Streamlining the inconsistent processes and scattered information
The new hires' onboarding experience has been an overlooked area at operations organization at Apple, the 4th largest division at Apple with 13k+ employees. It was not consistent and streamlined. New hires are overwhelmed with scattered materials and highly-contextualized information from different parties. However, it's an area that many team don't want to spend resources on.
When I joined Apple Apps Solutions team as a UX design intern in May 2019, I was responsible for solving this problem from scratch together with 3 other teammates, in collaboration with Learning & Development department.
By the end of the internship, I defined the problems and product direction, delivered wireframes and hi-fi interfaces.
My role
UX design lead
Resonisibility
User research, UX design, UI design
My crew
1 product manager, 4 engineers
Timeline
July - Aug 2019
Deliverables
Refined product concept, Information architecture, Wireframes, Hi-fidelity design prototype
Impacts
The platform was launched in early 2020, and received positive feedbacks from trial release.
Problem space
Offered by different parties, the current on-boarding information is disseminated through different mediums. In addition, the programs are mostly designed for external hires. Other groups of new employees, such as internal transferred hires and new managers, are neglected.
How might we create a streamlined and inclusive on-boarding experience for a diverse group of new hires?
research process
research process
Findings
01. The current on-boarding plans are inconsistent and ineffective
Different teams use different tools. Most of them package all the links and materials into a document as the main on-boarding plan.
New hires say they stopped using it after clicking through the links within 1-2 weeks, as there are not enough contexts.
New hires didn't find it exciting.
New hires wanted to get started to DO something, otherwise they felt nervous about not being valuable to the team.
Design solution: Create a journey of actions, not a list of information. Curate actionable items for new hires to settle down in the first few weeks. Let them know the priorities and contexts.
02. The scattered and contextualized information make new hires feel out of control
New hires had difficulty in finding a specific piece of information from various sites.
New hires were afraid of missing anything important.
New hires found it hard to fit in quickly, because of the jargon and not knowing who to reach out for what information.
Design Solution: Integrate all the scattered information into a self-explorable knowledge framework. Link people with knowledge area. Encourage new hires to reach out, ask for help, and build connection.
03. The highly structured on-boarding program neglects diversified needs
Current on-boarding programs are designed for external hired individual contributor, neglecting the needs of internal transferred hires and new managers.
Design Solution: Provide customizable templates for managers to advocate and adapt to different needs.
Journey mapping
Through mapping users' needs, pain points and opportunities throughout the on-boarding process, our team evaluated design features more holistically.
UX Vision
For new hires
Increase new hires' agency to explore and learn.
For manager
Help managers device an inclusive and efficient on-boarding journey through framework.
design explorations
I explored several versions of the main layout. Designs were critiqued by other designers, PM, engineers and users. The design decisions were made based on its functionality, interaction fluidity, and visual competency.
Layout exploration
final design - new hire
The on-boarding site provides a progressive and self-explorable information experience based on 4 key use scenarios.
Pre-boarding
30/60/90 Day On-Boarding Journey
No more list of links in Excel table. Provide a self-explorable learning structure with extendable links to house scattered resources.
Checkpoint
Schedule 1:1 meetup in one click. Get feedback and keep the journey excited.
Knowledge hub
Access to all resources in a customizable structure. Link documents, sites and people.
final design - manager
The on-boarding CMS portal provides a step-by-step planning tool, customizable templates, reminder and checklist.
Impacts
The platform was launched early 2020
And it has been receiving positive feedbacks from the trial users. New hires were excited about the onboarding journey they received. Managers mentioned that it saved lots of coordination and planning hours, and helped them learn about good onboarding practice. The project was also recognized by the leadership, and was expected to increase its scope to a larger organization level.
Learning
Start design iteration early as a way to process research findings
Though I believe in the value of user research, I do find myself tend to over analyze and spent a bit long on the research side, leaving less time for design iteration. In future project, I should keep the research more concise and start turning findings and thoughts into visible design earlier.
Consider the needs of stakeholders
In addition to users, stakeholders' needs should also be considered. Otherwise, in this case, new hires won't be likely to use the portal if their managers don't like it and use it.
Close collaboration with engineers team can push design exploration
I worked closely with my engineer teammates in SCRUM workflow. While responsible for everything design related, we updated each other in the weekly meet-ups and gave feedbacks to each others. The frequent updates allow me understand the constraints for certain proposed designs in an early stages and pushed me to explore alternatives.
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