Duration: August 2021 - December 2021
Team: Of one
Tools Used: Figma, Adobe Illustrator
Background
Generation Exchange is a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting the technology gap between generations by allowing tech-savvy folks to mentor those who might struggle with the quick-changing tech landscape. Its core function is facilitating interactions between Mentors and Mentees.
Research Plan
Determine need for the mentees who struggle with technology, if an app is something they would benefit from or if it would only complicate things. Likewise, to determine what mentors might like about an app for this or how they might use it.
Sample Interview Questions:
What is your experience with technology?
Do you or anyone you know struggle with technology? If so, in what ways?
If you were able to receive free help from a mentor on how to work through those troubles, what ways would you want assistance?
How frequently do you think you might look for this help?
What is your learning style/how do you best retain information, especially when it comes to learning technology?
Have you ever used any video or screen sharing apps or websites for any reason? What was that like?
Have you ever used the guided access or accessibility options on your phone/laptop, and if so, are they satisfactory to you?
What is the most difficult part about our technology-centric environments?
What experiences do you have searching for help on your issues? i.e. googling, calling a help desk etc.
Methodology:
This will be done via 8 1:1 phone interviews with participants screened beforehand, for both potential user personas, 4 of each.
Participant Screening:
Mentees
Aged 40+
Has sought help on technology in the past several months
Owns at least one piece of technology i.e. phone, computer, smart watch
Mentors
Aged 18-25
In school of some sort
Findings:
Some common notes and problem points I learned about from my research were:
Many mentees find that they could use more help than the once a month workshops Generation Exchange already offers. They frequently exchange information with mentors about getting additional help in the future.
Mentors enjoy the last portion of workshops when they talk to the Mentees about anything (life, career paths, etc.) and wished they got more of that, especially out-of-state students who don’t have family around here.
Most Mentors know someone in their own life who has asked them for help on technology.
Some Mentees learned how to use Zoom during the pandemic, and for the workshops that went online, and enjoyed it.
Learning can be made a lot easier when there are standard practices, i.e. common icons, scrolling and navigation bars, etc.
Online safety was brought up in multiple conversations.
Problem Statement
Our older generation of folks need help navigating the ever-changing world of tech, while many students need advice and guidance on their ever-changing new world, because both groups do not always have the resources available to provide this guidance.
In comes Generation Exchange...
This is how the Generation Exchange app can be beneficial. Facilitating this interaction can benefit both the mentor and mentee in their search for guidance and provide both users with valuable help in two seemingly unrelated fields.
How might we develop an experience that initiates interactions between those looking for help with tech, and those seeking advice on life?
After gaining insight into what was important to the potential users of this app, I began prioritizing potential features that would be included, and which ones may be saved for a later version.
Feature Prioritization
I now had a good idea about which features I would be including, I began working on a user flow. Initially, I had planned to create two separate flows, one for the Mentee, one for the Mentor. I felt as though their needs were different, and thus would warrant a different experience for each user.
User Flow
I realized that I had actually spent a lot of time on what I perceived to be the users’ needs, but after conversations with peers and showing my designs, I learned just how important it is to not make assumptions about what the user truly needs.
Once I had my user flows laid out, I started designing in mid fidelity wireframes.
I was incredibly set on designing for two different user flows to accommodate the needs of both Mentors and Mentees. After working on this for some time, I finally realized that I could simply design to accommodate both needs.
I could be intuitive to tech-savvy folks with my layout while also ensuring that information is accessible and easy to navigate.
After a lot of trial and error, gaining feedback, and tidying up details, I had a clickable prototype.
Final Prototype
In Conclusion
I learned a lot of hard UX lessons throughout this journey. I thought that I might have an easy time designing something for an existing organization, but I was proven wrong very early on. I learned how important it is to remain objective throughout the entirety of a project, as to not end up tunnel-visioned into a path that wasn’t the best one for the user.