The Problem to Solve
A leading statewide energy provider was undertaking a multi-year, large-scale initiative to underground neighborhood power lines across their service area. This critical program aimed to significantly enhance service reliability for their customers and bolster the resilience of the energy grid against weather-related disruptions. However, the management and coordination of this complex effort relied heavily on a decentralized system of manual Excel spreadsheets. This approach presented numerous challenges, including:
Lack of Real-time Visibility:
Difficulty in obtaining a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of project statuses, timelines, and potential roadblocks across the entire program.Inefficient Communication and Collaboration:
Siloed information hindered seamless communication and collaboration between internal teams, external contractors, and other stakeholders involved in the various stages of the undergrounding process.Data Inconsistencies and Errors:
The manual nature of data entry and tracking increased the risk of inconsistencies, errors, and delays in project timelines.Limited Reporting and Analytics Capabilities:
The inability to easily generate insightful reports and analyze project data hampered effective decision-making and resource allocation.
To address these critical limitations and streamline the management of this extensive undergrounding program, the energy provider sought a dynamic and integrated digital solution. Our design team was tasked with creating both a web-based application for internal teams and external vendors to manage and track project progress, and a complementary iPad application to provide field teams with mobile access to crucial project information and update capabilities on the go.
The goal was to replace the inefficient spreadsheet system with a user-friendly platform that would enhance productivity, improve communication, provide real-time visibility, and ultimately contribute to the successful and timely completion of this vital infrastructure upgrade.
The Breakthrough Approach
Our solution focused on creating a unified and intuitive digital ecosystem comprising both a web-based platform for comprehensive project management and an iPad application tailored for field teams. As the Lead Information Architect and Interaction Designer, I spearheaded the design strategy, ensuring a user-centered approach throughout the entire development lifecycle. Key aspects of our solution included:
Comprehensive Information Architecture:
I led the effort to define a clear and logical information architecture for both the web and iPad applications. This involved conducting card sorting exercises with stakeholders and potential users to understand their mental models and ensure intuitive navigation.1 We also performed tree testing to validate the proposed hierarchical structure and information findability.Detailed Content Audit and Data Mapping:
To ensure a seamless transition from the existing spreadsheet system, we conducted a thorough content audit of all tracked data points. This allowed us to meticulously map the critical information elements and their relationships, guaranteeing that all necessary data was captured and effectively organized within the new digital platform.User-Centered Workflow Design:
Understanding the complexities of the undergrounding process, which involved more than 12 distinct steps for field agents, was paramount. I meticulously designed user flows that mirrored these real-world processes, ensuring a logical and efficient way for field teams to track progress and manage key content associated with each stage. This included designing specific interfaces and data entry points tailored to the unique requirements of each step.Low-to-Medium Fidelity Prototyping:
To rapidly iterate and gather early feedback, I created detailed low-to-medium fidelity wireframes for both the web and iPad interfaces. These prototypes visually represented the proposed information architecture, key interactions, and user flows, allowing stakeholders and potential users to provide valuable input early in the design process. We developed distinct versions of each screen optimized for the different screen sizes and interaction patterns of web browsers and iPad devices.Data Visualization for Enhanced Decision-Making:
Recognizing the need for at-a-glance insights into project statuses, I led the design of data visualization elements within the web application. These visualizations provided clear summaries of project progress, highlighted potential bottlenecks, and enabled stakeholders to quickly identify areas requiring immediate attention, facilitating proactive decision-making and resource allocation.
By focusing on a robust information architecture, a deep understanding of user workflows, and iterative prototyping informed by user-centered research, we designed a digital solution poised to significantly improve the efficiency, accuracy, and overall management of the energy provider's critical undergrounding initiative.
What We Achieved
The successful design and deployment of the first native cloud application for this leading statewide energy provider, completed in under a year, marked a significant milestone in their ambitious initiative to underground 22,000 miles of power lines. As the Lead Information Architect and Interaction Designer, my focus on creating a user-centered and efficient platform was instrumental in achieving these results.
By replacing the cumbersome spreadsheet-based system with an intuitive web and iPad application, we unlocked substantial gains in productivity. Our user research and carefully designed information architecture streamlined workflows for approximately 400 team members projected for 2022 (a 300% increase from previous levels), resulting in an estimated time savings of around 8 hours per week for each individual. This translates to a projected annual productivity saving of approximately $5 million over the 30-year program.
Beyond these quantifiable benefits, the rigor of our UX design process, including card sorting, tree testing, user flow analysis, and iterative prototyping, directly influenced and contributed to the evolution of an enterprise-wide design system and brand standards. This project served as a catalyst for adopting more user-centric practices across the organization.
In conclusion, this case study demonstrates the profound impact of strategic information architecture and interaction design in transforming complex operational challenges into efficient and user-friendly digital solutions. By prioritizing user needs and employing a systematic design approach, we not only delivered a critical tool for a major infrastructure project but also helped to shape the future of digital design within a large-scale enterprise.