FlexConnect
An app that offers flexible work for college students and infuses better hiring practices.
Project
Academic
Timeline
4 months
Role
UX Researcher, UI Designer
Team
April Morales, Orlando Flores
Overview
Prompt
A barrier for many students entering or staying in college is securing adequate funding. Most jobs are full-time nine-to-fives, making it hard for students to find work that fits their schedules. FlexConnect addresses common hiring obstacles, offering numerous options for both students and employers and making the job search and hiring process less stressful.
Initial Research
Background Research
Research Goals
• Learn about the flexible jobs students have
• Determine what students who lack a flexible job are seeking
• Determine what employers who offer short-term/flexible work are seeking
Research 1 - Literature Review
Findings:
The majority of college students are working part-time or full-time
While many students believe college is a good choice for their future, concerns about money lead many to lose time on schoolwork or reduce their workload
Jobs that are part of the school’s campus, such as a tutor, was a successful type of flexible job option
Communication is a key to success, not only in networking but also communicating with your job and professors about your needs/availability
User Interview
Interviews & Surveys
After developing a thorough research plan, my team and I interviewed six different individuals (3 students, 3 employers who offer flexible work) and organized the results to determine individual needs, pain points, wants, and goals. We also determined insights from the data and what opportunities there were to address user needs.
Key Comments
One participant would like to see “the work environment, and not like those little cheesy quotes like ‘oh…we're like a family.’ But a real…description of the personality of the job.”
Successful business relationships were “...friendly relationship[s]. Outgoing, easy conversationalist.”
Regarding misleading job descriptions, one participant commented, “I had an internship posted as 20 hours a week that was actually 30-35 hours a week…”
These Insights Led to Our Team Pivoting Our Direction
We found that besides connecting students with employers who offer flexible work, we also had to focus on inculcating better hiring practices into the solution. This was determined based on the patterns found in the wants, needs and pain points expressed by interviewees.
Defining & Ideation
User Journey Map
The first user journey map details the experience of a student seeking employment, while the second showcases an employer looking for employees for a flexible job.
How Might We Questions
• How might we ensure potential student employees can integrate well into the environment of a job they’re interested in?
• How might we help student job applicants and employers adequately get to know one another during an interview?
• How might we present applicants with job descriptions that align with the tasks expected of them?
Ideation
Our team began ideating a solution to our problem using the Crazy 8's method: a design sprint method which involved creating 8 distinct ideas in a limited amount of time to solve the problem at hand.
Storyboarding the Most Well-Received Ideas
At this, stage, we began to design a mobile app with a smart watch add-on.
Prototyping
Wireframes
Usability Testing/Iterative Design
Based on feedback, we iterated our mid-fidelity prototype. For example, when setting up a student profile, users said they were confused by the course tag UI. Thus, we formatted the course tags to be more clear with suggestions. Additionally, rather than having the next button as plain text in an awkward spot, we made it into a typical button below the rest of the page's content.
High-fidelity Design
Key Features
Appointments - students can make appointments with employers to chat before deciding to embark on an interview, as a low-pressure way to learn one another's personality like interviewees want.
Ratings - jobs on the home screen are equipped with ratings, so students can leave feedback as to how their experience was and whether or not the job posting was truthful.
Reflection
Final Thoughts + Next Steps
This project allowed me to design a solution that includes two related demographics, which was new for me. I also learned how to use the design sprint method and iterate on ideas to create the best solution. Most importantly, it taught me the importance of pivoting the design direction when there is a need, to ensure we are actually listening to users and solving their problems. Additional features I'd love to add are:
• Appropriate accessibility features to make the product more inclusive
• More interactions for the watch add-on