![medium [#149].png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/3fd7fb_d1fa7e49141a430bbe73496286115435~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_22,h_18,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/medium%20%5B%23149%5D.png){kind=small}
VICTORIA BEVAN
UX Researcher & Designer
Dementia Friends, Alzheimer's Society
Dashboard Redesign | Client Project
Below is an overview of this project.
You can view the full case study on Medium.
Context
Alzheimer’s Society’s Dementia Friends programme is the biggest ever initiative to change people’s perceptions of dementia. Dementia Friends Champions deliver Information Sessions on Dementia to the public, who then become a ‘Dementia Friend’ as a result. The Dementia Friends Champions dashboard is the online user interface that Champions use to do certain tasks related to their role.
Problem
Dementia Friends have seen a decrease in the number of Information Sessions that Champions are recording on the dashboard and an increase in technical enquiries. The dashboard needs to be redesigned so that Champions can get their main tasks completed efficiently, keeping them engaged and increasing the number of Sessions they run.
My role included:
-
Handling communication with client, ensuring user needs were championed but business needs still met
-
Conducting 4 user interviews and 3 usability tests
-
Facilitating design studio with client to generate key design concepts
-
Creating wireframes for the dashboard’s Resources and Report section, using rapid prototyping to go from paper to mock up level
Teammates | Pinusa, Brittany, Fabiola
​
Design process | Iterative, lean, user-centred
​
Duration | 2 weeks
Attending an Information Session
_JPG.jpg)
Interviewing and running usability testing with Champions
Process & techniques employed
Research phase
Attended Information Session - Stakeholder Interview - Survey - User Interviews - Usability Testing - Affinity Mapping - Card sorting - Empathy Mapping - Persona - Problem Statement
​
Design phase
How Might We Statement - Design Studio - Dementia Design Heuristics - Sketching & Wireframing - Rapid Prototyping - Usability Testing
_JPG.jpg)
Affinity mapping to find patterns in behaviour (whiteboard walls are a revelation!)
Card sorting results showing no obvious patterns
Meet our persona, Emma
_JPG.jpg)
Facilitating the design studio
Design studio concepts used in our design
_JPG.jpg)
Designing the homepage as a team - quick and effective
Pitching our own ideas and concepts to the team
Testing our paper prototype
Testing our mid-fi prototype
Session Resources iterations - paper prototype
Session Resources iterations - mid-fi wireframes
Session Resources iterations - final mock up
How did we solve the problem?
Our design needed to improve discoverability and efficiency of key tasks for the Champions. We achieved this through a clean, simple dashboard using a card layout that would be easily responsive to tablet and mobile. Designing with dementia in mind, we kept processes that worked, and improved upon those that didn’t to enable volunteers to get their most important tasks done. With reduced friction, Champions will be more engaged and more likely to run more Sessions, whilst the Dementia Friends team can focus on other areas for growth.
​
Our final prototype is built using InVision and can be found here.
Client feedback
The redesign met and exceeded our expectations [...] Every design decision that they made was backed up by evidence and informed by the feedback they received from our users. Their work resulted in an end product that we could take away and implement, confident in the knowledge that it would empower our volunteers to have even more of an impact.
 — Lucien Topp, Dementia Friends
What I learnt
-
Confidence in the Human-Centred Design process is key when working with clients who are unfamiliar to it and skeptical of it — defending it in our Design Studio was challenging but thrilling
​
-
I proved to myself that working in a team is both rewarding and enjoyable — this is something I had not had much experience of, and the bond we grew through communication and collaboration was empowering
​
-
User research is incredibly powerful on both a professional and personal level — discovering Champions’ experiences with Dementia has given me a new perspective on both those living with it themselves and those caring for others