Test Wise Case Study
Problem
KDIT Solutions' Test Wise platform lacked an integrated requirements module for ERP/CRM workflow management.
Test Wise primarily helps organizations manage testing and release processes for business systems like IBM Maximo. Without a requirements module, users had to switch between systems to track their work. A previous design attempt for the requirements dashboard didn't align with the president's vision and faced significant delays, creating frustration for both clients and the development team.
Solution
A redesigned requirements dashboard that integrates seamlessly with Test Wise for improved workflow efficiency.
Through a partnership between my UX Design bootcamp (Springboard) and KDIT Solutions, my team created an intuitive dashboard that integrates seamlessly with Test Wise. The solution clarifies tasks, streamlines workflows, and enhances collaboration for a more comprehensive enterprise solution that eliminates system switching and improves overall productivity.
My Role
Solution in Action
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Integrated Requirements Dashboard
Eliminates system switching by centralizing requirements management directly within Test Wise, creating a unified workflow experience
Task Visualization Interface
Clarifies responsibilities and deadlines through intuitive visual organization, reducing confusion and improving team coordination
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Collaboration Features
Enhances team communication with integrated commenting, notifications, and status updates that keep all stakeholders informed
Design Process
Research
Competitive Analysis
Ideate
Wireframes
Design
High Fidelity Screens
To tackle the project, our team decided to start with research that included competitive analysis. We then moved on to ideation, creating wireframes, and finally concluded with high-fidelity frames and a small prototype.
Research
Our team met with Pranjal, the President of KDIT Solutions, to understand his vision for the requirements dashboard. We focused on necessary functionality, agile standards, and differentiation from tools like Jira. After researching the company and their clients, we held a second meeting to explore specific use cases. My experience with Azure DevOps and Jira allowed me to contribute valuable insights to these discussions. Throughout our meetings, Pranjal emphasized the importance of creating a simple, customizable solution.
Competitive Analysis
Based on our discussions with Pranjal and our understanding of the requirements dashboard needs, our team conducted competitive analysis of prominent requirement management platforms. This research became essential to identify industry standards, discover pain points in existing solutions, and uncover opportunities to differentiate Test Wise's dashboard.
Our team focused specifically on examining Azure DevOps, Airtable, Jira, and Asana , tools that potential users might already be familiar with. By analyzing these leading platforms' strengths and weaknesses, we gathered critical insights to inform our design decisions and ensure Test Wise would offer meaningful advantages over existing solutions.
Azure Devops
Strengths
- Customizable visual boards for flexible work tracking and team progress monitoring.
- Comprehensive task documentation with rich text, attachments, and powerful search functionality.
- Seamless integration with Microsoft ecosystem and GitHub for connected workflows.
Weakness
- Steep learning curve, particularly challenging for teams new to DevOps tools.
- Escalating costs as teams expand beyond free tier limitations.
- Microsoft ecosystem dependency that creates challenges for multi-cloud environments.
Asana
Strengths
- Multiple visual layouts (timeline, calendar) for easy deadline tracking and team planning.
- Clean, intuitive interface with drag-and-drop features that works well for users of all experience levels.
- Integrated collaboration tools for comments, tagging, and file sharing in one central workspace.
Weakness
- Limited reporting capabilities that lack depth for comprehensive project analysis.
- Basic time tracking features that often require supplemental tools.
- Integration complexities that can create additional administrative burden.
Airtable
Strengths
- Spreadsheet-like flexibility for customizable information organization across various project types.
- Extensive customization for views, fields, and workflows that adapt to specific team processes.
- Seamless real-time collaboration enabling simultaneous multi-user project editing.
Weakness
- Lacks advanced project management capabilities necessary for complex project requirements.
- Scaling difficulties when handling large teams or extensive information sets.
- Insufficient reporting tools for comprehensive project performance analysis.
Jira
Strengths
- Robust Agile methodology support with customizable Kanban and Scrum boards aligned with established development practices.
- Versatile issue management with diverse ticket types, assignee tracking, and customizable status indicators.
- Comprehensive visualization options spanning boards, timelines, Gantt charts, and calendars for multifaceted work tracking.
Weakness
- Interface complexity requiring significant learning investment, especially challenging for new users.
- Customization pitfalls that can create inconsistent workflows and maintenance difficulties over time.
- Performance degradation with larger projects that can impede productivity and user experience.
Ideate
After presenting our competitive analysis to Pranjal, his feedback shaped our design direction:
- UI Simplicity: He agreed with our assessment that Jira and Azure DevOps were too complex, confirming our direction to prioritize user-friendly interfaces
- Positive References: He specifically highlighted Asana's clean design and customization features as elements he wanted to incorporate
- Core Functionality: Despite preferring simplicity, he emphasized that robust issue tracking capabilities must remain central to our solution
This feedback helped establish our design direction: creating an intuitive interface that balanced customization with robust task management. We began wireframing with focus on clear visual hierarchy and simplified navigation while preserving essential requirements management functionality.
Low-fidelity Wireframes
Building on Pranjal's feedback about balancing simplicity with functionality, we identified five key features for our solution, each addressing specific needs from our competitive analysis:
- Kanban boards: Visual task organization avoiding the complexity of Jira and Azure DevOps
- Customizable Dashboard: Flexible layouts inspired by Asana's user-friendly approach
- Task status table: Comprehensive tracking functionality that maintained Pranjal's essential requirements
- Task detail pages: Simplified information architecture to prevent overwhelming interfaces
- New task creation: Streamlined process for quick task entry while capturing necessary details
We translated these priorities into low-fidelity wireframes with clear visual hierarchy to address the usability challenges identified in our research.
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Design
After validating our wireframes with Pranjal, we moved to high-fidelity design with a refined direction:
- Balance of approaches: While our wireframes successfully addressed the complexity issues identified in Jira, Pranjal requested specific organizational elements from Jira's Requirements and Test module
- Brand integration: We incorporated KDIT Solutions' brand colors into our designs for consistency with the existing Test Wise platform
- Multiple solutions: Our team developed three distinct design approaches, each addressing the core requirements while exploring different interaction patterns
Based on these considerations, our designs featured:
- Table list view for structured task tracking, directly inspired by industry-standard requirements tools
- Customizable dashboard allowing users to tailor their information display
- Intuitive navigation that maintained simplicity while offering robust functionality
High Fidelity Prototype
Due to the project's timeline constraints, we validated our designs directly with Pranjal rather than conducting user testing. He selected the solution that best aligned with his vision, featuring:
- Accordion-style sub-task navigation for efficient information hierarchy
- Integrated live chat for streamlined team communication
- Flexible project views offering both board and list formats
- Comprehensive task details page with all relevant information
- Widget-based dashboard customization for personalized workflows
Note: Logos have been removed from these designs at the client's request.
Project takeways
Our designs will serve as the foundation for KDIT Solutions' Test Wise requirements dashboard. Working with a client across international time zones, we balanced three key priorities:
- Simplicity with functionality through an intuitive interface that maintained robust tracking capabilities
- Industry standards with accessibility by integrating familiar elements while ensuring an approachable learning curve
- Customization with consistency via widget-based personalization aligned with the existing platform
Pranjal particularly valued our innovative task display solutions, which provided clear ways to manage complex information. Despite the challenge of this being our first enterprise client project through Springboard, our team maintained effective communication through weekly updates and collaborative design sessions.
This experience strengthened my ability to apply my technical background to UX challenges, communicate across diverse teams, and translate complex requirements into effective designs. Given more time, I would have advocated for user testing to validate our approach beyond stakeholder approval, a key learning I'll apply to future projects.
