Internal User Portal
Client
Subaru
Timeline
4 months
Industry
Automotive
Role
Lead UX/UI Designer
Problem
Subaru's portal is extremely outdated and lacks a clear flow for users to grab reports and data. The portal has not been updated since 2006, so it requires a major redesign and thorough research to understand new pain points. The portal has also not been translated to mobile, so that was a critical note that we kept as a top priority.
How Might We Statement
How might we create an incentives simulator so that users can efficiently create and submit incentives, and export data without any blockers?
Solution
We're going to conduct thorough research to uncover pain areas that might have been missed or not discovered since 2006. I will implement a clear user flow so that subaru users can gather and pull reports efficiently without any blockers. I will ensure that the designs have a simple and modern look that doesn't affect the functionality of the website.
RESEARCH
Working alongside the user researcher, she conducted empathy maps and moderated testing to understand the types of users. We found out there are 3 types: corporate user, retailer, and zone manager.
With the empathy maps and user testing, we uncovered various details such as their likes and dislikes of the current portal. Because this platform is essential to many subaru user's job, we wanted to make sure we captured all thoughts and feelings associated with the current portal.
SITEMAP
The sitemap is broken down into specific pages that are required for each section. For the scope of this project, my role was to design 5 pages: homepage, mySAF account, MRC, reports, and contact us. The rest was handed off to the development team since I set up templates with my designs for handoffs,
EXPANDED FUNCTIONALITY
One of the major pain points I uncovered was how data on the website was bunched up and took up alot of real estate. To compromise with the requirements that were provided, I created an option for users to expand and collapse the side bar so users can focus on their information better.
REPORTS
I re-designed how reports would look like to match the consistent simple and modern feel of the website. This allows users to understand the data efficiently since it is easier to read for the users eyes. I made sure to color coordinate data points and focus on input fields to organize required information needed to pull reports.
MRC EXTERNAL
MRC is an external part of the subaru website that would lead users to a different page in a new tab. This marketing resource center is a pivotal part of Subaru's portal so I wanted to capture the same theme of modern and simple designs to bring forward Subaru's identity. We focused on leveraging hover states and gradients to bring depth into the imagery and content on the website.
RESULTS
Overall, we produced an outstanding portal that won an award for best project of the quarter in 2024. I could not be more proud of the countless hours spent on this project and the outcome of it. The Subaru portal now has a clear and consise modern look and feel, with clear functionalities for users to utilize.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
This project gave me valuable experience in handing off deliverables for development in a consumer-facing environment. It was my first time working on a huge project without a design system so I made sure to follow the brand's guideline and created consistent modules and components to work with. I learned to consistently elevate the quality of my designs by soliciting feedback from peers and stakeholders through formal design reviews and presentations. It was a tremendous growth experience to pitch and present my designs at numerous reviews, practice guiding open conversations and sharing my point of view, and learn from my mentors when to pushback on stakeholder feedback. I learned how essential maintaining good communication is with my team, especially when asking clarifying questions to remove blockers and balance pressing deadlines.
