The Digital Inspection Checklist (Digital Prüfcheckliste) focuses on enhancing quality assurance workflows for Bosch technicians.
The app digitizes inspection tasks, empowering users to seamlessly log deficiencies (Mängel), manage tasks, and track inspection progress.
All data from the application is protected under an NDA, and only processed, fake or anonymized data may be shared, not the original raw data
THE PROBLEM
I..Technicians Struggled with Time-Consuming and Confusing Workflows
II. Collaboration Between Technicians and Managers Broke Down
Technicians and managers were stuck working in silos, unable to align on inspections or deficiencies effectively. The Digital Prüfcheckliste app lacked the tools to connect these roles seamlessly, turning what should have been a collaborative effort into a series of isolated actions. The result? Tasks fell through the cracks, and efficiency took a back seat.
III. Inconsistent and Fragmented Design System
Technicians and managers were stuck working in silos, unable to align on inspections or deficiencies effectively. The Digital Prüfcheckliste app lacked the tools to connect these roles seamlessly, turning what should have been a collaborative effort into a series of isolated actions. The result? Tasks fell through the cracks, and efficiency took a back seat.
MY ROLE
Empowering Technicians Through Seamless Workflows
MY CONTRIBUTION
Supported, Collaborated, and Owned Key Tasks
User Experience Design, User Interface Design, User Research (Partly supported), Usability Testing, Prototyping, Bug Bashing, Handoff (Partly Supported)
MY TEAM
I Didn’t Work Alone
I collaborated with a cross-functional team consisting of 1 Senior Product Designer, 1 UX Researcher, 1 Product Manager, 1 Frontend Developer, and 2 Backend Developers.
PROCESS
Design Process
USER INTERVIEWS
Our Goal Was To Understand Why Collaboration Between Technicians And Managers Was Falling Short.
To identify the gaps in the Digital Prüfcheckliste app, the product team and I conducted research sessions, including interviews and workflow observations. We focused on understanding the current pain points and what users needed to collaborate effectively.
Managers
Managers oversee inspection progress and allocate resources to resolve deficiencies efficiently. Their role requires prioritizing critical tasks and ensuring compliance. Their challenges included:
No centralized dashboard for monitoring progress.
Difficulty receiving real-time notifications about logged deficiencies.
Over-reliance on manual follow-ups to ensure tasks were completed.
Technicians
USER PREFERENCES
Users Expressed Four Key Needs For An Improved Inspection And Collaboration Experience With The Digital Prüfcheckliste app.
“I Need to See Everything in One Place”
"When I log into the app, I want to immediately see an overview of my assigned tasks, unresolved deficiencies, and inspection progress so I can prioritize my work effectively."
“Let Me Work the Way I Need To”
"When I log into the app, I want to immediately see an overview of my assigned tasks, unresolved deficiencies, and inspection progress so I can prioritize my work effectively."
“Keep Us Aligned, Instantly”
"When deficiencies are logged, I want managers to be notified instantly, with clear task assignments, so we can resolve issues faster and stay aligned as a team."
THE ROOT CAUSES
I..Disjointed Workflow Between Metrics and Execution
❌The dashboard fails to provide intuitive shortcuts or interactive elements for users to access tasks, inspections, or deficiencies (Mängel) directly. Users are forced to navigate through multiple screens, disrupting their workflow and increasing time spent on task management.
II. Limited Actionable Insights for Optimized User Decision-Making
❌ The dashboard provides raw data but lacks contextual reports or insights. Users, especially managers, are unable to identify trends, prioritize critical issues, or make data-driven decisions without manual effort to extract and analyze the information.
III. Inconsistent User Collaboration Across Roles
❌ The app does not fully support collaboration between technicians, managers, and service leads, leading to silos in task ownership and communication. Coordination issues result in delays and inefficiencies in inspection workflows.
IV. Components Were Not Repeatedly Used Across the Design
❌ The app lacked a modular design system, leading to inconsistent usage of components like buttons, input fields, and navigation patterns.
PERSONAS
Who Are We Designing For?
Through our research, we identified three primary user archetypes for the Digital Prüfcheckliste app, each with distinct motivations and goals:
PROJECT GOALS
Our Focuses
What? Who? When? Results?
INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE
Streamlining Navigation Through Enhanced Information Architecture
DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Refined Design Principles For The Digital Prüfcheckliste
I defined two core design principles to guide the redesign of the Digital Prüfcheckliste:
EXPLORATION
Design Exploration - Each Version Has Its Pros And Cons
e.g: How should dashboard be displayed?
I..Transform Workflows With A Streamlined Homepage Dashboard, Cutting Confusion And Saving Technicians Time.
II. Enhancing Dashboard Insights for Smarter, Actionable Decision-Making
III. Driving Collaboration: Introducing Edit and Comment Features for Technicians and Managers
IV. Standardized Components Ensure Consistency, Scalability, and Streamlined Design Implementation (Some examples)
FIGMA PROTOTYPE
USABILITY TESTING
Usability Testing Preparation - Research Questions
USABILITY TESTING RESULT
Users Felt Confident
GOAL
Evaluate whether the redesigned dashboard and navigation improve task tracking, deficiency logging, and overall user experience for technicians and managers.
6 Participants
6 participants from various Bosch service teams. Experienced technicians and managers using tablets.
PROTOTYPE
DEMO
CONSTRAINTS
Not Everything Went Smoothly
Unforeseen challenges are inevitable in any project. It's important to adapt and find the best ways to address these issues as they arise. During the redesign process, we encountered key blockers that required careful consideration:
Time Constraints
The initial design aimed to provide a comprehensive solution to address all user pain points. However, after discussions with the development team, it became clear that the proposed scope was too ambitious for the timeline. To meet deadlines, we decided to focus on an MVP approach for the first phase, prioritizing the most critical features, such as task tracking and deficiency management. Secondary features were scheduled for a later phase to ensure delivery quality.
Cross-Functional Coordination
Collaboration across multiple teams introduced additional layers of complexity. Teams responsible for integration with Microsoft Planner and internal Bosch systems had varying timelines and priorities. Aligning on shared goals required extra time for meetings and iterative adjustments to the workflow.
Despite these constraints, the team maintained focus on delivering an impactful solution within the available resources.
IMPACTS
Users Love It
The metrics reveal highly positive outcomes from these enhancements:
Improved collaboration: Significant growth in the number of comments and edits made collaboratively by technicians and managers directly in the app.
Enhanced task efficiency: Marked reduction in time spent navigating the dashboard, enabling quicker task prioritization and completion.
Increased user satisfaction: Technicians reported feeling more empowered with clear actionable insights, while managers appreciated the real-time updates.
Streamlined issue resolution: Faster documentation and resolution of deficiencies (Mängel), improving overall workflow effectiveness.
High feature adoption: Usage of new features like "Mängel Overview" exceeded expectations, demonstrating their effectiveness in real scenarios.
