Feb. 2022 - Mar.2024 UX Research & UI Design
Online App / designed by Yiran Ren
Introduction
Galactify is a tech startup based in Munich. They are developing an online project management tool with 3D zooming and nesting features.
At Galactify, my role encompassed the entire UX/UI design process. This included conducting user and product design research, carrying out user interviews, defining personas and user journeys, creating wireframes, developing prototypes in Figma, and executing user tests.
Galactify website
How does the design process work in Galactify?
Due to the rapid pace of work at Galactify, the design process sprint necessitated multiple iterations within the projects. To adapt to this environment, I employed a variety of design methodologies throughout the design process. These included both quantitative and qualitative research, design sprints, the double diamond design thinking approach, user-centered design principles, bio-design, design workshops, and qualitative user testing, among others. This diverse approach ensured a comprehensive and adaptive design strategy to meet the project's evolving requirements.
Use cases in Galactify
Galactify offers a range of use cases and products, and my involvement spanned three main categories:
1. General Galactify Products: This category includes tools for Objective and Key Results (OKR), Diagramming, and Task Management functionalities, providing comprehensive project management solutions.
2. Ideation (Feasibility Check) in Collaboration with Telefonica: This initiative focused on facilitating feedback collection from employees and experts. The aim was to enhance decision-making processes by gathering insights and evaluating the feasibility of new ideas and strategies.
3. Proof of Concept (POC) Project with Deutsche Bahn: This project, centered on 'Collective Intelligence', aimed at improving communication between central and field workers. The goal was to streamline information flow and collaboration across different levels of the organization, enhancing overall efficiency and teamwork.
User personas and user journeys
To ensure our product resonates with the right user groups, I, conducted an in-depth development of diverse personas, drawing from data analytics and user interviews. These personas were methodically ranked from the most critical to the least, facilitating a thorough examination of user behaviors, essential objectives, motivations, and obstacles within relevant contexts. This strategic process allowed me to craft customized engagement approaches, not only aligning our product with user needs but also significantly boosting user engagement and commitment.
Creating personas and user journey map in Miro
Building on the personas developed, we crafted detailed user and customer journey maps for our products, enabling us to gain insights into how individuals interact with and respond to each phase of usage. These meticulous mappings helped us identify specific issues at various touchpoints and subsequently formulate targeted solutions.
Beyond identifying user and customer interactions, these journey maps allowed us to pinpoint critical pain points and opportunities for enhancement. By leveraging these insights, we were able to refine our business strategy and delve deeper into optimizing the user experience (UX) of our tool, ensuring a more intuitive, engaging, and effective product for our users.
Part of user journey maps in Miro
Part of customer journey maps in Miro
Design Mood board and marketing research
At Galactify, as part of every design process, I conduct marketing and design research, as well as analyze competitor products before the ideation phase. This involves identifying key insights and potential solutions that align with our users' needs. Following this research, I engage in brainstorming sessions, leveraging the gathered data and information to formulate creative solutions.
Examples of marketing research mood boards at Galactify
Brainstorming and ideation
In the ideation phase, we typically host internal workshops informed by our research findings and user journey analyses. During these sessions, I create initial sketches of wireframes, graphics, or 3D model concepts. These are then refined through further workshops and discussions, allowing us to iterate on our ideas. This collaborative and iterative approach ultimately guides us to our final decision.
Products
At Galactify, I developed both low-fidelity and high-fidelity prototypes using Figma, incorporating them into our design system. My work involved a comprehensive redesign of the user interface, enhancing the UX/UI for new features such as the workspace selection, onboarding process, template and block integration, menu bar functionalities, editing and selection tools, and autosave capabilities. Additionally, I tailored the design to support specific use cases like OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), task management, and ideation sessions.
Old design version
Current online design version
Galactify Hololand example: https://app.galactify.com/public/hololand
Templates / use cases selection
Workspaces selection
Workspace creation success indicator
Onboarding tutorial
Visual example of Galactify Application: create and change the task status
User Tests
User test. Photo made by Gregor Hohmann
During the design process, we typically conduct qualitative user tests after a new feature is launched online. This approach allows users to engage with the feature in a more realistic setting, providing us with more precise feedback on their experience with the tool.
For each feature or use case, I tailor the test content to align with the respective user journeys. Additionally, I record these sessions to capture detailed observations and insights. The analysis of test results involves mapping out click paths, observing user behavior, noting direct user quotes, and measuring task completion rates at each step.
Following this analysis, I compile and summarize the findings, ranking them by significance and feasibility. This prioritized list forms the basis for internal discussions and workshops, guiding subsequent rounds of design refinement and iteration.
Example of user test preparation
Example of tests list
Example of user test documentation
Example of user test documentation
Galactify Website and social media
Galactify vision graphic
