UX/UI Design, Dashboard
Designing Volunteer Dashboard
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My Role
Project Guide
UX Researcher
UI Designer
Tool Used
Figma
Miro
Trello
Canva
Team
Project Manager
4 Volunteers
Project Timeline
May 2024 - July 2024
Background
At GLOCAL Foundation of Canada, I worked with 5 volunteers and the project manager to design a dashboard that helps volunteers and track managers organize tasks, track hours, and collaborate more efficiently as the team grew.
The Problem
GLOCAL's outdated system made it difficult for volunteers to track tasks and for managers to stay organized. Reliance on shared Excel sheets and manual email submissions led to confusion, inefficiency, and difficulties in managing progress, validating hours, and controlling access.
The Outcome
We created a volunteering dashboard that streamlined task management, tracked hours and progress, and replaced email submissions with a more organized system. The tool improved efficiency, ensured transparency, and empowered volunteers while giving managers better control over project access.
01. RESEARCH
Two Sides of the Same Coin
The project focused on two key user groups:
1. Volunteers, who needed an easy way to track tasks
2. Track Managers, who faced challenges organizing submissions and managing hours.
The goal was designed to meet the needs of both seamlessly.
Understanding the Current State
The team and I observed how volunteers and track managers handled their tasks, quickly identifying key pain points like overloaded work journals and inefficient email management. Interviews with both groups highlighted recurring complaints:
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Volunteer
"It's hard to keep track of what I've already done and what's next."
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Volunteer
"Work journal is just too overwhelming, there's so much information."
Volunteer
"I'm unsure if my hours are tracked, and I need a clearer way to submit."
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Track Manager
"The email submissions are a mess, I miss tasks all the time."
Track Manager
"We need a better way to verify volunteer hours."
Track Manager
"There's no easy way to manage who can join which project."
Key Insights
Volunteers
Struggled with task tracking, submitting work, and validating their hours, often feeling overwhelmed by the existing process.
Track Managers
Faced similar issues with validating hours, managing tasks, and organizing project access.
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Both groups needed a streamlined solution to simplify task management, communication, and progress tracking.
02. DEFINE
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Meet Enzo & Alex
Based on the research, two key user personas were developed for Volunteers and Track Managers. Each had unique needs and frustrations that shaped the final design, ensuring the solution met their goals throughout the process.
Meet Enzo, our volunteer, and Alex, our track manager.
How Can We Imporve Their Journey?
With a clear understanding of our personas, we mapped out their users' journeys and identified key pain points. Using these insights, we designed a future state that streamlined task tracking, submissions, and progress validation, creating a smoother and more efficient experience for volunteers and track managers.
Mapping It All Out
With a clear understanding of users' journeys and pain points, we began mapping out user flows for volunteers and track managers. Volunteers' journeys focused on tasks, projects, and work journals, while track managers' journeys prioritized efficient oversight and control. By mapping these flows, we balanced the needs of both groups to create a seamless, collaborative experience.
03. DESIGN
Crafting The Initial Design
This phase was where I took the lead, translating insights from user journeys and flowcharts into initial wireframes focused on intuitive designs for both volunteers and track managers. While time constraints from the CEO limited our time to start sketching wireframes, I ensured the core elements were clear, functional, and easy to navigate.
04. UI + BRANDING
Shaping the Design
With the initial wireframes and prototype ready, we moved on to the design system. We ensured the dashboard reflected GLOCAL's values and the message they wanted to convey. To guide the design, we developed key themes that represented GLOCAL's mission and identity.
Simplicity
Clarity
Efficiency
Trust
Organization
Reliable
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05. TESTING
Testing the Design
At the end of the day, this project was all about the volunteers and track managers who would use it. To ensure their needs were met, we conducted several usability tests. I assisted the project manager in supervising the process, ensuring the tests aligned with our goals. Using a Figma prototype as a testing platform, we recruited 5 volunteers and 3 track managers to gather valuable feedback.
GOAL 1:
Assess clarity of tasks and project pages for both volunteers and track managers.
GOAL 2:
Test how easily users can manage their work journals and submit tasks.
GOAL 3:
Evaluate how easily volunteers can join or leave projects.
GOAL 4:
Identify points where volunteers or track managers experience confusion or delays.
Key Feedback
5/5 Volunteers & 2/3 Track Managers
encountered uncertainty when navigating the categories "In Review" and “Completed".
Category Confusion:
The terms led to mixed expectations, some thought tasks were finished, others believed they were still in progress. Clearer terminology is needed to reduce confusion.
3/5 Volunteers & 2/3 Track Managers
experienced moments of hesitation when reviewing project statuses.
Project Status Messaging:
The lack of detailed status updates led to questions about when a project was ready to begin, indicating the value of more explicit messaging to keep users informed.
3/5 Volunteers & 3/3 Track Managers
wanted a way to save projects and tasks for later in case they change their mind.
Save for Later Feature:
The "Save for Later" would provide much-needed flexibility, helping them stay organized without feeling overwhelmed.
4/5 Volunteers & 1/3 Track Managers
have difficulty choosing tracks due to the small color contrasts.
Optimizing Choosing Track Page:
This observation opened up possibilities for exploring alternative track colors, potentially through A/B testing, to ensure users could seamlessly navigate the system.
06. ITERATIONS
Issue & Solution 1:
Category Name Update:
Confusion around "Completed" led us to change it to "Approved" to better reflect task status and avoid misunderstandings.
Before
After
Issue & Solution 2:
Save For Later Feature:
Managing tasks and projects was overwhelming, so we added a "Save for Later" option, allowing users to pause and return to tasks or projects easily.
Before (Task Page)
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After (Task Page)
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Before (Project Page)
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After (Project Page)
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Issue & Solution 3:
Project Status Messaging:
To clarify when projects are ready to start, we added a message like "waiting for 2 more volunteers to start project," improving transparency.
Before
After
Issue & Solution 4:
A/B Testing for Tracks Color Design:
Navigation through tracks wasn't intuitive for some users, prompting A/B testing to identify the most user-friendly design.
After running A/B testing with two alternate layouts, the updated design, with more subtle colours and more colour contrast, resulted in:
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35% reduction in navigation time
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40% increase in user satisfaction.
Participants expressed higher confidence in completing tasks, noting how the improved structure made navigation faster and more intuitive.
Before
After
07. FINAL UI
08. FINAL THOUGHTS
Next Steps
Our immediate focus is refining the prototype to resemble the final dashboard as closely as possible. To validate these improvements, we'll conduct more extensive usability testing with a larger sample and continue exploring refinements through A/B testing, particularly for track design and category naming. Once validated, we'll move on to developing the full dashboard.
What I learned
This project also taught me the importance of balancing user feedback with design instinct. Scenario-based testing and quick iterations were invaluable, but there were times when trusting our design judgment was key. Additionally, assisting the project manager in guiding volunteer designers showed me the value of collaboration and leadership in achieving a seamless, engaging experience for volunteers and track managers.
