DASHBOARD MANAGEMENT
This blue sky design came about through a hackathon. The goal was to build a sleek a robust dashboard management and editing system from scratch. The design process required user research through to full high fidelity prototype.
USER RESEARCH SUMMARY
The user research for this product showed the need for a dashboard manager that was easy to use, had visual appeal, varying color choices, layout choices, and templates. Users wanted to have both detailed control for power users as well as plug and play capability for those with less computer literacy or less time.
WIREFRAMES
Wireframing this project enabled me to see critical areas to design a minimum viable product. I was able to identify key interactions and form a foundation of a workflow. This wireframe was used to validate design direction with end users.
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DASHBOARD MANAGEMENT
The first goal of the project was met through the design of a simple and sleek dashboard management system from a singular location. Users could navigate through a left menu to the dashboard manager where they would be presented with an intuitive management page.
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DASHBOARD CREATION
The second goal was to have a way for users to create a new dashboard. While designing for this particular goal, I had to consider power users as well as users who would want a plug and play method or some guidance in creating a dashboard. A wizard was presented to the user to allow choices based on their preferred method of dashboard creation.
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DASHBOARD DESIGNER
The third goal was to create a robust and powerful way for users to edit a dashboard. To do so, I designed a dashboard "designer" in a WYSIWYG style with powerful tools easily accessible from a right slide out. Options such as a widget galley with thumbnail previews, a style editor for detailed control, and a mobile editor were designed in full.
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PROJECT LESSONS LEARNED
This project was a great chance for me to flex my design muscles. The blue sky design enabled me to try some different designs. It also helped me reinforce the importance of user research and validation. While it was a great success, even winning and internal company award, it was not without it faults. When given no real limitations, scope creep can rear its ugly head. Assumptions were also challenged when presented to stakeholders and end users. Lesson learned: Validate early and often.