Bayer HCD (Human Centered Design)

A two phase project, Bayer HCD was my opportunity to educate on the importance of UX. Bayer Germany wanted to prove the importance of Human-Centered design to the overall organization as most HCD work was being done by contractors. To show this, we took a problem they were facing (on-boarding) and tried to solve it in a prototype. Due to the success of this initial prototype my team was contracted for a second phase: the Brazilian division found themselves in a challenging position without an established UX practice amid heightened uncertainties post-COVID-19. With recent layoffs dampening morale and skepticism around hiring a new team during a time of low morale, Bayer opted to engage our company to establish a design studio and develop several Greenfield prototypes. What commenced as a single prototype to convince the organization at large to support an HCD practice, the project soon evolved into a broader initiative with Bayer extending our collaboration to a second phase focused on design studio implementation. To kick start this and foster a culture of excellence, a group of Brazilian employees from Bayer joined us in shadowing sessions and workshops as we collectively crafted multiple prototypes. This thorough process unfolded across an exhaustive timeline of over a year.

Time: 11 Months Tools: Figma, Mural, Adobe CC, Microsoft 365

Problem

Our client’s Brazilian branch lacked a defined UX practice, whereas their German division was in the process of understanding Human-Centered Design (HCD) The German division felt an internal studio would help ease their reliance on external contractors. In order to accomplish this, we had to figure out how to. As well, I personally had to educate members of my companies team on UX matters.

Action

In the project's first phase, we conducted workshops, created a Greenfield prototype, and utilized both as socialization/education tools for our client to evangelize HCD and prove value of our work. In the second phase, we helped their Brazilian team establish an HCD practice through training and shadowing, while also developing two additional Greenfield prototypes to address onboarding issues. Additionally, we reviewed current workflows for improvement in an Onboarding prototype, aiding the Brazilian team in launching their internal studio.

Result

The client demonstrated a high level of satisfaction during the initial phase of the project by providing numerous rounds of post-mortem feedback. At one point, I was initially requested to step down from the project due to a new focus on employees within the CET timezone. However, my return was requested based on the exceptional quality of work delivered. After training the Brazilian team, we shared our two onboarding prototypes with the client, which was followed by the Brazilian team advancing this work forward.

Phase 1

Methods

Discovery & Research

Workshops:

As series of 3 workshops served as a cornerstone for (hopefully) revolutionizing Bayer’s contracting processes in the future. These collaborative sessions were instrumental in identifying and addressing the critical pain points within the existing system. By bringing together diverse stakeholders, the workshops facilitated a rich exchange of insights and fostered a shared understanding among participants. This collective approach not only ensured a comprehensive evaluation of the current state but also enabled the creative ideation of solutions tailored to enhance user experience and efficiency. The outcomes of these workshops directly shaped the subsequent phases of the project, laying a solid foundation for developing intuitive and user-centered designs that meet the real needs of those involved in Bayer’s contracting activities.

1. Workshop 1: Focused on understanding the current process and identifying pain points

2. Workshop 2: Designed future state user journeys considering updated persona pain points

3. Workshop 3: Further developed the future state user journey and prioritized solutions through voting

Workshop Synthesis:

• Utilizing dot voting exercises on Mural, we synthesized the following findings from the 3 workshops:

  • Key Takeaways - Pain Points Identified:

    • Complexity and ambiguity in the contracting process

    • Poor search functionality and lack of single-entry points

    • Need for clearer, simpler guidance and communication

  • Key Takeaways - Proposed Solutions:

    • Consolidation of information and resources

    • Automation of mundane tasks and decisions

    • Intuitive and aesthetically pleasing design to enhance user experience

    • A single source of truth for all process-related information

Persona:

We then used our findings to create a persona. The workshops served as a guide, helping to build and refine our persona to better understand their needs and pain points in the contracting process. This persona was used as a representative user to empathize with and design solutions that address the specific challenges faced by individuals like her in the contracting environment at Bayer. The persona creation focused on thinking in terms of her behaviors, attitudes, and the challenges she faces, particularly in relation to the contracting process. This approach was used to drive empathy and to design solutions tailored to alleviating the identified pain points and improve the overall user experience in the contracting process.

Design & Iteration

Lo-Fidelity Wireframes:

We first created low-fidelity prototypes, 1 by each of the four designers. (File is no longer accessible)

Hi-Fidelity Prototype:

We utilized prioritization activity to vote on our favorites solutions from each prototype to combine them all into a high-fidelity prototype.

Research

Interviews:

In order to test our work, we did user interviews in which users utilized our prototype and gave their thoughts. Results showed
positive feedback from users, especially in relation to proving the need for human support and simpler instructions. Concerns were raised about response times for support inquiries and the overall accessibility of the guide.

Phase 2

Methods

Research & Exploration

Secondary Research / Analysis:

An analyst of existing “Service Tickets” for prioritization consideration was conducted to understand the frequency and nature of onboarding-related issues. The analysis provided insights into the most common pain points faced by new joiners and hiring managers. This data was crucial for identifying areas that needed immediate attention and for prioritizing solutions that would have the most significant impact on the onboarding experience.

Interviews:

We conducted user testing via interviews. I helped plan by assisting in the interviews, suggesting activities, adding to the workshop on Mural and assisting in leading the workshops, The user feedback process helped refine visual design elements in line with Bayer's brand guidelines. These interviews helped clarify the existing onboarding system's capabilities and constraints, ensuring that proposed solutions were feasible and aligned with the technical environment. I assisted in conducting two interviews and in research synthesis post-interviews.

Workshops:

• Workshops 1-2: Held to envision an ideal onboarding process with cross-functional team members. We focused on mapping new joiner's journey and enhancing touchpoints for onboarding experience. I assisted in planning and leading the workshop with two BAs.

  • Key Exercises:

    • Conducted user testing and created wireframes to adjust features, functionality, and iconography based on feedback

      • The user feedback process helped refine visual design elements in line with Bayer's brand guidelines

    • Empathy maps created for new joiners, hiring managers, and new joiner buddies

      • These were utilized to help inform our initial personas that were validated in workshops 3 & 4

• Workshops 3 and 4: Led to detailed personas developed through team brainstorming on names, sketches, behaviors, actions, demographics, psychographics, needs, and pain points.

  • Key Takeaways:

    • Some new joiners require more technical support, while others need more cultural integration

    • Hiring managers had a hard time talking with one another to support the new joiners, and needed a centralized platform to communicate amongst themselves

    • Hiring managers are often pressed for time and prefer a streamlined process that minimizes their administrative burden

• Workshops 5, 6 and 7: Myself and the team mapped interactions and touchpoints for new joiners and facilitators. Idea cards were brainstormed, discussed, and voted on to find solutions, then grouped into Lean UX Canvas templates.

  • Key Takeaways:

    • Clear business problems, possible solutions, business outcomes, user benefits, and design hypotheses for six emerging flows were identified.

      • There was a lack of oversight and timelines were difficult to access for both Hiring Managers & New Joiners

      • Hiring managers needed to use multiple different portals to complete jobs, increasing time on task

      • There was a need to have two different portals, one for new joiners and one for managers involved in the hiring process

      • Six User Flows: Day One Readiness & Access, Onboarding Checklist, Welcome Package/Goodies, Network/Fit-In, Virtual Onboarding Channel, and Single Source of Truth

Persona Selection:

Following the workshops, the team finalized personas for key stakeholders: New Joiners (Jose and Maria), Hiring Managers (Laura and Adriano), and New Joiner Buddies (Ana). Each persona was detailed with demographics, behaviors, actions, key interactions, tasks, needs, desires, and pain points. A representative quote was included to summarize each persona's general outlook on the onboarding process. I worked on the persona for Adriano.

Design

Prototyping/HCD Training:

Following the research phase, the designers split into two groups to plan two seperate prototypes, one for day one readiness and one for asset procurement. I helped on the day one readiness path. We held twice weekly education based working sessions with at least one client employee each.

Layout Templates:

Final Hi-Fi Prototypes:

The team generated a wide range of ideas, focusing on quantity over quality initially. These ideas were then refined, grouped around common themes, and formed into tangible, workable concepts. High-fidelity prototypes were created and tested with users for initial validation.

New Joiner Portal:

Iteration & Handoff

User Testing:

The prototypes were tested with users to gather feedback. Users explored the prototypes and completed tasks while providing feedback on the clarity and usability of different features, utilizing timed of their current process as . The feedback was used to refine and improve the prototypes.

Feedback from testing:

Qualatative

Users found having a hub exciting & significantly easier than their current process, overall sentiment was extremely high

Quantatative

Time on task was reduced per hiring manager task by 30%

Previous New Joiners found having a single source of truth invaluable and rated the prototype 8.5/`10

Satisfaction score via survey was 8.8.10

The final prototypes were prepared for handover to development teams for development. The user testing sessions provided valuable insights that informed the final design, helped create future state and ensured the prototypes met user needs and expectations. Developement was paused, but the project was recently resurrected.