Visitor Manager - Maple Leaf Foods Streamlining and enhancing the experience of signing in visitors.
I'm under an NDA, so I have to blur the screens, but...
...I can definitely still talk about my process. While working at Maple Leaf Foods this past summer, I was responsible for front-end development and design of the new internal app. Along with creating final high-fidelity screens for the developers, I also conducted the user research and testing.
The beginning of the VM App During my time at Maple Leaf Foods, it was discovered that the current sign-in process was ineffective due to it being done on paper, contradictory to its sustainable and digital goals and it not being consistent throughout multiple locations.
Research
I looked at certain features and screens from different apps. I looked into iLobby, and noticed that one big feature was an emergency setting that would allow visitors to be notified of an emergency. Other key features included in this app allowed visitors to take pictures of themselves, allowing hosts to see who exactly the visitors were.
I decided to take some inspiration from iLobby as I felt that the added security was a nice value proposition for attracting and retaining users.
Testing on real people is important In terms of the design, I followed Apple's iOS Design guidelines, as I felt a native experience would add a level of familiarity for people who were iOS users. We tested both Android and iOS users, and found that iOS users had no problems navigating through the Manage Payees section and completing tasks, because certain design components were familiar. iOS users on the other hand took a little longer to figure out the app, but it wasn’t impossible.
Takeaways
We reiterated the application a number of times, adding different features each time and in the end, came up with an app that would facilitate and enhance the visitor sign-in process by greeting visitors with a futuristic experience when they enter the lobby of the location they are visiting. Visitors can simply enter all the required information on the iPad, and once they sign-in, their host will automatically receive an email letting them know that their visitor has arrived.
If I had to do something differently, it would have been to take more time on the initial research; we could have avoided spending time reiterating if we had gained all the requirements initially.