Conceptual Project
The Unemployed Go-Getter.
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Project Summary
This was our first project during my 14-week design sprint at General Assembly. We were assigned a user (the unemployed go-getter) to uncover a user problem statement and persona. I then had to design an app that would solve that problem for our user and present it to the class. I decided to complete this project using a 4 step process of discovery, define, design, and deliver. I started by intervening with my user to find out more about them and their life. Once I had uncovered the problem statement I created a user flowchart to give myself a good idea of how the app should flow. I then started sketching out my ideas. I started with a low fidelity wireframe and once I had an idea of the direction I wanted to take I wrote my design hypothesis. I then entered the design stage where I created my medium and high fidelity wireframes. Once I felt comfortable with the results I conducted usability testing and then used my insights to make a new iteration of my design that perfectly fits my user’s needs.
User Interviews.
In order to create a user persona and discover their problem, I started by interviewing them. During this process, I had discovered a lot about the user’s life and certain issues she encounters throughout it. Once she started discussing the reason she is in GA I took it as an opportunity to ask open-ended questions. Originally I was confused about what to choose but the questions I asked eventually lead me to find out about her previous career and why she is currently searching for a new one. As I dove deeper I discovered that the user is struggling to find a career that matches her previous skill, pays well, offers a variety of options, and guides her to an end goal. With this information, I felt ready to construct my scenario.
User Scenario.
The unemployed go-getter has recently been laid off from her previous job working as a teacher at a forest school. The impact from COVID has shut down schools due to in-person contact and has made it hard to find jobs that pay well and are interesting for people with educational backgrounds. She has spent most of her life working in this field has no other experience or degrees and is now desperately looking for a new career that is well paid and can keep her afloat during these hard times but is afraid that it will not happen since she will need an easy way to find education, counseling, connections and help to guide her through the process. She wants to switch careers asap due to her unemployment.
Problem Statement, Concept Statement, and User Task.
My next step was to work on my problem statement which allowed me to think about how I could design the app to solve the user problem. I then transitioned into the concept statement to give myself an idea of how I wanted to design. I did so by choosing 3 main user tasks and making them the focal point of my design.
The Problem Statement: The unemployed go-getter had a difficult time finding a career path that would accommodate her previous work experience.
Concept Statement: An app that matches you to new career opportunities/fields related to your previous work experience and then guides you through your career change by providing online education opportunities, connections, career guidance, boot camps etc.
User Task:
Provide information about the type/types of experience they already have
Narrow down search by various parameters
Choose career paths and skills that seem interesting to them.
User Flow Charts.
The user starts with navigating from the beginning of the app (search bar) to the next step of the job search process. During the process, the user enters their experience, location, and desired benefits to search for jobs near them.
After the previous flow, the user enters the final process of the prototype. They are asked to enter the field they wish to work in as well as skills they are interested in. Once they choose the career field they like the app narrow’s down the search and provide’s a list of jobs.
Sketches
After my user flows I had an understanding of the direction I wanted to head for my design that solved the user’s problem while keeping the prototype simple, easy to navigate with a clear path from beginning to end.
Wire Framing & Prototyping
I moved into wire-framing my sketches on Figma starting with a simple 3-page wireframe and gradually adding pages for actions throughout the process. I ended up changing my first iteration after I conducted my first round of usability tests. I gradually added better mechanics and other features as I transitioned into prototyping
