Aileen Nam
How might we provide a solution that allows users to find the right, long-term mentor quickly and easily from the start?
To help guide this mission to create Mentor Match, it began with 7 different interviews and a survey taken by 13 participants. The interviewees that were selected were those either in the process of switching careers or have gone through that process in the past. The survey was geared towards those who are still in or have been in a mentor/mentee relationship.
The data collected gave a lot of insight to what people were looking for when seeking a mentorship, as well as what the pros and cons of being in a mentor-mentee relationship. Many people just did not have the time or resources to find someone that could give them honest feedback about their work or get advice, let alone one that matches their personality.
Using the collected data, a quick empathy map was created to combine all of the information into one person; in this case, it was Emma. Emma allowed us to better visualize, understand, and prioritize the users' needs, and would help with the design and creation of the app.
Next, a journey map was made using Emma as an example of a potential user. It helped visualize Emma's process of discovering and interacting with the app. It also allowed us to discover any hidden opportunities that would help with the deisng process.
A user flow was then created to visualize the outline and features the app would have, which lead to the creation of the low fidelity prototypes. This helped to finally visualize what the actual app would come to look like.
Since the the app was to include multiple functions (personality survey, profile screens, messaging, and document uploads), two versions of the app was created in low fidelity and tested on a few users to see what their thoughts were. For example, version A had users sign up before completing a personality questionnaire and was able to just scroll through profiles to get more information about the person. In version B, users would be able to complete the questionnaire before signing up and had to tap on the profile to see more information.
After performing the A/B test with the two prototypes, information was combined into an affinity diagram and a feature prioritization matrix so we could decide which feature designs we should keep and/or fix. Two main takeaways from the testing were the language and icons. During the test, users were confused to what kind of pictures they should be uploading (causal, professional, etc.). They were also confused with if their profile was saved, because the button said “continue” and went straight to them looking for a mentor to match with. We made sure to give more specific instructions on what kind of pictures to upload, as well as changing the “continue” button to “save.”
Iterations where then made when creating one high fidelity prototype that synthesized all of the feedback. That prototype underwent guerilla testing that showed how users would interact with the app and what kind of pain points they might come across, such as the option to skip messaging a match for later or clarity on certain buttons.
The two weeks I had to complete this application was definitely not as much time as I would have liked, but it was definitely do-able. I learned right away that having a target population specialized from the start through research helped to set the tone and pace of the overall design process. This case also helped me realize that as a designer, it is not about what I want, like, or think is best. There were multiple times when user tests proved that sometimes what was originally planned did not align with what the users thought, wanted, or needed.
If the opportunity to turn this into an actual app came about, there are a few more things I would like to add:
1. A log in page for mentors.
2. An organized way to showcase uploaded documents.