Oklahoma
Benefits Applicaiton
*If you want to go deeper on this project, please book a 30 minute meeting.
Before and after the redesign
Before diving into this redesign I had to understand the current state. User pain points included:
To build a shared understanding of these pain points, I asked each member on my team to apply for benefits themselves.
I organized a multi-day team trip to visit the agency’s offices in person. After gaining consent, we observed the friction users had with the existing website. To learn more about this ethnography trip, check out the report.
My team observed users struggling to navigate the application kiosks and oftentimes relied on case workers to complete the application for them. This system meant caseworkers couldn't be handling other important tasks because they were busy playing tech support.
Application directions at a DHS office
User persona generated from ethnography sessions
At each design iteration I made sure to get reactions from user testing and created synthesis reports, like this one, to ensure I was on the right track.
Site analytics showed that a majority of visitors were attempting to access the current site from mobile devices. This tracks with research showing lower-income families are more likely to use a smartphone to browse the internet than a laptop. This led me to build a mobile-first solution so users could manage and apply from their benefits on the go.
Try out the mobile prototype below!
This was my most extensive project to date. I organized many stakeholders across 6 teams in a large government agency, pulling in each team's specific expertise and federal regulations to get the design just right, while designing for diverse user groups who will rely on this system to receive their family's food, child care, healthcare, and more.
In addition to client stakeholders, I collaborated with a UX researcher and a UI designer to ship this project. From them I learned how to improve my user interview questions and synthesis, and organize and build a design system from scratch (see below).
This application is currently in development but initial user testing shows that it will cut down the time users spend completing this application by more than half. On the caseworkers' side, this tool will allow more time for building relationships and less time playing tech support. I can't wait to see the impact it will have improving Oklahomans' lives once launched.
Ready to chat? Please book a 30 minute meeting.