Career Training Tracker
Designed for the Air Force, the web application, myTraining, was created with a robust feature set. Major features include assigning and tracking personnel training progression, allowing multiple user roles the ability to interact with each other, and giving managerial roles the ability to sign-off on tasks.
Business Problem
The Air Force needed a way to track personnel as they complete assigned training, while progressing through their respective specialty career paths.
Challenge
The initial state of the project was an existing web application which the client intended to decommission. During initial stakeholder meetings, they conveyed the current experience was not intuitive, stating it was difficult navigating the app. The consensus was that the app was disjointed and hard to use, which translated to poor adoption among the force. The legacy app was ineffective and inefficient. (User research would reveal more specifics.)
Initial Requirements
A requirements traceability matrix (RTM) was provided by the client which our team reviewed. It became clear that additional functionality was required. To meet the desired functionality we updated the RTM over multiple initial stakeholder meetings. This contained our source of truth for required features and functionality moving forward. But it was only a laundry list. We needed to establish and agree on the overarching goals before moving forward.
Goals
With core requirements established, it was time to define the high-level goals which would align with the client’s overall business strategy, the RTM, and all subsequent UX efforts.
Main goal
Deliver an application which allows the Air Force to more efficiently assign and track personnel training
Deliver an application which allows the Air Force to more efficiently assign and track personnel training
Secondary Goals
• Increase standardization of tracking methods across the force
• Improve (onboarding, list management, task assignment, task tracking, task sign-off, personnel interaction) process efficiency
• Intuitive navigation
• Increase standardization of tracking methods across the force
• Improve (onboarding, list management, task assignment, task tracking, task sign-off, personnel interaction) process efficiency
• Intuitive navigation
Legacy Application Review
One legacy application was getting retired. But there was another application which the client was having built to replace the legacy app. It had also been scrapped. Regardless, all of the old or unused data architecture was helpful to review. Documentation showed each Airman has a primary career specialty which corresponds to a Career Field Education and Training Plan, or CFETP. Even greater specialization may be designated by what are known as shreds, amended CFETPs. Most training would come from these plans in addition to Job Qualification Standards training.
Market Research
To better understand the project, I conducted market research. This helped me understand the implementation of common features within training tracker apps. Unlike much of the private sector, because myTraining was funded and designated by the Air force as the official system to be used, there would not be alternative learning management systems. This was even more reason to deliver great UX. Research revealed common features with corresponding UI themes such as onboarding, personnel management, task overviews, task detail views, task collections, and completion tracking.
User Research
To better understand the personnel who would be using the new and improved version of myTraining, we worked with subject matter experts to tell us what their experience with the legacy system was like. We received feedback from all kinds of different users. It was time to define the major roles which would help me to better understand user interactions.
Identifying User Roles
Considering the myTraining app is meant for such a large target audience, there were several key roles. I worked with the client to uncover and establish definitions for each one. But I also needed to understand and map out how they all interact with each other.
Analysis
Delving further into the target audience, I mapped associations between user roles and corresponding information with which they interact.
I then created a journey map to show the correlation and sequencing among roles and events. Complete with synopsis of the high-level flow:
A master list of all tasks are maintained. Managers assign tasks to subordinate personnel who complete the training under supervision of trainers. Tasks are then signed-off by the necessary managers and may require sign-off from certifiers. Progress reports are compiled and sent up chain of command.
A master list of all tasks are maintained. Managers assign tasks to subordinate personnel who complete the training under supervision of trainers. Tasks are then signed-off by the necessary managers and may require sign-off from certifiers. Progress reports are compiled and sent up chain of command.
Planning
Once I understood the data, I was able to map out more structured views–hybrid diagraming of site maps and user flows (below). Since the architecture is displayed differently for different roles, I could show which role had access to which parts of the app and how they would flow together. I made many different diagrams for the various processes that may or may not have involved multiple roles, but the diagrams would define a particular user story or process. They were the maps I could use to get to the wireframes, which would lead to the high fidelity designs.
Design
I had enough information to start laying out the design. Starting with wireframes to capture key pages and interactions, I wanted to make sure I was putting all the relevant data points into some kind of layout. It started to take shape.
When designing the card-style collections, my initial instinct was to avoid inducing cognitive overload by making each card large with ample padding for the content to breathe. However, I miscalculated how little space would potentially be visible for the collections due to all other adjacent data which needed to be displayed simultaneously. I had to adjust parameters to accommodate. By condensing the amount of data fit onto each card, it improved scan-ability and contextual awareness.
From Wireframes to High Fidelity
Once I had completed key layouts with wireframes and had the flow of information, complete with data points, I transitioned to high fidelity mockups. This allowed me to shift into reinforcing the designs with color and contrast, bringing them to life.
User Testing
Throughout the design process, I would get feedback from the subject matter experts who would ask for adjustments via no-code, interactive prototypes, or green-light our developers to build and push to a staging environment. I would sit in as our QA team user tested each feature by allowing various groups of airmen to interact with staging. They would be asked to accomplish certain tasks and provide feedback. From this I was able to confirm usability of the design, adjusting as necessary. I consistently gathered feedback throughout every step of the project, including high fidelity designs to ensure I was on track and meeting the established goals.
Results and Impact
I faced significant challenges due to the prior state of the legacy app and failed attempts to launch a new version, which had left the product in a state of disarray. However, through diligent research, user-centered design, and iterative problem-solving, I was able to create a robust and intuitive design that addressed the previous issues. My design not only rectified the functionality problems but also enhanced the overall user experience. As a result, my team successfully launched the product to a live user base, receiving positive feedback for its improved usability and performance. The project’s successful launch demonstrated the effectiveness of our solutions and contributed to a notable increase in user engagement and satisfaction, ultimately validating the impact of our design improvements.
