About the project
Reimbursable expenses undergo diverse processes such as planning, approval, processing, and posting. The project aimed to streamline and automate this intricate process within the design of the new expense application.
Following a brief discovery phase, the analysts developed a concept. However, some stakeholders sought to incorporate user feedback and ensure the concept's effectiveness.
I was invited to test the concept, make sure it improves KPIs and to build data-driven expense workflow containing wide range of interrelated processes in 2,5 months
Daria Kriuchkova
Experience Consultant
Business Analysts
Project Manager
Accountant Managers
Reimbursable expenses
REXP is a redesidned cost management application. Stakeholders questioned the concept and sought further research before proceeding, while others opposed the concept validation and adhered to the original plan.
The research team I led identified the underlying cause of user difficulties. We presented the research findings to the broader team and proposed a new concept. By shifting focus from the solution to the pain point, we saved time and money for the project team.
30
interviews
120
survey respondents
5
days to make survey
4
personas
Back from solution to pain
The three interviews previously conducted were insufficient for making a decision regarding a substantial application.
I enlisted 12 respondents and guided a team of two designers through the interview and synthesis process.
Midway through the process, we discovered that the work process of support managers largely depends on the workflow of account managers. Consequently, we expanded the interview process and scheduled 15 additional interviews.
I need to manually gather approval
mails from account manager
I carefully check all the lines on dashboard
I am pushing non-approval process
but some clients do not agree on it
Automation of synthesis
Working under strict deadlines within a multi-team environment poses several challenges. Ensuring accuracy and maintaining high productivity levels are essential. In such situations, I take a step back and strategise ways to work smarter rather than merely working harder.
Promoting Research Insights
The validity of the previous concept came under scrutiny. The situation was further complicated by the business analysts' resistance to the insights regarding the process and users' behavior.
Survey to decide on concept
The survey data substantiated our hypothesis concerning discrepancies between the current user flow "as is" and the previously developed concept. Furthermore, it addressed gaps in understanding the existing documents and processes.
Engaging a multidisciplinary team in discussing the results helped me to address their resistance in a positive way.
Results of the survey have helped us to make an informed decision. Well done!
Catherine Nevskaya
Director, Program Management
Research outcomes
for business
Root causes of user’s struggles
were much deeper than everyone expected
for business
Data-driven concept
saved a lot of time and money by not letting the team rush into solution
for IT
Rich dataset to rely on
during preparation of functional and technical requirements for re-designed application
About the project
Reimbursable expenses undergo diverse processes such as planning, approval, processing, and posting. The project aimed to streamline and automate this intricate process within the design of the new expense application.
Following a brief discovery phase, the analysts developed a concept. However, some stakeholders sought to incorporate user feedback and ensure the concept's effectiveness.
I was invited to test the concept make sure that it improves KPIs sufficiently and to build data-driven expense workflow containing wide range of interrelated processes in 2,5 months
Daria Kriuchkova
Experience Consultant
Accountant Managers
Project Manager
Business Analysts
Reimbursable expenses
REXP is a redesidned cost management application. Stakeholders questioned the concept and sought further research before proceeding, while others opposed the concept validation and adhered to the original plan.
The research team I led identified the underlying cause of user difficulties. We presented the research findings to the broader team and proposed a new concept. By shifting focus from the solution to the pain point, we saved time and money for the project team.
30
intewrviews
120
survey respondents
5
days to make survey
4
personas
Activities
Project’s goals and backgroud
Interviews and CJM with users of role 1
Interviews and personas
with users of role 2
Survey to decide on concept
Methodology planning, estimating, etc
Personas for users of role 2
Reports survey results+ systems’ statistics
Envisioning and resonance testing
Research outcomes
for business
Root causes of user’s struggles
were much deeper than everyone expected
for business
Areas of potential quality improvement
saved a lot of time and money by not letting the team rush into solution
for IT
Arguments for other departments
during preparation of functional and technical requirements for re-designed application
Interviews
I conducted interviews with four accountants and four revenue specialists, each possessing a high-level understanding of the process and the capability to delve into specific details.
Although the primary target of the interviews was to compile steps, I also focused on identifying the most painful problems.
I need to manually gather approval
mails from account manager
I am pushing non-approval process
but some clients do not agree on it
I carefully check all the lines
on dashboard
Automation of synthesis
Working under strict deadlines within a multi-team environment poses several challenges. Ensuring accuracy and maintaining high productivity levels are essential.
In such situations, I take a step back and strategise ways to work smarter rather than merely working harder.
Promoting Research Insights
The validity of the previous concept came under scrutiny. The situation was further complicated by the business analysts' resistance to the insights regarding the process and users' behavior.
Survey to decide on concept
The survey data substantiated our hypothesis concerning discrepancies between the current user flow "as is" and the previously developed concept. Furthermore, it addressed gaps in understanding the existing documents and processes.
Engaging a multidisciplinary team in discussing the results helped me to address their resistance in a positive way.
Results of the survey have helped us to make an informed decision. Well done!
Catherine Nevskaya
Director, Program Management
Reimbursable expenses
REXP is a redesidned cost management application. Some stakeholders questioned the concept and sought further research before proceeding, while others opposed the concept validation and adhered to the original plan.
The research team I led identified the underlying cause of user difficulties. We presented the research findings to the broader team and proposed a new concept. By shifting focus from the solution to the pain point, we saved time and money for the project team.
30
interviews
120
survey respondent
5
days to make survey
4
personas
About the project
Reimbursable expenses undergo diverse processes such as planning, approval, processing, and posting. The project aimed to streamline and automate this intricate process within the design of the new expense application.
Following a brief discovery phase, the analysts developed a concept. However, some stakeholders sought to incorporate user feedback and ensure the concept's effectiveness.
I was invited to test the concept, make sure it improves KPIs and to build data-driven expense workflow containing wide range of interrelated processes in 2,5 months
Daria Kriuchkova
Experience Consultant
Business Analysts
Project Manager
Accountant Managers
3 months
Personas
for users of role 2
Reports
survey results+ systems’ statistics
I need to manually gather approval
mails from account manager
I carefully check all the lines on dashboard
I am pushing non-approval process
but some clients do not agree on it
Back from solution to pain
The three interviews previously conducted were insufficient for making a decision regarding a substantial application.
I enlisted 12 respondents and guided a team of two designers through the interview and synthesis process.
Midway through the process, we discovered that the work process of support managers largely depends on the workflow of account managers. Consequently, we expanded the interview process and scheduled 15 additional interviews.
Automation of synthesis
Working under strict deadlines within a multi-team environment poses several challenges. Ensuring accuracy and maintaining high productivity levels are essential. In such situations,
I take a step back and strategise ways to work smarter rather than merely working harder.
Conducting
3 interviews
Team syncs on CJM
Visual CJM in Miro
Transcribing and
coding 1 interview
Transcribing and
coding 1 interview
Transcribing and
coding 1 interview
more interviews?
Promoting Research Insights
The validity of the previous concept came under scrutiny. The situation was further complicated by the business analysts' resistance to the insights regarding the process and users' behavior.
REXP - Reimbursable Expenses Service
CJM supported with survey data
Survey to decide on concept
The survey data substantiated our hypothesis concerning discrepancies between the current user flow "as is" and the previously developed concept. Furthermore, it addressed gaps in understanding the existing documents and processes.
Engaging a multidisciplinary team in discussing the results helped me to address their resistance in a positive way.
Results of the survey have helped us to make an informed decision. Well done!
Catherine Nevskaya
Director, Program Management
Coda
Survey results supporting decisions on product strategy
Research results
for business
Root causes of user’s struggles
were much deeper than everyone expected
for business
Data-driven concept
saved a lot of time and money by not letting the team rush into solution
for IT
Rich dataset to rely on
during preparation of functional and technical requirements for application
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4
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