User-Centred System Design

Between 2002 and 2005, a design team at Carnegie Mellon University worked with the US Postal Service to transform the USPS’s core operational standards document into an information system that better served all of its customers and users. 


In the past, the language, structure, and complexity in this document (the Domestic Mail Manual, or DMM) posed significant difficulty and frustration for the employees and many customers who use the Postal Service. Oriented around legal compliance, engineering requirements, and the operational flow of mail through its system, the DMM did not provide customers with the tools to understand their mailing options or guidance for making informed decisions. This resulted in poor customer experience and lost revenues for the Postal Service. The intent of the redesign project was to educate customers and employees, promote greater efficiency and satisfaction in the use of USPS products and services, and increase customer confidence in the mail and in the USPS by creating a DMM that was more accessible and easier to use.




Fundamental to the human-centred approach utilised by the team was that the designers themselves, rather than external firms, conducted research as an integral part of the development process. Additionally, the user-centred approach demanded that designers consult and collaborate with users on an ongoing basis throughout the design process, supporting the design process during both the generation and the evaluation of concepts and solutions. Over the course of this project more than 500 customers, employees, and stakeholders were consulted. Following are some of the research methods and techniques that the team utilised:


Immersion Research

The goal of immersion research is to become familiar with the needs and concerns of potential users. The design team employed research in the early phases of the design process to ensure that they understood the point of view of the users and the problems that users faced. During immersion research, the designers interviewed employees and potential customers about their experiences with the US Postal Service, the DMM, and mailing experiences in general. The customers and employees also shared their preferences and practices in the way to access information. Field visits were utilised to study the places and processes through which people gather information from the USPS. These field visits included research methods such as observation, shadowing, role play, and depth interviews.





Speculative Scenarios

The goal of speculative scenarios is to put designers in situations that allow them to empathise and understand motivations of potential users. Speculative scenarios were used to test the logic and flow of information as the early document design emerged. In conjunction with the immersion research, the design team began by using current USPS resources to find solutions to invented scenarios. This allowed the designers to develop a necessary functional literacy of the complex materials they would be working with and allowed them to develop a close understanding of the existing products. During the course of the research, the designers kept track of points of confusion, “a-ha” moments, and the resources used. Scenarios continued to be used throughout the design process, as later prototypes were developed.





Card Sorting

This research method is specific to document design and information architecture. The goal of card sorting is to allow the users to play an active role in determining the structure of information by sorting index cards labelled with major topics or areas of related interest. The designers observed as the user was given scenario-based tasks and asked to organise a set of cards labelled with mailing terms and topics. The designers then evaluated these groupings to determine an organisation that would meet the expectations expressed by the users as intuitive.





Document Reviews

The goal of a document review is to discover whether the document had been compiled in the correct sequence with the correct range of topics. These reviews helped assist in understanding if the depth of the information presented was appropriate. USPS employees as well as current and potential customers reviewed the document at various stages and commented on the structure and content, allowing the designers to determine if the grouping and structuring of information, the “information architecture,” was meeting the needs and expectations of the users.


Prototype Testing

The goal of prototype testing is to see if draft models of the document are indeed useful and usable to participants and they are able to use prototypes to successfully complete common tasks. These formal interviews involved task-based scenarios, document annotation, and probing questions. Both USPS employees and customers were asked to use prototype documents to complete task scenarios, which allow the designers to observe the user’s ability to find answers and solutions. A combination of qualitative and quantitative components were used. Speed and accuracy of task completion was measured and documented, and participants were interviewed about their levels of understanding and confidence in the document design.

 

Portfolio > Design Research > Collaborating with Users

Client: US Postal Service


My Role: Project Lead