Custodian Internal Tool
A Work App for All Ages
This Android app project, completed for a Raizlabs client, was focused on creating a work tool for over 10,000 cleaning staff who held jobs across large company campuses, many of whom had never interacted with a smartphone before. Over a 6 week period of discovery, where the team and I went on-site to shadow custodians, meet with corporate stakeholders, and create a series of iterative design experiments, we came up with an approach to support 52 languages, employees aged 18 - 92, and inexpensive Android devices that would be purchased for the staff.
Key Takeaways - Novel Navigation
One of the core challenges for this project was the need to fit a large scope of features and functionality in the mobile app that needed to be easily found by newer device users. In our design experiments, we found that removing hidden menus and instead leveraging icons similar to Android launchers for seniors or visually impaired users performed well across age groups. The intention was then to make this app more like a home screen for the phone. This also gave us the flexibility to support languages that read right to left, and that use other characters.
Working Well in the Field
While this app is no longer in use, when it was first tested in the field with 500 staff across multiple campus locations, the initial functionality that allowed them to clock in and out of shifts from anywhere on campus was extremely well received. It reduced the extra time needed to walk to a main office to start and end shifts that was sometimes up to 30 minutes away from where the individual worked.
