FedEx

FedEx asked us to redesign the interface of ISS, a software used by employees to monitor packages in sorting facilities. Only about 10% of ISS’s capabilities and data points were being used by employees when we started the project. Although seemingly a straightforward UX project, we chose a service design approach: we delivered a completely redesigned ISS interface as well as opportunities for improvement around the overall sorting process.

Our work is currently being rolled out throughout all FedEx sorting facilities in the US.

I WORKED ON

UX design of screens for desktop and tablet, research, prototyping, user testing, visual design of map, artifact design for research, client management, collaboration and hand-off to front-end devs

I COLLABORATED WITH

Navit Keren (lead), Vanessa Palacio (UX), Eunice Chung (Visual) at Designit NYC

RESEARCH

In order to better understand the employees using ISS and the context in which they were using this tool, we visited 3 FedEx sorting facilities, interviewed dozens of employees, and watched the software being used in different ways and interfaces throughout a shift. We also did in-depth screen analysis to identify the most important and redundant data points and the pain-points that accompany each screen. Finally, we validated different prototypes of the redesigned screens with users along the way.

METHODS

User interviews, shadowing & fly-on-the-wall observation, site visits, product demos, desk research.

Packages being sorted at a FedEx facility.

The control room: where sort managers have to keep track of multiple screens, including ISS.

ISS screens as used in the facility: the bottom half of the screen is not accessible.

Screen analysis

MAIN SCREENS REDESIGN

In collaboration with the core ISS product team and ground workers at the facilities, we identified 12 main screens to be redesigned in detail. Some highlights from our redesign:

Headers: for all screens that aggregates the most important data points that need users’ attention
Tabs: an “overview” tab with only key data points, and other tabs to deep dive on specific datapoints
Home page: turning an empty startup landing page into a valuable page
Pop-ups, notifications and alerts: messages are shown in context to notify users, and to prevent mistakes
Message center: that lets users see critical messages that need their attention
Wizard: a more user-friendly wizard template that could be applied to different wizards in the future

METHODS

Lo-fi & hi-fi design, interactive prototyping, user testing

TEMPLATES

The ISS system has more than 300 screens, many of them visually and functionally similar. We created a flexible design template system and a UI guide that could be easily applied to them. Having this kind of system also means that new pages that are added to ISS in the future can be quickly skinned visually.

METHODS

Lo-fi & hi-fi design