Case study

Covid safe check in

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Service NSW deployed an app that enabled people to check into businesses to assist contact tracers. Individuals lacking access to a smartphone were having difficulty meeting the check-in requirements.

Client

Service NSW

Role

Senior product designer

The challenge

Make the check-in process more inclusive while also being efficient for businesses. A delivered solution in 5 weeks.

The process

Understanding the problem

The first step was understanding the users that were having difficulty with the check-in process. This was predominantly older individuals lacking a smart phone or the know-how to use the app.

The work-around was a paper-based alternative, which had several problems.

service research
service prototyping2
Solution ideation

The broad solution developed through stakeholder and technical discussions was for individuals to show a personal QR code when checking in.

This required two parts to solve for:

  1. How do we enable residents to access a personal QR code?
  2. How dow we enable scanning of personal QR codes during check-in?
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High-level task mapping

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Initial iteration

Leveraging ideation and co-design sessions, we developed an initial solution for user testing. While I steered the design and discovery, our squad which included engineers and a product manager, were integral to this collaborative process.

An early concept flow of the solution

service iteration
Testing

Following internal feedback, I created a Figma prototype and test plan. I was the lead interviewer and we tested on 3 groups of participants:

  • Group 1: Customers
  • Group 2: Venues
  • Group 3: Service centre staff

Screens from the prototype

service testing

Capturing and synthesising feedback from testing

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PDF of insights summarised for internal distribution

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Solution iteration

From the testing we confirmed a demand for the proposed solution from all our user groups. One significant barrier that we identified was the ability to print at home or at a Service Centre.

This resulted in a decision to provide the option of physical cards delivered by post.

solution iteration solution iteration solution iteration
The outcome

We successfully deployed the product within the target timeframe. In the first 4 weeks, nearly 150k people signed up for a card. There were 2.5 million check-ins using the card in first 4 months, averaging around 20k per day.

solution result
Learnings

An unexpected result was the uptake by people outside our expected user profile. People capable of app-based check-ins were opting for card check-in. There were several reasons for this, but one area for enhancement was the communication strategy. A more unified focus on user experience across our marketing and product domains could have better aligned user expectations.

Another area of reflection was early in the ideation phase. The solution as a physical QR code was arrived early. This restricted exploration of alternatives before progressing to implementation ideation.

solution result
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