Designing a Crash Response Workflow for Fleet Managers


2019

Overview


Telematics is a comprehensive tool designed for Fleet Managers to monitor vehicle health, driver behavior, fuel or battery usage, and location in real time. My role in this project was to design a workflow for Fleet Managers to efficiently handle vehicle accidents—an event they hope to avoid but must be prepared for.




Step 1: Building the Problem Statement


To address the challenge, we began with user interviews to understand how Fleet Managers respond to severe incidents like vehicle accidents. Our research revealed a common pain point: Fleet Managers struggled with timely and effective communication during crises due to inadequate systems for informing all relevant stakeholders.

In a collaborative workshop, I prompted the team with the critical question that came out of the interviews:

“How might I improve the response to a vehicle crash?” - Fleet Manager


Whiteboarding the problem statement


Using the “Five Whys” method, we identified the following core reasons for improving crash response time:

  • So that I can protect company interest (image, cost, liability)
  • So that I can make sure the driver is safe as quickly as possible
  • So that I can complete the current job
  • So that I can reduce downtime
  • So that I can prevent future accidents by improving driver behavior




Step 2: Mapping the User Journey


In a second workshop, we created a composite user journey to illustrate the parallel paths of all personas involved in and following an accident. This journey highlighted gaps in communication between parties and delayed action. My goal here was to paint an accurate picture of the Fleet Manager’s pain points so that we could identify areas where our system could provide significant improvements.


Service blueprint


Four key stages were identified:

Inform
  ︎︎︎  Inform Fleet Manager (first point of contact)
  ︎︎︎  Evaluate severity of crash: Ensure driver safety and assess damage done to vehicle

Disseminate
  ︎︎︎  Intercept and craft message to be given to the media
  ︎︎︎  Inform many various points of contact (secondary points of contact)
  ︎︎︎  Avoid unnecessary liability problems in talking to insurance
  ︎︎︎  Coordinate with police, insurance, and towing company

Move forward
  ︎︎︎  Complete the job, avoid disrupting flow of operations
  ︎︎︎  Communicate with customer any impact on the job
  ︎︎︎  Send vehicle to appropriate place for repairs
  ︎︎︎  Prepare for downtime while insurance investigates claim

Document
  ︎︎︎  Communicate incident detail to stakeholders through multiple channels
  ︎︎︎  Manually document vehicle repairs and history
  ︎︎︎  Assess status and activity of vehicle prior to incident
  ︎︎︎  Coach driver or enforce disciplinary consequences




Step 3: Highlighting Avenues to Improve User Journey


To prevent scope creep, so I collaborated with my Product Owner to prioritize the “Inform” stage. This phase was selected for its potential to deliver immediate value and since it would be the most lean to design, test, and build. I still keep the whole user journey top of mind (all four steps, in this case), in order to ensure a sustainable and scalable model for future iterations.

I worked with Architects and Engineers to map out system interactions and break them into component parts, aligning each part of the user flow with system actions.


Whiteboarding the “Inform” stage


Laying out the components across the user journey




Step 4: Formalized Workflow


I then detailed each action required: inside the application, outside the application, or under the hood. This included creating exploratory designs and ensuring all necessary system components were covered.


Formalized workflow




Step 5: Prototyping and Usability Testing


I began designing and prototyping screens for the alert system, starting with the most critical scenario—vehicle accidents. I leveraged my understanding of user needs within that situation to also start building workflows and UI for less severe alerts (e.g., service reminders, new report available).

Continuous usability testing ensured that the prototypes met user requirements and business needs. I also captured business requirements alongside my Product Owner, ensuring that any potential fork or dead end in the user flow was covered.


Sketch flow


Component specifications




Step 6: Delivering Production-Ready Designs


As this is the beginning of an alerts system that is meant to be used across our application for various use cases, I made sure to build the UI components in a way that guided other designers on how they should be implemented and folded into the system. Documentation included language & tone guidelines, placement, timing of alerts, and other design details. This ensured consistency and ease of use across the application.

I then collaborated with engineers to implement the alerts in our application, working with the Product Manager to ensure all aspects of the flow were captured in the user stories.


Alert drawer


Notification preferences


Why I’m Proud of this Project:


︎︎︎  I stayed true to real users’ needs by leading regular intervals of user testing and feedback.

︎︎︎  I focused on creating a streamlined solution while avoiding scope creep, setting a solid foundation for future iterations.

︎︎︎  I built a system that not only addressed the immediate problem but also laid the groundwork for broader alerts across the fleet management workflows.

︎︎︎  I provided thorough specifications to support future design work and ensure consistency.