A Short Guide to Designing Better Digital Products for People at Work
If you’re designing products for work, you know everything has a context in which it’s used. But what if that place covers 600,000 square metres, houses ~75,000 employees, and has some of the most comprehensive aviation security measures of any country in the world?
Airports are massive, complex, and highly secure environments for both the staff who work there, and the passengers who pass through — they’re almost cities in their own right. So when I started designing the digital tools for Airportr’s staff to provide the Bag Check-In service at London Heathrow and Gatwick Airports, there were some interesting challenges to face.
Being that AirPortr’s business operation is subject to regulations from agencies like the UK Border Force and the Civil Aviation Authority, I have to keep things vague — but nonetheless, I learnt a few lessons I can share here for designers operating in this kind of environment.
1. Know your users (and their jobs)
It seems obvious, but you should understand that your users have really specific knowledge that you don’t. There are any number of issues which they work through day-to-day, and in order to provide the best solution for them, you need to understand those pain points. Learn about the tasks they need to do, the security restrictions they face, and the environment they are trying to succeed in. Build deep empathy and understanding.
I recommend structured, solid research with very clear deliverables. An unclear measure of success for your users is problematic for building a useful product or service.
2. Understand the data you’re using
You also need a really clear understanding of the information passing through your app. How sensitive is it? Are they able to share this data? What is the potential damage that could be cause if data was shared? Consider as well the implications of disconnected data points being used in combination.
If you can, design with data using something like Framer or Invision Craft to populate ‘real’ data. Names of unusual length, location data that is complicated, security conventions and more will only trip you up if you are filling mockups with names like ‘John Smith’.
One interesting example of data that needs to be really understood is the UK postcode system. Created by the Royal Mail in order to make sure mail gets to it’s destination, it is FAR from straightforward! There are are a lot of assumptions to make about them, and populating your design with ‘placeholder’ is sure to cause headaches down the line. I recommend Michael Tandy’s Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Addresses — it’s very interesting and well written.
3. Make sure your user roles are clearly defined
In the event of a security incident, a rogue user with too much access to sensitive data can become a big liability. Understand which features or systems should be enabled for each user type, and plan for recovery should an incident occur.
Working closely with the development team to fully understand who can do what can be very important in developing a robust product.
4. Speed is important…
Understand your development environment to make sure things are buildable and fast. It’s all well and good to have high quality interface and practical, intuitive flows — but if it runs slow as shit*, your users won’t care. They could be operating in a high-pressure environment and the difference of a few seconds can be critical. Having an understanding of the architecture behind your design will help you make choices about flow and functions that will help keep your users sane.
*Technical Aussie designer term for very slow.
5. …especially for mobile
Another side of the speed issue is understanding limitations for mobile users with poor connectivity. Often, secure areas don’t have great mobile coverage, and safe WiFi connections are not available. So no matter how fast your APIs or infrastructure is, your users still might not be able to achieve their goals.
You could think about whether or not your app is usable offline, and how caching could work for users. Again, keep in mind both physical and digital security by using your deep knowledge of the tasks these users need to do (which you did first anyway, right?).
6. Understand other environmental constraints
Your users are often working in a highly specialised environment, with very specific tools and processes which they must pay attention to. They might be in a loud or busy facility, they might be referring to multiple sources of information, their job might be physically demanding, and they are likely under tight scrutiny. Your app or product is not the only thing they are paying attention to. Make sure your users can do the tasks they need to at the right time and in the right place.
It is really worth investing time in your information architecture to get this right — knowing what content your user needs to access at every stage of their business process.
7. Realise design does not stop at the screen edges
You should acknowledge that your product exists in a specific context, and that you may be able to apply your design abilities to that context. In my case, I work on processes and infrastructure surrounding the core business activities (Hi service designers!). Some of these are able to be changed or improved, and some are not. But if it’s within scope, you might find your design skills can be useful in more places than just the screen.
8. Don’t blindly follow UI trends
Your users are trained on the tools to do their jobs — they have domain expertise which your average Joe does not. You should know exactly what information your users need at any given time. And sometimes, there’s a lot! This becomes especially important when interacting with other agents or interfaces over which you have no control. Your app needs to provide solutions to difficult problems.
Taking Instagram as an example: this kind of consumer app entices users to spend more time in-app by encouraging infinite scrolling and giving little dopamine boosts and subconscious rewards, and so their interfaces are built to reflect that.
With enterprise design, your goal is to make sure your users spend as little time as possible engaged. You want a ‘Goldilocks’ interface: not too complicated, not too simple, but ‘just right’.
9. Beauty can come from utility
Your product should be utilitarian, but that doesn’t mean it has to be ugly. Rather than thinking about the latest fonts and trending colours, emphasise balance. Make adequate use of whitespace. Using medium grey type on a light grey background might be minimal and cool, but it won’t help your users complete their tasks. A craftsman might like a beautiful tool, but they won’t like an impractical one.
10. Finally: Know what success means
Keep sight of your team’s north star. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, read this article from Radhika Dutt. Your success measure is not what’s on the front page of Dribbble, nor what other designers think. It’s not typical consumer metrics like user retention or app store downloads. Rather, it’s the problem solved by using your product. It’s the action from your interface. In the case of AirPortr’s flagship product, it’s successfully checking bags onto flights.
As a designer, you’re building or refining products in a challenging environment and innovating right up to the edge. Your work might be under wraps for good (👋 NDA!), but that’s not the point. You might not end up on year-end best-of lists, but at the end of the day your work is helping an organisation be more successful. And that’s something that every designer should do.
If you have any thoughts on product design for business, post them in the comments!
