BRIDGEGOOD
Client
BRIDGEGOOD
Role
Lead UX Designer
Timeline
4 weeks
Team
4 designers, 3 product managers, 1 developer
BRIDGEGOOD Refactored Website
A platform centered on nourishing designers' skills through a low-stake environment
BRIDGEGOOD is a non-profit organization based in Oakland, helping students design for social good by providing equitable tech access, design opportunities, and professional resources to job seekers.
During the summer of 2022, I joined BRIDGEGOOD’s 3 month program as a UX Designer Apprentice.
Over 4 weeks, our team was tasked with building BRIDGEGOOD's refactored web application. We needed a way to create a distinguishable product that allows for scalable impact. Our solution encompasses design challenges with community assistance support, giving second- to third-year designers a foundation earlier on in their careers.
We presented our final product to a panel of 60+ sponsors and stakeholders during BRIDGEGOOD’s Product Pitch Event. Out of the 5 teams, our product proposal was picked for development.
Context
Problem
Statement
For incoming design students to pursue opportunities and launch their careers, they need to build their abilities and design process sooner than the current framework of learning on the job.
How might we support incoming designers to nourish their skill sets alongside a community?
Defining Business Goals + Metrics
Professional Development
45% believe they lack the skillsets to land a job. BRIDGEGOOD would assist designers in starting their careers.
Designer Engagement
Design requires constant growth, so all levels of experience can use the website as a learning tool.
Mentor Engagement
The platform is self-sustained by BRIDGEGOOD partners that’ll provide challenges and mentors.
Task Completion
Ease of use and number of designers participating (measured in usability test + survey)
Subscribers
Number of designers joining the site, engaging with others’ work
(measured in a survey)
Advocacy
Number of mentors joining the site and creating challenges for incoming designers
My Design Process
Gathering Stories
Discovery
Given the unknown space, we interviewed BRIDGEGOOD's stakeholders to understand their audience’s perception. According to the stakeholders, designers are held back by a lack of confidence; with the current resources, designers are unsupported and often burned out.
Our team needed an understanding of the primary user. I performed a 2nd round of interviews with 12 designers, aged 19 to 25, to understand their backgrounds. As a result, I grouped pain points into overarching themes.
Highlights:
Digging Deeper
Competitive Analysis
I dissected landscapes that nourish designers, so I researched mentorship, challenges, and educational sites. I identified 2 takeaways:
Community settings establish a welcoming environment, but current design challenges create a competitive atmosphere that makes it difficult to join as a new user.
Designer support feels repetitive and doesn’t facilitate genuine collaboration, exposure to fieldwork, or different skills.
Persona
Our research revealed two groups:
Experience designers: designers engage with mentors, apply, and speak on their processes.
Incoming designers: designers who feel lost in their design journey.
I focused on incoming designers to nurture skilled designers before entering the field. From there, Annabelle was created:
Brainstorm
I sketched a multitude of ideas to identify and refine components into a cohesive product.
Our team narrowed down our concept
Refined Problem + Solution
Design Challenges
Challenges provide problem spaces to learn at your pace while utilizing design methodologies and tools.
Designer to Designer
Connect with mentors and designers to collaborate on design challenges and learn from one another.
Share your Work
Share your challenges to increase exposure, receive feedback, and inspire the design community.
How might we help new designers feel safe when building their skill sets through a nurturing community?
Definition
Establishing the Site Map + Flow
After consulting with the stakeholders, I fleshed out a site map to explore the next 6-years while prioritizing the beginning stage of the product. In addition, our user flow identified opportunities for improvement.
Low-Fidelity: Homepage
During the first round of usability testing, 60% of our users found the UX writing to be unclear. They were anticipating different interactions while navigating through various segments of the written content. Furthermore, a significant number of users expressed their opinion that the homepage didn't seem to be aligned with the brand image of BRIDGEGOOD.
Design & Testing
Iteration Breakdown
Mid-Fidelity: Homepage
In the second round of testing, it was discovered that 57% of our users thought that the emphasis on the community aspect was insufficient and could be more explicitly communicated. Some users even asked, "How can I engage with the BRIDGEGOOD community beyond the challenges?"
Low-Fidelity: Challenges
Our research revealed that the challenge cards lacked sufficient context to motivate users to participate in a challenge. Furthermore, our users unanimously agreed that the requirements for the challenges were unclear.
Mid-Fidelity: Challenges
It was found that the process of viewing challenges should be made more efficient to enhance user experience; users expressed their discontentment with the inability to filter at the initial stages. Additionally, our findings showed that 65% of the test participants still experienced confusion regarding the type of information required to complete the challenges.
Low-Fidelity: Signing up
We found that signing up felt tedious because of the multiple steps. As a consequence, users dismissed the collaborative setting.
Mid-Fidelity: Signing up
I streamlined the information into a single screen; however, users were skeptical about the purpose of the reminder feature, with some remarking, "This is intriguing, but what is its significance?" Furthermore, more than half of the users expressed doubt about collaborating with strangers.
Low-Fidelity: Submission Page
80% of our users, perceived the submission length to be extended, primarily because of the multiple steps involved. Furthermore, the collaborative setting appeared ambiguous due to the content available.
Mid-Fidelity: Submission Page
I discovered a disparity between the challenge page and the submission page, which impeded designers from completing the challenge.
Final Solution
Sign Up
Designers are given the option to collaborate with mentors and designers.
Randomly generate or search for a mentor to work with
Generate a list of designers to reach out to via slack
Submission
Upload your case study desk for other designers to view
Give other designers access to your process
Receive feedback from designers and mentors
Challenges
Access challenges created by industry designers.
Challenges develop a variety of professional skills + increase exposure to different fields of design
Recommendations on how to complete the challenge and prepare a case study deck
Homepage
A one-stop to learn everything about design challenges
Learn about BRIDGEGOOD and their impact
Designers identify themselves through testimonials
Slack is integrated, giving the design community a central hub to connect
Key Takeaways
Results
Professional Development
66.7% of the users said they would participate in challenges
Overall, users were successful in completing tasks during our usability test
Designer Engagement
80% of the users said they'd view other designers' challenges