OUR TARGET USERS AND THEIR CHALLENGES THROUGH RESEARCH
I defined user jobs across our four personas to further define our solution scope for an MVP.
In the first two weeks, we conducted 13 remote user interviews and analyzed existing research that uncovered key pain points. Using these insights, I defined clear user jobs that refined our objectives, enabling our team to brainstorm effective technical solutions. With workshops right around the corner, I rapidly ideated on design solutions for around 4-5 key workflows.
USER
SOLUTION
MOTIVATION
OUTCOME
As a hiring manager,
when I need to manage several new hires with varying plans
I need a streamlined workflow management system
so that I can successfully and linearly onboard the employee
As a new hire,
when I have the overwhelm of starting a new job
I need the onboarding to go as smoothly as possible
so that I can adjust to my new environment and focus on the actual work
As an administrator,
when I have to manage the success of several hiring teams
I need a way to easily manage employee plans and tasks
so that our process becomes future-proof, transparent, and customizable
As a recruiter,
when I need to handoff a new hire to their hiring manager
I want to assign them the most accurate hiring plan
so that the hiring team is clear on what the new hire needs to accomplish during their onboarding
*In order to maintain MVP project scope, the personas are listed in order of priority set out by the organization
03 VALIDATING OUR DESIGN & PROTOTYPE AT THE ON-SITE WORKSHOP
To test and validate our very first design concepts with our target audience, our team flew to our client’s campus on a 3 day trip.
During the on-site workshop, our team led a full-day design collaboration session. We tested three of the four user personas across the five pilot departments. We printed large copies of the designs and guided participants through an "I like, I wish, I wonder" exercise to collect their insights. Twenty-two participants—including hiring managers, new hires, and administrative staff—provided detailed feedback on each screen. Additionally, the workshop was closely monitored by our two lead executives to ensure alignment with business requirements.
SOME KEY THEMES FROM THE WORKSHOP
Managing Multiple Hires: Hiring managers with 4+ new hires need a simplified way to oversee multiple employees.
HR Insights & Reporting: Admin teams need better reporting tools for improved oversight.
Feedback Loop: A system is needed to gather feedback and iterate on the onboarding process.
Tracking & Notifications: Key milestones like start dates need to be tracked and communicated effectively to hiring managers.
*Designs shown up above
Cultural Alignment: The app should better reflect the company’s values and culture, which is currently missing.
Edge Cases: Different new hire types (remote, foreign nationals, relocating, hybrid) need tailored solutions.
*Designs not shown
04 RESTRUCTURING TASK PRIORITIZATION FOR MVP SUCCESS
Leveraging insights from initial discovery, user testing, and business goals, we collaborated with engineering to define technical requirements using a must-have, should-have, nice-to-have matrix.
This approach ensured we focused on MVP essentials while planning for future enhancements.
...to be continued!
Let’s connect!
jjamiekang@gmail.com
