UI/UX Design - Kudos
Sep - Dec 2023
10 Weeks
| Team
Solo
| Project Detail
User Experience Research
Product Design
Inclusive Design
| Duration
| Why this Project?
Today, individuals with learning disabilities encounter significant difficulties when seeking employment. The application process often proves challenging, contributing to low employment rates that subsequently impact their economic stability and overall quality of life. The existing employment platforms struggle to provide an accessible design interface to help them find suitable jobs.
According to a study by the National Center for Learning Disabilities...
People with learning disabilities have job time 3.5 times longer than non-disabled co-workers.
(Individuals with learning disabilities may earn less than their peers without disabilities, even when they have the same level of education.)
| Problem Discovered
How to simplify the job application process on the platform for individuals with learning disabilities, while also providing additional support throughout their application journey?
| Final Design Features
| Onboarding for Job Preferences
- Offering existing "job titles" for users to select based on their preferences and current skills.
- Recommending the related job listings based on the job title that users have selected.
- Offering users a clean and readable design to select job details according to their specific contexts.
| Streamlined Job Application Process
- Offering an in-text 'screen reader' feature to assist users who encounter challenges in reading texts.
- Offering a more readable design layout by segmenting content into distinct sections, ensuring ease of understanding for users.
- Simplifying the application process and providing an effortless way to upload resumes.
- Sending notifications for future job opportunities that align with similar positions or preferences.
| AI Assistant / Learning Tutorials
- Allow users to download the feedback and make changes to their resume.
- The AI assistant offers resume feedback and interview suggestions to users in their job application process.
- Providing users with recommended tutorials relevant to their selected job preferences to learn new skills.
Stage 1 - Case Research
| Type of Learning Disabilities
| Working Conditions
According to the National Center for Learning Disabilities
48%… adults with learning disabilities are employed
72%… adults without learning disabilities are employed
32%… didn't think employers would hire them due to their learning difficulties
29%… they found the application process difficult to complete
| Insights from Research
Stage 2 - Discover
| User Interviews
The interviews I conducted were primarily aimed at discovering the potential challenges users encountered during their past job application processes and their feedback regarding their experiences with existing job-seeking platforms like Linkedin, Indeed, and Handshake. Participants in the interviews included students from SU Intelligence++ (an innovative, interdisciplinary initiative at Syracuse University focused on inclusive design and community, which brings support to develop unique devices, products, and services for those with disabilities and their communities) and students from the University of Maryland.
Each interview lasted approximately 8-10 minutes. Based on their responses to each question, I ask further questions aimed at comprehending their potential needs on the platform and the pain points they faced during the application process. The objective was to deepen my understanding of user behaviors concerning the features on existing platforms and establish connections for my design solutions.
| Insights from Interviews
During the interviews, many participants found challenges in understanding position details and the application process. They found that the job description lacked efficiency in directly communicating the information. Consequently, they encountered difficulties in identifying positions that closely matched their skills and preferences, sometimes requiring additional assistance to complete applications.
01_
Inefficient in Identifying Job Preferences
They need a clear and efficient method to input their job preferences and effortlessly discover positions that best align with their interests.
02_
The Complexity of Job Applications
Most participants expressed the complexity of the job application process was their primary pain point, often discouraging them from applying for jobs.
03_
Need Additional Support During Their Application Process
They need additional support both before and after applying for a job, assisting them in acquiring new skills relevant to positions and better preparing for the application process.
Stage 3 - Define
| Who Are the Users?
Based on user interviews, I developed personas to gain a deeper understanding of the users' backgrounds. By pinpointing their needs, frustrations, and goals, this process allows me to comprehend the typical users more thoroughly and design the most suitable product solution to solve their pain points.
| Target User Journey
Opportunity 1
Offering a clearer way for users to input their fields of interest.
The current input method for users to select their interest field on job-seeking platforms lacks clarity. Readability issues increase the complexity for users in choosing the industry they are interested in.
Users face challenges in efficiently extracting valuable information for a position. The important details are often hidden within lengthy paragraphs or bundled together, and they need to read through entire sections to find specific information.
Opportunity 2
Help users in efficiently find the information they need for positions.
Sometimes, users apply for positions where only some of their skills align, requiring they spend additional time searching for related tutorials externally. Also, they want better preparation when applying.
Opportunity 3
Providing users with additional support both before and after they apply for a position.
| Ideation
Based on user research and interviews, I designed six potential solutions and features to include in the app interface.
Each solution or feature addresses one of the pain points mentioned by users during the interviews. These solutions and features aim to create a convenient system to assist users during job seeking, helping them learn new skills while searching for jobs and offering various output methods for users to understand the content easily.
Stage 4 - Design
| Site Map
Drawing from my prior research, I've developed key features for my interface. These include the onboarding process to gather users' job preferences and provide job recommendations, the streamlined job application process, and AI support for resume assistance and receiving interview suggestions.
| Low-fi Wireframe
Based on site map I've developed initial layouts and features in low-fidelity wireframes. These wireframes focus on storytelling through interconnected screens, each delineated by a starter number to ensure clarity within sections. This approach in comprehending the overall user journey, spanning from 'start the app' to 'complete an application'.
| User Flow
| Interfaces Features
| Usability Testing
During the usability testing, users were assigned four tasks to interact with the main features of the high-fidelity interface. Upon completing the tasks, I followed up with additional questions to understand the potential challenges they encountered during each task.
1. Discover whether users encountered any challenges while completing the application on this interface.
2. Find out does users encountered any challenges in reading the information presented on the job description screen.
3. Understand the effectiveness of flexible reading.
4. Learn whether the services provided by the AI chatbot fulfill the users' needs.
5. Discover if users encountered any challenges while interacting with the AI Chatbot.
User interacting with the interfaces…
During Usability Testing…
User Tasks
- Select Graphic designer as your interest.
- Find the remote 'Digital Brand Designer' position at Microsoft and save it.
- Submit the job application for the 'Digital Brand Designer' position at Microsoft.
- Receive resume feedback from the AI Chatbot.
Objectives
| Problem Identified
Problem 1
Limited users to filter recommended jobs
Users have limited options to select jobs from the 'recommended job' system, which prevents them from filtering jobs based on various conditions.
Problem 2
Lack of flexibility in selecting their preferred job title.
The design of the job title system does not convincingly assist users in selecting between different job titles, nor does it efficiently facilitate them to view all available job titles.
Problem 3
The absence of notifications regarding the remaining 'steps' in the onboarding process.
Users became impatient while navigating through all the onboarding steps to input their information. They were also confused about the number of steps remaining to reach the home screen.
| Iterations
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
| High-fi Interfaces
Onboarding
Streamlined Apply Process
AI Assistant /Learning Tutorials
| My Experience
At the beginning of the project, I found it challenging, as it was my first time delving into inclusive design. Through interviews with users, I gained significant insights into their backgrounds and how they interact with interfaces. Despite the difficulties, this journey proved instrumental in enhancing my communication skills and refining my user research methods. In the end, the challenges were rewarding, and I'm delighted with what I achieved. 😆