“You are not you when you are hangry.”

A design thinking case study on understanding user problems in a Home office area and solving for them.

👋 Onboarding :

Hello mates, this is Sharmada and I am excited to walk you through my first design thinking case study. It all started when our mentor Anudeep Ayyagari assigned us to work on this interesting project as a part of UX Mastery program from GrowthSchool. Let’s quickly see how the entire journey went like.

Overview

The Master Plan

From Debate to Deliberation — Choosing the focus area

Testing, Refining, and Perfecting: The Iterative Process of Design Thinking

Phase 1 | Empathize — Seeing from the user’s office chair
Step 1 : Beyond the desk — Talking to real users
Step 2 : The aha moment — Gaining valuable insights from user interviews

Phase 2 | Define — Getting to the Heart of the Issue

Phase 3 | Ideate — Thinking Outside the Cubicle

Phase 4 | Prototype — Building the Blueprint
1.Home Office Woes — The problem statement
2.From Hangry to Happy — The idea
3.Industry Voids
4.Experimental Prototype
5.Unpacking the Product

Phase 5 | Test — The Final Check
1.Supportive reactions & Constructive Criticism
2.Refined Prototype
3.User- driven development
4.Expansion Opportunities

Lessons Learnt
Shutting Down

📝 The Master Plan :

This project aims to help us understand and internalize the Design Thinking Process as we do it so that we start seeing any UX problem with the third eye i.e Designer’s eye. As how any company would assign a team to a project, we were divided into a group of 10 and were given 13 different areas in a Home as our domain to work on. We had to pick one among those areas by arguing with other team mates stating our unfair advantages as to why we are the best person to solve the problem for users in that space. The debate was intended to make us think critically and come up with valid reasons. Once we had chosen our area of focus, we began the Design Thinking Process, the end goal of which is to create a new physical product that will enhance the user’s experience in that space.

Our mentor’s reaction when the project guideline were set. 😈

🥇From Debate to Deliberation — Choosing the focus area :

The problem area I picked — Home Office.
“Since I have been working from home for the past two years and have had to change my work location frequently, I have experienced setting up different workspaces with limited resources and space. This gives me an advantage in empathizing with my users and building a useful product for them. “
With this argument, I won the debate and proceeded to the actual process.

💭 Testing, Refining, and Perfecting: The Iterative Process of Design Thinking :

By now, you might be wondering what I mean every time I refer to “the process.” Well, let me clarify — I am talking about the Design Thinking process.
In simple terms, it is a problem-solving process that involves understanding the needs of the people you are designing for, coming up with creative ideas, building models, testing and refining them through feedback. This user centered process is a flexible and iterative process that encourages experimentation and learning from failure.

This five step process includes — Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test stages. These stages are often iterative, allowing you to revisit any stage and proceed further to gain better insights.
The goal of following such a methodology is to approach complex problems from a human perspective.

Five stages of Design Thinking Process.

🫂Phase 1 | Empathize — Seeing from the user’s office chair :

Step 1 : Beyond the desk — Talking to real users

In order to create a product/service that people want, it is essential to understand our users and their needs. We need to ask ourself questions like: Who are our users ? What do they expect from your product ? What difficulties do they face now with the context ?
Well, how can I talk about the problem that others are facing when I am not experiencing them myself ? This is where the importance of interacting with real people and learning about their experiences and challenges comes into play.
Key point to remember here always is — I am not the user. Only by internalizing this fact, can we truly listen to others and empathize with them effectively.

So, to gain insights of potential issues within the Home Office area, I conducted interviews with five of my team members. Through these interviews, I learned valuable techniques for engaging with people and collecting relevant data while also respecting their boundaries and privacy.
Here is the questionnaire I prepared.

As I went through the interviews one by one, I made changes to the questions based on my user’s experiences.
Well, I must admit, getting my team mates to open up about their home office struggles was like pulling teeth at first but eventually, I hit the jackpot. It was like unlocking a secret stash of snacks in the back of your home office desk — you never know what hidden gems you will find once you start looking!!

Step 2 : The aha moment — Gaining valuable insights from user interviews

To better understand my users, I carefully analyzed their responses and broke them down into three key components: their thoughts, actions, and emotions. By doing so, I was able to gain valuable insights into their behavior and more precisely define the problem statement.

Likes & Dislikes of User 1

Likes & Dislikes of User 2

Likes & Dislikes of User 3

Likes & Dislikes of User 4

Likes & Dislikes of User 5

🎯Phase 2 | Define — Getting to the Heart of the Issue

First, I gathered all of my findings from the empathize phase and started piecing them together. I could find answers to questions like —
What common themes and patterns did I observe ? What user needs and challenges consistently came up ? Why each of those problems are important to the users ?

How shall we enable uninterrupted work and communication in a shared
home-office space ?
When working in a shared space, users are unable to stay focused on their work since the co-worker has a video conference/voice call or when both of them have meetings at the same time. They are now shifting places so that their co-worker is not disturbed.

How can we reduce the external noise interruptions during work calls ?
Home is a space that accommodates other family members (excluding the user) and is located in a confined area of other buildings, roads, vehicles etc., interferences like other family members entering the room to take any item from the room, people talking over the phone, high volume music from TV/mobile phones, vehicle sounds from the road, neighbors talking to each other outside, pressure cooker whistles from kitchen — are disturbing the user’s/listener’s attention during video conferencing.

How can we minimize clutter and improve wire management issues when working from the couch/bed ?
When users prefer to work from bed or couch, the wires of chargers, data cables, headphones etc. and essentials like pen, notepad etc. creates a clutter there.

How might we design a home-office setup that allows for easy and mess-free eating and drinking while working ?
Often during busy days, time restricts users to have food in the dining area and when they want to take a snack bite or sip a coffee in between, they need to be cautious of spilling food that can damage their gadgets or block them from maintaining a clean desk. They also need to clear their desk a bit to make space for the food bowl to be placed.

How can we design a comfortable and ergonomic workspace that allows the user’s preference for working from bed ?
Users prefer to work from bed during late night hours or switch places after sitting at a desk for quite a long time. They need a solution that does not compromise their productivity and one that does not impact their sleeping experience on the bed.

How might we design a setup that provides the user with easy access to all their essential and extra items ?
Users need easy access to everyday essentials such as water bottle, chargers, earphones, notebooks/books, files, stationeries etc. and would want to have few additional decor/utility items like plants, pictures, white boards, sticky notes etc on their desk in an organized manner.

How might we design a setup that reduces back pain, neck pain, and other strains associated with sitting for extended periods of time ?
When users have longer days at their desk, sitting there for a period of time causes them strain and body ache/back pain.

How might we design a flexible workspace that allows the user to change their position or location as needed, without disrupting their work productivity?
Since users have all their essential items organized on a desk, changing positions or locations inside the home is quite difficult. Also to do any associated activity like reading, using mobile phone, etc the user stays in the same desk.

How shall we design a workspace that allows enough natural light while minimizing glare ?
During the day, users prefer well lit workspaces to elevate their mood but as time goes, the direct sunlight falling through the window at noon blocks users from seeing the screen without a glare. They have to adjust the curtain drapes accordingly but doing so puts them in a situation to bring artificial light in the room.

How can we design a space that allows personalized and professional-looking backgrounds during video calls, without requiring significant setup or disruption of the workspace ?
During important video calls, users find using a clean background to be more professional. Using a stand available in markets now is quite a task to set up and sometimes becomes a hindrance for other people in the house to walk around.

By the end of the define phase, I could arrive at a clear problem statement which will guide me throughout the design process. This will form the basis of my ideas and potential solutions.

In this stage, I leveraged the power of ChatGPT to validate my problem statements. Using ChatGPT for validation provided me with comprehensive insights and diverse perspectives regarding my problem statements, resulting in an improved user analysis. As technology continues to advance, it is important for us to keep up with it in order to tackle more complex problems and create valuable solutions for end users.

💡Phase 3 | Ideate — Thinking Outside the Cubicle

The phase was a judgement-free zone where we were encouraged to explore new angles and to think outside the box. Ideation sessions were held in order to generate as many ideas as possible — regardless of whether or not they were feasible!

I utilized the Crazy 8 technique to brainstorm multiple ideas. The process involved setting a timer for eight minutes and listing eight possible solutions for each problem statement. I am uncertain why it is labeled Crazy 8 — perhaps because it encourages to think of wild and crazy ideas or maybe the method itself can drive one crazy !

By the end of this, I went like….

I was able to come up with 61 different ideas for the 10 problem statements I had identified in the previous phase. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the problems and the corresponding ideas I generated.

Original ideas are the easy part. Actually producing the idea as a successful product is what is hard. — Donald A. Norman

After recalling this famous quote, I decided to prioritize the ideas by considering why each idea was worth pursuing. Focusing on the top 3 ideas drove me to get a clear sense of direction and evaluate the solution’s feasibility and potential in the market.

🛠️ Phase 4 | Prototype — Building the Blueprint

The aim of this prototyping stage is to turn our ideas into something tangible that can be tested with our real users. This ensures that the final design actually solves the user’s problem and is a delight to use !

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🤦‍♀️Home Office Woes — The problem statement

During hectic schedules, users may not have the time to have a proper meal in the dining area, and may need to grab a quick snack or sip coffee in between work. However, they also have to be careful of spilling food that could potentially damage their gadgets.
Cleaning up spills and leftovers immediately is also necessary to maintain a clean workspace.

Furthermore, having to clear the desk space to accommodate food and beverages is a tedious task for users, which leads to added effort and inconvenience. Moreover, holding a food bowl while trying to type on a keyboard or work on a laptop can be challenging and obstructs the user’s view of their work area.

🤤 From Hangry to Happy — The idea

Who is this for ?

The target users for my product could be anyone who works from home or spends a lot of time at their desk, such as remote workers, freelancers, students, or even gamers. It could also be useful for anyone who wants to have a snack or drink at their desk without worrying about spills or mess.

Now users be like — Why God Why ?

💰Industry voids

I identified gaps in the user experience by observing their behavior in limited spaces while having food, such as in a car or airplane.
Even though the limited space doesn’t allow for the traditional dining experience, users do not completely avoid having food in that space.
This behavior was also observed in my target users for whom limited desk space was an issue. Therefore, it was crucial to develop a solution that enables them to have food without compromising their workspace.

Currently, there are no specific products in the market that address this particular problem area. Some users are using mats or tables with extended trays (such as keyboard trays) to mitigate this issue. This represents an opportunity gap that presents the potential for introducing a new product or service to the market, one that can fill the void left by existing offerings.

I drew inspiration from products designed for different problem areas but with similar user behaviors.

Inspiration for the prototype

✔️ Experimental Prototype

Initial prototype of Swivel Snack Stand

📦Unpacking the Product

The product features —

• A detachable silicone tray that can be easily removed and cleaned in case of any food spillage. The silicone material is also heat-resistant, ensuring durability and ease of use.
• Additionally, the product includes a silicone cup holder that provides a firm grip and minimizes the chances of spillage from cups/cans. It also allows for the comfortable placement of mugs with handles.
• The stand features a 360-degree rotatable knob, providing users with the convenience of having food while working and moving it away as needed. The length and height of the stand are adjustable, offering users the flexibility to customize it according to their preferences.

✅ Phase 5 | Test — The Final Check

The final step in the Design Thinking process is dedicated to testing: putting the prototypes in front of real users and seeing how they get on.
To ensure the effectiveness of the product, I sought reviews from my team members who served as my users to quickly highlight any design flaws that need to be addressed. Based on what I learnt here through usability testing (more like a peer review), I went back and made improvements.

😊 Supportive reactions

1. Great idea & execution.
2. Solves the problem statement and serves the purpose.
3. Really useful to save my electronics and to keep a clean space.

😩 Constructive criticism

1. The setup process appears to be challenging, particularly when hunger strikes.
2. Consider creating a product that is easy to pull out from the desk or that is compact and foldable.
3. Make the table and stand at the same height to make eating more comfortable.
4. The stand should not require removal after each use.
5. There are concerns about the stand’s stability and whether it is suitable for resting one’s hand.

✔️ Refined Prototype

View of tray and cup holder

View of VESA mount

View of Swivel Snack Stand.

👤User- driven development

1. The addition of a VESA mount provides enhanced stability to the product, enabling users to rest their hands comfortably. Moreover, this is a easy one-time installation that doesn’t interfere with other activities in the same space.
2. Silicone grips have been incorporated into the tray design to indicate its versatility as a stand-alone plate or a surface to hold bowls or plates.
3. The versatility of the VESA mount allows it to serve multiple purposes beyond just holding the food tray. It can also be utilized for storing keys, wallets, notepads, and even used as a writing surface.
4. The rectangular shape of the tray has been redesigned to offer a more spacious surface area for users to place their plate, cutlery, and napkins

The use cases of Swivel Snack Stand are as below —

Primary use case

Secondary use case

🔆 Expansion Opportunities

1. Developing a more user-friendly mechanism for pulling out and using the tray on the go.
2. Incorporating emerging technologies such as LED lighting to enhance the user experience for late-night use.
3. Exploring ways to maintain the temperature of the food for longer periods of time.

❤️ Lessons Learnt

1. The focus while exploring a new process should always be the learning and not perfection.
2. Remember not to frame questions to build solution backwards.
3. Bias cannot be eliminated but only be minimized.
4. We must not define problems statements based on emotions.
5. Empathy can be a challenging skill to develop, but the journey of learning and practicing empathy is rewarding. Perfect empathy does not exist.
6. Practicality is not always a zero or one. Some aspects of it may be applicable, while others may not be.
7. We cannot solve all problems of users.
8. Most importantly, be a #studentforlife.

🔚 Shutting down :

Undertaking this project has been an insightful experience, similar to a roller coaster ride. I never imagined of tremendous thoughts and efforts invested in each physical product we come across, which serves to solve our everyday problems.
I am grateful for your presence throughout this journey, which makes me feel valued. I hope you also enjoyed this ride with me. 😁

Stay connected — https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharmada-s/

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