The Bizness
End to End app
An app that aims to bring remote working professionals who work from home most days of the week, and under the same company, together for in-person team-building activities and events.
My Role
End to end designer
Tools
Figma
Project duration
4-5 weeks
The Problem
Remote workers are isolated working from home and may be burnt out from meeting over Zoom. In person meetings for lunch or dinner with your team can combat isolation for remote/isolated workers, connect and collaborate better.
The Goal
The social app aims to revolutionize the remote work experience, fostering a sense of community, collaboration and well-being among professionals in virtual work environments.
Beyond the Screen
Target Audience: Remote working professionals (in the same company/organization), working from home at least 4 days a week, ranging from various ages and across different job roles and industries.
“ A 2022 survey noted that 70% of remote workers don’t feel they’re able to socialize enough, and close to half said they are likely to leave their jobs because of loneliness. Reinforcing this sentiment, about 25% of people globally experience regular feelings of seclusion. ”
Research Methodology
Data Collection Strategies
A) Competitive Analysis
Employed SWOT analysis on 3 different apps aimed to bring people together for in-person events, connecting people based on personal & professional interests.
Sociabbble
Gather
MeetUp
While all three apps share the goal of connecting people, based on various interests, there’s a distinct opportunity to tailor one to the unique needs of large, geographically dispersed organizations and its employees. This refined app could focus on fostering employee engagement and facilitate team-building events and activities across various employee locations and also connect employees in the same geographic location.
B) User Interviews
Employed SWOT analysis on 3 different apps aimed to bring people together for in-person events, connecting people based on personal & professional interests.
Key Insights
While remote work provides flexibility, long-term it may challenge important in-person interactions and risk making the job less meaningful over time if not balanced.
Establishing new relationships remotely is very challenging compared to in-person. Video calls can feel awkward without an existing relationship.
"Part of the balance is being able to do face to face meetings...It speaks volumes that I'm willing to budget time for face to face meetings." Patrick
User Personas
Bre
Role: Remote Software Engineer
Age: 28
Experience: 5 years in the tech industry
Work Environment: Fully remote for the past year
Needs
Regular in-person team events to enhance relationships and team cohesion.
Tools for planning and voting on in-person activities, ensuring inclusivity.
Features that help find common meeting times and suggest personalized activities.
An app to facilitate communication and organization for in-person team activities
Goals
Ensure team productivity and cohesion in a work environment.
Balance remote flexibility with necessary in-person interactions.
Foster a strong team culture and relationships.
Maintain personal well-being and job satisfaction.
Challenges:
Remote Relationships: Difficult to establish new relationships and maintain existing ones remotely.
Communication: Virtual meetings can be awkward and less engaging without prior in-person connections.
Planning Events: Finding it challenging to organize inclusive and engaging team-building activities.
Engagement: Maintaining team engagement and connectivity in a primarily remote setting.
Daily Tools
Patrick
Role: Project Manager
Age: 35
Experience: 12 years in the project management
Work Environment: Hybrid, primarily remote with occasional office visits
Needs
Regular, meaningful in-person gatherings to build deeper connections.
Team-building activities focused on shared interests and deeper interactions.
An app to help organize and facilitate in-person team activities.
Challenges:
Isolation: Feels isolated due to lack of in-person interactions.
Communication: Finds it difficult to communicate complex topics and build relationships through virtual meetings.
Engagement: Struggles with staying engaged during virtual team meetings.
Goals
Maintain high productivity while working remotely.
Develop deeper connections with colleagues despite the remote setup.
Participate in meaningful team-building activities.
Improve personal well-being through better work-life balance.
Daily Tools
Problems
Communication barriers: Difficulty getting quick responses from teammates.
Relationship building: Challenges feeling connected with colleagues.
Isolation: Feeling disconnected, especially with less familiar colleagues.
Productivity impact: Work progress hindered by lack of in-person interaction.
Solutions
Build strong relationships through in-person team-building activities
Develop & implement tools to facilitate scheduling and organizing in-person team events
Less isolation and increased well-being & productivity among teammates, facilitating deeper connections
How Might We statements
How might we create a tool for team-building activities for hybrid and remote workers so they can improve team cohesion and productivity?
How might we create a tool for remote workers so that they can foster deeper connections and effective communication to reduce their feelings of isolation?
Project Goals
Create opportunities for in-person interactions that are meaningful and cater to diverse interests, helping both the business and users achieve better connectivity and engagement
Develop tools that help schedule and organize in-person team building events, find common meeting times, and suggest engaging activities, benefiting both the organization’s efficiency and employee’s experience.
Promote well-being: organize in-person events that support well-being, which in turn enhances productivity, job satisfaction and team cohesion for both the business and its employees.
Site Map
Guiding the design process:
Visualizing the Information Architecture to meet users expectations on where to locate specific content
Branding/UI Kit
Capturing our brand's spirit in a modern, playful look
Low Fidelity Wireframes
Mid Fidelity Wireframes
The dashboard's UI elements and visual hierarchy along with buttons in several screens were refined through several iterations to improve user understanding and functionality.
Hi Fidelity Mockups
Collaboration and fun are at the heart of this app's design. We've made it effortless to get coworkers together for in-person events and team-building activities, creating a more vibrant and connected workplace. We're empowering teams to collaborate in person and have fun, ultimately boosting morale and productivity.
Prototype
Try the prototype here
Usability Testings
Unmoderated testing conducted with 5 remote working employees.
"I liked everything about it especially that it had just 3 stages to be able to book an event."
Four out of five users rated the overall ease of booking & confirming an in-person event, a 5(easy) while one user rated it a 4.
Five out of five users rated it a 5(very satisfied) on how satisfied they were with the overall experience booking an in-person team event.
Conclusion
In-person interactions are important for building strong relationships, effective communication, and overall job satisfaction. While remote work offers flexibility, it poses challenges to fostering meaningful connections and can lead to feelings of isolation. Striking a balance between remote work and in-person interactions is crucial for maintaining a fulfilling and productive work environment and well-being for the employee.
