It is the policy of the United States that, in a Government of the people, by the people, and for the people, improving service delivery and customer experience should be fundamental priorities. —December 13, 2021 Executive Order on Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government
In late 2021, President Biden issued an executive order calling for government agencies to design and deliver services in a way that focuses on the user experiences of those being served. This order prescribes using technology to modernize government services and requires them to be provided in ways that are “simple to use, accessible, equitable, protective, transparent, and responsive for all people of the United States.” As a result, a number of government entities have launched modernization projects, often seeking human-centered design (HCD) expertise to guide their efforts.
One of our government partners wanted to understand the user experience in navigating a set of applications used to request government services. This insight would allow them to identify opportunities to improve the customer experience of different user groups, as well as ensure any future system updates will meet their needs. Coforma supported this agency by applying its HCD methodologies to generate insights and artifacts that helped the government understand what users needed and how they could improve their experience.
Designing for All Users
To uncover insights for this government partner, we conducted HCD research on the user experience, design, accessibility, and usability of the existing services. This process included five key processes:
Understand the whole journey. We started with a mission to understand the users’ journeys from the beginning of their application process through the end of the government’s determination of services.
Ecosystem mapping of different actors in service delivery. We included every type of actor in an ecosystem map to create an understanding of the system that accounted for people’s experiences at every point of interaction.
Listen to people’s experiences. We interviewed a wide range of users, including those actively using these applications, government administrators who facilitated the processes the applications support, and government employees who would soon be using the applications.
Synthesize information and key touch points. We distilled their expectations and experiences into personas and journey maps. Our goal was to capture and assess every touch point and critical interaction in that process.
Identify recurring themes. From the artifacts we developed, we isolated key themes—recurring ideas underpinning the service and delivery experience relating to challenges encountered and opportunities for improvement.
Today, this government agency can implement the deep insights about their user’s needs as they design and develop improvements to the applications and processes they use to request and access government services.
This work demonstrates how HCD research plays an integral role in user experience design by placing people at the center of the design process, ensuring their needs are understood, valued, and addressed in modernization efforts. Connect with us to learn more about how our approach centers people throughout the design, development, and delivery process.
Disclaimer: This content was published independently of the government agency whose work is described. This content does not constitute or imply an endorsement by that agency or the United States Government of the product, process, or service, or its producer or provider. The perspectives presented here, or in any linked content or documents, do not necessarily state or reflect those of any government agency or the United States Government.